Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats M70 Trigger options

As I see it, I have 3 options with my M70 as far as trigger goes.

I’m looking for a 2-2.5lb crisp & safe trigger. I have mine dialed to 2lbs and it is pretty crisp, but it bothers me that it wobbles....I could chase shims, but....

So, I can keep chasing the stock trigger and tune it....

I can buy a Jewell and know I’ve bought the best....do I need a $225 hunting trigger that requires grinding to fit.

...or I can buy a Timney trigger $150 which would adjust down to 2-2.5 lbs and seems like it would work fine.

Your thoughts? What have you tried? Were to happy with it?

I’ve got a Timney in mine and love it. Can’t imagine needing more.

In truth the original model 70 trigger was the height of simplicity and I’d not have changed mine out; I bought it this way.

Turn it over to a good gun smith. The M70 trigger is one of the best hunting designs around IMO. The Jewel are better for sub 2lb. pulls and don't handle grit and crud in the trigger very well. The Timney is a fine trigger and plenty good enough for a hunting rifle. I like the open M70 trigger better than a housed trigger like the Jewel or Timney.

Redneck or another qualified smith can have the factory trigger close to pure perfection. You could refine it some with after market springs and teflon washer/shims where needed but a good gunsmith can do even better for a reasonable price. I won't risk a lecture by mentioning stoning or polishing anything leave that to those that know and preferably machine everything.

After you get it back put Dyna Gun Coat on it and only flush it out with lighter fluid and it will work fine in any condition.

This is worth exactly what you paid for it.

Which M70 trigger version?

My question, too. I love the original M70 triggers. Very easy to adjust, and dead nuts reliable.

I have several Model 70 rifles and have kept the original. With some adjustment/stoning they work fine at 2.5# or more. I've found them reliable and useful, but not what I'd call great triggers. I used a Jewell in a rifle 20 years ago and it was okay in the field. My Jewell was very finicky and needed frequently cleaning. That wasn't a big deal as it only required flushing it with lighter fluid, but it certainly wasn't a trigger that was intended for hard use. It would safely adjust to a few ounces, but I traded it a few years ago and have never missed it. I have a Timney in a Model 70 and have had nothing but excellent service. It is a very good trigger, adjusts easily to 1.5#, and has been very dependable so far. I've used it pretty hard in the field, two weeks in the rain/snow on an Afognak hunt, several winter hunts, and 10 days in Missouri Breaks dust. Not a single hiccup yet. If I wanted a Model 70 trigger under 2.5# I'd get another Timney.

My 1966 Model 70 has the same trigger that came on it. I love that trigger. I adjusted it about 35 years ago and haven't touched it since. It breaks crisply at about 2-2.5 pounds. Yeah, if you mean you can push it from side to side, mine too wabbles. But it doesn't seem to affect my pulling it. When I adjusted it I took the scope off and dropped it from about a foot off the carpet and it didn't go off. I did that multiple times. That was the gold standard test back in the day. I much prefer it to the old Remington trigger. It's simple and straight forward and after owning the rifle 54 years now without a hiccup I have to say it's safe.

I agree. Feel isn’t bad....I’m at 1lb 14 oz and it feels pretty good! I may just try raising it up to 2 lb consistently....

I have a Timney on order....I gotta try it.

I'm happier with the Timney then the tuned factory trigger. My factory trigger turned out nice but not like the Timney. I haven't put any Timneys through torture tests but I have never had any issues. The Timeny is probably a good compromise between the factory and Jewell.

I run my pre 64's at a nice crisp 2.5 pounds. Im also wondering what trigger the op has on his rifle. Also wondering what he means by "it wobbles"?

The trigger has a loose fit to the pin causing sear surfaces to rotate relative to one another causing variation in feel during sear release. Pretty minor, but cassette triggers rarely have this. My MOA trigger feels much more consistent due to this.

+1

Have it re pinned

Is this common? Never heard of that on an M70....It seems like they are not discussed much online.

I have and use both the Timney and Jewell M70 triggers, I find them both better than even a tweaked factory trigger.
For a trigger pull of 2 to 2.5 pounds the Timney is probably the best way to go, the Jewell really shines at pull weights under 2 pounds. I run most of mine at 1 pound or less. The only downside for me is that the stock has to be modified using a Jewell.

One thing that cracks me up on threads like this is people saying how sensitive Jewell triggers are to dust and wash them out with lighter fluid......

I own at least 20 Jewell triggers and have never had one fail in the field in decades of use !!!!!!!!!! I have never washed one out with lighter fluid !!!!!!!!!
I do on occasion blow them off with an air hose doing routine cleaning.

I have ran a Jewell for close to twenty years on my main hunting rifle, a model 70 in 300 ultra. I haven't had a single issue despite hunting in all sorts of nasty conditions.
I know guys go gaga over the model 70's open trigger. It's a great design. However it was executed poorly in the classics. Made out of cheap MIM parts with sloppy tolerances and rough surfaces even after you have one tuned by a competent model 70 smith they are never in the same league as a Jewell.

FWIW - I bought a Timney MOA trigger for a BACO M-70. I DESPISED IT! Flat, chunky trigger shoe. Went back to the OEM cupped trigger.

It looks more like the X-Bolt trigger - probably is. I much prefer the MOA trigger shape.

BTW, one of the reasons that folks buy the Timney replacement is to get a trigger pull lighter than the MOA. I couldn't get the MOA below 3 pounds, looked at the Timney but didn't like the shape, so bought an Ernie spring. Even with the Ernie spring the trigger pull was still about 3 pounds. So, I took my small wire-cutters and started trimming, about a quarter coil at a time. By they time I got to one full coil removed, the pull was a consistent 2 pounds on the nose, still with the characteristics the MOA is known for: zero creep, zero overtravel. The good things are: 1) if too much is removed, Ernie makes springs every day; 2) same profile you're used to since it's the same trigger; and 3) weight can always be adjusted heavier by simply screwing in the MOA weight adjustment screw. If you don't mind an enclosed trigger - which both MOA and Timney are - it's a win-win.

I have two stainless classics. One has a trigger job by Redneck (here on the Forum) which was done before I purchases the rifle. It is great, very clean break at 2 lbs 12 oz. The other is a 280AI that Redneck put together for me. I didn't have him work his magic on the trigger, which was a mistake. Rather than send it back to him I decided to put a Timney in it. Very happy with the Timney. Excellent and easy to adjust to one's liking without screwing it up.

IMO the OP should not bother with a Jewell if he is interested in the 2-2.5 pound range. I had one Pre-64 M70 trigger fitted with an oversize pin and re-worked many years ago and it was very clean in all respects.
That is not a very good DIY project though, so if the wobble bothers you a Timney may be best. Not sure if you'll need to re-time the safety with one although I know I did on the 2 M70s I used Jewells on.
I did not have any issues with dirt in the Jewells here in dusty Arizona on either my 6.5-06 hunting rifle or .308 Palma rifle which have both been used extensively. The Palma rifle is currently sporting an Anschutz 5018 2 stage, and that was a rodeo to get fitted up!

You have to find the right gunsmith to do it . I had 2 done , night and day difference, takes all the slop out of it.

The Model 70 trigger is easily one of the best "big game" hunting triggers ever devised. It can easily be taken to a 3 lb. crisp pull and sheds dirt and water and crud like a good hunting trigger should and is my favorite big game hunting trigger. Why Winchester choose to replace it is a mystery to me.

I can not fathom why any one would replace the best feature of a Mod. 70 with a Timney or what ever, I just don't get it. It must be advertising and surely did not come from experienced big game hunters. Save those enclosed tiny ice cycle breaking triggers for the target and long range shooters. Give me a good old style Mod. 70 trigger forever on a serious hunting rifle.

It wasn't "Winchester" that chose to replace it. It was Browning Arms co. (BACO).... Enough said.. I do agree with you about the old Winchester Model 70 trigger though. They are the best hunting trigger out there. I love mine. After I tune them, they are very nice. The only one that I didn't touch was a nicely tuned (by FN Herstal) PBR XP with the oldstyle model 70 trigger. It was a rifle that was made to shoot though and those guys used to really know what they were doing, before Browning arms got involved.... I also agree, they should have never messed with the old tried and true model 70 trigger... Browning wanted to make the model 70 more their own I guess. The new model 70's are glorified Browning rifles as far as I'm concerned.

I have 2 stainless M70's. One BACO, of which I absolutely love the MOA trigger and a New Haven with "Gods Trigger", which I have never been completely satisfied with. I am one of those that believes in the old "butt drop test". I could never get "Gods Trigger" to pass the drop test at anything under 3 pounds, until I "skeletonized the trigger/sear piece. It will now pass the drop test at 2 and 3/4 pounds and the let-off is crisp, sometimes. However as the OP mentioned, the trigger is wobbly and this makes for inconsistent pull weight/feel. Does anyone know where to get an oversized trigger pin? If I remember correctly, it is not just a simple pin with a head on it. I believe it has a step at the head for the bolt release lever. If I cannot find an oversized trigger pin, I'll probably just go the Timney route and contribute "Gods Trigger" to someone that cannot live without it. I've owned upwards of approximately 80 bolt action rifles in my life, spanning close to 60 years of hunting and target shooting and probably no more than 15 (mostly military)of those bolt rifles, had an open style trigger. I have never had a trigger malfunction due to dirt or debris in an enclosed trigger mechanism. RJ

My understanding of the re-pinning process is the holes in both the trigger and receiver are reamed to a slightly larger, but uniform matching size and a custom pin turned to match. As you point out, the weight of the trigger piece itself can be a limiting factor in the weight that can pass a bump test, but tightening things up can only help.

I have done a fair amount of trigger work in my time. I have Power stoning jig which makes a huge impact to your ability to stone a sear consistently.

First, I stoned the sear perfectly smooth and matched the angle to the trigger. I ended up with a slick M70 trigger that with the Ernie spring, gave me a pretty good 1lb 15oz trigger. It was generally crisp....but not always...that variation in creep drove me nuts. I truly thing it was the trigger being pulled slightly off angle causing a different release.

I could have probably come up with something, but why?

I mean I’m dumping a lot of money to me into this rifle. Why shouldn’t the trigger be perfect.

I decided to fit the Timney. Their support team was quite helpful. My safety was not timed to the trigger. A quick call put me on the phone with someone who knew what i was saying and told me my plan to fit was ok. My safety was not lifting the cocking piece off the cocking sear. Even said he had extra parts if I screwed up. With my stoning jig, layout fluid, and a pile of stones and files, I setup to stone that surface. A couple of iterations later, the surfaces were mated and the safety works reliably.

So, I had to set this thing up hunting perfect. It is adjustable for pull weight, sear engagement, and overtravel. Hunting is hot/cold, standing/prone, rested/freehand, etc. So, I had to figure out where to even start. I started at overtravel. I dialed it to 0 and then backed off until it was reliable...then a bit more. Engagement was left alone as it seemed good. Last was weight. I know that just squeezing the squish out of my finger puts 1 lb on the trigger. Anything under 1lb won’t let me pull the trigger only, I’ll also be squishing finger pad. Then what feels right. Well through trial & error 1.25 lbs more or 2.25 lbs consistently felt the best. Sear engagement left how it came.

End result is this thing is the best trigger in my safe. Might have to pick up a a Timney for my a Ruger Hawkeye!