Slapping The Trigger: Does Everyone Do It?

[g34]

I've heard a lot of people claim that they release the trigger until it resets and then immediately pull the trigger again when shooting quickly. I've always been a little skeptical that when shooting splits around .15 seconds anyone could be able to move there finger so quickly with such precision. I know that I slap the trigger unless shooting slow fire, and from videos I have found it looks like everyone else slaps the trigger as well when shooting at speed. For example, Jerry Miculek (skip to the 55 second mark)

Or Max Michel:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ww7XLhdrsA

Does anyone know of a video showing someone shooting at speed while only releasing the trigger until reset? If there isn't a video out there already, maybe someone could make one themselves.

Thanks,

g34

[wanttolearn]

I've had the pleasure of closely watching Mr. Leatham and Mr. Gray.

Mr. Rob Leatham definitely slaps the trigger, you can see the index finger leave the face of the trigger.

Mr. Bruce Gray definitely preps the trigger and releases just after the break, quickly resetting the trigger without leaving the trigger face.

[alma]

It's more common to slap on the close fast stuff and use the controlled release on shots requiring more accuracy.

[sigsauerfan]

seems to me , as speed and control increase , you must learn to slap the trigger ; it's fast and requires less focus than riding the reset . quite easy with 1.5lbs SA's pull, harder to perform with lenghty and heavy OEM triggers like glocks without losing a bit on follow shots .

i'm learning to slap yet keeping my FS's accurate. with my limited G35 2.5lbs trigger break, tapping it work to a certain extent, but i must hold the gun very tight to get the most out of that technique on follow shots at mid distances, and i have a tough time keeping my pull in line with the trigger's face not giving unwanted inputs to the frame of the gun...

those guys are aliens, they do everything perfect all the time.

[Brooke]

I doubt the trigger is being "slapped". The technique is to completely release the trigger when the shot breaks because it resets faster than you can ride it to the reset. The slack is then immediately taken out and then the trigger is controlled through the wall. BTW the dot Glock trigger works best for this technique because the wall is a sharp break. The - trigger is spongy.

Many high level shooters , maybe most, use this technique. In a video the controlled piece of the break is so compressed by a good shooter that it looks like a slap on regular speed video.

[pjb45]

Take a look at Robbie's YouTube video for Action Targets.

GMs in particular use the trigger control method that is most applicable to the specifics of each target engagement.

I believe Rob uses the word 'Jerk' instead of slap.

[Luv2rideWV]

I'll bet everyone, probably, slaps the trigger, but the best way to teach is, probably, to teach us to ride the sear - only letting the trigger go forward enough to reset. I agree with an above post that a finger going that fast probably does leave the face of the trigger upon reset.

IMO, this is one of those deals where the common methods of teaching produce results that actually vary from the reality of what we do. However, it doesn't mean the old methods are bad. I think "riding the sear" is important as an instructional technique in order to attain better results than we would have otherwise. Just because slow motion video shows the finger lifts off the trigger doesn't mean that you should not strive to ride the sear.

[Sandbagger123]

if one watches the vid on youtube of travis tomasie when he is demonstrating PARA 1911, you can see clearly that he takes his finger off of the trigger.

[Jshuberg]

I run a Sig P226 with a 4.0lb SA trigger pull. I'm not sure the weight of the trigger bar reset spring, but it's significantly less. lets call it 2lbs for the sake of this conversation.

What I do when shooting fast splits is squeeze the trigger rearwar until the gun fires. At the instant the gun fires I relax my trigger finger, and let the reset spring move my finger forward until it resets. I then begin squeezing the trigger again, rinse and repeat.

The trick is that I don't move my finger in two directions - I move my finger rearward, and I let the reset spring move my finger forward. The result is a movement (actually an osciallation) of only one set of muscles - the ones moving my finger rearward. I not *not* use the muscles that move my finger forward at all, but rely on the trigger reset spring to move my finger forward for me. I also keep a slight amount of pressure on the face of the trigger, even when the reset spring pressure is moving my finger forward. This slight amount of rearward pressure keeps my finger on the trigger throughout reset, and keeps it in the same location on the trigger. If you see a persons finger leave the trigger during reset, they're moving their finger in two directions with their muscles instead rather than just one. That's not necessarily a bad thing, as that technique works well (as demonstrated by people who are much better shooters than I am), but oscillating the trigger by only moving your muscles rearward also works very nicely if you can figure out the technique.

To be honest, I'm not exactly sure what it is that I'm responding to when I begin squeezing the trigger again, if I feel the reset click or if I'm simply starting to squeeze after a certain amount of forward distance. I suspect I'm responding to the click, but I'm not consciously aware of it, so I'm not sure. It doesn't really matter though, since whatever it is seems to work just fine.

Here's a video of my fastest splits as an example. This was during a carjacking drill seated in a car shooting at contact distance. I'd never done this before, so the first couple times I was just getting used to shooting in this (really awkward) way. In the last one the video guy started recording late (which sucked), but the splits for my last 5 shots were .117 .137 .137 .145 - or 5 shots in .536 seconds. I want to make the point that although I can mechanically shoot this fast when I want to, I can only do this for up close work. Anything faster than .22 or so and I lose the front sight, so my accuracy goes bye-bye. I'm still working on that, but developing the physical ability to shoot fast does have it's application even if you discover you can shoot faster than you can track the sight, like in this carjacking scenario or other close-in work.