Is this enough finger on the trigger?

[gunner1976]

I have short fingers and have a hard time finding pistols that really fit me well. M&Ps with the small backstraps and APEX triggers and 1911s with thin panels & short triggers fit me about the best as I've found, everything else varies from to big to barely able to work. I wanted a ultra reliable, end of the world .45 so I bought an HK45T and I'm wondering if I made the right choice. In SA mode and riding the safety like a 1911 I don't have a lot of finger on the trigger and was wondering what the experts think? I don't see any sight shift while dry firing but if I shoot fast the recoil eventually causes my hands to shift a bit and I have to reposition to keep more finger on the trigger.

DA pull is a no go when having my hand positioned so I can manipulate the safety. This doesn't bother me as much because I hate the DA and was planning on just treating this gun like a SA only, if the hammer drops and it doesn't fire I'll just clear the gun and reset the hammer. I guess if I wanted to start in DA mode I could grip different and then shift my hand when done firing to manipulate the safety.

Here's a picture of what I got when having my hand so I can ride the safety.


I like everything else about this pistol and want to make it work but if not I'll probably have to just cut my losses and move along.

[Utm]

The amount of finger on the trigger does not matter. If you can pull the trigger without moving the sights off target, that's all that matters

[HCM]

The amount of finger on the trigger does not matter. If you can pull the trigger without moving the sights off target, that's all that matters

This ^^^.

Grip the gun, and let your finger lay naturally across the trigger. If you can pull the trigger without disturbing the sights, you’re good, if your finger position is causing the sights to be disturbed adjust if necessary.

All those pie charts and diagrams, claiming you have to use a specific part of the finger are BS. Use whatever part of the finger lets you pull the trigger straight to the rear.

I believe Gray Guns offers some aftermarket triggers for HK pistols that might help reduce the reach.

[DMF13]

Aaron Cowan, of Sage Dynamics, explains this very well:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4uo4ApdP8E

Comments about what is "enough finger on the trigger" start at about 5mins30sec.

Enjoy.

[RJ]

In SA mode and riding the safety like a 1911 I don't have a lot of finger on the trigger and was wondering what the experts think? I don't see any sight shift while dry firing but if I shoot fast the recoil eventually causes my hands to shift a bit and I have to reposition to keep more finger on the trigger.

DA pull is a no go when having my hand positioned so I can manipulate the safety. This doesn't bother me as much because I hate the DA and was planning on just treating this gun like a SA only, if the hammer drops and it doesn't fire I'll just clear the gun and reset the hammer.

I have M/L hands, so I can relate.

So you can't operate this gun, DA, at all?

And shooting SA, your fingers are in the position pictured, riding the safety, such that "shooting fast the recoil eventually causes my hands to shift"? Obviously this is almost impossible to deduce from a short paragraph and one picture, and I'm probably the last person to give out free advice on the internet, but it almost sounds like you can't maintain effective repetitive hits due to your hand size. I mean, the fact you are asking questions shows you have a fair amount of doubt this pistol is for you.

A lesson I learned was that a gun that felt fantastic and looked cool in the gun store bore absolutely zero relationship to how it shot for me. Over the years I've gravitated downward in grip size as a result. The short reach flat trigger and thin grips on my 1911 fit me extremely well, if it helps to compare hand sizes.

Back to your situation, far be it for me to suggest how folks spend their money but it sure seems like you'd be better served with a pistol you have full confidence in. Aren't M&Ps available in .45 ACP? (Or maybe you have one already?)

Just my 0.02. Good luck.

[gunner1976]

I have M/L hands, so I can relate.

So you can't operate this gun, DA, at all?

And shooting SA, your fingers are in the position pictured, riding the safety, such that "shooting fast the recoil eventually causes my hands to shift"? Obviously this is almost impossible to deduce from a short paragraph and one picture, and I'm probably the last person to give out free advice on the internet, but it almost sounds like you can't maintain effective repetitive hits due to your hand size. I mean, the fact you are asking questions shows you have a fair amount of doubt this pistol is for you.

A lesson I learned was that a gun that felt fantastic and looked cool in the gun store bore absolutely zero relationship to how it shot for me. Over the years I've gravitated downward in grip size as a result. The short reach flat trigger and thin grips on my 1911 fit me extremely well, if it helps to compare hand sizes.

Back to your situation, far be it for me to suggest how folks spend their money but it sure seems like you'd be better served with a pistol you have full confidence in. Aren't M&Ps available in .45 ACP? (Or maybe you have one already?)

Just my 0.02. Good luck.

I can operate it in DA, but the minimal finger I have on the gun makes the pull seem alot heavier than it really is. There was one time where my hand shifted enough during recoil that I couldn't get the trigger to break in DA because I had just the tip on the trigger.
I should've went with an M&P 45 but I wanted to try something different.

I haven't shot the gun much but I can get good groups with it.

[CraigS]

Have you tried a small back strap? Maybe just as a test no backstrap at all?

[HCM]

On a related note, if you are running the HK45 single action only and you are riding the thumb safety 1911 style you may want to consider converting the gun from safety / decocker to safety only. Putting pressure on the decocker while firing can cause malfunctions in both HK and SIG pistols. I believe that like the USP, the HK45 can also be converted to single action only.

[GJM]

On a related note, if you are running the HK45 single action only and you are riding the thumb safety 1911 style you may want to consider converting the gun from safety / decocker to safety only. Putting pressure on the decocker while firing can cause malfunctions in both HK and SIG pistols. I believe that like the USP, the HK45 can also be converted to single action only.

Variant 9 plate

[gunner1976]

On a related note, if you are running the HK45 single action only and you are riding the thumb safety 1911 style you may want to consider converting the gun from safety / decocker to safety only. Putting pressure on the decocker while firing can cause malfunctions in both HK and SIG pistols. I believe that like the USP, the HK45 can also be converted to single action only.

I have the plate to do it but when I installed it the safety couldn't be moved off fire. It appears the plate is made wrong as the backside hits the lip behind it. I need to look into it more.
I have caused a no fire situation when I pushed the safety in-between fire and the decock position. I started just flipping the safety off and then putting my thumb down under the safety while firing.