Cetme Triggerpack assembly/disassembly

[M1 Tanker]

How to field strip and clean your trigger assembly.
By Perro Del Diablo

When I first took my CETME apart for cleaning, I found light rust inside my trigger housing - I desperately wanted to clean this out because rust is NO GOOD!!!!!!!

Looking into the trigger pack, I seen all of these funky little springs and parts, and while scratching my head, I though to myself - hmmmmmmmmm that looks a little too difficult for me to figure out!!!! I ended up leaving it, and just spraying gun scrubber into the trigger pack to clean it - I was afraid of messing something up if I took it apart - until now there was no online how to, or anything to show me how to do this - a good friend of mine showed me how to do this, and it really is quite simple if you have something to look at - DO NOT DO THIS TO YOUR TRIGGER PACK!!!!! TAKE IT TO A LISCENSED GUN SMITH, AND HAVE HIM DO IT!!! THIS IS NOT FOR YOU - IT IS FOR ME TO REFERENCE WHEN I TAKE MY TRIGGER PACK APART!!!

ALSO,
AND I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH -MAKE SURE THE LISCENSED GUNSMITH DOES THIS WORK ON A LARGE TABLE WITH NOTHING ELSE ON IT - SPREAD WHITE TOWELS ALL OVER THE TABLE, BECAUSE PARTS WILL GET LOST IF YOU DONT!!!

I CANNOT BE RESPONSIBLE IF YOUR GUNSMITH MESSES YOUR TRIGGER PACK UP BECAUSE OF THIS WEBPAGE!!!! THESE ARE NOT INSTRUCTIONS FOR YOU TO TAKE YOUR TRIGGER PACK APART, INSTEAD THEY ARE A PHOTO DOCUMENTARY OF HOW I TAKE MY TRIGGER PACK APART - YOUVE BEEN WARNED!!!!! DONT FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS!!!!

First I will show a picture with all of the trigger parts completely disassembled - these are numbered, and I will list what they are to the corresponding number below this picture - when I refer to a part, I will call it the by its name, but I will also put a number in parenthesis so that I can look at the picture of all of the parts and figure out what I’m talking about

18452

Parts list
1. Grip frame
2. Safety selector
3. Ejector pin
4. Ejector spring
5. Ejector
6. Small spring
7. Small spring pin
8. Hammer pin
9. Hammer
10. Trigger pin
11. Trigger pin bushing or spacer
12. Sear 2
13. Sear 1
14. Trigger
15. Fire control box

Step 1 take entire grip frame assembly off of rifle, and set it in the MIDDLE of the table on top of the towels - put the rest of your rifle away.

18453

Next, take the safety selector (2) - force it into the 12 o' clock position

18454

Pull the safety selector (2) out of the grip frame (1) and set it aside somewhere safe - I use a Tupperware bowl with a lid - after I put each piece in, I close the lid!!!!

18455

Next, reach into the grip frame (1) and pull the fire control box (15) with all of the trigger parts - out of the grip frame (1) note you may have to grab the ejector (5) to have something to hold onto as you pull it out - once the fire control box (15) is out of the grip frame (1) set the grip frame (1) somewhere else for now.

18456

18457

Next, take a pair of needle nose pliers - unhook the ejector spring (4) fromt he ejector (5) first - then unhook the spring fromt he fire control box (15) - set the spring in the Tupperware bowl and close the lid!!!

18458

In the next picture, you will see a yellow highlighted part - this is the ejector pin (3) it falls out of you turn the fire control box (15) upside down and shake it a little bit - it surprises me how bad of a fit this crucial part has!!! Take the ejector pin (3) out and set in your Tupperware bowl - then pull the ejector (5) out and set it into your bow - CLOSE THE LID!!!

18459

Next take the assembly and put your hand over the top of the hammer (9) - pull the trigger (14) and gently let the hammer (9) ride forward until it rests on the fire control box (15) this releases MOST of the spring tension on the hammer (9)

18460

The next picture shows a part highlighted in yellow - this is the hammer pin (8) tap it out with a small brass punch - this may only come out one way - then reach in and grab the hammer (9) and pull it out carefully - PLEASE NOTE - THERE IS A SPRING ATTACHED TO THE HAMMER (9) IT RIDES ON THE TOP OF 2 LITTLE GROOVES ON THE SEAR 1 (13) DO NOT BEND THIS SPRING!!!! work it out carefully, then take the hammer (9) and hammer pin (8) and set them in the Tupperware bowl - CLOSE THE LID!!!

18461

[M1 Tanker]

18462

In the next picture there will be 2 highlighted parts - this is the small spring pin (7) if you look into the assembly you will see that this pin goes through the center of the small spring (6) notice right now how the springs horns are facing - tap the small spring pin (7) out with a small punch - the small spring (6) will have 2 coils, 2 horns and a saddle - the saddle rests around the hump on the sear 1 (13) make sure that you do not bend the small spring (6) when you remove it from this hump - if you have to, take a small screwdriver and lightly pry sear 1, and sear 2 apart (12 and 13) until the springs falls out - take the small spring pin (7) and the small spring (6) and set them in the Tupperware bowl - CLOSE THE LID!!!!!

18463

18464

In the next picture, you will see another highlighted part - this is the trigger pin (10) - pop it out with a small punch - might only come out 1 way - when you do this, the trigger bushing (11) will fall out - then pull the 3 parts of the trigger (12, 13 and 14) out from the frame - separate sear 2 (12) and set the parts aside - NOTE if the 2 parts of the trigger (13 and 14) don't come apart easily, leave them attached as this will make it easier to insert them into the frame later. Take numbers 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 and put them in the Tupperware bowl - CLOSE THE LID!!!!

18465

18466

Take each part out of the Tupperware bowl 1 at a time - take a toothbush and clean each part with a cleaner of your choice - throughly dry and apply a then coast of oil and wipe fairly dry before reinstalling - the oil will keep rust out of there until the next time you clean your weapon - I would re-oil these parts weekly if you are in a high humidity region. The completes the disassembly and cleaning phase.

[FullAssault]

Great Post!!!

[Cyclops01]

Yes indeed, a very good post.

I think it important to mention though; Pay particular attention to the orientation of the small spring (6) and how it is held in place by the coils of the hammer spring. If reinstalled improperly, the small spring will slip on it's pin and it's saddle will not surround the sear 1 hump, providing little or no spring tension to the sear 1.

Looking down through the top of the trigger pack, the right leg of small spring (6) will rest between the right coil of the hammer spring and the right side of the hammer body. The left leg of small spring (6) rests between the left coil of the hammer spring and the inside wall of the trigger pack box.

I bring this up only because, during reassembly, it would seem logical that both legs of small spring (6) would rest between the hammer spring coils and the sides of hammer body.

Mike

[FullAssault]

I put the spring in wrong then. I do you get everything back in place?

[SteelCore]

I especially like all the refs to the LICENSED GUNSMITH...reminds me of the K-31 swiss manual..."take the gun to the gunsmith in you canton's arsenal, etc" appears on nearly every page...

[konigstigerii]

Something I did to aid in disassembly of my trigger group is, though some may disapprove of it, is in that last pic, I just welded the trigger group parts together (except the pin) and makes it so I don't have to align 3 holes up under spring tension, just one, much easier. It still works just fine; as you'll notice those parts never move in relation to each other. Maybe on the original full autos they did, but mine isn't.

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e214/Konigstigerii/Photo1169.jpg

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e214/Konigstigerii/Photo1168.jpg

[HKILLER]

i welded some of the g3 parts like that also helps alot, but jb weld will work too.

[Buddymack]

How different is this procedure from the G3?

[konigstigerii]

meh need a good excuse to do some welding :) already had the welder out for a couple of gun projects anyways.

There is a sticky on G3 trigger pack disassembly I believe :)

[df662]

Here is a similar tutorial posted over on the HKpro board. It is for a HK SEF pack.

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals1.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals2.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals3.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals4.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals5.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals6.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals7.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals8.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals9.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals10.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals11.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals12.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals13.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals14.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals15.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals16.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals17.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals18.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals19.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals20.jpg

[df662]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk150/df662/HKSEFInternals21.jpg

[Tanker Bob]

Thanks for the time and effort you guys put into those detailed posts. I haven't been inside the lockworks of my CETME yet and this will make it a cakewalk. Whoever owned it before me (I bought it for $350 at a pawn shop) must have never cleaned it becasue it was carboned up like an old motor.

I field-stripped it and shot it full of brake and carb cleaner, oiled it up with Break Free and then ran about 40 rounds through to see how it prints. Loose groups ... very loose ... and I blame it on the trigger. It has a lot of creep and an uneven break point.

So ... now I can tear the lockwork down with confidence and clean it right. Who amongst you knows the right spots to stone and polish for that competition battle rifle feeling?

[drine]

The trigger parts, as is, will never get any better. I personally bought a new set from turbothis, a member here, and got about as good a trigger as you can without a specialized smith. I left a post about it. You can set a the travel and return real close.
Bill Springfield(member) does a trigger job with the parts you have for roughly the same price.

[Tanker Bob]

Danke schoen, merci bien et muchas gracias.

I'll check 'em out and maybe fondle the pieces a little myself. I used to be pretty competent with M-14 guts, although I'm sure the CETME is a different breed of cat.

[Sampson1986]

Guys, I hate to sound like a dummy, but...

I disassembled my FCG and now I can't remember which way the "legs" on part #6 (small spring) face. Do these legs face the rear of the FGC cage or the front of the FCG cage? I think they are supposed to face the front of the cage, but am not sure.

Thanks in Advance. :D

[Sampson1986]

Never mind. I think I got it figured out. That wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

[baarf]

i cannot begin to tell you how help full this was when I had a problem with my new (sort of) CETME.

Fixed the problem, (bent ejector lever) problem solved!

Thank you!

[Perro Del Diablo]

I especially like all the refs to the LICENSED GUNSMITH...reminds me of the K-31 swiss manual..."take the gun to the gunsmith in you canton's arsenal, etc" appears on nearly every page...

when i wrote that i had it listed on my webpage, and i had concerns that someone would assemble there pack wrong and if the thing failed, or went full auto, or exploded and someone got hurt, then i would be liable so those instructions were for me to reference only, and nobody else - everybody else must take there trigger pack to a licensed gunsmith who knows what he is doing dontcha know!! ;)

i dont see the reassembly instructions though?

[nauner]

Can somebody post a properly put together a Cetme TT (turbothis) trigger pack? I think I got it right the first time, but was scratching my head a lot and came sifting through the forums trying to find if I did it right. Pics from the top and bottom would help. Side views with pins just isnt much help. It cycles and fires, although I did notice one small malfunction, but this was prob due to something I did wrong. Also can someone go over the basics of adjusting the adjustable trigger.. I know if I crank the front one down I gotta lift weights to get the trigger to pull, but I dont fully understand what I am doing here.

[r.erichsen]

Funny you should mention that Nauner, I just did this. I've got two more packs on order and I'll do a full write up. One of my biggest problems with the whole process was assuming parts were missing. Very little of what is in the original CETME pack is re-used. Here is the original list from page one:

Parts list
1. Grip frame
2. Safety selector
3. Ejector pin
4. Ejector spring
5. Ejector
6. Small spring
7. Small spring pin
8. Hammer pin
9. Hammer
10. Trigger pin
11. Trigger pin bushing or spacer
12. Sear 2
13. Sear 1
14. Trigger
15. Fire control box

Here is what Matt's trigger pack actually seems to need:

Parts list re-used from CETME pack:
1. Grip frame
2. Safety selector
3. Ejector pin
4. Ejector spring
5. Ejector lever
6. Hammer axis pin
7. Hammer spring
8. Trigger axis pin
* May need the small pin to cut and form into the interrupter to sear pin, though Matt tells me the trigger/sear/interrupter normally come pinned together, so this should be unnecessary. In my case, the pin was missing.

Matt's kit consists of:
1) Trigger frame made of aluminum, hard anodized with the "TT" logo machined into one side
2) Unified semi-auto-only trigger/sear with the interrupter pinned to the top, all of which are hardened steel parts with black oxide coating
3) Semi-auto-only hammer without the catch on the back found on the original full-auto capable hammer
* In my case the interrupter was a separate part and I had to drive the pin out of the CETME sear to join the interrupter - it was a bit short, but holds well enough

Once I worked out that nothing in the semi-auto CETME trigger pack conversion really applied (a couple of emails to Matt confirmed anything that didn't fit wasn't supposed to), that spacers weren't needed and ONLY the parts supplied were needed in addition to the hammer spring, I performed the followed:

* Before I inserted the interrupter and pinned it to the top of the sear, I used a hammer and dinged the top of the notches on either side to better hold the spring legs in place so they would not fall off. The spring legs on my hammer spring were prone to popping off during testing, so I bent the spring in slightly and gave the edge of each notch on the interrupter a more pronounced "hook" to keep the spring legs in place.

1) Fit ejector lever and insert retaining axis pin
2) Using needle nose pliers, bend the top and bottom hooks of the ejector spring and fit ejector spring to lever, squeeze hook closed
3) Hook spring into frame hole of trigger box and squeeze spring closed
4) Fit hammer with hammer spring below so that when the hammer is pulled down the spring is tensioned
5) Insert large hammer axis pin
6) If trigger/sear already has interrupter pinned, insert assembly from bottom with the legs of the hammer spring on top of the interrupter in the center of each of the notches on either side of the sear
7) Lineup trigger/sear hole with frame and insert trigger axis pin
8) Latch the hammer against the sear and pull the trigger, if hammer flies forward, proceed to next step
NOTE: If you release the trigger after the hammer has been released, the trigger will be pushed forward and upward until it is nested inside the trigger box and the hammer spring legs will fall off and you'll have to get those spidery spring legs back on again, pull the trigger far enough to re-latch the hammer
9) Insert the selector switch and turn it to the safe position, if hammer does not release, testing complete, move to next step
10) Prepare your allen wrenches for adjusting the set screws at the front and rear of the trigger (front is 10/24 1/2", rear is 10/24 5/8")
11) Drop assembled trigger box into pistol grip/lower and adjust take up and overtravel so that the slack is minimal and overtravel slightly beyond the pull necessary to release the hammer - use semi-perm threadlock when satisfied (I never am, a personal problem I have with ALL adjustable triggers is I never get done fiddling with them!)
12) All of the adjustment I did was in the rear with the set screw preventing the trigger from falling forward. I turned the front screw out a quarter turn and left it be.
NOTE: You have to insert the trigger box into the lower before you can adjust the set screws since there is no "floor" within the trigger box itself.

I had to smack my hammer pin in with a hammer, next time I'll just ream the hole first, the right way to do this. I'd like to find different hammer springs, since the hammer spring is VERY heavy from the CETME pack I took mine from and I'd estimate the trigger pull at 8.8 to 9 lbs using my unscientific method of hanging almost the full weight of 3x 3 lb. dumbells off the trigger by a monofilament line before the hammer finally released.

If anyone knows of alternate/lighter hammer springs, I'd like to hear about those. :)

3197431978319753197631977

R

[drine]

I put just one leg of the hammer spring on top of the pin. This allows a lower pull force but doesn't APPEAR to cause any burst fire. I have had it out 4 or 5 times but only about 100 rounds through it since I put the TT trigger/hammer/sear in. YMMV. It may not work so well in some guns since these are all very different so take care and load a few rounds and try it several times.

[r.erichsen]

I sent some emails to a spring shop that makes custom springs for unusual applications. I'll try some slightly smaller diameter wire and might have a few made in different alloys to see if I can find one that fits my needs. Just taking a coil out of the left/right side of the spring should reduce the spring deflection.

R

[holescreek]

Richard, why isn't your trigger return spring over the front of the trigger?

I just realized that you don't have the pin in place to hold it in in the photo.

[r.erichsen]

My understanding from Matt was that I didn't need it. Do I?

R

[holescreek]

My understanding from Matt was that I didn't need it. Do I?

R

I can't think of a reason to leave it out, the hole for the cross pin is there isn't it? What is supposed to return the trigger forward? You have to install it before putting the hammer in though.

[r.erichsen]

I can't think of a reason to leave it out, the hole for the cross pin is there isn't it? What is supposed to return the trigger forward? You have to install it before putting the hammer in though.

Getting the spring in won't be a problem. I have the technique for getting it in even after the hammer down pat. With or without that little spring at the front, the trigger goes forward. Without the grip frame, it goes too far and end up nestled in the trigger box and the legs of the hammer spring pop off the interrupter when the tip of the trigger swings this far forward. I originally had the return spring and pin in there, but it didn't seem to be serving any useful purpose and swung forward without it just fine.

R

[holescreek]

That's why I notch my trigger to use the original stop. The front of the stop rests against the cross pin and keeps the trigger from over rotating. It also acts as a spacer to keep the trigger from moving sideways into the ejector shelf.