Where to keep the trigger finger

[stephen426]

In my younger (dumber and more arrogant) years, I learned the hard way how light a double action trigger (Sig P229) can seem during a flinch. I heard noise and went to check it out. I kept the gun pointed low ready but had my finger on the trigger. I believed that my 5 years of was enough to allow me to keep my finger on the trigger and would give me a split second advantage if I needed to use the gun. I car near me backfired and I flinched, sending a round into the ground. Thank goodness for muzzle discipline. After that, always finger off the trigger till I am ready to fire.

As for where I put my trigger finger, I place mine right outside the trigger guard, in line with the muzzle. The idea behind that is you can use your finger to instinctively point at an object. I am basically using my finger as a guide for point shooting. For close distances, it works incredibly well. If I was in a defensive situation where I was justified in drawing my weapon on someone, I would prefer to be ready to pull the trigger in a split second and be able to use my finger to aim at the threat. If I was to flinch because I was being attacked, it would probably be my intention to shoot anyway.

 

[Frank Ettin]

...I place mine right outside the trigger guard, in line with the muzzle.....

Probably not a particularly good idea. See post 31.

Recognizing interlimb interaction as a possible safety issue isn't particularly new. It's been discussed at every class I've taken at Gunsite beginning with my first class there in 2002 (and see here, here, here and here).

That's why we teach indexing the trigger finger high on the frame.

 

[Aguila Blanca]

Let me define pressed enough as it seems it's not clear to a few.
It means someone has put me in a position where shooting that person would be justified and my finger will be on the trigger when I draw.

That's contrary to the NRA's rules of firearms safety, and it's contrary to Cooper's rules of firearms safety.

The NRA expresses it thusly:

ALWAYS Keep Your Finger Off The Trigger Until Ready To Shoot

When holding a gun, rest your finger alongside the frame and outside the trigger guard. Until you are actually ready to fire, do not touch the trigger.

Cooper expressed it slightly differently:

Rule III: KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOUR SIGHTS ARE ON THE TARGET AND YOU ARE READY TO FIRE

Rule III is violated most anytime the uneducated person handles a firearm. Whether on TV, in the theaters, or at the range, people seem fascinated with having their finger on the trigger. Never stand or walk around with your finger on the trigger. It is unprofessional, dangerous, and, perhaps most damaging to the psyche, it is klutzy looking. Never fire a shot unless the sights are superimposed on the target and you have made a conscious decision to fire. Firing an unaligned pistol in a fight gains nothing. If you believe that the defensive pistol is only an intimidation tool - not something to be used - carry blanks, or better yet, reevaluate having one around. If you are going to launch a projectile, it had best be directed purposely. Danger abounds if you allow your finger to dawdle inside the trigger guard. As soon as the sights leave the target, the trigger-finger leaves the trigger and straightens alongside the frame. Since the hand normally prefers to work as a unit - as in grasping - separating the function of the trigger-finger from the rest of the hand takes effort. The five-finger grasp is a deeply programmed reflex. Under sufficient stress, and with the finger already placed on the trigger, an unexpected movement, misstep or surprise could result in a negligent discharge. Speed cannot be gained from such a premature placement of the trigger-finger. Bringing the sights to bear on the target, whether from the holster or the Guard Position, takes more time than that required for moving the trigger finger an inch or so to the trigger.

You are not ready to fire while drawing. You are not ready to fire while "presenting" (raising the firearm from the out-of-holster position to eye level and aligning the sights on the target). You are not ready to fire when the firearm is pointed at a target but you have not decided to fire. Placing your finger on the trigger before or while drawing is an invitation to a negigent discharge.

 

[Glenn E. Meyer]

Mas has a article in the latest American Handgunner about the Liang case. That was an officer who had a ND that ricocheted and killed an innnocent.

It was discussed that he might have been trained to keep his finger along side of the trigger leading to an accidental and negligent pull.

Very sad case for all involved.

 

[OhioGuy]

So what about the technique of the "press out," in which the idea is you've already made the decision to shoot, so your finger is already taking out the slack as you're presenting the weapon, then breaking the trigger (in theory) just as you're fully on target with your sights.

Seems to break the rule about "finger off the trigger until the target is clearly in your sights..."

 

[Sharkbite]

Seems to break the rule about "finger off the trigger until the target is clearly in your sights..."

The rule is more clearly stated as “keep your finger off the trigger until you have made the conscious decision to fire the shot AND the muzzle is on target”

 

[pax]

The rule is more clearly stated as “keep your finger off the trigger until you have made the conscious decision to fire the shot AND the muzzle is on target”

Right. It's not the sights that are at issue -- it's the muzzle direction and the decision to fire. The goal is to put an intended bullet in the right place. Sights are simply one tool that can help us be sure that the muzzle is pointed at the thing we want to shoot, while good trigger finger behavior can help us 1) avoid putting the bullet in the wrong place, and 2) avoid launching an unintended bullet.

The words don't matter. The thing itself does.

As for the press-out, there are people I highly respect who land on both sides of that discussion. My own thought is that most of the people I have seen on the range have a hard enough time keeping their trigger fingers under their own conscious control. Until that problem has been solved and they have enough training to respect their own limitations, the press out isn't a good idea for those folks... who are the huge majority of gun owners.

Crawl, walk, run.

pax

"There will certainly be some push back on this, but as a general rule, for LE and armed citizens — that is, for the real world — I’d suggest that we consider that training to shoot faster than we can assess what’s happening in front of our muzzles is not wise." – Ralph Mroz