Benchrest Rifle Triggers

tonykharper

Well-known member
I wrote the post below in August 2015. I was shocked at the negative comments I received.

It seemed many were Jewell trigger fans, and I had gored the sacred cow.

That wasn't my intention. But time has proven me correct.

The new triggers competed in the marketplace for many years against Jewell and gained market share every year.

They were $400+ dollar triggers competing against sub $200.00 triggers.

The last thing I wanted to see was for Jewell to go out of business but that is what happened.

It did not happen because of the competition but due to Jewell relying on outside sources for the parts to make their triggers.

In the last few years of production Jewell triggers suffered many failures due to the quality of some of the parts.

In the end they just packed it in and quit.

The reason I'm making this post is I would like to encourage an American company, any company, to make triggers for the benchrest market.

The foreign triggers we have are great but sometimes hard to source.

We need an American company in this market.


My August 2015 post:


Triggers are a subject you don't often see discussed on the forums. Why? Well, there really isn't much to say, or is there?

Going back to the days of the 2 oz. trigger that was in the Remington 40XB BR rifles, we bench rest shooters have been pretty happy with our triggers.

Maybe a little too happy.

The Jewell 1.5 oz. BR trigger became the bench rest standard and has remain so for more than two decades.

Shooters coming from hunting rifles are always impressed with Jewell BR triggers.

There have been other triggers around, but Jewell has pretty much dominated bench rest.

Just what do we need from a trigger? After all, the only thing a trigger does is release the firing pin/spring to start the ignition process.

Well, as it turns out there is a little more to it than that.

It has been stated, loud, and long that triggers, and trigger control, is more important to shoulder fired rifles (position rifles) than to bench rest rifles.

Many even say lock time to a bench rifle isn't at all important. These statements have some truth. But they aren't the whole truth.

This lack of concern over our triggers has led us down a path of no improvement in our triggers for 20 + years.

It has been a mistake to minimize the importance of the trigger/trigger control in bench rest shooting.

A couple of years ago BIX N Andy triggers became available. Made in Austria, a totally new design.

Very high tech, and well-engineered. Many thought the price, more than twice that of a Jewell, would limit their success. But that has not been the case.

I'm pretty sensitive to triggers, when I first tried a BIX N Andy I was impressed.

There was no doubt these were a step up from Jewells. I, along with many others replaced my Jewells triggers.

Then, just two years later, I learned there is yet another new trigger available for actions designed for the Remington pattern.

This newest trigger is the Flavio Fare (FF) from Italy.

This trigger is yet another new design, even more high tech, and unlike anything I've seen before. It has five miniature ball bearings.

The design is incredible, and the engineering, excellent.

These triggers are handmade, very low production, and very high quality. These are the Ferrari of triggers.

Both of these new triggers have come as a complete surprise.

Who would have thought, two completely different triggers designs would become available, within two years of each other, to challenge the trigger that had been the bench rest standard for more than two decades?

If you have shot a high-quality air rifle, you know they have the best triggers on the planet.

You have to experience one to understand what I'm talking about.

You can break the shot at the exact instant you want the shot. You can do it shot after shot, day in, and day out.

Always the same feel, and always the same let off, always the same release.

This control, and consistency is extremely important for all shooters not just shoulder shooters.

There are two primary methods of shooting bench rest. One is to hold the rifle and have contact, the other is free recoil, where one has very little contact.

I happen to shoot holding the rifle. I very carefully, and deliberately release each shot.

I have developed a habit of testing (teasing the trigger) with increasing pressure until the rifle fires.

It is kind of like milking the trigger. People have watched me do this and asked why.

The reason is I never really knew where/when the rifle was going to fire.

So, I developed this testing method by using very light pressure, just touching the trigger blade and releasing, then touching the blade again increasing the pressure, little by little until the rife fired.

BTW: I'm not the only one that does this. Bill Calfee shot this way. I'm sure there are others.

I believe, even the heaviest rifles, held in the tightest rest, are affected by the way the trigger is attacked, and how it breaks/releases.

The slightest variance will affect shot placement. These new triggers provide controlled, consistency like we have never had before.

Which of the new triggers is best? The Flavio Fare (FF), or the BIX N ANDY?

I've shot both, and to me, there is no doubt, the Flavio Fare is the best. As a matter of fact, I believe the Flavio Fare trigger is as much better than a BIX N Andy, as the BIX N Andy is to the Jewell.

Dan Killough has also tested the Flavio Fare triggers with excellent results.

Dan will be stocking Flavio Fare triggers at Killough Shooting Sports (KSS). Check with him on availability.

I'm told the price will be comparable to the BIX N Andy.

You owe it to yourself to try one. It just may improve your scores. One thing for sure, it will improve your shooting experience.

END OF POST

TKH
 
Doubt it will ever happen Tony.
First, if it does, I’d doubt it would come at the $200 price point.
Second, we have seen the B&A’s are great, problems mostly from guys who screw with them and /or don’t keep them clean. We have whispers and now a new Italian entry.
Also remember, we still have Shilen BR triggers which work well, I shot them for years back when Fred Sinclair built guns.
unfortunately $400 is the new $200.
 
In a BR world, now dominated by offerings , all of which are sub 1oz., is there much appetite for one that has a minimum 3 oz. ?

P.S. there is an active thread on Accurate Shooter by very experienced CFBR shooters.
Concerns about very heavy return spring for trigger bar as well as possible reduction of pin fall…….bears watching.
 
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I wrote the post below in August 2015. I was shocked at the negative comments I received.

It seemed many were Jewell trigger fans, and I had gored the sacred cow.

That wasn't my intention. But time has proven me correct.

The new triggers competed in the marketplace for many years against Jewell and gained market share every year.

They were $400+ dollar triggers competing against sub $200.00 triggers.

The last thing I wanted to see was for Jewell to go out of business but that is what happened.

It did not happen because of the competition but due to Jewell relying on outside sources for the parts to make their triggers.

In the last few years of production Jewell triggers suffered many failures due to the quality of some of the parts.

In the end they just packed it in and quit.

The reason I'm making this post is I would like to encourage an American company, any company, to make triggers for the benchrest market.

The foreign triggers we have are great but sometimes hard to source.

We need an American company in this market.


My August 2015 post:


Triggers are a subject you don't often see discussed on the forums. Why? Well, there really isn't much to say, or is there?

Going back to the days of the 2 oz. trigger that was in the Remington 40XB BR rifles, we bench rest shooters have been pretty happy with our triggers.

Maybe a little too happy.

The Jewell 1.5 oz. BR trigger became the bench rest standard and has remain so for more than two decades.

Shooters coming from hunting rifles are always impressed with Jewell BR triggers.

There have been other triggers around, but Jewell has pretty much dominated bench rest.

Just what do we need from a trigger? After all, the only thing a trigger does is release the firing pin/spring to start the ignition process.

Well, as it turns out there is a little more to it than that.

It has been stated, loud, and long that triggers, and trigger control, is more important to shoulder fired rifles (position rifles) than to bench rest rifles.

Many even say lock time to a bench rifle isn't at all important. These statements have some truth. But they aren't the whole truth.

This lack of concern over our triggers has led us down a path of no improvement in our triggers for 20 + years.

It has been a mistake to minimize the importance of the trigger/trigger control in bench rest shooting.

A couple of years ago BIX N Andy triggers became available. Made in Austria, a totally new design.

Very high tech, and well-engineered. Many thought the price, more than twice that of a Jewell, would limit their success. But that has not been the case.

I'm pretty sensitive to triggers, when I first tried a BIX N Andy I was impressed.

There was no doubt these were a step up from Jewells. I, along with many others replaced my Jewells triggers.

Then, just two years later, I learned there is yet another new trigger available for actions designed for the Remington pattern.

This newest trigger is the Flavio Fare (FF) from Italy.

This trigger is yet another new design, even more high tech, and unlike anything I've seen before. It has five miniature ball bearings.

The design is incredible, and the engineering, excellent.

These triggers are handmade, very low production, and very high quality. These are the Ferrari of triggers.

Both of these new triggers have come as a complete surprise.

Who would have thought, two completely different triggers designs would become available, within two years of each other, to challenge the trigger that had been the bench rest standard for more than two decades?

If you have shot a high-quality air rifle, you know they have the best triggers on the planet.

You have to experience one to understand what I'm talking about.

You can break the shot at the exact instant you want the shot. You can do it shot after shot, day in, and day out.

Always the same feel, and always the same let off, always the same release.

This control, and consistency is extremely important for all shooters not just shoulder shooters.

There are two primary methods of shooting bench rest. One is to hold the rifle and have contact, the other is free recoil, where one has very little contact.

I happen to shoot holding the rifle. I very carefully, and deliberately release each shot.

I have developed a habit of testing (teasing the trigger) with increasing pressure until the rifle fires.

It is kind of like milking the trigger. People have watched me do this and asked why.

The reason is I never really knew where/when the rifle was going to fire.

So, I developed this testing method by using very light pressure, just touching the trigger blade and releasing, then touching the blade again increasing the pressure, little by little until the rife fired.

BTW: I'm not the only one that does this. Bill Calfee shot this way. I'm sure there are others.

I believe, even the heaviest rifles, held in the tightest rest, are affected by the way the trigger is attacked, and how it breaks/releases.

The slightest variance will affect shot placement. These new triggers provide controlled, consistency like we have never had before.

Which of the new triggers is best? The Flavio Fare (FF), or the BIX N ANDY?

I've shot both, and to me, there is no doubt, the Flavio Fare is the best. As a matter of fact, I believe the Flavio Fare trigger is as much better than a BIX N Andy, as the BIX N Andy is to the Jewell.

Dan Killough has also tested the Flavio Fare triggers with excellent results.

Dan will be stocking Flavio Fare triggers at Killough Shooting Sports (KSS). Check with him on availability.

I'm told the price will be comparable to the BIX N Andy.

You owe it to yourself to try one. It just may improve your scores. One thing for sure, it will improve your shooting experience.

END OF POST

TKH
Thank you, Mr. Harper. You clearly put a lot of thought into your posts. We should all value your knowledge and experience..
 
Doubt it will ever happen Tony.
First, if it does, I’d doubt it would come at the $200 price point.
Second, we have seen the B&A’s are great, problems mostly from guys who screw with them and /or don’t keep them clean. We have whispers and now a new Italian entry.
Also remember, we still have Shilen BR triggers which work well, I shot them for years back when Fred Sinclair built guns.
unfortunately $400 is the new $200.
Tim,

I think you are right.

The day of $200.00 benchrest triggers is over. Three plus oz. triggers will not cut it anymore. We have been spoiled.

What I'm hoping for is an American made trigger comparable to Bix N Andy and Flavio Fare that carries American product support and is always available for quick delivery. I'm thinking the market would pay up to $500.00 for such an offering.

I understand it is a very low volume item but that should make it within reach of any company wanting to make it an additional offering to their current product line. We have the technology we just need someone to step up.

TKH
 
Is there any experience here with the 2 oz Shilen trigger?

Shilen Competition Trigger
Featuring a crisp release ranging from 2 to 6 ounces, this match trigger is easily set for pull weight, sear engagement, and overtravel. It cannot be adjusted heavier than 6 ounces.
 
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Is there any experience here with the 2 oz Shilen trigger?

Shilen Competition Trigger
Featuring a crisp release ranging from 2 to 6 ounces, this match trigger is easily set for pull weight, sear engagement, and overtravel. It cannot be adjusted heavier than 6 ounces.

I still have two Shilen triggers. I don’t think they have been made in years. In their day they were good reliable triggers. Some thought the Jewell triggers were a little better.

TKH
 
XTSP has made an excellent match trigger for the Kimber 82G for quite some time. I like it as much as my factory KK-500, B&A and FF triggers, and better than the Jewells.

They have recently begun to offer a Mod 22 target trigger. They are a 2 stage, 4 lever trigger for Remington 700 actions and “clones.”

I have not tried one, but it might be worth investigating.
 
XTSP has made an excellent match trigger for the Kimber 82G for quite some time. I like it as much as my factory KK-500, B&A and FF triggers, and better than the Jewells.

They have recently begun to offer a Mod 22 target trigger. They are a 2 stage, 4 lever trigger for Remington 700 actions and “clones.”

I have not tried one, but it might be worth investigating.
PNW Skipper,

Thank you for your input.

I looked up the XTSP triggers and here is what I found.


They are not benchrest triggers. We are shooting triggers in the 12-20 grams pull weights.

Even a 1 oz. trigger would be a step backwards for our shooting.

The XTSP triggers look to be very well made. I'm sure they are good for their purpose, but they are not benchrest triggers.

TKH
 
I still have two Shilen triggers. I don’t think they have been made in years. In their day they were good reliable triggers. Some thought the Jewell triggers were a little better.

TKH
I bought a Shilen trigger a couple weeks ago, haven’t put it in a gun yet. They advertise they go to 2 oz.
 
I have several Shilen Competition triggers and they are very good. They've  always been available. -Al
 
I just used a Shilen trigger on a new build, and it seems to work fine, Time will tell, rifle has been test fired to check extraction only, so far,
 
Wade Hull, of Shilen, has done quite well at several ARA UL Outdoor Nationals shooting a Shilen trigger. Couple of top 10's IIRC.

Scott
 
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