Some time back I did a review of
the Savage Sports Striker in 22 long rifle. I found the gun to have real
potential as a good, inexpensive alternative to the Anschutz as a bolt action
unlimited gun. However, there was a catch, and that was the trigger. With a
factory pull weight of approximately six pounds, it rendered the gun to almost
the same category as a casual tin can plinker or a rat shooter. Competition grade accuracy was
almost impossible.
Later on, I was able to fit the gun with an
aftermarket target grade trigger. The gun immediately started to shoot MOA
groups at 100 yards with quality ammunition. The difference in the little
Striker’s performance was not only dramatic, but actually startling - especially
when you considered the modest cost of this very well designed little
gun. However, there was another catch. The aftermarket trigger was as expensive
as the gun itself.
Well some months ago I became aware that
Rifle Basix was taking an alternative approach to the situation. (If you don’t
know, Rifle Basix is small independent trigger manufacturer located in the
Charlotte, North Carolina area. They’ve been producing high quality triggers for
a wide variety of guns for several years now. In fact, I’ve been using one of
their low profile triggers on my Ken Light XP-100 standing unlimited gun for
over five years now without a single problem.)
Rifle Basix decided
not to build a complete replacement for the factory trigger assembly, but rather
to design and build a replacement sear instead. The new part would take full
advantage of the existing Savage mounting frame as well as all of the other
existing pins and other trigger parts. Only the sear, one spring, and a jam nut
would be replaced. All the rest of the Savage hardware would be retained. This
approach insured that cost would be kept to a minimum. As a result, the Rifle
Basix trigger sear costs only $69.95 plus shipping. This is approximately 35% of
the cost of complete custom trigger assembly.
Design of the new sear literally took
several months of constant work and what seemed like endless experimentation.
Bob Brasfield, owner of Rifle Basix, told me he’s got a shoebox full of
prototype designs that were tried and rejected for one reason or another. The
final design is surely a tribute to his patience and his skill.
Installing the new sear was not difficult.
First remove the bolt and then remove the gun from the stock. You’ll see that
there are three horizontal pins secured with an “E” clip in the trigger
assembly. One pin holds the trigger arm/trigger finger lever (the rod to which
the plastic trigger shoe is attached), another pin holds the safety lever, and a
third holds the sear itself. Remove the clips, and then using a punch or even a
finishing nail, tap out the pins and set aside. Label what pin with what clip
goes into what hole as two of the pins and clips are a slightly different
diameter than the other. You don’t want to get them mixed up.
First remove
the safety lever clip and pin and detach the safety lever from the side of
the trigger assembly. Next remove the clip and pin for the trigger finger
lever and remove the lever with the attached trigger shoe. Lastly, remove
the clip and pin for the factory sear and remove same from the inside of
the assembly along with the weight of pull spring and the large safety
detent spring. While doing the above, be sure to note the position of the
safety detent spring which operates the safety lever. You might want to
even make a rough sketch to insure you get it back into the proper
orientation when reassembling.
Now make sure the Rifle Basix weight of pull
spring is placed in its cavity at the front of the replacement sear. Place the
replacement sear inside the gun’s trigger frame in the same orientation as the
original sear. Line up the holes and replace the pin and clip. Then place the
trigger lever back in the assembly and replace the pin and clip. Lastly, replace
the safety lever, safety detent spring, pin, and clip.
Now you’re ready to adjust the new
sear. Re-install the bolt and cock. Turn the gun bottom side up and at the front
of the sear you’ll see an allen head screw. Turn the screw down compressing the
weight of pull spring. (The appropriate size wrench is provided.) The screw
should be turned in from the top approximately .02 - .04” for your initial
adjustment.
Now you’ll want to turn in the sear
positioning plunger at the rear of the sear just enough to take all movement and
creep out of the trigger lever. When the trigger is set for a light pull, the
plunger will be screwed in only a relatively slight amount. You’ll have to
experiment a bit with the settings in order to ensure that you get a creep free
trigger breaking at the weight you want. Once you get the creep out with the
plunger adjustment, you can play with the weight of pull spring to get things
just where you want them. You’ll probably have to go back and forth a couple of
times with the adjustments to get everything set just so. Once everything is
set, snug up the small nut on the plunger to keep things in place. Now you’re
ready to start shooting.
So what’s the end result? Well before, I had
a six pound trigger and getting target grade accuracy was extremely difficult.
In fact, the hard pull of the original trigger would leave a deep, red
indentation in the pad of my finger - I’m not exaggerating. It’s true. Now, I
have a 10 ounce trigger with no creep or movement of any kind. The trigger
breaks clean and smooth and silhouette grade accuracy is routine. Actually, you
should be able to get the trigger down to 8 ounces. If you don’t like your
triggers that light, you can crank it up to around a pound and a half.
In addition, if you should own a Savage
rimfire rifle, you’re in luck. This same sear will also fit the Savage Mk I, Mk
II, Model 93, and the 900 Last but not least, it also fits the Savage 502 - the
22 Mag version of the Sports Striker.