Hatsan Striker Edge Trigger modification walk through!!

[langheldphoto]

Hey guys I've never posted on this gate before so I hope this is the right place for this. 

Last year I purchased a Hatsan Striker Edge .22 from academy on clearance for $80, just because that was too good a deal to pass up.  Well in the time that I have had the gun I have learned a couple things about it: 1. It is ridiculously accurate with the Wally World CPHP's (so good in fact I have not even bothered ordering any other pellets to try, why try to improve perfection?) 2. The trigger on this gun is woefully terrible. It has a ridiculously long "first stage" with a lot of slack and it fails to break cleanly with any noticeable consistency.

Now I know that at one point in time there was a trigger replacement available in the UK but I have been unsuccessful in finding on for sale still as apparently they are no longer being made... And supposedly the GRT3 trigger will work in the gun but will need to be lengthened to be long enough to properly use.  So, since I something of a tinker'er (if that is even a word)  I decided to try to find a way to make the factory trigger at least a little bit better that abysmal...  And I succeeded.

As a note you should prepare a nice work area clear of obstructions on a flat surface before beginning, lots of little parts that can be lost very easily.... (ask me how I know    )

First you will need to remove the 3 screws holding the plastic stock to the actual workings of the gun. On on either side of the fore stock and on at the rear of the trigger guard.

Next you will need to Remove the pin holding the trigger in place. Simply push it all the way out and set it and the trigger aside somewhere safe and out of the way.

Then take a 1/16 drill bit and drill a small hole in the center of trigger in the same area as shown in the picture

Next screw a set screw at least 1/4" in length and of the proper size (hobby stores should have small screws of various sizes readily available) into the hole that was just drilled into the trigger. You shouldn't have to tap threads into the trigger itself because of the soft material it is made out of, just carefully use the steel set screw to "cut" the proper threads. Or if you happen to have a small tap set knock yourself out and tap some proper threads into the trigger. Either way will work just fine.  This screw will now essentially "pre-load" the trigger to eliminate the first stage slack.  Be sure to try different depths to find what works best for you and your gun by simply screwing in the set screw to different depths and reinstalling the trigger with the pin until you find what works best.

Now, here comes the SLIGHTLY tricky part.  With the trigger pre-loaded the safety feature will more that likely strike the pin holding the trigger in place and must be carefully filled down.  To do so you will need to remove a C-clip from the pin holding the safety slide in place and very, I repeat VERY gently tap the pin down just enough that it does not interfere with removing the safety mechanism. DO NOT TAP ALL THE WAY OUT. 

Next lift up on the spring that hold the safety in place and slightly pull to one side without removing the entire spring.

Once that is done the safety mechanism should slide back and then down enough to allow the piece in question to be filled down.  I had to file mine down roughly 4-5 mm or a little more that 1/8".  Be sure to test fit often to make sure you do not remove too much material, FAILURE TO DO SO COULD RESULT IN THE SAFETY BEING NON FUNCTIONAL.  If you remove too much material the safety will no longer work!!!

Once you have removed enough material for the safety to still work and clear the trigger pin when pre-loaded. Simply reinstall everything in the reverse order as removal.   The pictures attached are in Chronological order of first to last step.

This should work on a number of other guns I would imagine and has greatly GREATLY improved the usability of my Hatsan, along with shrinking the already outstanding groups. 

[jjshbetz11]

Nice write up. I don't have that particular gun but can see how this could be adapted to others.

[stonykill]

 Thanks for the write up! At some point I was going to dig into mine, in .22 vortex. Like yours mine is silly accurate with cheap pellets ( in my case Crosman pointed hunting pellets) but I don't shoot it hardly at all because of the LOOOOOOONG GRITTY trigger pull. I'll give this a try at some point. So THANKS for the write up!

[langheldphoto]

Hey guys glad you liked the write up.  It is really simple to do.  Just make sure when you are tapping the safety pin you DO NOT go too far in, in my case on one of the times I was testing to see if I had removed enough from the safety I accidentally went ~1mm too far and the groove in the pin that the c- clamp goes into, got stuck on another spring further in the trigger assembly. Total PITA to get that pin back in the right spot. 

The trigger pull weight is still a little on the high side but at least now it breaks cleanly and consistently with no "creep" in the first stage. 

[degorovi]

Thanks for showing us this. My Striker edge is also very accurate with the Crosman Premier Domed. Have also shot others like the RWS superdome, HTT copper plated(my new favorite), JSB diabolos with this gun and it shot them all well.

Vince

[stevewonderful]

Hey guys I've never posted on this gate before so I hope this is the right place for this. 

Last year I purchased a Hatsan Striker Edge .22 from academy on clearance for $80, just because that was too good a deal to pass up.  Well in the time that I have had the gun I have learned a couple things about it: 1. It is ridiculously accurate with the Wally World CPHP's (so good in fact I have not even bothered ordering any other pellets to try, why try to improve perfection?) 2. The trigger on this gun is woefully terrible. It has a ridiculously long "first stage" with a lot of slack and it fails to break cleanly with any noticeable consistency.

Now I know that at one point in time there was a trigger replacement available in the UK but I have been unsuccessful in finding on for sale still as apparently they are no longer being made... And supposedly the GRT3 trigger will work in the gun but will need to be lengthened to be long enough to properly use.  So, since I something of a tinker'er (if that is even a word)  I decided to try to find a way to make the factory trigger at least a little bit better that abysmal...  And I succeeded.

As a note you should prepare a nice work area clear of obstructions on a flat surface before beginning, lots of little parts that can be lost very easily.... (ask me how I know    )

First you will need to remove the 3 screws holding the plastic stock to the actual workings of the gun. On on either side of the fore stock and on at the rear of the trigger guard.

Next you will need to Remove the pin holding the trigger in place. Simply push it all the way out and set it and the trigger aside somewhere safe and out of the way.

Then take a 1/16 drill bit and drill a small hole in the center of trigger in the same area as shown in the picture

Next screw a set screw at least 1/4" in length and of the proper size (hobby stores should have small screws of various sizes readily available) into the hole that was just drilled into the trigger. You shouldn't have to tap threads into the trigger itself because of the soft material it is made out of, just carefully use the steel set screw to "cut" the proper threads. Or if you happen to have a small tap set knock yourself out and tap some proper threads into the trigger. Either way will work just fine.  This screw will now essentially "pre-load" the trigger to eliminate the first stage slack.  Be sure to try different depths to find what works best for you and your gun by simply screwing in the set screw to different depths and reinstalling the trigger with the pin until you find what works best.

Now, here comes the SLIGHTLY tricky part.  With the trigger pre-loaded the safety feature will more that likely strike the pin holding the trigger in place and must be carefully filled down.  To do so you will need to remove a C-clip from the pin holding the safety slide in place and very, I repeat VERY gently tap the pin down just enough that it does not interfere with removing the safety mechanism. DO NOT TAP ALL THE WAY OUT. 

Next lift up on the spring that hold the safety in place and slightly pull to one side without removing the entire spring.

Once that is done the safety mechanism should slide back and then down enough to allow the piece in question to be filled down.  I had to file mine down roughly 4-5 mm or a little more that 1/8".  Be sure to test fit often to make sure you do not remove too much material, FAILURE TO DO SO COULD RESULT IN THE SAFETY BEING NON FUNCTIONAL.  If you remove too much material the safety will no longer work!!!

Once you have removed enough material for the safety to still work and clear the trigger pin when pre-loaded. Simply reinstall everything in the reverse order as removal.   The pictures attached are in Chronological order of first to last step.

This should work on a number of other guns I would imagine and has greatly GREATLY improved the usability of my Hatsan, along with shrinking the already outstanding groups.

Thanks for the info. I just picked up one of these rifles and I am considering trying your mod. I also ran across this post on another  mod for this rifle.

newbielink:http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=38035.msg487878#msg487878 [nonactive]    Reply #203

I would appreciate your opinon on it.

[stevewonderful]

Well I tried this method from the link in my previous post.

""ONE BRIGHT SPOT: the trigger ... immediately back of the trigger is a short black screw that I replaced with a 3mm x 10mm panhead screw that I bought at Lowe's.  If it won't cock and lock open ... you've screwed it in too far.  Brought the trigger pull down to light and sweet (after I backed it off from hair trigger).  This is NOT the Quattro trigger ... it's the very basic trigger on my Striker 1000S.""

I took the factory black screw with me to my local hardware store and matched it up with one I thought would work. It has to be metric, which this was but it didn't work. It was too long. It was approximately 14mm. I bought two of these. I also bought one nut in case I had to shorten it I would be able to chase the threads with the nut after resizing it. I trimmed it down to about 9mm (I think) and installed it. It works beautifully.

It turned a crappy trigger into an outstanding one compared to before (for this airgun novice) on a hundred dollar rifle. So if anyone decides to try it, make sure it is no longer than 10mm. My guess is that my modified screw is 8 or 9mm. I didn't measure it after I installed it because I had it adjusted just right and didn't want to take it back out again. Here is a picture of the original screw and my spare unmodified screw for comparison.

[DOUGER]

HEY I TRIED THE SCREW 10 MM IT SEEMS LITTLE BETTER BUT THER IS GOT TO BE BETTER TRIGGER OUT THERE  THANKS FOR THE TIP IT DID HELP SOME AS I LOVE THE GUN

[SpiralGroove]

Hey langheldphoto,
I need to pull out my friend's Hatsan Striker and complete fixing the trigger; same as the edge.  I just got so frustrated working on it, that I gave up on the darn thing a few months ago.  I need to pull out the plastic cup which holds the parts.  As I remember, there are 4 springs on this trigger, two of which are just Murder to fit correctly.  After reacquainting myself with the trigger, I may have to PM you ............ it looks like you know the solution to my problems -> which your pictures don't answer.................

Thanks for sharing .................. Kirk

[SteveP-52]

I just finished changing out the screw stevewonderful showed in his post. My local Ace Hardware had the screws, 3mm x 10, .50 pitch, stainless and they even had them in an Allen head which I promptly bought! Getting an Allen head wrench down in there is way easier than a Phillips if you need to adjust things. They also had that same screw in an 8mm length so just in case, I also bought a couple of those and I'm glad I did!!

DO NOT screw that 10mm all the way in or you will not be able to cock the rifle!!!
 
Thank the air rifle gods I was holding that barrel tight at the bottom of the cocking stroke like I always do (I have a friend who actually doesn't when he feels it lock open) as it promptly tried to snap back up on me. It took me 3 complete turns with the Allen wrench to back it out far enough to safely cock the rifle, at which point, I fired one shot, came back in and changed that screw to the 8mm one I also bought. It still gives me some adjustment room (I'm still tweaking) and even all the way in, the barrel still cocks properly.
Here's the pic of the screws: the small one is the stock screw that came in the rifle, the longer one is the 8mm that is now in my rifle..sorry for the lousy pic but you can at least see the lengths of the screws...

[lefteyeshot]

Got a VMX .20 and Striker 1000 Vortexs in .177 and .22. Just want to follow this.

[SteveP-52]

howdy lefteye. Old Corps and I have been trading posts about all this in another thread and he gave me a link to an old post by Raizer that has pics showing what the GRT III tuna trigger looks like in a Striker...not sure I wanna try pulling that trigger and expecting any accuracy.

http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=61233.msg593005#msg593005

I sent off an e-mail to Welsh Willy asking if he's ever had a chance to compare his trigger to the GRT III and if so, does his have a longer blade. Soon as I get a reply, I'll add to to this. It's something like $45 US to get the Welsh Willy trigger, but if that blade is longer, I'm seriously tempted......

[lefteyeshot]

I started that other thread. I also e mailed Willie and was going to order two of his triggers but my Pay Pal want work. I think it's my old computer. But now I'm thinking I need some screws like you guys got and maybe try lubing the triggers. I got the Striker Vortex .25 and VMX .20 just to have those calibers in my collection.

[SteveP-52]

I had the rifle out today and fired off another 20 or so. I still get that longish pull back to firing stage, but the firing stage is definitely better with the 8mm screw in there instead of the short factory one.
might also try the above mod but haven't totally decided yet mainly because the rifle is back together and I'm getting some shooting time with it, it only had maybe 150 shots when I started tinkering with the trigger and fixing a stock issue. the fix i did is on here under My first air rifle mod...so far it seems to be working pretty well....time will tell...

[Old Corps]

http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=98379.20

Worked out great but anyone considering the fix please read this, reply #28. Don't wanna type it all over,,,,,,,,,

Thanks Steve!

Ed

[SteveP-52]

lefteye is the guy you should be thanking, it was his original post and the one from langheld that started me on trying that fix with the screw and i'm thanking you for the warning about the rifle possibly firing on it's own.
mine is apparently in a good spot as i haven't had any problems, i was even thinking for a change and took my scope off before i started thumping that stock.
now as long as we have decent weather in western new york this weekend, i have a scope to re-sight and hopefully a brand new chrony to play with!!!  oh yeahhhhh!!

[mentolio]

scp52: I Had a Striker that I installed a Welsh Willy trigger in. It was longer than the GTR, and fit the stock as it should. My only problem: it was waaaay too light. Definitely a two-stage feel to it, but the first stage a light breeze could take up, and the second stage was just too darned light. Even after practicing with it, I found the gun going off unexpectedly, which I didn't like at all. I contacted Will at Woodfield, and he suggested replacing the sear spring, as they are often too light from the factory.
  Fast forward a year later: I'd sold the gun to a buddy who liked it. I happened to have a Crosman trigger group sitting on my bench (known for heavy springs). I took the Striker apart, and replaced the stock sear spring with the Crosman sear spring. The Crosman spring is heavier and a bit thicker, but fit like it was made to go there. Upon testing, I found the trigger to be more like my GTR equipped Crosman (still a bit light for field work, but manageable). It displayed a much more palpable first stage, and a just slightly heavier 2nd stage. Now I want to buy the gun back! Point being: the Welsh Willy trigger is a nice piece of equipment, but be prepared for a trigger that is too light for anything but bench shooting.

[SteveP-52]

I e-mailed Willy  couple weeks back and explained everything and asked if he'd ever compared his trigger to the GRT III. He e-mailed back and told me he had and that he used to make a trigger for the rifles in question with a longer blade, but stopped making them for that exact reason.
The trigger sear spring was too light to make the trigger push back out properly and he stopped making that version of his triggers and now only has the one he currently sells which is comparable to the GRT III.
If they made the Tuna trigger with a bit longer trigger blade, say another 1/4-3/8 inch or so and named it something like the GRT IV, I'm guessing  it would work just fine, but the current one is that little bit too short to get your finger on decently and I'm not sure what would happen when you pulled back and the the top started it's travel inside the stock.....might find your finger sliding off the trigger tip and that's never a good thing.
Also guessing that spring would be too light and they'd have to include a stronger one to make things work if they ever did decide to make a GRT IV or whatever they might call it, but considering how many rifles are currently out there, under a bunch of names, with that trigger group in it, they might be able to make a decent profit.

[Old Corps]

I'm really completely satisfied with the oem trigger after doing the slightly longer screw fix. Yeah, there's a long pull before I get to the firing stage but once I get there it takes just a light (but not too light) squeeze to fire. Very predictable and consistent. That 1st "stage" or take up doesn't bother me, it's a very long pull but it's also very light. Now when I 1st use it after using another rifle with a tuna trigger it takes a minute or two to get used to it but for ME it's no big deal.

Ed

[SteveP-52]

I have the same long first pull, I just use it to basically ease into the shot I want to take. Rifle shoots much better with the longer screw, my groups are smaller and hopefully get even better when I can tweak the scope.
Now I just have a pellet issue to sort out as pellet diameter is apparently gonna be an issue I found trying to chrony some pellets yesterday...first time I ever had a pellet come out closing the barrel...which is kinda odd considering they fit nice in my 95....I do love a challenge....