Cocking problem?

Hugh · 01-09-2007, 01:35 AM

Jerry,

There's an easy fix for the problem you mention about cocking when hand operated and not cocking when fired. I have fixed a dozen of these.

Hugh · 01-09-2007, 12:07 PM

Ron,

It's a trade secret, if I tell you I'll have to kill you

Polish the angled edge of the trigger lever as shown in the picture. Stone the top edge of the sear bar button to a rounded or angled profile as shown in the picture. I have shown for comparsion a before and after trigger lever and a normal sear bar on the left with several modified sear bars on the right.

Hugh · 01-09-2007, 02:59 PM

Jerry,

It may move a little bit, but should not rotate very far. The pin holding it in should keep it from rotating very far as it fits in the slot pictured below. You just have to stone further around, like the one shown on the right end in my picture of the sear bars.

lugerholsterrepair · 01-04-2007, 08:08 PM

Situation; mismatched .30 Luger with rough, repro? sideplate. Commercial DWM, no date. Shoots right on the money to point of aim but will not **** when a round is fired. Only cocks when the toggles are pulled back by hand..Weird huh?

Jerry Burney

jonnyc · 12-23-2008, 04:56 PM

OK, what to do if the fix above, bevelling the edges of the trigger lever and disconnector, don't seem to fix the problem?

gt40mki · 02-21-2009, 08:39 PM

THANK YOU...made this much easier than I had imagined on my great uncles wwII 1917 trophy..although my dad get a little uneasy when I brought out the sandpaper...

Condition Yellow · 06-07-2009, 03:09 AM

Hugh,

Thank you so much for this sticky. I received my first Luger three days ago. I took it out today and experienced the exact same problems discussed here (no reset of the trigger when either dry firing or shooting). I polished the two parts you suggested, although I had to do so and re-install three times before the problem disappeared. I can also both hear and feel the firing pin drop with more authority now than it did previously. Two thumbs way up!

How common of a problem is this?

FNorm · 06-09-2009, 05:50 PM

Thanks, Hugh. Your fix worked perfectly!

JIMHAY97 · 12-12-2009, 07:51 PM

How do you get the trigger lever out of the side plate to polish it?

jonnyc · 12-12-2009, 11:39 PM

If your side plate is out, you rotate the lever pin to unlock it, then pull it out front to rear. Make sure you return the lever to the plate the same way it comes out.

JIMHAY97 · 12-12-2009, 11:58 PM

I can't get it to rotate. I'm trying to use a jewelers screwdriver to pry it up but don't want to scratch it. Is there some kind of trick to make it move? Thanks......

MFC · 12-13-2009, 01:13 AM

Jim,
Use a brass screwdriver placed between the plate and bar, and tap it with a small hammer.

JIMHAY97 · 12-13-2009, 03:52 PM

OK, got it out. What a pain if you don't have the right tools. What started this whole project is that my side plate won't sit flat against the side of the receiver. So I swapped it with one from another gun and it did but it wouldn't recock after first shot. So I followed this sticky to fix it. Anyone ever have to fix a sideplate that won't sit flat? It shoots OK but I don't like the 1/64th tapered gap from front to rear looking down on it. This is my shooter gun made from several.

dlon21 · 06-29-2010, 08:22 PM

I seem to have this cocking problem with my P08 too, a 1940 Mauser 9mm. Sometimes it doesn't fire when firing live ammo at the range, upon pulling the trigger several times it fired again.

Also, the gun seems to work fine when hand cocked, slowly. Sometimes, especially if I tilt the gun to the left, and c o c k it really fast, as in it being fired, it doesn't work. The firing pin is then in its forward position, not cocked.

- when the gun has this malfunction, is the firing pin in its forward position?
-if I c o c k it by hand, you hear it click, and it works...

Will try to clean it further and see if the plunger works freely in the sear bar first. Grateful for any answers!

sincerely, Daniel

dlon21 · 07-02-2010, 09:14 PM

Nobody..? =)

Edward Tinker · 07-03-2010, 06:58 AM

Daniel, did you try the fixes suggested above?

If thats not the issue, then start a new thread and folks should answer.

ed

dlon21 · 07-04-2010, 05:44 AM

Ed;

I tried the above fix a couple days ago. I think there's something else wrong with the sear bar, will try to get parts to try out soon. Thanks for your answer.

Lugerdoc · 07-05-2010, 09:41 AM

As has been noted, this is a common problem, particularly on lugers with replaced or mismatched parts. I receive at least 2 lugers a month requiring "trigger jobs". I consider Hugh's fix as an alternative, non-factory type repair, but it usually works in the cases where the FP will release on initial cocking (where the overlap of the FP & sear are not too great and the trigger is engaging the trigger lever OK). THe factory fix would be to install a trigger lever that has the correct angle to both push in the sear far enough to release the FP (striker), AND come back far enough, when the trigger is release, to allow the disconnector (plunger in the trigger bar) to push past it. As you can see, there are several parts (tigger, sear, FP, trigger bar & disconnector) that must be in balance to operate correctly. TH

Lugerdoc · 07-06-2010, 10:01 AM

JH, Getting the side plate to lay flat on the frame is a matter of judicious bending and perhaps a bit of interior filing. This should be done before even installing the trigger lever and attempting to get a decent FP release. TH

netwerkz5 · 05-21-2011, 07:50 PM

Thanks Tom for your advise. worked like a charm on my "parts master" luger. now off to the range to test it out!

01-09-2007, 01:35 AM	#1
Hugh RIP Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Southeast Texas Swamp Posts: 2,460 Thanks: 2 Thanked 165 Times in 64 Posts	Jerry, There's an easy fix for the problem you mention about cocking when hand operated and not cocking when fired. I have fixed a dozen of these. __________________ *TRUMP FOR PREZ IN '20!*

01-09-2007, 12:07 PM	#2
Hugh RIP Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Southeast Texas Swamp Posts: 2,460 Thanks: 2 Thanked 165 Times in 64 Posts	Ron, It's a trade secret, if I tell you I'll have to kill you Polish the angled edge of the trigger lever as shown in the picture. Stone the top edge of the sear bar button to a rounded or angled profile as shown in the picture. I have shown for comparsion a before and after trigger lever and a normal sear bar on the left with several modified sear bars on the right. __________________ *TRUMP FOR PREZ IN '20!*

01-09-2007, 02:59 PM	#3
Hugh RIP Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Southeast Texas Swamp Posts: 2,460 Thanks: 2 Thanked 165 Times in 64 Posts	Jerry, It may move a little bit, but should not rotate very far. The pin holding it in should keep it from rotating very far as it fits in the slot pictured below. You just have to stone further around, like the one shown on the right end in my picture of the sear bars. __________________ *TRUMP FOR PREZ IN '20!*

01-04-2007, 08:08 PM	#4
lugerholsterrepair Moderator Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arizona/Colorado Posts: 7,760 Thanks: 4,848 Thanked 3,099 Times in 1,426 Posts	Cocking problem? Situation; mismatched .30 Luger with rough, repro? sideplate. Commercial DWM, no date. Shoots right on the money to point of aim but will not **** when a round is fired. Only cocks when the toggles are pulled back by hand..Weird huh? Jerry Burney __________________ Jerry Burney 11491 S. Guadalupe Drive Yuma AZ 85367-6182 lugerholsterrepair@earthlink.net 928 342-7583 (CO & AZ) Year Round 719 207-3331 (cell) "For those who Fight For It, Life has a flavor the protected will never know."

12-13-2009, 01:13 AM	#12
MFC User Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Louisiana Posts: 1,237 Thanks: 183 Thanked 281 Times in 162 Posts	Jim, Use a brass screwdriver placed between the plate and bar, and tap it with a small hammer. __________________ Mike C.

12-23-2008, 04:56 PM	#5
jonnyc User Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 425 Thanks: 2 Thanked 46 Times in 34 Posts	OK, what to do if the fix above, bevelling the edges of the trigger lever and disconnector, don't seem to fix the problem?

02-21-2009, 08:39 PM	#6
gt40mki New User Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 1 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	THANK YOU...made this much easier than I had imagined on my great uncles wwII 1917 trophy..although my dad get a little uneasy when I brought out the sandpaper...

06-07-2009, 03:09 AM	#7
Condition Yellow User Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Nevada Posts: 10 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Hugh, Thank you so much for this sticky. I received my first Luger three days ago. I took it out today and experienced the exact same problems discussed here (no reset of the trigger when either dry firing or shooting). I polished the two parts you suggested, although I had to do so and re-install three times before the problem disappeared. I can also both hear and feel the firing pin drop with more authority now than it did previously. Two thumbs way up! How common of a problem is this?

06-09-2009, 05:50 PM	#8
FNorm Patron LugerForum Patron Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Colorado Posts: 978 Thanks: 68 Thanked 127 Times in 108 Posts	Thanks, Hugh. Your fix worked perfectly!

12-12-2009, 07:51 PM	#9
JIMHAY97 User Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Washington State Posts: 28 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	How do you get the trigger lever out of the side plate to polish it?

12-12-2009, 11:39 PM	#10
jonnyc User Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 425 Thanks: 2 Thanked 46 Times in 34 Posts	If your side plate is out, you rotate the lever pin to unlock it, then pull it out front to rear. Make sure you return the lever to the plate the same way it comes out.

12-12-2009, 11:58 PM	#11
JIMHAY97 User Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Washington State Posts: 28 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I can't get it to rotate. I'm trying to use a jewelers screwdriver to pry it up but don't want to scratch it. Is there some kind of trick to make it move? Thanks......

12-13-2009, 03:52 PM	#13
JIMHAY97 User Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Washington State Posts: 28 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	OK, got it out. What a pain if you don't have the right tools. What started this whole project is that my side plate won't sit flat against the side of the receiver. So I swapped it with one from another gun and it did but it wouldn't recock after first shot. So I followed this sticky to fix it. Anyone ever have to fix a sideplate that won't sit flat? It shoots OK but I don't like the 1/64th tapered gap from front to rear looking down on it. This is my shooter gun made from several.

06-29-2010, 08:22 PM	#14
dlon21 New User Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: sweden Posts: 3 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I seem to have this cocking problem with my P08 too, a 1940 Mauser 9mm. Sometimes it doesn't fire when firing live ammo at the range, upon pulling the trigger several times it fired again. Also, the gun seems to work fine when hand cocked, slowly. Sometimes, especially if I tilt the gun to the left, and c o c k it really fast, as in it being fired, it doesn't work. The firing pin is then in its forward position, not cocked. - when the gun has this malfunction, is the firing pin in its forward position? -if I c o c k it by hand, you hear it click, and it works... Will try to clean it further and see if the plunger works freely in the sear bar first. Grateful for any answers! sincerely, Daniel

07-02-2010, 09:14 PM	#15
dlon21 New User Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: sweden Posts: 3 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Nobody..? =)

07-03-2010, 06:58 AM	#16
Edward Tinker Super Moderator Eternal Lifer LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: North of Spokane, WA Posts: 15,909 Thanks: 1,986 Thanked 4,500 Times in 2,076 Posts	Daniel, did you try the fixes suggested above? If thats not the issue, then start a new thread and folks should answer. ed __________________ Edward Tinker ************ Co-Author of Police Lugers - Co-Author of Simson Lugers Author of Veteran Bring Backs Vol I, Vol II, Vol III and Vol IV

07-04-2010, 05:44 AM	#17
dlon21 New User Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: sweden Posts: 3 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Ed; I tried the above fix a couple days ago. I think there's something else wrong with the sear bar, will try to get parts to try out soon. Thanks for your answer.

07-05-2010, 09:41 AM	#18
Lugerdoc Patron LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: POB 398 St.Charles,MO. 63302 Posts: 5,089 Thanks: 6 Thanked 736 Times in 483 Posts	As has been noted, this is a common problem, particularly on lugers with replaced or mismatched parts. I receive at least 2 lugers a month requiring "trigger jobs". I consider Hugh's fix as an alternative, non-factory type repair, but it usually works in the cases where the FP will release on initial cocking (where the overlap of the FP & sear are not too great and the trigger is engaging the trigger lever OK). THe factory fix would be to install a trigger lever that has the correct angle to both push in the sear far enough to release the FP (striker), AND come back far enough, when the trigger is release, to allow the disconnector (plunger in the trigger bar) to push past it. As you can see, there are several parts (tigger, sear, FP, trigger bar & disconnector) that must be in balance to operate correctly. TH __________________ Tom Heller POB 398 ST.Charles, MO. 63302 Tel 636-447-3006 lugerdoc@charter.net

07-06-2010, 10:01 AM	#19
Lugerdoc Patron LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: POB 398 St.Charles,MO. 63302 Posts: 5,089 Thanks: 6 Thanked 736 Times in 483 Posts	JH, Getting the side plate to lay flat on the frame is a matter of judicious bending and perhaps a bit of interior filing. This should be done before even installing the trigger lever and attempting to get a decent FP release. TH __________________ Tom Heller POB 398 ST.Charles, MO. 63302 Tel 636-447-3006 lugerdoc@charter.net

05-21-2011, 07:50 PM	#20
netwerkz5 New User Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 1 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Thanks Tom for your advise. worked like a charm on my "parts master" luger. now off to the range to test it out!