Using Light Striker Springs on Glocks

Update History:
- Original posted January 6, 2013
- Updated January 19, 2013, add note on use of lightened and extended Strikers
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In an effort to lighten the trigger of my Glock 22, I have been using a lighter Striker Spring on the unit for the last couple of months, and I just found out lately that using such results in a long-term reliability issue, as I will explain in detail.

'Light Striker Spring'
To lighten the trigger pull of a Glock, there are a couple of ways you can do so, and all involves a simple replacement of parts. You can lighten the Trigger Connector to the most common 3.5 lbs. from the standard 5 lbs; You can also lighten the Safety Plunger Spring. However, the one that will result in the biggest improvement in trigger weight is the use of lighter Striker Springs. 

The standard Striker Spring weight is 5.5 lbs., but aftermarket springs are available to as light as 4 lbs., which is what I used that came with the Ghost Rocket Connector Kit. Using it resulted in a significant improvement in terms of lightening the trigger to my satisfaction. And INITIAL range tests using such spring resulted in NO reliability issues.

However, after a couple of months, I did start to see some misfires. Not that much, only a couple. And since they weren't that many, I didn't play particular attention to the problem, mainly because I was using reloaded rounds, and thought if I used prime ammunition it would not be a problem. Take note that for the last year or so, I have been using reloaded rounds from one source only, and that is the range where I do my shooting almost exclusively.

'Different Reloaded Round Source'
Things changed recently when I went on to try an outdoor shooting range. That range do not provide ammunition to buy, so I had to bring my own ammo. I had around 100 rounds of ammo in storage, bought from a gunstore near our place. I wanted to get another 100 rounds, but they ran out of reloaded .40 cal. ammo, so I had to go to another place just to get the additional 100 rounds. All the ammo I got were reloaded, Teflon-coated rounds.

When we finally got to shoot the rounds at the outdoor range, that was when the nightmare started. Every single 20 round magazine I used had around 4-5 misfires. It was highly irritating, as it disrupted my shooting rhythm. Everytime there was a misfire, I removed the magazine, and then racked the slide to remove the round from the chamber.

The failure was constant, regardless of which of the ammo from the two sources I used. And it was mighty embarassing, as it probably gave the Glock a bad reputation to some of the people who were watching me at that time. All the misfires had dent marks on the primer, indicating that the Striker was hitting the Primer, but just with not enough force to detonate it reliably. I collected and fired them again at the same time, but while most detonated on the second try, there were still a couple of stubborn rounds that just refused to detonate.

'Failure Analysis'
The main change that I made was that I started using ammo from a different source. It is likely that the ammo I used for a relatively long time had "softer" primers, enabling them to perform reliably well most of the time. Remember though that I was also starting to see misfires from that source, but at a much lower rate. When I switched to ammo made by other people, the primers they used were harder to detonate, and thus the 20-25% misfire rate.

I was fortunate enough to have access to my brother's Glock 23 during the same shooting session, and this Glock 23 had the standard, factory or stock trigger system: The Striker spring, Connector, Trigger Spring, Plunger Spring were all standard, no modifications were done. The trigger break was harder than on my modified Glock 22, but the most glaring thing about it was the fact that I found no misfires whatsoever despite using the same batch of ammo I was having problems with my Glock 22. The Glock 23, with its standard trigger system, was 100% reliable. This clearly puts the nail on the coffin that the lightened Striker Spring on my Glock 22 was the culprit.

I think what happened was this:
- First, I was just lucky enough to end up using ammo with softer primers;
- Over a period of time, after shooting a couple of hundred rounds, the lightened Striker Spring got even lighter. So if it started out at 4 lbs. when I first used it, it went even lighter as it was used more often. This brought the Trigger Spring to well below the 4 lb. threshold that the Spring manufacturers have put a limit on for Glocks (you can't find any manufacturer selling Glock Striker Springs below 4 lbs);
- The Factory or Stock Striker Spring of 5.5 lbs. will also lighten over use, but it will still be above the minimum 4 lb. threshold for the Glock Striker Spring.

'Parting Shot'
I have to admit I ended up a bit shaken up by the experience. If, for some reason I had been asked to use my modified Glock in some situations, like self-defense, imagine if such misfires had happened. It would've been very bad news for me, indeed. I was lucky enough to find out the problem on the shooting range, and not in some real-life situation.

I have since gone back to using the standard 5.5 Striker Spring on my Glock, and have destroyed and thrown away my lighter Striker Springs. I do not want them anywhere near my person anymore. The only modifications on the trigger system I kept are the 3.5 lb. Ghost or Ghost Rocket Connector, and the lighter Safety Plunger Spring. The trigger is heavier than it was, but at least it will be RELIABLE. It is just something I need to get used to. I guess I am just a bit too picky at times, I did shoot the Glock 23 with its factory trigger system well.

So if you are using or thinking of messing around with your Glock's Striker Spring, my opinion is DON'T. I think you can mess around with the other springs, but if you want to maintain the Glock's reliability, better keep the Striker Spring factory standard.

(Update January 19, 2013)
I have read in some forums that if you use a lighter Striker Spring, it is best used in tandem with EXTENDED and LIGHTENED Strikers. These aftermarket Strikers have extended tips, and are lighter than the factory Striker. The extended tip allows for a deeper dent on the primer, and the lighter weight allows for a faster velocity of the Striker when released, both presumably will result in a more reliability, even when using the 4 lb. Striker Springs.

But these modified Strikers are added costs, instead of just simply changing the Striker Spring you now have to change the Striker also. So I am not anymore inclined to give them a try at this point in time. Also, whatever issues these have, they will only surface after a couple of hundred if not thousands of rounds of use. Too many variables, too many changes on something that might affect the reliability of the pistol in the end.