6 Tips to Improve Your Trigger Control

If you’re not getting the accuracy from your custom gun that you should be, it’s time to examine your trigger control. A smooth, disciplined trigger pull will let you fire around without introducing additional motion or destabilization into your mechanics. Unfortunately, control is often affected by not training enough or by overtraining, which leads to bad reps. With the right training, you can improve your trigger control and identify the parts needed to fine-tune your gun for more effective shooting.

The Mechanics of Your Shooting Hand

While it’s tempting to focus on only the trigger finger when you know your trigger control is a bit rough, the truth is the entire shooting hand is involved in the process of firing a round. It’s easiest to think of your hand as having two jobs and two separate mechanical systems to do those jobs when you’re firing the gun.

• The Trigger Finger – Your trigger finger is the digit that makes the magic happen. Ideally, the pad of your finger will rest on the face of the trigger, and your crooked finger will pull that pad straight backward in one smooth, steady motion. In order to exert the best possible trigger control, you need this finger to move independently from the rest of your hand. 
• The Rest of Your Fingers, Thumb, and Palm – Everybody else hanging out on the gun hand is responsible for creating a firm grip that controls the weapon and provides stability for accuracy. Before that, however, the hand and remaining digits need to support the gun while stabilizing the trigger finger so it can move independently. 

What Happens When These Mechanics Break Down?

When your trigger control mechanics start to break down, accuracy suffers. Depending on the issue, you might see a consistent deviation that helps you figure out the problem, or your shots could be all over the place. When you’re working through control issues with your trigger, discipline is key to diagnosing the problem and getting yourself back on track. 

• Pulling – This is most common when you pull the trigger with the joint of your finger instead of the pad. As the joint pulls back, it tends to curl, forcing the point-of-aim to deviate inward toward your gun hand. 
• Pushing – Pushing is usually the result of improper hand placement or a tightening of the grip during the firing process, which causes your fingers to curl more around the grip, pushing the point of aim away from your control hand.
• Jerking – Erratic deviation can result from jerking the trigger rather than allowing it to pull at a steady, even pace. This sacrifices trigger control for finger and hand power, often throwing shots high, low, or laterally.
• Chasing the Pull – This is a frequent problem when a shooter knows there’s a problem with their trigger pull but doesn’t know how to rein it in. Rather than breaking down and improving the fundamentals, they try to account for their bad habit by adjusting their grip, aim point, or trigger pull, hoping to train one bad habit to moderate another. This doesn’t work reliably or effectively.
• Fatigue – Shooting can take its toll on your muscles and senses. Once your hand starts to get tired or you start anticipating the shot before it’s fired, the quality of your practice reps goes downhill fast.

Gun Upgrades for Better Trigger Control 

If you want to improve your trigger control, you can customize your gun in several ways. While nothing is a replacement for proper mechanics, the right parts and accessories can encourage the formation and maintenance of good shooting habits.

• Custom Trigger Group – Custom trigger groups can give you a lighter trigger pull that requires less effort, a cleaner breakover of the sear, a shorter reset before you can fire the next round, and a shorter prep time before the movement of the trigger begins to engage with the sear.
• Grip Plates, Backstraps, Sleeves, and Extended Baseplates – Better-fitting grip plates or backstraps can tailor your gun’s dimensions to better fit your hand. For guns without changeable plates or straps, sleeves do the same job, often while also adding grip-friendly texturing. If you have large hands or are working with a small-framed gun, extended magazine baseplates give your pinky some purchase to aid in stabilization and control.  
• Red Dot Optics – Red dot optics do not directly affect your trigger control–neither the trigger pull nor your grip. What they do is give you a brighter, more intuitive aiming system that can help you better identify trigger control problems so you can work out the kinks in your mechanics. Along with making it easier and faster to aim your weapon, the motion of the bright, red or green reticle is much more noticeable.

Trigger Control Exercises and Drills

Grip and Finger Strength Training

A traditional spring grip trainer can help you build forearm, hand, and finger strength. Spend the extra couple of bucks for an adjustable model to ensure you can tailor the resistance for each exercise. The standard way of using it–opening facing down–works on the muscles used to effectively grip and control your pistol. Flip it upside down to isolate your trigger finger and work on building up your pull strength.

Wrist Strength

Using a standard hammer or one-handed sledge, stand with your arms at your side and bent so that your arm from the elbow down is parallel to the ground. Holding the hammer, pivot your hand forward and back while keeping your arm still. This helps strengthen the muscles that control your gun through recoil and bring it back on target. Adjust the perceived weight by positioning the head closer to your hand for less resistance and further from your hand to maximize your workout.

Dry Fire Training

Dry-fire training can let you work on trigger-control drills anywhere. Ensure the gun is unloaded and verify the chamber is empty before beginning. It’s also a great time to reinforce best practices on your trigger discipline, keeping your finger off the trigger until you’re ready to begin dry-firing. Choose an aim point on the wall, line up your shot, and slowly pull the trigger, making sure to minimize barrel movement. This eliminates range distractions while you focus purely on a portion of your shooting mechanics.

Range Time: Slow and Steady

This trigger control drill is also about isolation trigger movements, but it’s perfect for familiarizing yourself with your trigger’s breakover and reset points. With a properly loaded firearm, while the range is hot, aim and pull the trigger slowly and evenly. Take a full 1.5-2 seconds on the pull and on the return. Pay attention to your mechanics and those of your firearm to identify improvement opportunities.

Range Time: Rolling Rounds

This time, you’ll be firing your gun in three-round bursts, one second for each round. This is a little faster than your previous pace, and it’s likely aberrations will start to creep in. When they do, rein in your mechanics by taking it slow for three rounds, then getting back up to speed. Pay attention to what changes and where you struggle with the transition. Remember, the goal is to bring your good habits up to speed and not to push through and reinforce bad ones.

Range Time: Quick and Dirty

When you’re ready, these quick, fast shots are meant to mimic self-defense situations at close range. Some ranges may not allow more than one round to be fired every second. If that’s the case, stretch out your present tempo for six-round streaks, which give you more of a workout to maintain disciplined trigger control throughout.

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