Project Appleseed

What are the definitions of,and/or differences between: jerking the trigger,snatching the trigger,yanking the trigger and slapping the trigger?

Regards

Pat

     Hope I won't be raising too much controversy if I say, "they're all the same".

     I suppose you could parse them a bit - 'snatching' might be defined as the finger starting from 'no pressure' to instant trigger release, whereas 'jerking' would - or could - be uncontrolled extremely-rapid pressure increase to release, starting from initial pressure on Stage 2 of the trigger - but what's the difference, for the shooter?

     "Slapping" could be defined as a trigger snatch, but starting with the finger off the trigger.

     In all cases, it amounts to the same thing, and the cure is the same thing - teach 'em to do it the right way - using Ball and Dummy Drill and dry-fire. If you really want to freak 'em out, place your hand over theirs while they're dry-firing in prep, with your finger over their trigger finger, tell them to relax and concentrate of feeling what your finger does - as you slowly increase pressure on the trigger until it releases...

A lot of shooters do not even realise that they have acquired bad "trigger-habits". There is another, that I call "release anticipation". I have noticed that some that will remain anonymous (my wife and daughter) shoot fairly well with small caliber weapons, but when I drag out the artillery they print all over. I cured this by loading up the revolvers, but not loading all the cylinders. It makes the flinch before the fall of the hammer on an empty chamber noticeable, and the shooter can then concentrate to correct this.

Do we really want to attach a negative connotation to to "Yank"?   

Anything you do to the trigger starts in the brain. Your brain needs to check all the indicators and if everything is right it gives to OK to start putting pressure on the trigger. That pressure increases until the rifle fires. This should only take about a second or two at the most.

If the brain decides to override the increase of pressure on the trigger and fire the rifle at a given instant, you have one of those things described above. It is not possible to fire a shot at a given instant without having your body react to the impending shot in some way.

If you develop good solid sling supported positions the sights will sit still in your aiming area thus giving you the confidence to apply pressure straight to the rear on the trigger. If your positions are sloppy and the sights are moving around you will want to GET IT as sights swing through the aiming area.

Listen to Fred. He knows what he's talking about.

VAshooter

My solution for doing funky things with the trigger is 4a &4b. I keep my eye and my mind on the front sight. Since I can only do one thing at a time if my mind is on the front sight I won't be thinking about the trigger. When the shot breaks it is a surprise.

  For those that have bought new Ruger 10/22 LTRs the trigger is a little stiff. You will think that its you jerking until you are used to the amount of pressure it takes to pull trigger full length. After market kits are made to give you a softer trigger. I soften mine without buying a kit. Until the rifle has had time to break in it might be causing this jerking, snatching, yankin, and so on. This might not mean anything to those that have been on the A/S Trail for a while but I wished someone would have let me in on that. I was thinking it was all me!

jollymeister

What about after the shot immediately releasing the trigger and even taking the finger off the trigger?

Squeeeeeez all you want, but if you abandon the trigger after the hammer releases it's the same effect on the shot as a slap.

Holding the trigger back and taking a mental snapshot of the front sight as the rifle fires are just as important as the fundamentals which lead up to the shot. This stuff works every time you do it. And it doesn't work every time you don't.

VAshooter

If you do precisely what VAShooter described, all your jerk, snatch, yank, slap, and other trigger dysfunctions will go away...trust me...that "Master" in front of "Instructor" is there for a reason. 

Quote from: pat on April 01, 2009, 02:56:07 AM
What are the definitions of,and/or differences between: jerking the trigger,snatching the trigger,yanking the trigger and slapping the trigger?

Regards

Pat

Wait a minute.  Those are definitions of bass guitar playing techniques. 

A lady I met at the last Appleseed in Hernando, Fl. just bought a new 10-22.

She was having a very hard time holding anything inside 10 to 12 MOA. I've saw her shoot better then that at the Appleseed. I tried the rifle. There was no way I could hold it on target.

You could literally cock the action (empty of course) and hang the rifle off the trigger without the hammer dropping.

I swapped out the trigger group from my rifle into hers and she dropped the MOA to a respectable 3.

I just completed a trigger job on her rifle and got the pull down to 3#.

IMHO, you can learn all of the proper ways to do it, but if your fighting a poor trigger your fighting a loosing battle.

Yep. A really bad trigger can make for a bad day at the range.

If the trigger is bad, fix it, but don't use it as an excuse for other problems.

VAshooter

I'd like to echo the importance of checking trigger break pressure, especially with new rifles.  Shooters will, rarely, bring rifles having unacceptably heavy triggers.
A first time rifle shooter, having brought his brand new M1A to a CA Appleseed, couldn't get decent groups.  It was discovered that his trigger broke in excess of 20 pounds; it was almost impossible for him to let off a shot.  Worse, as a new shooter, he had no idea this is abnormal.  In addition, his M1A ripped rims off brass with high frequency, leaving them lodged in the chamber. 

'Trigger Buddy' drill allows instructors to check the trigger break, and allows the shooter to learn how much pressure is proper, and how fast to apply it. 
In prep period, the student cocks the rifle and takes a shooting position, finger resting on the trigger.  The instructor's trigger hand overlays the student's trigger hand and trigger finger, and the instructor's finger presses the trigger for the student.  Student receives tactile feedback of a proper trigger pull in terms of pressure applied over time and time to sear release.