doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Merkel Rear Trigger Problem

GSI dropped the importation of merkel several years ago

John Boyd
Quality Arms

I’m by no means a Merkel or German gun aficionado, but I recently worked on a late 90’s 147E. So I’ve been into a couple of these types of actions.

I’ve been thinking about your dilemma, it’s an odd thing that’s happening for sure. Has your gunsmith checked he position of the over hanging sear guide (the cone shaped rod that the sear spring rides on). Have you confirmed that the guide is in the correct position, is it straight or slightly bent….and that the coil spring moves (contracts and expands) smoothly? Obviously he’s removed the Sears and tumblers to work on the trigger pulls, so we can pretty much rule out burrs, bent, etc.
Highly doubtful the action is getting so hot with a few shots fired that heat would be an issue. Can you confirm that there’s not any gas leaks from pierced primers that is blowing into the action maybe causing an issue??
These actions are not overly complex. Your guns issues are really odd.
Have you actually seen the work he’s done to your sear and tumbler?

Thanks for letting me know. Does anyone import them now? GSI might still know something about them, if GSI is still in business, but could be a bit of along shot.

Now, there is an understatement.

Mark, is there any pattern that you can see when this occurs? Does it begin after a random number of shots fired, or after a right then left (or vice versa)? Try to determine that to help figure if it's recoil related, or otherwise.

If all else fails, and it were mine, I'd send it to Phillip Crenwelge in Emory, TX. He is a gunsmith of German descent and is the finest trigger man I've ever known. He has sorted out many, many issues with triggers on all types of guns. It may even be worth a call to him just to talk about it. He doesn't always answer during his working hours but he'll usually return the call. His number is 210-313-5988.

The problem occurs after about a dozen shots total from when the back "was" functioning at 6 Lbs.
The stock and trigger place have been removed for inspection twice after the first malfunction (on total shots since brand new (15)) and the problem reoccurred at about a dozen shots total.



Great information!!!
I cannot answer all of this by I will forward to my gunsmith.
There is another flaw with the rifle that as you mentioned may be causing this. I didn't think that gas was entering the action but maybe I was wrong...
The image below of the left side of the standing breach is after less than 25 rounds fired from that barrel (50 rounds total).
Admittedly I did not anneal my brass before reloading. The primers were not blown and there was no noticeable blow by marks on the brass. Still, this is ugly...

Gosh, I thought I was Captain Obvious...
After the first 12 pound trigger problem, my smith shortened the automatic safety connecting mechanism. He said that he could not remove it but that shortening it would remove the auto safety function while allowing manual safety operation.
We also checked that the 12 pound trigger is not tight against the sear. There is a little play in it when cocked.

As for recoil, this is a 11.5 pound 375 H&H. Recoil is just a positive reassurance of its powere going downrange.
For me, a 416 Remington's recoil gets my attention. My .458 WIn Heym 88B double rifle has significant recoil.
Then for some strange reason there is a 450 Rigby on a Vektor magnum length Mauser action- that followed me home that is down right impolite concerning recoil! A 500 grain bullet at 2450 fps is more than I enjoy!

As I posted earlier, this problem occurs after disassembling and reassembling the rifle. 6 pounds to start then after a dozen shot total (both barrels, alternating) the left trigger is at 12 lbs.

Thanks for Phillip Crenwelge's contact info. Trigger work is an expertise all its own.

Well, there’s definitely something causing some gas to escape and leave marks on your breach and action face. You’re right, that’s definitely no Bueno. Next thing I would do is check the condition of the tumbler to see if there’s any signs of that gas making it back into the action….if it is, the face of the tumbler will also be scorched.
You said the trigger wiggles and isn’t tight when it switches to its 12 lbs pull phenomenon……has your gunsmith checked to see that the tumbler is at full cock or is the sear resting in the intercepting/safety bent instead of being in the bent at full cock? If that’s the case, somethings gotta be causing the tumbler to come out of full cock and resting in the intercepting bent which would definitely explain the heavy trigger pull.
If the tumbler and sear are dirty, I’d highly polish them both, reinstall without lube and try and see if you can see any abnormal drag/friction marks. It would explain a lot seeing where the parts are resting when the 12 lbs pulls are happening.

Just FYI….JJ Perodeau is a very good mechanic when it comes to issues like this. The escaping gas on the left barrel is fairly concerning.

Mark, not familiar with Merkels or boxlock guns but I still think it is a sear problem. I agree to what Rainey states, disconnect the safety as I think the recoil has something to do with it. Reading up on a few sites the only thing I saw on this model was "doubling. I would contact Merkel and asked them.
Why it only happens after 12-15 shots is the $100 question.