Proper trigger pull and shooting technique

[del2les]

An NRA Shooting Sports Journal | Rifle Trigger Control Tips

Having good trigger technique is critical for good scores in popular rifle shooting disciplines.

www.ssusa.org

NRA Women | The 5 Fundamentals of Rifle and Pistol Shooting

When you can recognize why your bullet did not hit where you intended, and then identify what you did wrong, you are on your way to becoming a proficient shooter.

www.nrawomen.com

NRA Family | Trigger Control: How to Make Every Shot Count

From tactical to smallbore competition to big game, success depends on trigger control.

www.nrafamily.org

NRA Family | Trigger Control

Here’s the next step in learning how to make your bullets go exactly where you want them to.

www.nrafamily.org

The Ultimate Guide to Trigger Discipline & Trigger Control

Trigger discipline and proper trigger control are crucial in shooting. Learn everything you need to know about them in our ultimate guide.

tacticalhyve.com

An NRA Shooting Sports Journal | Rifle Fundamentals: Trigger Control

Keeping your rifle steady and controlling the trigger requires a smooth motion, correct hand position and one great hold

www.ssusa.org

Trigger Control - RifleShooter

Everything else can be correct, but a bad trigger pull can ruin the shot.

www.rifleshootermag.com

Etc, etc, etc.

 

[R. Cram]

This.

Trigger time will help always. Find a way to hit the range more.

Get off the bench once your rife is sighted in. Unless of course, that's the only shooting you will do.

Crap triggers make life hard. Why make life hard? Buying a good trigger is like a cheat code for shooting. Same for stocks.

Unless you're planning on shooting irons, invest in the best optics you can afford and mount them properly. Then learn how to use them by my first comment of a lot of trigger time.

This is the biggest thing to impress, If you are going to be a benchrest shooter shoot off a bench, if you are going to be a field condition shooter shoot inn field conditions. Every time I go to the range if there are 10 shooters , 10 will be shooting off the bench, I don't take a bench when I go hunting, I have never been to a military range that has a bench on it so the only way to learn how to do something is to do it in the way you will utilize the item you are trying to learn. If you are trying to learn how to ride a bike are you going to leave the training wheels on forever because thats easier than casting them off. If you shoot in field positions critical items on stock fit like the comb being high enough to comfortably hold your head up and length of pull, often when a shooter lays prone his head becomes closer to the sight due to the length of his neck and he can get wacked with the scope when he or she fires which can get your eye to tell your brain to flinch because eyes don't like to get hit. These things won't be so apparent when shooting off the bench. A rifle may not even have the same zero depending on how its held, off bags or held with a sling or standing or sitting in highpower we commanly have different sight settings for different positions. Dry firing the rifle and watch the crosshairs on the target to see if they move the same way each time should be just a little drop from the momentum of the firing pin. If it moves any other way maybe you have some pressure you don't want on the gun. Do this in your field position and its very productive to learn the position and doesn' t wear out barrels or spend money on bullets. I was dry firing my M-1 garand before a match a while back and while dry firing noticed the sights move to the right probable 3 minutes each time I pulled the trigger for some crazy reason I moved my trigger hand higher on the stock and that went away, go figure. I load check with a sling prone and sight in all my rifles with a sling prone and when you learn how, I can shoot within 1/2 min this way. Yesterday I went up to the range here at my house to check my match rifle because I cut off an inch off the breach to get fresh rifling and rechambered it and I also got a deal on some 852 military powder I was hoping would shoot and the first load was in a 260 rem 43 gr and a 14 mk and for 5 shots off my elbow with a sling the group was 1 1/4 inches, I was happy and done with that load. the next load was 43 gr and a 123 hornady loaded to 2.80 to fit in a magazine and it shot 5 shots into 1 5/8 inche , the next was 43 gr and 123 loaded to 2.850 to get it close to the rifling and it shot 1 1/4 inches . perhaps these groups could have been smaller had I shot them off a bench but I don't have one and won't get one and what difference would that make if they were smaller I forgot to mention all my testing is at 200 yds so those groups are close to 1/2 min and that is for sure small enough for any usefull load with the exception of benchrest or f-class which is benchrest on your belly. People get the idea that the whole solution to long range shooting is group size for 3 shot groups at 100 yards and a person would be way better off to get his or hers gun to shoot 5 shots under a min. and then shoot it at every long range oppurtunity that presents itself in field positions then the shooter could learn the effects of the wind and get comfortable with his rifle. here near boise starting in april there will be two matches a month at 600 yds and some more at 800 900 and 1000 although the long range matches got very little interest last year so they are not going to be held as often shooters if they want to learn how to shoot long range need to shoot long range. the best way I can think of is to shoot in one of these matches because after each shot the target is pulled down and a marker is inserted into the bullet hole then ran back up and the shooter can see where it hit that way before each shot the wind is evaluated and your best guess is put on the sights and you get to see the results of that shot, then you will guess again and see if your guess is correct and shoot again and see the result for 20 shots and most matches will shoot a total of 60 or 80 shots. A person will learn a huge ammount from one match and by the time he or her has shot 10 or so matches will probably be somewhat competent. The wind is very fickle, every shot at more than 500 yds needs to be evaluated because it almost never blows steady enough to shoot 20 shots with the same ammount of windage on the rifle and hit within 2 min. come out to a match and learn we all will help newcomers .

 

[flyguy1]

HAAA! It's like that bumper sticker: "Nice truck….sorry about your *****. LOL!!

My wife drives a 5.7 Tundra, and I'm old fashioned. I prefer my women not have a ****. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

 

[R. Cram]

If there is a smallbore program at a range near you sign up, I would shoot smallbore in the winter and they are very difficult to master as every influence you put on the gun has to be duplicated or the thing will not shoot that little bullet in the same hole. I can remember shooting prone and swearing something was wrong with the rifle because I could not detect and movement when shooting prone and the sights were near as I could tell dead center but I would get a few 9 in the mix turns out I was putting a different ammount of cheek pressure on the gun and that caused different impact. Smallbore is extremely good training and not expensive, I bought an anshoots [spelled wrong don't know how to spell it right sorry] used for 600 about a 1968 vintage and as they shoot 22lr the barrels don't wear out and the thing still shoots better than me. Clean the barrel once a year, no reloading, no barrel replacing from being shot out, I shoot federal champion at $3 a box or auto match at 14 for 325 when on sale and both of these will shoot plenty good enough in my rifle. If you have a young child say from 12 or so on up you would do them a great service if they have an interest because they will become very proficiant quickly if they dedicate themselves, the juniors would shoot with us in the evening matches and I would see a newbee and think ,boy that kid will never be able to shoot , and more times than not after a year the kid had a very good chance of outshooting me. Girls have a very good chance of being better than men , the two best shooters were two women and they certainly outshot me. One year maybe around 2005 there was a group of 4 or 5 juniors who decided to shoot Highpower youn men and girls all of which were very talented and they practiced all year with their AR 15's and were very good and went to the national championship at Camp Perry and among other distinctions they out shot the Marine Corps team on the rattle battle match also called Trophy infantry match I think. One of them was picked up by the AMU. Good shooters and fun to watch them progress due to them putting in the trigger time and not off a bench

 

[Hand Skills]

This probably sounds insane, and it very well might be.

I visualize the trigger as being a 1/4" rod that I'm pushing through a hole in the recoil pad into my armpit.

In my warped mind, I am pushing the trigger, not pulling it.

When I pretend like this, I can put a lot of force on the trigger QUICKLY without changing the sight picture.

Probably terrible technique. Can't recommend for anyone, but that's what sublimated through 100,000+ dryfires for me

Light triggers are a cheat code for sure, but this hack has helped me to shoot heavy triggers with great precision (provided they break cleanly - that'd be the caveat).

Take it or leave it, obviously, but great thread. Lots of interesting ideas here.

 

[YZ-80]

This probably sounds insane, and it very well might be.

I visualize the trigger as being a 1/4" rod that I'm pushing through a hole in the recoil pad into my armpit.

In my warped mind, I am pushing the trigger, not pulling it.

Well, as long as you've had a Tetanus booster, I see nothing wrong with that.

 

[Coyote Shadow Tracker]

I've got a tattoo on my right hand, behind my thumb that says BRASS. I got it 50 years ago when I was shooting on the Marine Corps rifle team. It stands for Breath, Relax, Aim, Slack, Squeeze. That was what we were trained to do for every shot. We had some of the top shooters in the world on that team. Now, 50 years later, every shot I take, I see those letters and go through the process. It still works. I shoot 100 and 600 yard benchrest and long range. If you learn the fundamentals it's hard to go wrong.

Semper Fi!

 

[skipglo]

3oz trigger...

And a cell phone.....with 911 ....already entered....just push send....!!!

 

[Rosebud]

I load for two guys who have six ounce triggers. I have to dry fire them before I shoot a new load in them to get use to such light triggers. I can place my finger on the trigger and feel pressure building before they fire with a little practice. Both guys hunt with them! Not my cup of scotch, but it works for them. One is a past national champion sporting clays shooter who only knows how to slap a shotgun trigger. He has a wall full of trophy animals to prove he can shoot a rifle. Other guy is just nuts. He won't even shoot what I've sighted in for him.just goes hunting, lines up the cross hairs, BOOM.

 

[Bob Wright]

I dry fire at any object at about 200 yards while watching the reticle. If it's moving on you after the release work on your setup and trigger squeeze.
A really high quality adjustable crisp trigger will pay dividends.

 

[bird dogs]

I know that there is a wealth of knowledge in this forum. I would like to start a discussion on proper trigger pull and shooting technique. We can bandy words around like finger tip, pad, power crease, proper anticipation, breathing, follow through and maintaining site picture. Of course everyone is different , every rifle is different, and there are as many techniques as there are shooters. Any of your little secrets that you can divulge would be appreciated.

 

[bird dogs]

The most simple method of mastering proper trigger execution and follow through for me has been accomplished by using the D.F.A.T product. It is a lens cap that changes the aperture focus of your scope as you look through it.
Lying prone in your living room, at a distance of 12-15 feet, you actually simulate shooting 1000yds after adjusting your parallax. There are postcard sized targets provided.
By watching your crosshairs move as the firing pin falls, it forces you improve your fundamentals. With a little practice, you'll be able to drop the hammer on a dot on the target nomenclature, without a movement.

 

[Coyote Shadow Tracker]

I've got a tattoo on my right hand, behind my thumb that says BRASS. I got it 50 years ago when I was shooting on the Marine Corps rifle team. It stands for Breath, Relax, Aim, Slack, Squeeze. That was what we were trained to do for every shot. We had some of the top shooters in the world on that team. Now, 50 years later, every shot I take, I see those letters and go through the process. It still works. I shoot 100 and 600 yard benchrest and long range. If you learn the fundamentals it's hard to go wrong.

I too was in the Corps 50 years ago. I mentioned this many Posts ago. One way the Drill Instructors taught young shooters with trigger control was to take a "Paper Stapler" and put a Staple in their trigger finger. Makes you squeeze the trigger.

 

[Rosebud]

I too was in the Corps 50 years ago. I mentioned this many Posts ago. One way the Drill Instructors taught young shooters with trigger control was to take a "Paper Stapler" and put a Staple in their trigger finger. Makes you squeeze the trigger.

Brutal, but probably effective!