Nit-picking Col. Cooper's Third Rule

[DirksterG30]

On the frame above the triggerguard

 

[North of 49th]

on pistols along the frame, above trigger.
on rifles I put my finger tip on the front curve of the trigger guard.

 

[Scratchy]

Always along frame.

 

[LWGN]

Human hand can exert 22lbs of force when under stress.

Depending on the human involved, the human hand can exert a great deal more than 22 lbs force, especially when "under stress". I'd venture to say that 22lbs of grip strength is pretty weak - it definitely falls in the range that most insurance companies would agree justifies rehabilitation services to restore function. Seriously!

I am well acquainted with a gentleman who frequents this board who had 180 lbs of grip strength in his non-dominant hand two weeks after having major surgery on that arm. His primary shooting hand topped out the gauge the PT was using. His brother, an unremarkable-appearing fellow except for the fact that his wrists don't taper between the forearm and the hand, used to win money from the unsuspecting by opening the old steel Budweiser cans by squeezing them and popping the top off that way.

Now, I don't have nearly that much grip - more in the range of about thirty-five pounds in my dominant hand, which is at the low end of normal for my age and build according to those rehab tables.

I would be very surprised if many people owned weapons that had trigger pulls so heavy that they could be relied on as safeties to any significant degree in a situation involving impact, falls, or startle response.

 

[bogie]

Guys... Three pages on THIS?

Just how the bleep hard is it to keep your booger picker off your boomstick flicker? Some of y'all are acting like guns just "go off" from random jostling...

And I guess I better not even get into the concept of revolvers...

 

[md7]

Along the frame.

 

[Cosmoline]

I would be very surprised if many people owned weapons that had trigger pulls so heavy that they could be relied on as safeties to any significant degree in a situation involving impact, falls, or startle response.

Is there any actual study showing people's INDEX FINGERS jerk down with 20+ lbs of force because of a "startle response"? I've never heard of this. My own experience is that the hand OPENS UP if a fall is coming, dropping the weapon in hand. Indeed this has happend to me half a dozen times during slip and falls in the woods. The firearm always ends up flying, because my hands instinctively ditch it in favor of catching my fall. This is one reason I favor Mosins for trail carry. I had one fly out of hand, do a 360 and crash on river rocks below the rotting bridge I fell through. No discharge, no serious damage. Other than to the bridge.

Cooper's rules, as often written, are overbroad. The notion that you should "never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy" is great, and I follow it. Except when I pop the bolt and inspect a bore and crown against a bright light. I suppose there are shooters out there who have literally never had their hand over the muzzle during cleaning or in other circumstances, but they must have pretty filthy firearms.

The third rule is the same way. If you make it so inflexible that the trigger figer must be out until the sights are on the target, you limit its application to those firearms where this is practicable. It is better expressed as "about to fire" or some variation on that common sense notion. Nobody is advocating running around fingering triggers, but different firearms have a different drill. The presentation of a double action revolver in preparation for shooting calls for the finger to be in the guard earlier than the presentation of a 1911.

 

[GardDog223]

Front of trigger guard.

 

[caltek1911]

Usually in the slide-stop hole or along the frame parallel with the barrel.

 

[Zach S]

I keep my finger on the frame above the triggerguard.

 

[Geronimo45]

Finger inside the triggerguard, behind the trigger when using a revolver. Usually done only when I'm loading/unloading the thing. Safer than finger-off-the-trigger, as the gun is incapable of firing.