A good trigger can make all the difference in the world. A high end precision AR-15 rifle might be mechanically capable of shooting 1/4 MoA groups all day long, but if the shooter can’t properly interface with the firearm through the trigger then it all goes to hell pretty quickly. Hiperfire is a very new company from the land of MST3K and walleye that has started making triggers for the AR-15 platform that have a very interesting design — a design that might put them on the top of your shopping list.
In the world of replacement triggers, the big players are Geissele and Timney. They make the best replacement triggers out there for AR-15 rifles, but their triggers aren’t exactly what I would call “perfect.” They are designed for a specific purpose, and while they work well for that purpose they don’t do very well when you start going off-label. The Geissele S3G trigger isn’t ideal for precision long range shots. The Timney triggers are unable to be adjusted, and the trigger pins can work themselves free. There is room for improvement, and Hiperfire thinks they have found the solution.
The very first thing you notice about the Hiperfire trigger design is that there are some extra springs. The standard AR-15 trigger only uses the main spring which coils around the hammer retaining pin, but Hiperfire have included two additional springs as well as some extra parts on the trigger. It definitely looks… different.
Those two additional springs are what enables a Hiperfire trigger to do the two things that make it interesting: have a light trigger pull yet a heavy hammer stroke for reliable primer ignition, and an easily adjustable trigger pull.
Selling point #1 is all about reliability. Light triggers are great for precision shooting since the less force used to pull a trigger the less sympathetic movement there is in the rest of your hand to throw your shot off target, but in order to pull that off you need a lighter hammer spring. The more tension exists on the hammer, the heavier the trigger will be.
Hiperfire’s solution is to use a second set of springs that work like the arms in a compound bow — when the hammer is cocked over halfway, the toggle springs work against the hammer torsion spring making the force applied to the hammer’s primary sear lighter compared to the hammer springs alone as found in other FCGs. You can easily feel the change in hammer pressure when cocking the hammer manually for dry fire (most heavy when cocking is started and lighter as the hammer is laid back, just the opposite of other’s products, where the cocking force increases with layback). This lowered sear pressure results in lower sear friction which the user feels as lower trigger weight. When the trigger breaks and the hammer passes through about 50% of its travel to the firing pin, those same toggle springs — which were working against the hammer spring when cocked — are now adding more power to the hammer’s stroke, which results in high energy hammer fall.
Those springs are also essential to the adjustable trigger weight. Instead of needing to uninstall the entire trigger and fiddle with some set screws (like with the Geissele adjustable triggers) the end user can quickly and easily adjust the trigger pull by swapping out the springs while the trigger is still in the gun. All you need is a small implement to move the bar off the rest on the back of the trigger, and you can immediately swap out the springs with ease. Its easy as pie.
Installing the trigger is the toughest part of the process. There are a couple more pins and cams required than with the standard installation, but even with the extra parts I found that it was quicker and easier. I usually get stuck for a few minutes trying to line up all the things around the trigger retaining pin and it takes me forever to get that installed, but with the Hiperfire trigger everything drops in as one self contained group. The only thing I had to fix was when I installed the hammer without the cross bar — but even that took less than a minute to fix. Follow the instructions and everything works out.
Hiperfire sent me two triggers to test, the 24E and 243G. The 3G version is specifically designed for 3-gun, so I slapped it in my 3-gun rifle and decided to take it out to the local 3-gun match to see how it fared.
Once installed, the trigger hits all the high points. The blade of the trigger is curved for a nice comfortable placement of your finger and control throughout the firing process, but the face is flat to promote good trigger control. The trigger pull itself is crisp and clean with the tiniest amount of creep, so small that it is only really noticeable on the workbench and not during a competition. The trigger pull weight is easy to adjust, and the break and reset both feel very light — where the ALG Defense trigger goes “CLUNK” during the reset, the Hiperfire trigger goes “click” without sacrificing anything. It’s everything you want in a 3-gun trigger, more or less.
When I installed the trigger, I figured I would use it in a local 3-gun match and then do the review — nothing more. Well, I liked the trigger so much during that match that I decided to use it for the Crimson Trace Midnight 3-Gun Invitational as well, where I took 3rd place in my division. The trigger is light enough that it can be run hard and fast when you need it, but the pull offers a nice clean and clear break to allow you to make the longer shots. With the Geissele S3G trigger the lack of a proper break meant that I was constantly accidentally bumpfiring the gun when shooting long range targets — the Hiperfire doesn’t have that problem.
The trigger worked perfectly. Through two 3-gun competitions — one in the Texas dirt and the other in the high desert dust in Oregon — I had exactly zero trigger related malfunctions. The trigger worked properly every single time, and always succeeded in igniting the primers on my ammo. The only malfunction I had was due to an improperly seated bullet that put the bolt out of battery, and even then the hammer dropped just like it should. It made me wonder if it was even possible to make the trigger malfunction, and so I set about to test that question.
I popped the second trigger — the 24E — into my SBR lower receiver and then slapped on the 5.56 upper with a 10.5 inch barrel. The short barrel combined with my 762-SDN-6 provided enough back pressure to completely coat the interior of the rifle with carbon in a very short period of time. This same setup had killed the Geissele S3G trigger that I had been using in 100 rounds flat (it stopped resetting due to too much carbon on the parts), so I was curious to see if the Hiperfire trigger would do better.
Five hundred rounds later it still worked.
It looks to me like the Hiperfire guys have hit a home run. Their trigger is easier to adjust, more reliable in both operation and ignition of primers, and on par with the big boys in terms of trigger pull. Even the price is comparable — the 24E runs $215, which is within about $10 of the Geissele and Timney offerings. Hiperfire offers a product with equivalent performance and better features at the same price than the industry leaders, which in my opinion makes them the new top dogs.
If only they could make a website that doesn’t make me feel like my eyes are bleeding when I look at it . . .
Specifications:
Operation: Single Stage
MSRP: $215
Ratings (out of five stars)
Ease of Use * * * * *
Inserting the trigger is a little different, but each trigger includes all necessary instructions. Replacing the springs to change the trigger weight is a breeze.
Feel & Function * * * * *
A crisp clean break that works every single time.
Overall Rating * * * * *
If you’re looking for a great replacement trigger for your AR-15 and have $215 to drop, this would be the trigger to get.
Damn…I saw these for sale with some LPKs at Palmetto a while back…i wanted to jump on it but didnt know jack about the manufacturer
It’s an amazing trigger. Unlike a lot of other triggers it actually INCREASES hammer fall power through its secondary spring system. Being user adjustable from 2-4lbs is an excellent feature and was why I chose it over the Geissle SD3G. Highly recommend it.
Interesting. I have a 5.45 AR-15 and I have to use an increased power hammer spring to reliably ignite the primers on surplus ammo. I haven’t been able to change out the trigger because of this reason. I wonder how well a Hiperfire would work.
Sam, I am running the HiperTouch 24C in two of my AR’s and they are incredible. You ABSOLUTELY will not have any primer ignition issues what-so-ever. Like SnJohnson said, they have been able to design a trigger that is both light and smooth. The reset is so minimal you really don’t even notice it. Try one out and you won’t be disappointed my friend.
Read all comments here made by usename DON. What he says is 100% the truth.
I too own a Hipertouch 24C and consider it to be the best (non binary) trigger in the world.
LOVE the shoe, BTW. I polished out the little mold seam on it which I think is important. Used a dremel with rouge and cotton wheel.
I do not think I would ever buy another Geissele 3G-SD after owning a Hiperfire 24C. I am certain of that.
I would sooner buy a Hiperfire EDT Enhanced Duty Trigger rather than an ALG Defense Mil Spec for a duty rifle.
Geissele is awesome, but now outclassed by Hyperfire IMO.
I am waiting for the new Hiperfire Echo binary trigger marketed by Fostech.
Pretty darned good ratings.
How light can the trigger be set?
I have one of these in my AR build. It comes with three different spring set which range from 2.5 pounds- 3.5 pounds.
2-4 lbs according to the manufacturer’s site. They only have the pull weight listed on one trigger that I can see, though.
I have the 24C model in my 3 gun rifle. With the spring set for the lightest trigger pull it has measured consistently at 2 lbs 1 oz. I haven’t tried the other spring sets at all because why screw with it?
Looks similar to a SCAR trigger with an extra hammer spring
Nick, in the paragraph that starts “Selling point #1”, you wrote “Hiperfire’s solution is to use a second set of springs that work like the arms in a compound bow — only coming into play when the trigger is already moving.” Is that accurate, or did you mean to say “…when the hammer is already moving.”? It appears as though those spring act on the hammer, not the trigger, but if what you said is correct, then I’m misunderstanding the way the system functions.
Thanks for any clarification you can provide.
Updated for clarification, with help from the manufacturer. Let me know if you still have any questions.
Great job on the clarification; it’s now as clear as I think it’s going to get, given the complexity of the system you are describing. Thanks!
So what *is* the difference between the E and 3G versions?
As-delivered break weight, 1- vs 2-stage, fancy decal for my truck…?
Good to know the Satellite of Love is pro 2A
LOL. More “buying skills” in aisle three at Gander Mountain.
As an Appleseed instructor (in training), I see lots of people bringing their guns to Appleseed marksmanship events. The initial 13 shots is a bit of a skills assessment.
Frankly, precious few Americans can shoot 4MOA.
Spending a bunch of money on a trigger for them is about as useful as buying hifi speakers than can reproduce the high ends up to 40,000Hz.
These people would be far better served spending money on a marksmanship class (Appleseed, or United States Rifleman’s Association to name a couple) to learn how to use what they’ve got instead of pouring more money into aftermarket parts.
John
John
I agree that practice is more important than gear, but no other part on the AR-15 can improve accuracy so drastically for such little money. If you’re going to upgrade your AR-15, this is the part to start with.
Is this specific trigger perfect for a first time shooter? Probably a little expensive. An ALG Defense QMS trigger would work for much cheaper. But for those who want and need a really great trigger then this is something to look at.
I agree wholeheartedly. Having been a military marksmanship instructor on the M16-series weapons for 14+ years, and semi-auto-only ARs for a couple of decades after that, I’ve personally trained literally thousands of folks on using these types of rifles/carbines. My experience indicates there is NOTHING that will improve groups and hitting ability with an AR quicker than a trigger upgrade, even if it’s only a minor one. A good/experienced shooter can fight their way through a crappy pull and still get decent results, but for the new shooter, it’s a completely unnecessary hurdle than can (and should) be avoided. I often recommend the RRA 2-stage AR trigger based on it’s ease of use, cost, and ease of installation, but the items in this article are clearly a step or two above that level, and I’m looking forward to trying them out.
Note: “hurdle than can” should be “hurdle that can”.
I concur. Nowhere was this more evident than last weekend on the range when I dragged my SCAR 17S out for some shooting. All of my other guns have upgraded triggers and trying to shoot 1 MOA groups with my SCAR at 100 yards was an exercise in frustration. The SCAR is a very accurate gun, but no way was I getting anything close to its true ability with that god awful stock trigger. I’ve got a Timney on its way and I’ll review it when I get a chance.
A little expensive?
The “average shooter” who just wants to go to a range and shoot a big gong from 100 yards doesn’t need this trigger.
They’d be better off spending $40 on a decent trigger and the other $160 on ammo.
The average shooter who buys an AR just to go out to the range to “hit gongs”, as you put it, normally isn’t going to take the time to read articles like this or worry about aftermarket triggers. Their idea of customization is changing the grip, adding some weird zombie etched part to their AR, adding flashlights and mounts of all sorts or DuraCoating it a different color to match their personality. But like mentioned above, these triggers are incredible and would aide any shooter from the beginner to the seasoned pro.
Mr Appleseed Instructor, I can’t believe you are knocking a product that would only make your job easier? But I see where you are going… You would rather someone put the money in your pocket to teach them how to shoot an AR with a bad two stage trigger instead of someone spending the money with someone else on better equipment that in itself will help them ten fold. Have you ever tried one of these triggers yet?
I have the HiperTouch 24C in two of my AR’s and I wouldn’t trade them for anything. They are the best trigger to date, hands down. They are very light and smooth but yet they hit the primers hard so you don’t have to worry about misfires… Everyone that has tried either of my rifles has fallen in love with them. Two of my friends even bought one to put in their AR’s.
Some years ago a friend and I took a rifle course together. I brought my .308 AR (Timney-equipped) and he brought his nearly brand-new Colt 6920 that was bone-stock except for the scope.
He spent the whole day shooting around 4 MOA, and was starting to get frustrated because I was knocking out sub-MOA groups nearly from the get-go. That evening, after class, I dug into my ever-present toolbox and found an extra RRA NM 2-stage trigger. The next morning, our class hit the range bright and early and immediately he begain shooting 2 MOA groups. He probably shrank those down to 1.5 MOA by the end of the day.
Moral of the story? Never underestimate the benefit of a good trigger–likewise never underestimate the detriment of a bad trigger.
I disagree. While training is of utmost importance, crap equipment is crap equipment. Why should someone try to learn with a generic trash AR trigger, when they can get a better trigger? It’s not necessarily just about lowering the pull weight either, as I’d rather have a solid 5 pound trigger with no creep(a 2 stage with smooth take up is acceptable), than a floppy mess that feels like I’m dragging a cast iron skillet across a gravel pit by my index finger, with a trigger pull weight that for the first shot might be 4 pounds, 7 on the next, and 5 pounds on the third.
Now sure, someone with no experience thinking this is just some magic solution to their problems is frankly, wasting money. But quality training, even an appleseed course(really, a LOT more people should attend those), with better equipment, can(not always) produce better results.
John – Perfect practice makes perfect. True enough.
However, there’s something to be said about an accurate rifle. Not only is it interesting, in the words of Townsend Whelen, but you can’t blame an accurate rifle for one’s personal suckage.
The accurate rifle gives the shooter better feedback. And that’s just as important – if not more important – for the beginner as for the experienced.
I have a quibble with your comparisons in the suppressed SBR:
You use the Geissle S3G and compare it to the Hiperfire 24E (which I assume is the “combat trigger” version of the product). So you’re comparing a competition trigger to a combat trigger. Seems a bit of an apples-to-oranges test. Why not run a Geissele SSA or SD-C in comparison with the 24E and see how they stack up reliability-wise over a few hundred rounds?
Agreed. Or at least compare the SD3G to the 243G, so you are comparing two three gun triggers to each other.
This looks like a great trigger system though. I have a Geissele NM DMR in my current AR, and will consider one of these for my next one.
Sounding awesome until hit the typical +$200 price.
I spent $285 on my Geissele High Speed DMR, and it has been worth every penny. Simply the best trigger that I have ever used.
Nice review Nick.
Looks like a worthwhile product for high-end users.
Sorry about your Geissele bumpfiring, man.
I chuckle every time I see something like this. So much effort has been expended in the US gun market, trying to turn the AR-15 into something it never was… and never will be: a precision marksmanship rifle. The AR-15 is the civilian version of a mass production military rifle, and it was designed for cheap production, not to be a precision shooting rifle.
This is a clever solution to one of the problems of a single stage trigger, but the real solution to all the problems listed above is a two stage trigger.
That said, the mil-spec AR-15 trigger is a piece of crap. Anyone serious about marksmanship to what the AR can attain needs to get a better trigger. There is no way, in my experience, to make the “mil-spec” trigger into a good trigger, as gunsmiths can with other US military rifle triggers. I can make the stock military trigger group on a M-1A/M-14 as sweet a trigger as you’ve ever felt, same for a Garand, ’03, etc.
The AR? Feh. I could sink $300 of my time into an AR trigger job and it would just get worse the more I screw with it. So folks, if you want a good AR trigger, you need to get comfortable with the idea of replacing the stock AR trigger with something else.
Back to two stage triggers for precision rifles: There’s a reason why Anschuetz uses two stage triggers, folks. Yes, they cost money. Good triggers cost money. Excellent triggers cost… more money.
I’m guessing you have never heard of Service Rifle competitions? There are AR platform guns that can easily shoot sub-MOA, including mine.
Yes, I have.
And in NRA service rifle competition, you’re limited in how light you can go on your trigger weight, namely, 4.5 pounds.
http://www.odcmp.com/Competitions/Rulebook.pdf
p. 26, section 6.6.1, 4.5 pounds minimum trigger pull for rifles.
Further on, you’ll see that the minimum trigger pull for pistols is 4 pounds.
When I do a trigger job on a Garand or M-1A/M-14, I actually aim for an ounce or two higher in trigger pull (4#, 9oz to 12oz) in order to make sure that the trigger will hold the test weight no matter the localized conditions or any lubricant that is introduced. If your rifle is checked for pull and won’t hold the test weight and you can’t adjust it to do so, you’re out of the competition.
In a precision rifle, triggers sometimes go as light as 2 ounces – eg, for benchrest. Some F-class shooters are running triggers under a pound – maybe as light as 8oz.
My Annie, for rimfire 3-position, has a trigger set at a little over a pound.
When I allow people who have shot mostly AR’s in their lives to shoot my Annie, most will discharge it well before they thought they even had their finger on the trigger.
For AR owners who want to compete in service rifle, I recommend the same trigger that fellow gunsmiths who have been on the AMU used in the AMU: The Geissele.two-stage, which is rated for at least a 4.5lb break.
My 20″ Sabre Defence with factory trigger and a x4 leupold HAMR on top shoots just under Moa all day long 1380 69 gr Sierras and cheap PPU brass. Only mod so far was a freefloat tube. which obviously you can’t do without on an AR.
Now this is with a heavy clunker trigger that feels like there’s sand in it. Seriously it’s the worst trigger of all my guns.
So I just installed that 243G hipertouch with the medium setting spring and now i have a great trigger.
Not a hair trigger for a match rifle, but it’s no longer a piece of farming equipment.
Can’t wait to go out to the range and see what my AR with factory barrel really can do.
Sure, the AR-15 is nowhere near the top-tier of rifle accuracy. But ARs are among the most accurate semi-automatic rifles. Sometimes accuracy is everything, as it is in much competitive shooting sports. But for other uses sometimes it is wise to sacrifice some accuracy for the advantages of a modern semi-automatic rifle. At AR cartridge ranges, an accurate semi-auto that shoots sub-MOA and is able to reliably hit man-size targets at the maximum effective range of the cartridge makes more accurate rifles like bolt-actions and single shots obsolete for many practical applications where accuracy is not the most important consideration, including most combat roles. I consider some accurate ARs to be precision marksmanship rifles, of the semi-automatic variety that is inherently less precise than the most accurate bolt-actions. Certainly there is a need to distinguish semi-automatic “precision” rifles, as the US military has done with with the Designated Marksman Rifle concept and the AR-based SPR and SASS rifles. They are true precision rifles, among their class of rifles. Of course if a rifle is designed today with maximum precision as the only design intent it won’t be a semi-automatic, but we can and should recognize a highly accurate semi-auto as a precision rifle within the constraint of a semi-automatic system.
What buffer is that in your SBR?
I’m in the market for a good trigger to complete a .264lbc (6.5 Grendel) build. I’ll have to check this one out. Thanks for the review.
The trigger is great if you use a standard gas system. The issue I have with the trigger is when you use an adjustable gas block. I shoot 3 gun and have a very light JP operating system. This allows me to turn my gas way down resulting in very little recoil when combined with a rolling thunder break. The extra force it takes to reset the hammer with the light trigger pull springs forces you too turn your gas up(no good for recoil control). This is an awesome tactical or combat trigger but not very good for 3 gun comp.
What are you talking about… I have the HiperTouch 24C installed on two different custom built AR’s, both having adjustable gas blocks, and I have NEVER had any issues with my trigger resetting unless I turn it down to some ungodly low level that would do the same to any trigger. Both rifles have light weight BCGs with one of them having the JP silent capture spring setup in it and the other having a 3.8oz buffer in it. My buddy has the same trigger and an adjustable gas block on his carbine length piston rifle and he hasn’t had an issues with his either. These triggers have only been out for about a year now but I see a lot of them showing up in all sorts of AR competitions, and yes even 3 gun competitions… Have you even tried one yet?
Question here on the carbonization of the lower test Nick did. I assume the SBR upper was DI rather than piston. Had Nick used a piston upper, would the lower have gotten plastered with carbon that quickly? If not, then this might be one example of a win for the piston gun. Granted, its somewhat of a special circumstance – sensitive trigger and suppressor, but even so, it would bear consideration nonetheless.
Yet another item for my next build. Dang ARs are addicting! Oh well, keeps me out off the streets and out of the bars!
Thanks for the info, Nick….I had been looking for info on one of these
I used a Hiperfire 24E when building my SBR (which is actually pretty close to the one that Nick wrote about elsewhere on TTAG), and I absolutely love it. The 243G wasn’t yet available, but the next AR I put together will certainly use that trigger… as I understand it, the 243G is essentially the 24C competition trigger with a curved (rather than flat) trigger bow.
In any event, the 24E is very nearly as clean as a factory-installed JP trigger, which is, for me, the absolute gold standard in single stage AR triggers.
Anyone have long term feedback on these hiperfire triggers?
Any one have long term feedback on these hiperfire triggers?
I just purchased a Hiperfire/Hipertouch LPK and it was a
real mess. Hard to install…!
Plus, it would not even function properly after completed
install. The two TOGGLE SPRING &
PIVOT are HELL too install. I had parts
flying left and right. After calling
their/Hiperfire customer service department and explained my issues! I was told, that I was the “PROBLEM” and not
their product? Even took it to a local
gunsmith and he could “NOT” make it function correctly. For $200.00+ it should be a “DREAM COME TRUE
and not a NIGHTMARE”….!
so your problem was that you dont know how to install it, even with the excellent.instructions provided.. and thats hiperfires fault? gotcha
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