this is a PSA for the Bix n Andy trigger and the semi known issues out there. The fix is coming from bullet central directly and i'll chronicle everything i've had to deal with this trigger.
Rifle build:
SAC Alpha 11 (defiance deviant to their specs) this becomes important later, including surgeon & tempest owners (so far)
Jae allen chassis
Bix n Andy single stage no safety trigger
*bartlein barrels (only thing thats a non issue on this build)
All parts were sent to SAC for work and was built by SAC.
I will only be speaking about the trigger issues specifically; ive already noted my other issues with this build.
My first issue with the trigger was potentially being set on the heaviest pull weight. Per my request to SAC, use heaviest spring and set to heaviest pull weight (right around 1.25 #) It may have caused the lower sear engagement to break off. Trigger was sent back to Bix n Andy for repair and came back to me with a slightly lighter trigger pull (around 1#)
When I got the trigger back i noticed that if I run the bolt handle hard (as in slap the bolt handle down) the trigger would fire. The fix for this would be to increase sear engagement. I followed the instructions from the trigger manual and set it properly. I now took care of this issue but another issue rose; When I run my bolt handle my trigger would 'half fire' (firing pin goes forward but not fully). Bolt handle becomes really sticky and in order to reset, you need to pull the trigger (to fully have everything set, theres a barely audible click) and then cycle the bolt.
I've tinkered with it for a good while and I found the issue: If I torque down both action screws I have this half firing issue. If I loosen either the front or rear action screw, problem goes away.
Another thing I found is if I use finger pressure and push down on the firing pin head assembly I can cycle my bolt with my other hand and fire with no issues.
the third actual "fix" I found is that if I apply hard downward and forward pressure on my action to my chassis and then torque my action screws in, rifle cycles just fine without a hiccup.
To pause here, I took a look inside my chassis and trigger housing. I can clearly see rub marks on the bottom of the trigger assembly on both sides near where the magazine spring ends poke out of (photo provided in response below). I'm already at the point where i dont have any more fucks left to give on whose fault this is, im just left with the bags. I suppose I'll just have to dremel out some fucking material there myself.
I called over to bullet central and talked to chris. He is the bix n andy trigger tech over there and explained my issue to him. His first question to me was what action? I replied a defiance deviant.
his next question was, is it a factory defiance or a modified defiance (ie to a gunsmiths spec). I told him it was SAC's action. And here comes the fix(es) now for anyone whos having this similar issue with the bix n andy...
Chris goes on to explain to me that the bix n andys top sear is lower than the other competitors. Coincidentally, some gunsmiths spec out actions and one of this may be shortening of the cocking piece assembly (which is done on the ALPHA 11, Tempest, and a couple others).
*if you have a surgeon and having this issue, its because theres a bit more play in the surgeon action and therefore you're also losing top sear engagement.
I am not the first person to go to all the way back to bullet central to figure out this problem and in fact its been such a confusion until bullet central started piecing together that its the top sear engagement.
________________________________________
The fix: If you're having the exact issue I'm having, its because you need more top sear engagement with your setup. (standard remington 700's, standard defiance deviants and most other actions shouldnt have an issue). Give bullet central a call and ask for dave or chris. Tell them you saw this post on the hide regarding the bix n andy issue and Top sear engagement. They are tracking this and have a modified top sear (increased height of around 20 thousandths) and this should cure the main problem thats been plaguing the trigger in tactical rifles.
The downside: you're going to have to pay for it. I think its around 35-40 bucks or so.
A word of caution from bullet central: Do not attempt to manipulate the build assembly in order to get it functioning without apparent issue (ie how I have to apply downward and forward pressure before tightening the action screws). recoil, being out in the heat and other mechanical induced factors can possibly bring the issue out again. running the bolt hard and slamming it around in your home without issue shouldn't give you confidence now that we know what the issue is. The last thing you want is to have a loaded rifle and conditions being right and the rifle goes off without your physical manipulation.
Again, this is not a fault of "bix n andy" its just tolerance specs the perfect storm combination.
i still recommend you try it out. I'm not gonna say it makes jewels or timneys shitty. That's just ridiculous. It breaks really nicely and is very responsive. To me it's worth having to buy the modified sear to work.
Rifle build:
SAC Alpha 11 (defiance deviant to their specs) this becomes important later, including surgeon & tempest owners (so far)
Jae allen chassis
Bix n Andy single stage no safety trigger
*bartlein barrels (only thing thats a non issue on this build)
All parts were sent to SAC for work and was built by SAC.
I will only be speaking about the trigger issues specifically; ive already noted my other issues with this build.
My first issue with the trigger was potentially being set on the heaviest pull weight. Per my request to SAC, use heaviest spring and set to heaviest pull weight (right around 1.25 #) It may have caused the lower sear engagement to break off. Trigger was sent back to Bix n Andy for repair and came back to me with a slightly lighter trigger pull (around 1#)
When I got the trigger back i noticed that if I run the bolt handle hard (as in slap the bolt handle down) the trigger would fire. The fix for this would be to increase sear engagement. I followed the instructions from the trigger manual and set it properly. I now took care of this issue but another issue rose; When I run my bolt handle my trigger would 'half fire' (firing pin goes forward but not fully). Bolt handle becomes really sticky and in order to reset, you need to pull the trigger (to fully have everything set, theres a barely audible click) and then cycle the bolt.
I've tinkered with it for a good while and I found the issue: If I torque down both action screws I have this half firing issue. If I loosen either the front or rear action screw, problem goes away.
Another thing I found is if I use finger pressure and push down on the firing pin head assembly I can cycle my bolt with my other hand and fire with no issues.
the third actual "fix" I found is that if I apply hard downward and forward pressure on my action to my chassis and then torque my action screws in, rifle cycles just fine without a hiccup.
To pause here, I took a look inside my chassis and trigger housing. I can clearly see rub marks on the bottom of the trigger assembly on both sides near where the magazine spring ends poke out of (photo provided in response below). I'm already at the point where i dont have any more fucks left to give on whose fault this is, im just left with the bags. I suppose I'll just have to dremel out some fucking material there myself.
I called over to bullet central and talked to chris. He is the bix n andy trigger tech over there and explained my issue to him. His first question to me was what action? I replied a defiance deviant.
his next question was, is it a factory defiance or a modified defiance (ie to a gunsmiths spec). I told him it was SAC's action. And here comes the fix(es) now for anyone whos having this similar issue with the bix n andy...
Chris goes on to explain to me that the bix n andys top sear is lower than the other competitors. Coincidentally, some gunsmiths spec out actions and one of this may be shortening of the cocking piece assembly (which is done on the ALPHA 11, Tempest, and a couple others).
*if you have a surgeon and having this issue, its because theres a bit more play in the surgeon action and therefore you're also losing top sear engagement.
I am not the first person to go to all the way back to bullet central to figure out this problem and in fact its been such a confusion until bullet central started piecing together that its the top sear engagement.
________________________________________
The fix: If you're having the exact issue I'm having, its because you need more top sear engagement with your setup. (standard remington 700's, standard defiance deviants and most other actions shouldnt have an issue). Give bullet central a call and ask for dave or chris. Tell them you saw this post on the hide regarding the bix n andy issue and Top sear engagement. They are tracking this and have a modified top sear (increased height of around 20 thousandths) and this should cure the main problem thats been plaguing the trigger in tactical rifles.
The downside: you're going to have to pay for it. I think its around 35-40 bucks or so.
A word of caution from bullet central: Do not attempt to manipulate the build assembly in order to get it functioning without apparent issue (ie how I have to apply downward and forward pressure before tightening the action screws). recoil, being out in the heat and other mechanical induced factors can possibly bring the issue out again. running the bolt hard and slamming it around in your home without issue shouldn't give you confidence now that we know what the issue is. The last thing you want is to have a loaded rifle and conditions being right and the rifle goes off without your physical manipulation.
Again, this is not a fault of "bix n andy" its just tolerance specs the perfect storm combination.
i still recommend you try it out. I'm not gonna say it makes jewels or timneys shitty. That's just ridiculous. It breaks really nicely and is very responsive. To me it's worth having to buy the modified sear to work.
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