Single Lever Double set Triggers Made from a RR Spike

[Curtis]

Well, the trigger plate is made from a spike at least.    I made this set of triggers for the Henry Albright rifle I started at WKU at the NMLRA Gunsmithing Seminar.  These were made by eye, no measuring as I went along other than some occasional gauging proportions with a pair of dividers.  For inspiration as to the working parts I used some antique single lever triggers and Jim Webb's book on triggers etc.  Adjustments to the components were made as the triggers progressed, in a "sneak up on it" fashion, and the a drill was the only power tool used was to construct the set triggers.  The triggers were designed to emulate the set triggers on an original Albright rifle, from photographs.  The triggers on the original are quite wide and robust.

Starting to saw out the trigger plate:





















Forged out a trigger shoe for the rear trigger, and cut the trigger to initial shape:





Heated and bent the rear trigger shoe:





Starting on front trigger:



Next I sawed a section off an old car hood spring, heated it red hot with a torch and stuck it in some wood ashed to anneal:



Drilled pivot pin holes for the triggers and tried initial fit on the outside, then marked for the trigger piercings in the plate:



Drilled pilot holes for the trigger piercings, then sawed the opening with a jewelers saw.  Cut the slot through the plate for the trigger blades etc.













I originally started with a front spring for the front trigger, it worked fairly well but abandoned the idea after I wasn't happy with the clearance allowed for the tang bolt:







Next the rear spring was cut and profiled similar to the one on the antique triggers:









Drilled and tapped for spring screw:



Refined the trigger shapes:



Found a metric screw I could re-thread to 4-40, then drilled and tapped the plate for the front trigger adjustment screw:





Just about there!  When I inlet the trigger I will remove material from the rear trigger blade to fit.  The triggers will be case-hardened when all filing is done and they are ready for the metal finish. I will probably move the rear of the front trigger spring under the rear trigger spring, it will take a little tweeking.  They work just dandy like it is but it will require less wood removal for inletting.









Finally, I used a nail as a rivet to plug the extra hole from the abandoned front spring.



Well that's all for now!

Thanks for looking, Curtis

[Adrie luke]

Curtis,

 I respect the most you made it yourself!
Great job!

Adrie

[alacran]

Thank you for sharing. Sometimes I make things just to see if I can do it, knowing in the long run it is cheaper to buy a ready made part. Amazing what can be done with a hacksaw and some files.
The triggers look great.

[yip]

 what a great job, your a true craftsman and artist!!!!!

[Bob Roller]

what a great job, your a true craftsman and artist!!!!!

Wow! I agree with yip 200%.I got tired just looking at the pictures and S.E.A*
that went into this project.The square spike reminds me of old George Killen
here in Huntington along with the flat section coiled spring from a car hood or
maybe trunk.Everything he did was done in the way you described from hard
to use materials.I let him watch me make a "V"mainspring for a lock from 1075
and he thought it was some kind of magic that any spring could be made of such
smooth and easy to work material.
Congratulations on a hard job finished and working.
Bob Roller
*S.E.A=Sweat-Effort-Aggravation

[Tim Crosby]

 That is great work, I especially appreciate the file/finish work, Very well done.

   Tim

[BOB HILL]

Curtis, thanks for sharing this great piece of work with us.
Bob

[Mike Brooks]

Exceptionally nice. Where there is a will, there is a way. I'd have to add another $800 to the price of a gun if I had to do that for every gun I make.

[ericxvi]

  Well done Curtis!
Here's a picture of how William Defibaugh made his front trigger spring. I copied these from an original much the same way you did. They need to be case hardened yet, but they work.

[David Rase]

Really nice job Curtis!  Having made my own triggers once or twice, I understand ow much effort you put forth.  Beautiful.
David

[t.caster]

Great tutorial, and you made it look so easy I may have to try it sometime.

[T*O*F]

Does the railroad know that you're pilfering all their spikes?   

[Craig Wilcox]

Very elegant, Curtis, and very true to the original.  You inspire us to try harder to do good work.

[rich pierce]

Lots of hacksawing there. Nice work. I bet you wish for a forge now and then. I miss my backyard suburban forge. Took it down about 15 years ago.

[David R. Pennington]

I began my blacksmith journey a few years ago so I could forge small gun parts like this. My first home made triggers were made from an old wrench and a discarded circular saw blade. They still function better than the store bought ones. The blacksmithing soon took on a life of its own.
Those are really nice looking triggers.

[hortonstn]

Curtis
Very nice

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Really nice work!  There's a HUGE amount of satisfaction gained from this sort of project.

[Fowler610]

Newbies want to know how things like triggers can be fabricated.  I think this belongs in the "how-to" section.  Nicely done, sir.

[helwood]

Curtis,
Most Excellent!  You really are pushing the envelope.  The more you make yourself the more you understand what it took/s.  I am so pleased.
         Congratulations, Hank

[Ed Wenger]

Great work, Curtis!  You’re turning into an American Rolf!


     Ed

[Curtis]

Well guys, thanks for all your comments, and the pictures too ericxvi. 

The triggers actually went together fairly easily, and pretty quickly as well.  Practically threw themselves together, lol!    It took a couple of days in the shop from start to finish.  Making them slightly oversize and gradually fitting them together was the ticket.

It is amazing how fast a hacksaw can work and eliminate a whole lot of filing.  I might add that I always oil the hacksaw blade or workpiece when I cut heavy materials, it goes faster probably because the blade stays sharp at least 4 times as long as without.  When you watch the smoke roll off the work from the oil burning you understand what kind of heat the sawing generates.  Heat will ruin a blade fast.

TOF, Last time I got chased down by the RR cops I gave them your name and address.   

Rich, I have a small forge, just need to find some good coal.  I should probably just buy some good hardwood charcoal and give that a whirl.

Hank, you really should post some pics of your finished sideplate.  That was truly killer work there!

Curtis

[G_T]

Now that's nice work!

Gerald

[Elnathan]

Rich, I have a small forge, just need to find some good coal.  I should probably just buy some good hardwood charcoal and give that a whirl.

Some not-so-good charcoal might actually work better. I use lump charcoal in my forge and like it a lot, but found that the bag of more expensive all-hickory charcoal I bought to try out didn't work as well as my usual generic hardwood charcoal from Wal-Mart. I don't know why exactly that was, but the properties that make for a good grilling coal aren't necessarily the qualities one wants for heating steel up to 1500 degrees. The Japanese swordsmiths prefer pine charcoal, as it burns quick but hot, IIRC.

[Curtis]

Thanks for the info on the charcoal Elnathan, It like it when cheap things work well.   I will have to give it a try.

Curtis

[J. Talbert]

I love when ugly ducklings turn into swans.

Great job Curtis!

Jeff