Handgun Accuracy Fundamentals: Trigger Control

[TCinVA]

Often on various forums I see questions from those new to handguns and those who wish to improve their accuracy with a handgun about where they should start. Often the quality of the responses to that question leaves much to be desired since there are relatively few people who have a good grasp on fundamentals with a handgun.

While I do not claim to be an expert, I have had the benefit of excellent instruction in the fundamentals that dramatically improved my skill with a handgun. Hopefully this little writeup on handgun fundamentals will give the relative beginner interested in improving their skill at least a good grasp of what they are. It is not a substitute for formal training from a quality instructor (like the instruction offered by Larry Vickers or his Vickers Shooting Method instructors), but it's at least a place to start.


Trigger Control

The bedrock fundamental of shooting a pistol accurately is trigger control, the ability to pull the trigger fully to the rear without disrupting the orientation of the pistol to the target. While that sounds simple enough, in practice it's often difficult for a beginner to translate the concept into acceptable trigger control on a live weapon. The ubiquity of the Glock family of semi-automatic pistols makes them a good candidate for explaining what goes into trigger control.

Take an unloaded Glock pistol, (you are sure it is unloaded, right? Quadruple check!!!) point it in a safe direction, and place your finger on the trigger. Using the least possible pressure, begin to move the trigger to the rear. Using this minimal pressure, somewhere in the trigger's movement you should notice that the trigger's movement will stop. Going beyond that point requires more force. This is called the reset point.

The movement of the trigger prior to the reset point is typically referred to as the takeup or slack in the trigger. Prior to the reset point on the Glock's trigger, the movement of the trigger is simply pushing the trigger bar to the rear to put it into contact with the striker and striker block safety. It is resisted only by the spring tension of the trigger return spring. At the reset point and beyond, moving the trigger to the rear adds the weight of cocking the striker and of overcoming the striker block safety. This is why the amount of pressure you need to continue the movement of the trigger increases.

It is not uncommon for a novice shooter to experience this and to respond by trying to smash through the Glock's trigger pull (or the trigger pull on other handguns) in one violent motion. This generally has the effect of torquing the weapon to the side in their hand (because their grip is almost always sub-optimal) and it leads to their brain knowing exactly when the weapon is going to make the loud noise...which produces anticipation. The end result on target is a hit that is usually considerably low and to the left (for a right handed shooter) of the original point of aim.

Proper trigger control involves using light pressure to quickly push through the takeup or slack in the trigger, and then pressing with gradually increasing pressure past the reset point. As a thought experiment, imagine that your trigger finger is a mechanical lever and is sitting at the reset point of the Glock's trigger. Imagine adding 1/4 of a pound to the far end of the lever in an effort to try and move the trigger fully to the rear. Then think of adding another 1/4 pound...and another...and another...and so on until the trigger finally lets go. That is the proverbial perfect trigger pull. If the sights are anywhere on target with a trigger pull like that, you will hit because that trigger pull does not disrupt the orientation of the firearm to the target.

The best way to translate that concept into a kinesthetic practice that I've found is to use the case on the front sight drill. Using an empty weapon, balance an empty shell casing or a dime on the front sight of the pistol like so:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Vickers%201911%20Operators%20June%206-7%2009/TD1/P1020569.jpg

The goal is to take the slack out of the trigger and then to press the trigger to the rear using the gradual increase in pressure described in our 1/4 pound thought exercise so that when the hammer/striker falls, the case or dime is still balanced on the front sight:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v613/Tim_Orrock/Vickers%201911%20Operators%20June%206-7%2009/TD1/P1020570.jpg

** Pictures courtesy of Templar

This dryfire drill is extremely beneficial because it gives you tactile feedback on what the perfect trigger pull feels like. It gives you a baseline you can use to begin building muscle memory, and in every instance where I've used it shows an almost instant ability to improve accuracy.

[YVK]

TC, it is a good and important post, but I'd like to add to it in a different dimension.

"Trigger control" has become a default answer when somebody raises concerns of distance shooting accuracy. I personally have spent a considerable amount of time on wall drill, b&d drills, balancing brass drill trying to get respectable 25 yard groups.

Then I noticed that my long distance groups are better when I shoot at 3x5 cards rather than conventional bullseye.
Then I noticed that my groups are 40-50% better when I use pistol-mounted RDS vs. irons-equipped slide on the same frame. Obviously, RDS won't do much for my trigger control or shot anticipation directly.
What both of these things - 3x5 card and RDS - offered me was a consistent shot-to-shot sight picture, which in my case appears to as important, and may be even more important, that trigger control.
Folks who are stuck at suboptimal long range groups need to look at all aspects of marksmanship to diagnose their problems. Change of targets, use of alternative sighting systems and external observation are very helpful here.

[JV_]

Change of targetsHigh contrast targets, like a black circle on a white paper, make a significant difference for me. A light index card on a white piece of paper is suboptimal for me.

[TCinVA]

The two things we must do to hit a target...any target at any distance...are:

- get an acceptable sighting reference
- manipulate the trigger in such a way that the sighting reference is not disrupted before the bullet leaves the barrel

You've correctly identified that the quality of your sighting reference becomes a huge factor in accuracy, especially as the distance to the target increases.

...and that's why I have a little blurb on sight management forthcoming. :D

[JV_]

I'm about 30 days in to my P30 adventure. I've had a helluva time trying to get tiny groups at 21-30' and I've finally made some significant progress. Dry fire drills all seemed perfect, but when shooting live ammo I noticed my stronger grip (and a light went off). The grip in my strong hand was too tight, I suspect that the tension in the grip was interfering with my smooth trigger pull. The long pull of the P30 LEM seemed to exacerbate the problem, as my grip was working just fine with the M&P.

[Jay Cunningham]

"Trigger control" has become a default answer when somebody raises concerns of distance shooting accuracy. I personally have spent a considerable amount of time on wall drill, b&d drills, balancing brass drill trying to get respectable 25 yard groups.

In my experience, too many guys go looking for exotic answers when they should have gone back and revisited trigger control.

[derekb]

I can exhibit perfect trigger control when dry firing, but I notice when I'm at the range, I tend to 'forget' about it until I start missing. Then I have to mentally slow myself down and think about the trigger.

[YVK]

High contrast targets, like a black circle on a white paper, make a significant difference for me. A light index card on a white piece of paper is suboptimal for me.

I put a 3x5 or 3x3 card over a black background of NRA bullseye. Gives me very visible yet relatively small point of aim.

[aspect]

I can exhibit perfect trigger control when dry firing, but I notice when I'm at the range, I tend to 'forget' about it until I start missing. Then I have to mentally slow myself down and think about the trigger.

I do the exact same thing on a regular basis. I'm thinking that until I get more consistent, it might be a good idea to start each range day with some dry fire.

Great post TC.

[ABC]

I do the exact same thing on a regular basis. I'm thinking that until I get more consistent, it might be a good idea to start each range day with some dry fire.

Don't just start with dry fire, if you find yourself shooting poorly stop and dry fire, then go back to live ammo. I've noticed dry fire between drills, or right before loading fresh magazines, can really keep my range session "on track".

[SLG]

I can exhibit perfect trigger control when dry firing, but I notice when I'm at the range, I tend to 'forget' about it until I start missing. Then I have to mentally slow myself down and think about the trigger.

I'll let Jay provide the details of the drill (I hate typing), but LAV has the best solution to this that I've seen. He calls it the Dummy and Ball Drill. The reason you can pull the trigger perfectly in dry fire but not live is because you have two boxes in your head. One tells you how to pull the trigger on an empty gun, and the other tells you how to do it on a loaded gun. You need those two boxes to come together, so that your finger (and your mind) only know one way to pull the trigger.

The other mostly overlooked aspect of this is that trigger control may not be your issue. Anticipation of recoil is far more destructive to most people's accuracy than trigger control, and it usually gets misdiagnosed by school trained instructors.

[ToddG]

Anticipation of recoil is far more destructive to most people's accuracy than trigger control, and it usually gets misdiagnosed by school trained instructors.

Absolutely. Especially if you have a strong two-handed grip on your pistol, it's pretty hard for your trigger finger to put so much extra movement on the gun that it shoots many inches low...

[derekb]

The other mostly overlooked aspect of this is that trigger control may not be your issue. Anticipation of recoil is far more destructive to most people's accuracy than trigger control, and it usually gets misdiagnosed by school trained instructors.


Absolutely. Especially if you have a strong two-handed grip on your pistol, it's pretty hard for your trigger finger to put so much extra movement on the gun that it shoots many inches low...

This is true. I don't believe it's a recoil anticipation issue, though. The trouble I have is I fire a few rounds, and then remember that I'm not paying attention to the trigger. Once I start paying attention to it everything goes great. I think the big thing is just getting to live-fire more often. I've been on somewhat of a hiatus from shooting for the last six months to a year, and don't have the funds to do a lot right now. That's what's killing me I think.

[Jay Cunningham]

I'll let Jay provide the details of the drill (I hate typing), but LAV has the best solution to this that I've seen. He calls it the Dummy and Ball Drill.

There are some different variations of the Ball and Dummy that LAV employs to great effect. You can do these drills by yourself but there's no comparison to having a partner scrutinize you and to help set your gun up and also to operate a timer for you (for "Command" Ball and Dummy).

The plainest version is to hand off some loose rounds and a magazine to your partner, and then have him take control of your firearm. You then turn away and allow him to set you up. He taps you and you turn back and take control of your pistol. Your partner has either chambered a live round or no round at all.

The drill should be performed at close range (2 or 3 yards) and on a small target (a target paster works for this). Attempt a perfect trigger press while your bud scrutinizes you. Live fire is nowhere near as revealing as when you snatch the trigger on a dummy. If your press would have caused an empty case to fall from your front sight, clear your weapon and perform 5 perfect dry fires - then resume.

Alternately, your magazine can be set up with random live and dummy rounds - do this with a few magazines and mix them up if you are going to work on this alone.

As SLG and Todd alluded to, there are other conditions that can mask or mimic trigger snatch such as recoil anticipation and post-ignition push... I'll let those guys speak to that!

[MechEng]

Alternately, your magazine can be set up with random live and dummy rounds - do this with a few magazines and mix them up if you are going to work on this alone.


This is how I do it when alone at the range and it's the second drill I do at the beginning of a practice session. The first drill being some dry fire exercise, i.e The Wall Drill (http://pistol-training.com/drills/wall-drill), on a white piece of paper. I load up all my magazines at home with a few dummy rounds thrown in.

[YVK]

My variant of "do it alone B&D" is even number of mags, usually 6 or 8, 3 to 5 rounds into each, then half of them get a dummy round on top. I put them on the deck, mix and then load randomly, without looking. The support hand needs to have a glove on in order not to feel the top round.
While this sounds complicated, it leads to lesser expenditure of live rounds, i.e. higher D to B ratio (in fact, around 50%) as opposed to setup when dummies are buried in the mags.

[fuse]

Great great post

[turbolag23]

very helpful post, cant wait to read the one on sight management.

[VolGrad]

The two things we must do to hit a target...any target at any distance...are:

- get an acceptable sighting reference
- manipulate the trigger in such a way that the sighting reference is not disrupted before the bullet leaves the barrel

Excellent post. I've seen similar demonstrations from LAV, Erik Lund, Tod Litt, and several other instructors showing how an average sight picture combined with a good trigger press will get good results. It doesn't work the other way around.

I notice in circles outside good forums like this one, quality firearms classes like those mentioned, etc. the focus still tends to be sight picture over trigger press. For instance, I shot the Griffin GSSF match yesterday and can't tell you how many times I heard people discussing their sights and how few I heard talking about their trigger press. I know for me I felt every single bad shot I took (and there were more than I care to admit). However, I did feel them (calling my bad shots) and know what I need to work on. I guess that's worth something. :(

[Glockslinger]

This is outstanding advice, guys! I especially like the Glock example. (Of course!) My only addition to this discussion is that I've found a laser to be a HUGE advantage, especially when dry fire training. You see every movement, no matter how microscopic! It has done WONDERS for my trigger control. I can't say enough good things about 'em.

I'm also battling all of the nifty eye problems one gets as we get older, so I agree with those who prefer the high-contrast targets, too. I like to use the stick-on Orange Peel (or the green whatever-the-heck-brand) that are normally used to repair the bullseye portion of their big targets, and stick them on a white BG. Highly visible at distance, and I like that the hits are easy to see to boot.

Again, thank you all for the quality of your posts!

[turbolag23]

i've been working on my trigger control now want to work on my press outs. im young and still like high contrast targets at least that way i can pretend i see what im shooting at. im left handed right eye dominant so i've got that going for me..

[MDS]

I can exhibit perfect trigger control when dry firing, but I notice when I'm at the range, I tend to 'forget' about it until I start missing. Then I have to mentally slow myself down and think about the trigger.

I think maybe everyone has this problem, to some degree. My only formal training is 8 hours 1-on-1 with Frank Garcia, and his advice on this is that you should work all the shooting mechanics into subconscious muscle memory, except for the actual trigger pull. Basically, have your visual focus on the front sight, and your tactile focus on feeling the trigger with your finger. Don't know if this will ever go away, but I certainly shoot better when I split my attention that way - otherwise I "forget" about the perfect trigger pull...

Also, I'll add that doing D&B drills with an uncomfortable gun has helped me a lot with anticipation. I do them with a J frame in 38spl - talk about a tough trigger and felt recoil! I load 4 live rounds and 1 spent case, then I load 1 live round and 4 spent cases. This alternates between many bangs and one click, vs many clicks and one bang (ball-and-dummy vs dummy-and-ball.) It's also convenient, because I go through 10 cycles of this with one box of ammo. Ouch, though - that's usually as much as I'll shoot the J frame in one trip! I also do the magazine shuffle with whichever semi-auto I have along - I'll load one mag with 10% dummies, another with 50%, and another with 90%, to get the same B&D vs D&B dynamic. But I definitely feel like I get more anti-anticipation benefit from the J frame B&D drills.

[KentF]

This is a great thread. Any chance of making it a sticky?

[beltjones]

Point of order: With a Glock there is no "trigger return spring." The trigger spring actually aids in the trigger pull, and a heavier trigger spring makes for a lighter trigger (obviously the NY springs work quite a bit differently).

The initial take up resisted by the striker spring and the firing pin safety spring.

[ToddG]

Point of order: With a Glock there is no "trigger return spring." The trigger spring actually aids in the trigger pull, and a heavier trigger spring makes for a lighter trigger (obviously the NY springs work quite a bit differently).

Actually, only the standard spring aids in pulling the trigger. The NY1 and NY2 springs do serve much like a traditional trigger return spring.

[beltjones]

Actually, only the standard spring aids in pulling the trigger. The NY1 and NY2 springs do serve much like a traditional trigger return spring.

That's why I said the NY trigger springs are different.