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peterb
05-17-2011, 07:41 AM
Would it be useful to have a DA revolver just for dry-fire/trigger control practice, even if you normally carry something else?

I keep seeing ugly-but-functional S&W Models 10s at reasonable prices, and wondering if keeping one full of snap caps would be a good addition to the toolbox.

NGCSUGrad09
05-17-2011, 09:58 AM
Would it be useful to have a DA revolver just for dry-fire/trigger control practice, even if you normally carry something else?

I keep seeing ugly-but-functional S&W Models 10s at reasonable prices, and wondering if keeping one full of snap caps would be a good addition to the toolbox.

Depends on what you normally use.. It can be good for general trigger control, but for mastering a specific platform the best practice is with that platform.

Bratch
05-17-2011, 10:13 AM
I do my dry fire with a 642, and all of my manipulations with my M&P. I carry the 642 when I am unable to carry my M&P.

I find dry fire much more enjoyable when I don't have to continously rack the slide.

gringop
05-17-2011, 11:35 AM
Would it be useful to have a DA revolver just for dry-fire/trigger control practice, even if you normally carry something else?

I keep seeing ugly-but-functional S&W Models 10s at reasonable prices, and wondering if keeping one full of snap caps would be a good addition to the toolbox.

No

Dry fire is not just trigger control practice. Trigger control can be a part of dry fire but there is also sight alignment, draw stroke, malfunction clearing, reloads, etc.

So you would be buying a gun (never a bad thing) only to practice one aspect (trigger control) but the trigger would be totally different from your carry gun.

That being said, I have spent many an hour dry firing my revolvers to learn THEIR triggers and how to work them differently from my other guns.

Buy a revolver to learn to shoot it, not as an expensive finger exerciser.


Gringop

JHC
05-17-2011, 03:41 PM
Definitely YES. If you can master the DA stroke - delivery hits precisely and building speed at, you are learning the hardest trigger there is and mastering a Glock trigger will come much easier. FOLLOW THROUGH. You can get all your manipulations with your primary of course.

I think this training carry over can apply to Glock triggers, M&P triggers, probably the LEM triggers, and the DA pull of some autos.

I don't suppose it helps with pure SA triggers like a 1911 however.

There is just no doubt about it. I've done it and I've coached a couple shooters on it and it's worked.

The used .38 would be good for dry fire. Also, go all in and get a .22 lr so you could cheaply shoot it for the feedback of the hits. I've used a K22 and Model 18 for this purpose for decades.

MDS
05-17-2011, 06:32 PM
I've been dry-firing with a 442 for about 7-8 months, and with a 617 since I bought it about 3 months ago. For me, it's been immensely valuable. I think some folks get confused and think that if they can master a long hard DA pull, they'll be able to pull any other trigger without any practice. Not so! I had to work on my Glock trigger quite a bit - and to be sure I'm still working on it - but I do believe that my work with the revolvers has really helped me get a certain deep-seated intuition about trigger mechanics. This intuition has made it a lot easier to make quick progress with the Glock trigger.

As someone else mentioned, getting a DA revolver in 22lr is a good idea, too. I shoot my DA/SA 617 most weeks at the range. I figure if I can the same accuracy with DA as with SA, that's a clue that my overall trigger control is sucking a lot less than it used to...

Mitchell, Esq.
05-18-2011, 02:23 PM
That's what I did with my M-49...I've been dryfiring the hell out of it for a while...then it died on the range. :o

Wheeler
05-18-2011, 10:20 PM
I think if you use a DA revolver specifically to force yourself to shoot accurately, ie. little groups at such and such range, which will force you to pay closer attention to your front sight and trigger control, then incorporate that with whatever pistol you normally shoot, then you can make strides towards improving. Then again, you could probably accomplish the same thing with your preferred pistol. Regardless, it helps to have a plan for your range sessions.

MDS
05-18-2011, 11:46 PM
I think if you use a DA revolver specifically to force yourself to shoot accurately [...] Then again, you could probably accomplish the same thing with your preferred pistol.

Given your handle, I'd have thought you'd be more supportive of what's obviously an excuse to acquire some beautiful wheel guns! ;)

Seriously - I think practicing with a DA/SA 22lr revolver has helped me immensely... but I also feel like the value I get from that practice will keep diminishing over time. It seems like it's one of those things that's more valuable when you're starting out. (To be clear, it's still valuable to me!) At the same time, I've come to love my 617 for itself, as a beautiful gun that's a ton of fun, rather than the utilitarian training tool I bought it for. I see more revolvers in my future, though not for fighting.

DannyZRC
05-19-2011, 05:07 AM
on the topic of revolvers as training aids, 617 or 317?

is it better to learn with a shorter sight radius or longer?

with a longer sight radius, you get more visual feedback for a given angular displacement, so you can servo your gun more accurately based on visual feedback.

Is that a good thing? to accentuate the sight alignment feedback? Would it mask poor grip/trigger technique by making corrections easier?

TAP
05-19-2011, 07:09 AM
I haven't carried my J frame in about a year. Last weekend, I decided to carry it to a particular place due to concealment issues and spent about an hour with it the night before. I was really surprised to see how much my trigger control has improved over the last year (mostly using my M&P). I have CT grips on my J frame and I was barely getting any movement with each pull. Last year, the dot was all over the place.

I definitely think dry fire on a specific gun/trigger is important. However, it probably isn't a bad idea to mix it up sometimes. I think of it like working out and doing different exercises.

Bratch
05-19-2011, 07:39 AM
I shot both my 2" 317 and 4" Colt MK III last night.

I use the 317 as a snub trainer and shot it from 4-25 yards, the Colt I'm going to start using to work on marksmanship at 25 yards.

IMO if you are carrying a snub I'd go with the 2" 317 as a trainer if you just want a .22 for low cost training I'd probably opt for a 4".

MDS
05-19-2011, 08:25 AM
on the topic of revolvers as training aids, 617 or 317?

is it better to learn with a shorter sight radius or longer?

with a longer sight radius, you get more visual feedback for a given angular displacement, so you can servo your gun more accurately based on visual feedback.

Is that a good thing? to accentuate the sight alignment feedback? Would it mask poor grip/trigger technique by making corrections easier?

I have both a 442 and 6" 617. I get more value out of dry-firing with the 617. The long sight radius keeps me honest, and the heavy weight keeps me from over-doing the practice. (I get more value out of two 10-minute sessions than one 20-minute session.)

As for the grip, I think it depends on where you are with your trigger pull. I didn't worry too much about a perfect grip until I was capable of a certain level of accuracy. I focused on trigger trigger trigger, until I could consistently hit a 1" dot at 3 yards on demand. Now, I still start or end all my dry-fire sessions with trigger pulls, but I mix it up. I'll use the 617, or my USP, or my SIRT, or my G19, depending on my mood or whatever. But I do fewer reps of the Wall Drill (~100) in order to also do some press-outs, drawstrokes, and target acquisition drills during dry fire. Also, I do the Wall Drill mostly 1-handed - about 40% SHO, 40% WHO, and 20% 2-handed - because I find that 1-handed reps help my 2-handed execution as well.

My overall strategy is to dry-fire for a week or two, and see what the results are at the range. Then tweak my dry-fire if I didn't like the progress I made.