I've seen several recent threads on this subject over the last few months, and felt the need to comment.
Certainly one of the most common complaints of Brownings design is the heavy factory trigger. Since the complicated action has discouraged successful aftermarket set-trigger designs the rifle owner has three alternatives: learn to live with the factory trigger, have a professional gunsmith work on the trigger sear, or add a trigger modification. A skilled gunsmith can hone and polish a different angle on the contacting surface of the trigger sear. With the addition of a lighter trigger spring the trigger pull can be reduced to safely and crisply break at two pounds or less.
There is one approach that has been passed along on the Internet talk forums for some time. It is referred to by at least three names: Dale53 modification, Dale Mcgee modification, or Mcgee Modification. This technique requires some work by the rifle owner to form and install a short screw in the rear of the action. Another is a kit by J & B Innovations, and sold through Brownells, and possibly others. Finally there is a well-know gunsmith that modifies the trigger sear and charges a very economical price. I've used and fully evaluated all three, and felt you could benefit from my findings
McGee and J&B Mod.
The Dale McGee and J&B modifications take a slightly different approach to achieve the same goal, limiting trigger sear engagement, resulting in a lighter trigger pull and minimal trigger creep. The key word here is LIMITING sear engagement. Youre forcing the trigger sear and hammer sear to contact only on the tips of the sears, thereby reducing the pull pressure and creep (sear travel) required to separate the sears. Therefore, the installer is cautioned to take a conservative approach in final adjustments. The trigger sear is relatively soft compared to the hammer sear. An incorrect adjustment (setting it too light) can cause premature wear to the tip of the trigger sear, leading to a very unsafe trigger or a condition where the hammer will not stay in the full cock position.
The McGee Modification is based on installing a screw in front of the stock bolt to limit the amount of sear engagement. The screw is custom made and requires removal of the stock for installation. Its invisible from outside the action. The J & B Innovations Kit also limits sear engagement. It comes with the necessary parts and instructions, is a little easier to install and adjust, but the installer has to be gentle in the installation process due to the soft brass metal the adjustment screw is machined from. I broke one side of the slot during installation and had to re-cut the screwdriver slot. When installed the shiny brass adjustment nut is quite visible behind the trigger. One advantage of the J & B kit is the ease of future adjustments. Should you find additional fine-tuning is necessary due to trigger sear wear, a quick screwdriver adjustment will take care of it. Theres no need to remove the stock, as would be the case for the McGee solution. Either modification is easily removed to return the rifle back to factory configurations.
Since the trigger modifications are normally installed and adjusted in the comfort of an air-conditioned home or workshop I wondered what would happen when the action is left in direct sunlight on a hot day and allowed to reach temperatures of over 100 degrees, or for that matter cooled down to freezing temperatures or below. To simulate actual shooting conditions the modified actions were put in a freezer, tested, then slowly heated with a high-temperature heat gun and retested. A high-quality trigger pull scale did not measure a significant difference between the cooled, heated, or room temperature actions. Also note the trigger pulls were adjusted to 2.5 lbs. prior to the test. I feel a lighter adjustment can lead to premature sear tip wear and the unsafe trigger condition noted earlier
Lee Shaver's Trigger Job
I prefer Lee Shavers trigger sear modification to the Dale McGee or J & B Innovations approaches, which limit sear engagement. Lee states that with the new angle he hones on the sear, along with the lighter trigger spring, which he supplies, will result in an adjustable trigger pull range of 1.5 to 2 pounds. Within the range the actual weight can be adjusted with the trigger adjustment screw. I had Lee work on five Browning triggers. The results were evaluated on 5 different rifles.
Prior to testing the trigger pull weight, each rifle was dry fired 10 times with forward pressure on the hammer to break in the sear, thereby removing any surface roughness off the sear surfaces and edges. Triggers weights were measured with a RCBS Premium Trigger Pull Scale. The data was taken after cocking the hammer with the rifle lever. With the trigger adjustment screw set to the minimum (screwed all the way in) the average pull weight was 1.65 lbs. With the trigger adjustment screw set to the maximum the average pull weight was 2.18 lbs. By the way, an interesting and very distinct difference was noted between the measured pull weights when the hammer was cocked by pulling it back versus cocking the hammer by lowering the lever and cycling the action. The pull weight decreases by approximately 0.25 lbs. when the hammer was cocked by just pulling it back. During the testing no discernable creep was felt in any of the triggers. The sears broke very clean and crisp on each rifle, which brings me to another comment.
McGee and J&B versus Shaver
Id come across reports suggesting that using either the McGee or J & B modification in combination with Lee Shavers trigger work resulted in the best trigger obtainable. So I evaluated Lees trigger sear and new spring on rifles with the McGee and J & B modifications installed. My fingers may not be as sensitive as others but the bottom line was I could not perceive any benefits to having the McGee or J & B modifications installed along with the Lee Shaver sear. Not desiring to risk trigger sear tip wear, the McGee and J & B modifications were subsequently removed from my rifles.
