Just about every day, there's a new thread asking the same questions over and over about trigger mods. I got permission from AJE to try and get ONE thread for all trigger questions in an attempt to cut down on all the new threads for the same topic.

Keep in mind that Glocks can come from the factory with anywhere from a 5.5-8lb trigger, not including models which come with the OEM "-" connector.  It varies a lot.

Popular mods:

1. Aftermarket connector (Lone Wolf, Ghost, Glock OEM "-", Zev are a few that make connectors.)
What does the connector do? An aftermarket connector changes the angle the trigger bar slides on it in such a way that it makes the trigger pull slightly lighter. Usually you will yield about a 1-2lb loss in pull weight with this mod. I'll say about a lot in this post because these are not precision guns and actual pull weights can vary from gun to gun even with the exact same mods.

2. Extra power trigger spring (Ghost, Zev, etc)
What does the extra power or "competition" trigger spring do? The extra power spring does the opposite of what it sounds like. It is a stronger spring, but it makes the trigger pull about .5-1lb lighter and also makes the trigger reset considerably more crisp and audible.

3. .25 cent trigger job (This is a DIY mod)
What is the .25 cent trigger job? The .25 cent trigger job is a very easy DIY mod. There are a metric crap ton of youtube videos and articles on it, but essentially you use a cloth rag (or dremel with caution to not take off too much material) and a metal polish of your choice (Flitz or Mothers works great) to polish all contact points in the trigger assembly. I have seen this mod make little to no difference in pull wight to taking over a pound off the trigger pull. I notice a very noticeable difference in the smoothness of the pull with this mod.

4. Reduced power safety plunger springs (Zev, Ghost, etc)
What does a reduced power safety plunger spring do? A reduced power or "competition" safety plunger spring is put into place to make the trigger lighter in the first ~25% or so of the pull. When you pull your Glock trigger, you are depressing the safety plunger. A reduced power spring will make the depression of the safety plunger feel nearly non existent along with a polish job.

*This is where most people will want to stop with trigger mods for a self defense gun.*

5. Reduced power striker spring and/or lightened striker (Zev, Taran Tactical, Wolff, Lone Wolf)
What does a reduced power striker spring and/or lightened striker do? Glock pistols are designed so that when you pull the trigger, you are pulling the striker to the point that the trigger bar drops off and releases it, igniting the primer. Reducing the weight of the striker spring will make your trigger pull lighter by a very considerable amount. Every pound taken off the OEM striker weight (which is 5.5lbs) will take about 12 ounces off the trigger pull weight. [b]If you choose to go under a 5lb striker spring, it is highly recommended that you use a lightened striker, which will allow the striker to hit harder with a lighter spring over the OEM striker weight. You may have success using striker springs lighter than 5lbs with the OEM striker, but it is hit and miss, especially if you shoot CCI primers. As light as 4lbs has been reliable using a lightened striker, but you will certainly want to do extensive testing yourself before being comfortable with it.

Please try to keep all trigger questions and/or concerns to this thread. I will do my best to answer questions and I'm sure many of the other members with more knowledge than myself will be willing to help out as well.

excellent post

Thank you sir. Everyone should feel free to add to it if I've left anything out.

I looked at a Salient Tier 1 at a local shop.

The trigger was outstanding.

Though I doubt I'd ever spend that kind of cash on a Glock I would like to invest in a trigger.

While the trigger pull was outstanding another feature that really added to the 1911 feel of it was the flat trigger shoe.

Does anyone else offer a "flat trigger" for the Glock and/or does Salient sell just the trigger kit..?

Agency Arms sells a flat faced trigger. Also, Zev's trigger is flatter than stock.

NY1, NY2, Competition reset spring, smooth and ribbed triggers, lightened firing pins, variations in triggers with different combinations of setups.

If you have any questions or need info let me know.

I am about to do a connector and a trigger return spring on a G17. What connector do you recommend?

I have tried several. Glock 3.5lb or "-" (minus) connector is easily my favorite. I have personally found that with some of the others you get a mushy trigger. The Glock connector doesn't have that feel.

Thanks. I was kinda leaning towards a Glock connector.

Add the Zev heavy trigger reset spring it takes the mushy clunk feeling as the striker breaks also makes the resel more positive.

Have you tried the double diamond connector? That's what I'm running in one of my glocks and really like it, I might have to give the factory connector a try.

Great post.
I recently got my first Glock(20)and was wondering about trigger mods and hadn't even started researching.


Then I stumble upon this gem

Thanks OP

Thanks OP  Bookmarked this for later use.

No problem guys.

Never tried that one. There's so many out there, I have no doubt there's many other good ones besides the Glock OEM "-" connector. That's just the one I personally like best out of what I tried.

I have tried Glock, LWD, Scherer, Zev, and an unknown.  The Scherer actually was the best feeling no polishing followed by the Glock and Zev that felt indistinguishable, and the LWD I feel was the worst feeling of the ones I have.

How does the Ghost Rocket stack up?  I'm thinking about replacing the factory Glock minus connector in my 34 with one, but I'm not sure if it will be enough of an improvement to make it worth while.

I tried a Ghost Rocker connector.  Felt mushy to me personally. Who knows you may like it though.

I have the ghost 3.5lb connector and a dremel polish on the trigger bar in my G34 for competition.

Its good enough for me, I wouldnt want to try and make it lighter honestly.

the glock "wall" in the trigger ive always felt is completely gone now and very smooth. not bad for $12

I would also mention the new York trigger spring that increases pull weight. Lots of people like them with a light connector.
 

My favorite diy mod was to round of and polish the top of the trigger bar that contacts the plunger. I'm not overly concerned with weight, but i like smooth and consistent.

Really like the idea of this thread, thanks OP!

Mr. Moderator, I believe this thread should be tacked.

No problem. I think this will help a lot of people.

We should get the main thread more comprehensive.  Cover more info.

If anyone wants more info added I can add more. The info already in the OP will take care of 95% of most new threads regarding trigger questions. Plus the thread will always be open for people to ask questions on anything else not covered in it.

Are the any potential safety issues with using a reduced power firing pin safety plunger spring?

I have them in my G17 and G34....  It does make for a lighter initial take up but so long as proper trigger discipline is applied I say NO.  You mush press the trigger with your booger finger first.

Awesome thread!

I have used the Ghost Rocket kit, just a Ghost 3.5 connector, the Zev Ultimate kit and the .25 cent job.
Obviously the Zev was the best hands down in every aspect, but I am a huge fan of the factory springs with a 3.5 connector. The full Ghost Rocket kit felt like mush, hated it!

I agree, the connectors are inexpensive, Id give them all a try & see what one you like best, that's what I did.
Just my 2 cents,
Tom

If it's installed correctly, no.

No problem. Hopefully it gets tacked. :)

Just got my agency arms drop in trigger and really like it. Flat trigger is nice, take up is gone and reset fills good. I wish for the price they would have included the plunger spring as i would like to take just a little more weight out of the pull.

OP - You should add to you post about the trigger set ups that reduce pre travel like the skimmer, zev, and agency arms.

The plunger spring would only reduce the first bit of the pull, not all the way through.

I only intended the OP to get into the most common mods which clog the Glock section up. However, this thread is intended for people to ask questions and discuss things about drop in triggers as well.

I'm currently waiting on a DK trigger and trigger bar. From what people are saying, there's no other trigger as nice. Unlike many of the other drop in triggers, DK actually changes the geometry of the bar and all, making the pull considerably nicer.

 
Mine is stellar.

Glad to hear it. Can't wait to get mine. :)

When this thread came up a couple of days ago I found it interesting. However, on step 5 I stumbled on the information presented. I get that the trigger pull is lighter when the striker spring weight is reduced. The consequence is a lighter primer strike. To make up for that a reduced weight striker is used to replace the OEM part.

What I am not getting is a lighter spring and lighter striker transfer more energy to the primer. What am I missing?

Mike

Is the combo of XP trigger spring and reduced power striker spring still discouraged due to the tigger safety not resetting? Been reading the reviews at midway and brownells and lots of reports of broken ZEV XP trigger springs and the above combo not working.

Not sure I'm following you. You seem to understand, no?

To run a striker spring under 5lbs, you'll want a lightened striker than the OEM. You are correct, the lighter striker with lighter spring will hit the primer harder than if you had a lighter striker spring with the heavier, OEM striker.

I am running a 4.5lb striker spring, Zev lightened striker,  "-" connector, and Zev safety plunger and competition trigger spring. My trigger safety resets fine.

As for broken Zev comp. trigger springs breaking,  I can only speak to my own experience which is that they have been fine for me for thousands of rounds across multiple Glocks. I have heard of people breaking them. I don't know if it's a hit and miss kind of thing, or that people are just expecting them to go for tens of thousands of rounds and they don't.

The way I feel about aftermarket springs is this: they're cheap enough to just replace every 3-4k rounds, so that's what I do. This is probably big time overkill and the springs probably have a lot of life left in them, but it gives me peace of mind that the gun isn't going to fail in the middle of a competition.

Edited my original post to include my experience. I wanted to see if other have similar experience with the below mentioned combo.

I run the Glock OEM 3.5 #  - (minus) connector & the New York 1 Olive 8 # spring. These together yield an approx 5 to 6 lb trigger pull, which is optimal for failure drills, that I am a firm advocate of practicing as often as I can. I also practice shooting at a target that would be standing sideways, or turned at an angle.

I don't personally have experience with them as I have zero desire to make my triggers heavier, which is what the NY 1 and 2 spring do. They were designed for NYPD who has minimum trigger woeght requirements.
From what I understand some folks like using the NY 1 spring along with lighter connectors.  Supposedly it yields approximately the same weight as you'd get with stock spring and 5.5lb connector, but trigger feels better (or so says). As I said, I've had no interest in them and the therefore no experience with them. Perhaps someone more knowledgeable than myself on the NY springs will chime in.

Which 4.5# striker spring?  Looks like Brownells only has 4#, 5.5# and 6

Wolff - I order it directly from them.

Did you just get the trigger bar assembly? I am curious to see how that works/feels. I am looking at drop-ins for my gen 3 34 and considering the DK custom kit. Also considering OCcustom triggers as well. I already have a glocktiggers.com Edge in another glock, but the adjustable pre-travel adds an additional feature that the edge lacks.

Yes, I got the trigger/trigger bar only. I didn't want the whole kit as it comes with a bunch of stuff I already had. Haven't gotten shipping info yet, but as soon as I have it installed I will definitely write up a small review of how it feels here. Judging by the youtube vids I've seen, I don't think I'll be disappointed at all. The trigger bar is the real magic, as he changes the geometry of where the bar connects to the trigger and all. It's truly custom - not just a lightly modified OEM trigger bar like most other drop in kits have. There is basically zero pre travel with it. The trigger has a very tiny bit of slack, and you're immediately at the wall. Then of course you can take just about all the over travel out making for a very short reset. From what I understand it's about the closest you can get to a 1911 trigger without actually having a 1911. ;)

I've tried Lonewolf, Ghost, Glock, and ZEV connectors with various spring configurations and aftermarket safety plungers.  I also have 2 ZEV Fulcrum Ultimate Kits (one in a RMR'ed G17 gen 4, one in my G35 gen 3 for USPSA Limited).  My feeling is that the Fulcrum is the absolute best trigger I have used.  I love the wider, flatter trigger pad.  The wider trigger safety is nice too.  The reset is short and tactile, and the trigger pull is very light without any reliability issues.  However, I will say that the ZEV "starter kit" (connector, trigger spring, safety plunger spring,striker spring) is by far the best bang for the buck.  This is the setup I have in my G34 gen 4, G19 gen 4, and G20 gen 3.  I have the stock striker springs in them now, but I have used the lighter springs without any reliability issues.  I just don't like to mess with the striker springs in a carry gun.

Sounds like you need to try the DK trigger then. ;) From what I've seen, it kills the ZEV trigger.

What should I get for a carry/self defense Glock on a budget? I'm willing to spend a little cash but don't want to break the bank. I am going to start looking at everything on the list in the OP but want a little more guidance. I'd be ok with a drop in trigger assembly or changing out parts/springs.

Thisis my  carry set up:
Glock "-" minus connector, Zev comp trigger spring and safety plunger spring,  .25 cent trigger/polish job. Significantly better than stock while still being reliable.

ZEV "starter kit" connector and spring package.  Don't install the striker spring.  Under $30.