Can someone tell me how I can modifiy the trigger on my P85 so it has less takeup ? I'd prefer to be able to do it myself and not have to buy any parts.

That "take up" or free play you speak of, is with the hammer cocked, trigger released, then squeezed again to let off, right? Its normal on most all DA types I have. Upon firing, letting the trigger just "reset" it is not noticed, only when you release it all the way. P-85s are not famous for trigger pulls and the later P-89s improved somewhat. If its hard to pull in DA, an easy way to improve that is with a "reduced power" main spring. Hopefully, that answered the question, unless you mean "trigger creep".

It is probabely trigger creep that I want to get rid of. When firing from single action you have to pull the trigger a fairly long way to make the gun fire. I'd say 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch.

I dont know of any trigger creep of that amount, so it must be "take up". That free play is normal. "P" series pistols seem to have more than other makes. Try more rapid firing, if possible, you will see it is not as much as starting from the fully released position. But yes, it is still there. You have to release the trigger a little farther between shots to reset it for the next shot. If you know someone with another brand, say Beretta or Smith, try the trigger on theirs, it should be similar.

I've tried other DA/SA guns. It just seems like the SA trigger on my P85 is much longer then on other guns and I wanted to shorten it if possible.

I think the geometry on the "P" series pistol precludes that being done to any extent. You may want to refer that question to Kurt, in the gunsmithing section for a more definitive answer. Best of luck on that project.