Trigger control and sight alignment.

[murf]

I bicep lift bottles of bourbon.

i quit doing that with captain morgan three years ago. good exercise, though!

murf

 

[d2wing]

Part of what I am thinking is that you can only think about one or two thinks effectively at the same time. Your trigger pull should be so practiced that you are not thinking about it. If your weapon moves while you pull the trigger you need better equipment or better training or both. Or be so consistent that you account for it. When I am shooting I am looking at sight picture and when it is right I shoot. A very stiff trigger can throw me off. A flexible stock can also throw me as I sometimes force the rifle to be on target.

 

[Hangingrock]

For whatever reason terminology wise I use and think trigger press is opposed to pull or squeeze. This probably started decades in the past at Parris Island. The terminology just stayed with me. Now with corrected vision in my seventh decade my shooting scores are what they are. I have a handgun shooting range on my property. We no longer shoot 50Yds but rather 25Yds on on occasion but we now shoot mainly 10Yds and under mostly. Basically defensive style shooting as opposed to bullseye.

 

[Smokin Gator]

You can not hold the sights perfectly still on target. Trying to make the gun go off at the instant the sights cross into perfect alignment is the cause of jerking the trigger/sights resulting in a shot off target. Ignore the wobble. You will get a much better result pressing the trigger without disturbing the sights even with the sights not pefectly aligned.

 

[d2wing]

You can not hold the sights perfectly still on target. Trying to make the gun go off at the instant the sights cross into perfect alignment is the cause of jerking the trigger/sights resulting in a shot off target. Ignore the wobble. You will get a much better result pressing the trigger without disturbing the sights even with the sights not pefectly aligned.

Yes for some people. Not for people that have the basics down solid. Proper sight alignment and trigger control. Your first statement is exactly why my system works. More people shoot your way than my way. The results show it in my experience. But to each his own. Not everybody will agree with me or understand what I am saying. Use what works for you. There is a reason the best target rifles have fast lock times.

 

[Smokin Gator]

Yes for some people. Not for people that have the basics down solid. Proper sight alignment and trigger control. Your first statement is exactly why my system works. More people shoot your way than my way. The results show it in my experience. But to each his own. Not everybody will agree with me or understand what I am saying. Use what works for you. There is a reason the best target rifles have fast lock times.

I'm primarily talking about standing shooting a handgun unsupported. Shooting a benched rifle is quite a bit different. Actually when shooting handguns most people try to make the gun go off as the sights briefly align on target. Until they have the proper fundamentals down that includes pressing the trigger and ignoring the slight wobble.

 

[WVRJ]

Some years ago in target archery there was a release called the Stanislawski.It's not often seen any more,but it was all the rage for a while.It basically works off back tension with a little bit of natural hand relaxation.It's just about a 100% surprise release.The archer draws the bow and concentrates on the sight picture,and the shot happens on its own.Guys were shooting a lot of clean scores on the 3 inch 5 ring,but not as many X's on the 1.5 inch X-ring.The Stan was replaced by manual release aids that have light,crisp pulls and are much more controlled.In other words,the archer is more precise when he's in control of the trigger,but it can get ugly if someone gets a dose of target panic and starts punching the release.No matter what kind of trigger we're using,if the weapon doesn't move as the shot breaks,it's going to be a good shot.
I bought my first striker fired pistol a little over a year ago.I was sure I couldn't shoot a pistol well if it didn't have a light,crisp pull,my reason being that I'm used to the very good triggers I have on most of my long guns.I bought a P320 Sig because the LGS had a crazy good price on it,and I wanted to see how I could shoot one if I got serious about it.It's a 45,and when I started hitting as well with it as I was with my tuned 1911 trigger,I was kind of amazed.Now I have 7 striker fired pistols,and I seem to do ok with them.
I usually just focus on the sights and keep adding pressure until it goes bang,but sometimes if I drift off target enough,I just stop increasing pressure until I manage to get it back on target,and resume the pressure increase once it settles down.
A couple of weeks ago,a friend and I were shooting 22's offhand at 100 yards,and when I made a good shot,I could actually see the bullet go into the target through the scope.If I caught a glimpse of the bullet I guess I was still solidly focused on the target.The rifle I was shooting has a very good two stage trigger,and it helped me get close to the break on the first stage and finish the shot when I was close to on target.A book devoted completely to trigger control would be a thick one with small print,and still wouldn't cover every aspect of it.

 

[Slamfire]

The Stan was replaced by manual release aids that have light,crisp pulls and are much more controlled.In other words,the archer is more precise when he's in control of the trigger,but it can get ugly if someone gets a dose of target panic and starts punching the release.No matter what kind of trigger we're using,if the weapon doesn't move as the shot breaks,it's going to be a good shot.

Yesterday I was at the range shooting my 1911 Tisas, Charles Daly, and Remington R1 1911. I tried a slowfire technique a Bullseye shooter described, which was to put the front sight at the top of the bull and squeeze as the sight drops top to bottom through the bull. This might be called the drop method. The shooters is trying to have the pistol go off, but unexpectedly, so as not to anticipate the shot and flinch.

I did achieve some very nice 12 O'C to 6 O'C stringing, but after a while I was punching the trigger as usual. I think it will take more practice. Yesterday my flinch was not bad, especially as I was shooting ball ammunition, and that more than anything else, contributed to less flyers at 25 yards.

I do believe the military shooters who are firing 5000 to 7000 rounds per month of 45 ACP alone, (they also shoot about the same of 9mm and rifle!), are pulling the trigger based on "feeling". They have shot enough to zone out and when everything looks and feels right, the brain pulls the trigger.

A couple of weeks ago,a friend and I were shooting 22's offhand at 100 yards,and when I made a good shot,I could actually see the bullet go into the target through the scope.If I caught a glimpse of the bullet I guess I was still solidly focused on the target.The rifle I was shooting has a very good two stage trigger,and it helped me get close to the break on the first stage and finish the shot when I was close to on target.A book devoted completely to trigger control would be a thick one with small print,and still wouldn't cover every aspect of it.

Occasionally I see the base of my 22lr bullets in Smallbore prone. I have to be using a scope, and the sun has to be perfectly in line so something reflects light, and it is usually in the morning. Early in the morning when the air is heavy with humidity, I have seen the trace, looks like a short arched line. It is neat to see that, as it is just at the level of human perception.

If you ever shoot highpower, there are occasions where the air is lallygagging, sometimes at 300 yards, more often at 600 yards, you will see the bullet trace. You have to be in direct line with the shooter and the target, but when conditions are right, you can predict based on the arch, just where the bullet will land.

At 1000 yards I used to see the 308 bullets coming down from several target diameters above, on their way to the target. Having become accustomed to the arch of a 308 Win at 600 and 1000 yards, it was an eye opener to see how flat the 6mm and 6.5 mm bullet trajectories were in compassion.

 

[WVRJ]

I remember one hot humid day when we were shooting steel at 600 yards and I saw the trace Slamfire is talking about.My buddy was shooting prone right in front of me.I was standing up and looking through the spotting scope directly behind him and that shot was the best defined vapor trail I've ever seen.He was shooting a 7 Mag he had set up for long range and the 168 grain VLD arced its way to the forehead of a human sized steel plate.It was one of the most beautiful rifle shots I've ever seen.