Trigger problem

[QuickMick]

Ladies and Gentlemen,
came to shooting guns as other sports were not possible due to some injuries after an accident, so I got myself a Beretta 92FS. Lovely and shiny, went to the range for weeks - and got very disappointed. It seems like I have a problem with the trigger pull, sometimes it works fine and shots arer precisely were they should be. But sometimes I move the muzzle downwards -anticipating the recoil- only when using real ammunition (not when dry firing). So up to 50% of my shots are low and left, the rest is right in the bull's eye on 15m/yards. I was told that pulling the trigger slowly so that I get surprised by the shot ..but that sounds like crap as it -for my understanding- only works on the symptoms but not on the cause of that bad habit.

Any idea how to practise/train to get rid of that problem? I don't want to tune the gun as 50% of the shots are fine, so it's not "her" problem.....and pulling the trigger slowly won't work in IPSC......

Cheers,
Mick

[David Armstrong]

Pre and post ignition push, flinch, and assorted other problems are controlled by learnig to control them. Sounds somewhat circular, I know, but that is it. Just like any other bit of behavior one needs to identify the cause then learn to control the action. Learning to have a "surprise" shot is one method through the slow trigger pull is one method. Another is the old ball and dummy routine. Different ideas form different trainers and I'm sure you willg et plenty of ideas from toher shere.

[Stony Lane]

Install a "D" hammer spring. It will lighten your double action trigger pull and even the single action a little. It will help. Continue to dry fire.

[JohnO]

Lots of dry fire augmented with ball and dummy drills. When you find yourself with a less that perfect trigger press on a dummy round follow that immediately with 10 perfect trigger presses dry.

[MSparks909]

Try the drill in this video next time you go to the range. This is similar to the "ball and dummy" drill but without the dummy. Do this for 1-2 magazines at the start of each range session until you can work through the flinch.
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NxyTFzgWjhk

[ares338]

Ladies and Gentlemen,
came to shooting guns as other sports were not possible due to some injuries after an accident, so I got myself a Beretta 92FS. Lovely and shiny, went to the range for weeks - and got very disappointed. It seems like I have a problem with the trigger pull, sometimes it works fine and shots arer precisely were they should be. But sometimes I move the muzzle downwards -anticipating the recoil- only when using real ammunition (not when dry firing). So up to 50% of my shots are low and left, the rest is right in the bull's eye on 15m/yards. I was told that pulling the trigger slowly so that I get surprised by the shot ..but that sounds like crap as it -for my understanding- only works on the symptoms but not on the cause of that bad habit.

Any idea how to practise/train to get rid of that problem? I don't want to tune the gun as 50% of the shots are fine, so it's not "her" problem.....and pulling the trigger slowly won't work in IPSC......

Cheers,
Mick

I can only vouch for myself but I have been going through the similar results from my shooting. 50% of the time I have good results and the other 50% generally low and left. I have worked on this hard for over two years using every grip known to man and a few alien ones to boot. While reading a book entitled "surgical speed shooting" by Andy Chapman I came upon my cure (still working on it but much better results). Since I started off shooting with a some what of a Weaver style...you know...push pull, bore line up with the arm bone with a Popeyes eye squint and did well enough to pass the CHL shooting test.
This Chapman fellow is a staunch proponent of the isosceles style of shooting so I switched over and it helped a little but I was still plagued with inconsistency. One day at my home range I had an epiphany! I had never had one before so this was a giant shock. I said to myself "self"... You are a dumbass. I had switched to the isosceles but still lined up the bore with my strong arm and for me this made a straight trigger pull almost impossible. I moved the grip a little more to the thumb side and this has made all the difference in the world and I shoot down the center. If I miss it's up or down. After a little fiddling with my trigger finger placement a little I finally feel comfortable with my shooting. All of the other fundamentals like watching the front sight, follow through, breathing correctly etc. help but if you aren't pulling the trigger straight back you don't have a chance to be accurate.

[QuickMick]

I moved the grip a little more to the thumb side and this has made all the difference in the world and I shoot down the center. If I miss it's up or down. After a little fiddling with my trigger finger placement a little I finally feel comfortable with my shooting. All of the other fundamentals like watching the front sight, follow through, breathing correctly etc. help but if you aren't pulling the trigger straight back you don't have a chance to be accurate.

Confirmed. Totally true. Was at the range and tried to recapture and follow what I learned - doing one shot after the other and analysing each one. So I found that -exactly what you mentioned- my trigger finger was at the grip of the Beretta, not moving aligned with the axis of the bore. Sometimes it worked, sometimes not. So I prioritised trigger finger placement over everything else and got reproducible precise shots at 15 yards. Interesting that the gun "feels right" now in my hands.

After a little fiddling with my trigger finger placement a little I finally feel comfortable with my shooting. All of the other fundamentals like watching the front sight, follow through, breathing correctly etc. help but if you aren't pulling the trigger straight back you don't have a chance to be accurate

Thumbs up!

[Redhat]

Ball & Dummy is good also dime/washer can help.

Here is another one I used to help myself and others:

- 50 rds DA only, de-cocking after each shot
- 50 rds DA/SA, de-cocking after each two-shot string.

I didn't come up with it, got it passed on to me from someone else. Wish I knew who came up with it, to thank them, as it helped quite a bit with DA and DA/SA transition.

Not getting impatient is key...concentrate on fundamentals for EVERY shot.

[Keltyke]

+1 everything you've been told. Slow pull, light springs, light recoil ammo, same finger position every time, LOTS of dry fire practice. Have a friend put a snap cap somewhere in the mag. That will tell you if the flinch is gone.