Proper trigger management

By Jim Irvine

Every spring baseball players arrive at spring training and practice the basics of their game. If the best players in the game take time to review the basics, it stands to reason that shooters should review our basics occasionally too.

One of the NRA safety rules is, "Always keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire." Always is a powerful word. Following this rule, the only time our finger should be on the trigger is when we have the gun on target, and are consciously ready to press the trigger.

Some people rest their finger on the trigger guard. I prefer the frame of the gun above the trigger. The further from the trigger you can comfortably rest your finger, the less likely you will be to accidentally discharge the gun.

"Finger on the trigger" is one of the most common safety violations seen on a range. It is done by first time shooters as well as veterans. We have all had ingrained into our heads through watching movies and TV that the trigger finger rests on the trigger. Hollywood knows even less about the use of firearms than they do the politics of why we own firearms. They are dangerous on many levels. Don't follow their lead.

With practice, we learn where our trigger "breaks" or how far we must move the trigger for it to fire a shot. We can rest our finger on the trigger, and even apply pressure, without firing a shot. The more we do this, the more we comfortable we get. This is training to fail and we need to break this habit.

A common response to being startled is to tense up and an involuntary squeeze. If your finger is on the trigger, guess what is likely to happen. Whether you are using your gun for home defense, CCW or hunting, a negligent discharge can have disastrous consequences. Luckily, most cause only property damage, but you don’t want to have to explain to others why you did not control your weapon.

Some people pick up the gun with their finger inside the trigger guard, even on the trigger, or as they pull the gun out of a holster, or while they reload, or when they are handed a gun by someone else, or while they are looking downrange at their target, or while scanning a room in force on force scenarios. Most of us have been guilty of some of these types of improper gun handling. All of us need to strive to be perfect in this aspect of our shooting.

Next time you are at the range, challenge yourself to really think about where your trigger finger is at all times. When you pick up or unholster your gun, when you load it, when you bring it on target, when you reload, when you set your gun down, and especially when you holster your weapon. If you have a shooting buddy, ask him to watch you carefully and point out every infraction of this rule. Do the same for him. Be a pain. Make each other better shooters by challenging each other to be perfect with this rule. The more you find the need to correct, the more it illustrates how important this drill is. Once we establish a new normal place for our trigger finger to rest, it will come as naturally as what you do now. The difference is that you will be a better and safer gun owner.

Jim Irvine is the Buckeye Firearms Association Chairman, and an NRA Certified instructor.