Cocking problem?

lugerholsterrepair · 01-04-2007, 09:08 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

Hugh · 01-09-2007, 02:35 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.

Ron Smith · 01-09-2007, 10:05 AM

Hugh,

What's the fix? I have run into this problem with my .30 shooter on occaision.

Ron

Hugh · 01-09-2007, 01:07 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.

lugerholsterrepair · 01-09-2007, 01:42 PM

Hugh, Thanks for the tip! The spring plunger on the sear bar rotates...How is the angle to stay in any one place? Thanks, Jerry Burney

Hugh · 01-09-2007, 03:59 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 · 01-09-2007, 04:18 PM

Hugh, Thanks! I was under the impression this plunger rotated but from your photo it is obvious it does not..It is one of the few parts on a Luger that I don't commonly take apart. Small pin.
I do appreciate this! I will give it a try. Jerry Burney

Edward Tinker · 01-09-2007, 05:15 PM

Made a sticky as a learning tool

apis mellifera · 04-11-2007, 04:10 PM

Maybe I'm asking a completely obvious question, but would/could the unmodified parts (those pictured above) cause a trigger to not be reset? I posted a question about this (see below, with updated info) and before I go whittling on these pieces, I want to be sure I understand how they interact with each other.

1. Insert loaded mag
2. Work action, chambering round
3. Pull trigger
4. Gun fires
5. Gun ejects spent casing
6. Feeds next round
7. Pull trigger, but nothing happens. The trigger hasn't reset.

If I start again at step 2, it follows the sequence again. Since the trigger is rest during the first part of toggle motion and the gun does eject and feed properly, I'm lost as to what is wrong. Also, if I dry fire it and work the action with the trigger held back, it will replicate the reset problem. Any suggestions on what to replace/fix?

Many Thanks,
Matt

Hugh · 04-11-2007, 11:20 PM

Matt,

Yes, the above modification should solve your problem. Before making the modifications, be sure that the small plunger in the front end of the sear bar is moving in & out freely, if this is true and the action is still not working properly, then make the modifications.

hqbmw · 04-12-2007, 07:45 PM

Hugh,

Thanks for the fix information. It's very helpful. My question is " How do these parts work together and what is the modification correcting?" I hate to sound technical, but if I know how a system works, I will know how to troubleshoot or repair it.

Dumb-founded

Jack Hiles
Mesa AZ

John Sabato · 04-13-2007, 10:00 AM

Get Gerard Henrotin's e-book on the Luger Mechanicals... it has very good explanations of the relationships between the parts and excellent graphic illustrations.

Hugh · 04-14-2007, 03:04 AM

Jack,
What John said!!!

Actually, what the mod is doing is allowing the button to slide under the trigger lever.

lboos · 01-02-2008, 05:46 PM

Matt, i had the same problem as you [1 thru 7] . i took it to a gun show and talked to a luger dealer and told him of the problem. when he looked at the firing pin he told me some one had been messing with it and it had slight file marks on one side of the steps on the pin. he took a firing out of one of his luger,s to test it in my gun and dry fired it. and you could the firing pin click ea. time. where before it only click,d the 1st time. i bought a used firing pin from another dealer. took it home and replaced it. it work,s fine now. sorry diden,t mean to ramble on. new to luger,s

jonnyc · 12-23-2008, 05:56 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, 09:39 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, 04:09 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, 06:50 PM

Thanks, Hugh. Your fix worked perfectly!

JIMHAY97 · 12-12-2009, 08:51 PM

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

jonnyc · 12-13-2009, 12:39 AM

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.

01-04-2007, 09:08 PM	#1
lugerholsterrepair Moderator Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arizona/Colorado Posts: 7,772 Thanks: 4,940 Thanked 3,124 Times in 1,434 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 l[email protected] 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."

01-09-2007, 02:35 AM	#2
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, 10:05 AM	#3
Ron Smith User Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Orygun Posts: 4,243 Thanks: 118 Thanked 245 Times in 150 Posts	Hugh, What's the fix? I have run into this problem with my .30 shooter on occaision. Ron __________________ I Still Need DWM side plate #49... if anyone runs across a nice one. What ~Rudyard Kipling~ said...

01-09-2007, 01:07 PM	#4
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, 01:42 PM	#5
lugerholsterrepair Moderator Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arizona/Colorado Posts: 7,772 Thanks: 4,940 Thanked 3,124 Times in 1,434 Posts	Hugh, Thanks for the tip! The spring plunger on the sear bar rotates...How is the angle to stay in any one place? Thanks, Jerry Burney __________________ Jerry Burney 11491 S. Guadalupe Drive Yuma AZ 85367-6182 l[email protected] 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."

01-09-2007, 03:59 PM	#6
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!*

01-09-2007, 04:18 PM	#7
lugerholsterrepair Moderator Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arizona/Colorado Posts: 7,772 Thanks: 4,940 Thanked 3,124 Times in 1,434 Posts	Hugh, Thanks! I was under the impression this plunger rotated but from your photo it is obvious it does not..It is one of the few parts on a Luger that I don't commonly take apart. Small pin. I do appreciate this! I will give it a try. Jerry Burney __________________ Jerry Burney 11491 S. Guadalupe Drive Yuma AZ 85367-6182 l[email protected] 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."

01-09-2007, 05:15 PM	#8
Edward Tinker Super Moderator Eternal Lifer LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: North of Spokane, WA Posts: 15,935 Thanks: 2,034 Thanked 4,533 Times in 2,093 Posts	Made a sticky as a learning tool

04-11-2007, 04:10 PM	#9
apis mellifera User Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: WV Posts: 149 Thanks: 3 Thanked 24 Times in 8 Posts	Maybe I'm asking a completely obvious question, but would/could the unmodified parts (those pictured above) cause a trigger to not be reset? I posted a question about this (see below, with updated info) and before I go whittling on these pieces, I want to be sure I understand how they interact with each other. 1. Insert loaded mag 2. Work action, chambering round 3. Pull trigger 4. Gun fires 5. Gun ejects spent casing 6. Feeds next round 7. Pull trigger, but nothing happens. The trigger hasn't reset. If I start again at step 2, it follows the sequence again. Since the trigger is rest during the first part of toggle motion and the gun does eject and feed properly, I'm lost as to what is wrong. Also, if I dry fire it and work the action with the trigger held back, it will replicate the reset problem. Any suggestions on what to replace/fix? Many Thanks, Matt

04-11-2007, 11:20 PM	#10
Hugh RIP Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Southeast Texas Swamp Posts: 2,460 Thanks: 2 Thanked 165 Times in 64 Posts	Matt, Yes, the above modification should solve your problem. Before making the modifications, be sure that the small plunger in the front end of the sear bar is moving in & out freely, if this is true and the action is still not working properly, then make the modifications. __________________ *TRUMP FOR PREZ IN '20!*

04-12-2007, 07:45 PM	#11
hqbmw User Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Mesa AZ Posts: 228 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	How it works Hugh, Thanks for the fix information. It's very helpful. My question is " How do these parts work together and what is the modification correcting?" I hate to sound technical, but if I know how a system works, I will know how to troubleshoot or repair it. Dumb-founded Jack Hiles Mesa AZ __________________ Jack Hiles Mesa AZ

04-13-2007, 10:00 AM	#12
John Sabato Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: The Capital of the Free World Posts: 10,154 Thanks: 3,003 Thanked 2,306 Times in 1,097 Posts	Get Gerard Henrotin's e-book on the Luger Mechanicals... it has very good explanations of the relationships between the parts and excellent graphic illustrations. __________________ regards, -John S "...We hold these truths to be self-evident that ALL men are created EQUAL *and are endowed by their Creator* with certain UNALIENABLE* rights, and among these are life, LIBERTY, and the pursuit of happiness..."*

04-14-2007, 03:04 AM	#13
Hugh RIP Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Southeast Texas Swamp Posts: 2,460 Thanks: 2 Thanked 165 Times in 64 Posts	Jack, What John said!!! Actually, what the mod is doing is allowing the button to slide under the trigger lever. __________________ *TRUMP FOR PREZ IN '20!*

01-02-2008, 05:46 PM	#14
lboos User Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Ga. Posts: 69 Thanks: 4 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Matt, i had the same problem as you [1 thru 7] . i took it to a gun show and talked to a luger dealer and told him of the problem. when he looked at the firing pin he told me some one had been messing with it and it had slight file marks on one side of the steps on the pin. he took a firing out of one of his luger,s to test it in my gun and dry fired it. and you could the firing pin click ea. time. where before it only click,d the 1st time. i bought a used firing pin from another dealer. took it home and replaced it. it work,s fine now. sorry diden,t mean to ramble on. new to luger,s

12-23-2008, 05:56 PM	#15
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, 09:39 PM	#16
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, 04:09 AM	#17
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, 06:50 PM	#18
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, 08:51 PM	#19
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?

12-13-2009, 12:39 AM	#20
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.