Shooting Fundamentals: Stance

Author: Graham Dunne

It is my belief that the majority of shooters improperly press the trigger, causing poor accuracy.

Let’s get deep in the weeds on the four stages of a trigger press.

The first stage is placement, the “tactile” touch. As shown in the picture, the trigger should be centered on the final pad in the index finger. Placement too far in, or too far out, will cause bullet deviation right or left, in essence “missed shots.”

The second stage is managing the “creep”, also known as the “slack”. Press the trigger rearward without deviation left or right. Imaging a pen with the button in rear, and clicking the clicker repeatedly. When clicking the pen, the front half of your index finger at the knuckle joint moves independently of the first half of your finger. In other words, using the forward half only, rather than using the entire finger like a windshield wiper.

The third stage is the trigger wall. The same principle of moving only the forward half of the index finger, rather than the entire finger, consistent with managing the slack, in the second stage. As I press the trigger rearward, my brain goes to my index finger knuckle joint, focusing on moving the forward half of my finger independently, rather than moving the entire finger. As the wall stiffens for weapon discharge, I concentrate on a gentle press rearward, rather than a yank.

The fourth stage is the trigger reset. My belief is that most shooters don’t utilize the reset, nor do they know it exists. On all semi-automatic weapons, after the weapon discharges, when the shooter lets the trigger outwards they will feel and hear a click. This is the trigger resetting. This reset is usually around halfway outwards, although some triggers are more or less. Once the trigger is reset, the weapon can fire again. (Note that you cannot use the trigger rest on the first shot, or on a shot after a manipulation, such as a reload of malfunction clearance.) By only going to the reset point between shots, the shooter is cutting the trigger length in half, which speeds up follow up shots, and reduces potential for missed shots, as the shooter is only pressing the trigger half as far. In other words we’re cheating, cutting the trigger in half. In the self-defense game cheating is good. There is only one rule: win.

About the author:

Sergeant Dunne is a former Marine and police officer, with 30 years of service. He has served as a SWAT operator and sniper, and was a full time academy instructor for 8 years. A police Medal of Honor and Distinguished Service Cross recipient, he is founder and lead instructor for Ragnar Tactical.