Jard trigger for Cooper - review.

[Bryce]

I managed to get hold of a Jard trigger for my Cooper Model 38 in 17 Ackley Hornet thanks to the assistance of a friend in the USA.

I fitted the trigger a few days ago and shot the rifle at the range yesterday morning.

The trigger looked a bit rough in the pictures of the Jard site but in hand it is a lot better looking unit. It still has a somewhat “hand assembled” look to it but it certainly looks decently well made.

Looking at the pictures below you can see that the unit is pretty much the same size as the factory Cooper unit except that the safety bar sticks out further than the Cooper trigger and it sticks out both sides. The instructions mention doing work to the inletting on some models and logically this is the only area that might need it. I was pleased to see that my mid 2005 made Model 38 didn’t need any work and the barrelled action with the Jard in place dropped in with about 1mm to spare either side of the safety mechanism. Why they didn’t just make it like the factory one escapes me.





The U shaped washers that go below the attaching bolts are just stamped parts and are a bit thin and bend out at the sides with very little tension of the screws. Thicker machined versions would have been nice but these work OK.

I aligned the cocking piece of the upper sear in the groove in the action and then locked the trigger in place.

On mine the safety operating rod fitted without any issue but it did take a bit of bravery to get the safety functioning !! The little threaded rod that locks in behind the trigger when the safety is applied needs to be wound in or out as required but the thread locking compound on it locks it a bit to well ! It is a tiny 0.05 inch allen key that is required and it was with some trepidation that I actually wound hard enough on the key to actually get the rod to turn. It eventually did move and I adjusted the safety without drama. A good quality and good condition, like nice and new, allen key is a must for this job !!! Be warned.

This pic shows the trigger fitted and the barrelled action in place with the trigger guard removed. The adjustment screws are accessible from below with the guard in place and you can see where inletting work might be needed depending on the model of the rifle.



Once I had the trigger fitted I took a spray can degreaser and cleaned out the trigger and left it dry. I then proceeded to set the trigger up. Mine is a 4oz model. Setting the over travel is very simple and is a set and forget deal. The only remaining adjustment is the sear engagement as there is no spring preload/weight of pull adjustment on these triggers. I didn’t check it but mine felt like it was right around the 4oz mark.

Once fitted and the rifle back together the trigger looks very much like the Cooper factory item.



I found the setting on the sear engagement was quite critical due to the geometry of the trigger, a tiny little turn is all that is needed to make fine adjustments when you are close to the setting, just barely nudge it so you can just feel it move. If you go to far the trigger will not engage and the rifle will not cock. Moving out from there to give a bit more engagement and you will be close, a bit to far and you will start to notice a little creep when really paying attention to a smooth slow pull. With a little fiddling it isn’t hard to get the set up, I just found it a bit frustrating because I really hate creep and it seems to be a function of the triggers geometry that a decent bit of sear engagement is needed just for the trigger to function.

I had the sear set to what I thought was the ideal set up only to have it alter and stop engaging. A little more engagement and it was right again. I found that I could see a little creep in the trigger when really paying attention to the pull and it was hard to avoid this. The creep is very very smooth and to be honest it is hard to differentiate it from the pad of your finger compressing a little when adding pressure !! It is not my ideal in a trigger because I am super critical on creep but it isn’t bad by any means.

I have recently been shooting my bench rest rifle with a 2oz Kelbly trigger and as such I was always going to be pretty hard to please with the Jard. In short it isn’t as good as the Kelbly trigger but the difference is purely that small bit of very smooth movement that I can feel at times if I pay real close attention to the pull. I do have to actually watch the trigger as I pull it to sense that movement so I am being super fussy. The Kelbly breaks as crisp as the proverbial glass rod at 2oz’s so it kind of spoils you !!

Overall the pull is a vast improvement over the factory trigger and at the range the rifle was far easier to shoot as a result.

I was a little disappointed with the mounting washers being a bit flimsy and the possible need for inletting is a little disappointing when it would seem so easy to have avoided that. As mentioned, if being really fussy, a little better design to aid in a super sharp release would have been the icing on the cake but overall the trigger is a worthy addition to any Cooper that sees most of it's time on the bench or at the range.

Bryce

[T.Zimm]

A quick question for all you Cooper owners. I have only had oppourtunity to shoot one Cooper for a short time. I hope to buy my own very soon. Is the factory trigger so bad you need to replace it? For a $1200 rifle I would have assumed the trigger to be very good. The one I shot felt good. I was just wondering as I keep seeing this subject keep coming up (trigger replacement). Jewell does not make a trigger for Coopers?? Thanks T.

[Dan C]

Thanks Bryce, ya' beat me to it. As soon as you provided the link to Jard, I mouthed off and told everybody I was going to order one. When I saw the price, I stalled out for a while! But I gave in a few days ago and ordered a 4oz model, which has yet to arrive. Sounds like it will satisfy, I may have to get another...

[Bryce]

It is a piece of cake to set up a factory Cooper trigger to have a 1.5 - 2 pound and very crisp pull. They are very good in terms of factory triggers.

I think the reason that a replacement trigger is a desirable thing for a Cooper is because the rifles generally shoot very well and when shooting paper the trigger becomes a weak link in the system, at least that was my reason for getting the Jard. For normal varmint shooting the factory trigger is entirely adequate.

The Jard is designed as a light pull weight trigger for the Coopers and doesn't really represent a simple "replacement" as such in terms of being a fix for a poor factory trigger. It is more of an alternative if you want a much lighter pull weight than the factory trigger can reliably be set to, if you want a 2lb pull weight there is nothing wong with the factory trigger at all.

Jewell did make triggers for Coopers but not anymore.

[craigyboy]

Bryce good write up on the trigger I had planned to buy one myself but when I contacted Jard I had the same problem you must have had initially, they dont export, now you have just gone and made me jeaulous

[Alex]

... is excellent for almost everything except benchrest target shooting. They are crisp enough that I've shot at least one zero sized group with mine.

For hunting purposes, it is hard to beat the standard Cooper trigger. I do have several of the original Jewells, and they are very good. Adjusted to one pound, they do not feel as good as the Cooper. I've been itching to put one of the two "uncommitted" ones that I have on my 17AH Varminter, and one on my 20 Tac Varminter, both of which are super tack drivers as they are. However, these rifles shoot so good, as is, that I have been hesitating for several years to do it.

If the Jard works as well as the 4 oz trigger Bryce has, one will be on my TRP-3 pretty soon after I get it.

Alex

[RicN]

Great post Bryce; thanks for your efforts. Like you and Dan, I had thought to order one ASAP but for some reason did not. For the most part, I do like Cooper triggers and like you stated; great for field use but not quit up to paper shooting standards.

[English Marv]

Originally Posted by craigyboy

Bryce good write up on the trigger I had planned to buy one myself but when I contacted Jard I had the same problem you must have had initially, they dont export, now you have just gone and made me jeaulous

Craig,
I think South Yorkshire Shooting Supplies may be able to get you one- they certainly have the sako model in stock.
Marv.

[Greyfox1947]

I just installed a new Jard 2oz trigger in my Cooper Model 21, 222 Rem Mag.
I had a little trouble getting the sear engagement set properly so that the creep ans slop were removed. I still may need to work with it, but I'll wait til I have a chance to do some live fire.

Fisrt impression is that it is as light as advertised & does not slam fire even at the lightest setting. However, it doesn't have the crisp break that I am used to with a Jewell or even a Rifle Basix. Right now, I don't have a complaint or a recommendation. I'll get back to the forum after some range time.

Rick

[Bryce]

Rick,

Sounds like our observations are about the same.

If anything it sounds like my trigger might be a bit crisper than yours. Given that mine is a 4oz and yours a 2oz that probably stands to reason.

I'd have to guess that with the heavier pull weight springs of 6 - 10 oz installed the trigger would get closer to that really nice sharp release. If mine doesn't behave so far as that initial bit of "creep" I will try a heavier spring and see what that does.

Bryce