Growing As A Shooter III

By Gabby

When last we talked (in Growing as a Shooter Part II) I was about to seek out a "Shot Timer". My thinking was, "I just need to shoot faster!" as well as "I need to put two quick shots accurately center mass". However, I was unaware of some major fundamental elements that would help me achieve my goal. When given the unlimited time to align my first shot and then my second, I could usually put them with in 2 inches of one another (at a distance of 10-15 yards), but when pressed for time, my second shot was rarely where I wanted it. What was I doing, or not doing, before that second shot?

The simple answer is: after my first shot, I no longer had precise control of the gun, therefore, I could not recover quickly and make a meaningful second shot.

Let's break it down:

You've got your grip all set up before your first shot. You align your sights, place your finger on the trigger then slowly pull back... Bang!

My very next action turned out to be a critical piece: I would pull my index finger forward, away from the trigger, as fast as possible. All the work I had done, carefully placing my finger on that trigger before the first shot was gone when I let go and when I rushed to place it again, it was a crap shoot.

Why was I doing this? Somewhere in the recesses of my novice mind, even though I knew it wasn't possible, my brain said "If I keep pressure on the trigger after the initial bang, I may suddenly be shooting fully-automatic!" This wasn't even a conscious thought until I was told to do it differently.

The change:

I was told to pull and hold. I do this and begin to realize, this ain't so bad. The gun bounces around a little less after the shot.

Now, I am left with an opportunity: I slowly release the pressure on the trigger until it clicks.

This isn't the click of a malfunction or a bang, but "reset". Reset is the point at which the gun is ready to fire again. (See the image below: the point in the trigger pull at which the gun fires, is called the "break")

Guns have different resets and triggers can also be modified or changed out in order to achieve a desired feel. The reset (click) will always fall somewhere between the "break" and the original position of the trigger. The shorter the reset, the quicker you can get to your next shot.

This information proved invaluable. Already I have shaved time from between the two shots and made the second shot more accurate!

Warning:

If you are interested in feeling the reset of a gun during dry firing you may need an extra hand. Semi-automatics may need a slide rack while the trigger is fully depressed in order to react the way they would in a live fire situation. Also, I didn't know this information during my first gun purchase and while I'm still very happy with that decision, knowing about reset has made me an even more picky educated gun shopper.

©2012 ArmedCandy,LLC

ArmedCandy also Recommends:
	Growing as a Shooter Part One		See Our Newly Revamped Advice Page		Like Us on Facebook