Trigger "Slap"

This began as a post on a forum, and then as a facebook note on my TYV fan page, but I wanted to port it over to the blog for easier linking.

I've seen quite a bit of discussion of late on trigger control.  Presumaby as more people get interested in training and competition and becoming goal-oriented shooters they discover new things that they may not have heard of before, or given much thought to, especially if their last class was an intro class and they have been shooting a lot since then but not received higher-level training especially with very high level shooters.  What many people call trigger "slap" I refer to as the "aggressive reset".

To properly utilize the aggressive reset you're going to have three kinds of trigger press and three kinds of sight picture, and they are paired up.  Some even have four. 

Trigger Press-

• Trigger press A is the closest to a "slap" and is probably why people that don't know what they are talking about call it that.  It is pulling straight through the entire stroke of the trigger, the way you would with a revolver, very quickly.  One consistent pull, all the way through
• Trigger press B is a little slower, with a very slight hitch in the pull-through as you take out the slack as you align the sights.  Pull through the takeup, feel the notch, and pull through the break.
• Trigger press C is the slowest and is similar to B except that you might get a longer hold after takeup and before the break as you let your sights settle on, or align with, the target.

In all cases on recoil you let the finger leave the trigger face, or at the very least come all the way forward.

Sight Picture-

• Sight picture 1 is a "flash" sight picture.  It is NOT "point shooting" but is using the whole rear of the slide as an index or aiming point.  Your focus can actually remain on the target.
• Sight picture 2 is a front sight "flash" where you do similar but with the front sight post.  Your focus an be between the target and the front sight so long as you can make out the front sight sufficiently to ensure that it is on the target.
• Sight picture 3 is a hard front sight focus, aligned in the rear sight, with the top of the sights aligned across the top and either "pumpkin on a post" or slicing the center of the bullseye depending on how you shoot, your preference, and how your sights are zeroed.

In no cases are you simply looking at the target and totally ignoring your gun in any way with no reference point whatsoever.

So, trigger press A goes with sight picture 1, trigger press B goes with sight picture 2, and trigger press C goes with sight picture 3.  How do you know which to do when?    Target size.  All that happens when targets are further away is that they appear smaller, so distance is irrelevant.  Larger targets get A1, the very smallest targets get C3, and the vast majority of targets get the B2.  If you're shooting an el-pres on fullsize steel, everything will get an A1, if you're shooting a target that has 50% of the A-zone covered with hard cover, or if you're forced to go for a head shot, or shooting a plate rack at 25 yards, you'll use C3.  In all of these the principals of sight alignment and trigger-control still apply.  If you're not pulling the trigger straight to the rear you're still screwed.  If your index sight picture includes a pistol that's turned in your hand 5* you're also likely to be screwed.  Just because you don't have a hard focus on the sights doesn't mean you can get hits if they aren't aligned, and just because they are aligned doesn't mean you have to be looking at them.

All of this said, you can see that things can become very complex.  for a high level ip-sic shooter or a very competent "tactical shooter" this all happens with unconscious competence.  For a new shooter starting out I think you should still learn the traditional hard front sight focus at all times and ease to reset.  Why?  Because it works all the time.  You're not going to get confused as to where the target is, what it's doing, which trigger press goes with which sight picture, etc.  That is too much to process when you're still worried about getting the gun out of the holster, hitting the magwell with a reload, etc.  When you have reached a level of unconscious competence with your manipulations and are getting good hits with a consistent hard sight focus and ease-to-reset trigger control you can move on to the aggressive reset and the three-stage trigger-press/sight-picture.

When you first make the transition to the three-stage method you are likely to see a DECREASE in your scores/accuracy.  This is because as you think about what you are doing (conscious incompetnce through conscious competence) you will make the wrong choice frequently.  You may also struggle with the new trigger stroke(s) and wind up jerking the trigger and imparting movement on the gun.  However, as you practice these things you will find it is a case of taking one step back to take ten steps forward.

Finally, there is an agreement you have to enter into with yourself to make this work and that is an understanding of "what is the target?"  If I hang an IDPA target in front of you, what is the target?  What if I change it to an ip-sic tombstone?  What if I make both of those out of steel?  Or a plate rack?  Or a B-8 bullseye? Or a man with a knife?  Or a man with a knife holding said knife to your child's throat?  The target is what you need it to be, based on what you are doing and the situation at hand.  If you are shooting a USPSA stage where points are more important than time then the target may be the A-zone.  Make time a bigger factor and you may find the C-zone is the target.  Shooting at a full-size IDPA steel target the target is the entire area allthe way out to the -3 and including the head.  If you prefer, think of it as the "acceptable hit zone".  To approach the other end of the spectrum with the man with the knife at your child's throat the target, or acceptable hit zone, is the eye socket of that man.  Regardless of the size of the target, however, you are picking out a single point, the size of a pin head, on the target, where you want the hits to go.  THAT is your true target, all the time, regardless of sight picture and trigger press used, but around that you have your acceptable hit zone, and which combination of trigger press and sight picture you choose is going to be based on that acceptable hit zone.