Discussion Forums

Paul Townlian

Hello all. I have a Remington 721 in Boyd’s featherweight stock that I’m looking to sell to my uncle in-law. I’m concerned about the stock trigger. Before passing the rifle off, I want to make sure I’ve taken all reasonably precautions on the stock trigger. I believe this is a walker trigger??? The rifle was dated to 1958 if memory serves me well. It had the bolt lock feature when the safety was on, signifying it was never modified by Remington due to their recall.

I’ve done a lot of reading on the subject but most recommendations are to scrap the trigger and go aftermarket. But on a 721 that requires milling around the tang of the rifle for a 700 trigger, and seeing as how I’m intending on selling the rifle, I don’t want to put more money into it. So far, I’ve ground off the locking bar so that the rifle no longer has a bolt lock feature and can be unloaded while on safe. I’ve disassembled the entire trigger, cleaning it with break cleaner. Polished where the connecter and sear make contact so that I can still get a smooth pull without lowering the poundage too much. I then reassembled the trigger putting a light amount of Ronsin lighter fluid in the unit and followed with a can of compressed air. I’ve read this is a great method of cleaning the trigger, and as the lighter fluid dries, a residue is left providing lubrication. Thus the trigger is somewhat lubricated with out being wet and attracting debris that could cause safety issues. After doing all of this the trigger is already much better.

I tuned the trigger for a decent pull. Probably 5lbs, not too light, giving the sear adjustment screw a half turn backed off from engagement. I tested for slam fires, and impacts with the but, as well as trigger compression on safe, followed by flipping the safety to fire. All seemed good.

Are there any other methods or tricks I can do to have a little more peace of mind? Do you recommend using a thread locker on the trigger adjustment screws? My uncle in law isn’t a gun guy, he’ll use this rifle for deer once a year. So I’m not expecting him to be as thorough with the quirks of the rifle as I am. I just want to set him up for success and be as safe as I can be.