Of Triggers and Sights

Too Easy?

A light trigger allows you to fire without moving the rifle. Presumably you add pressure when the sight picture is perfect and don’t apply more than necessary. Jerking a light trigger has much the same effect as jerking a stiff one. One of my prone-match pals had a rifle whose trigger was so finely made, it could be adjusted to fire of its own weight. That is, you could fire the rifle without touching the trigger simply by easing the muzzle skyward.

The problem with such a trigger or even one that registers a couple of ounces resistance, is that you dare not touch it until you want the bullet gone. Your finger gets no rest floating about, held off the trigger by muscles that tire. A hunting rifle’s trigger must let you feel it firmly, not only for deliberate shots but for urgent ones, from improvised firing positions when you’re excited, frightened, on poor footing and your hand is gloved or cold.

Carefully crushing a trigger breaking at 8 oz., you can fire a 10-lb. target rifle without moving it with your finger. Of course, unless solidly benched, the rifle can still move to the bounce of your pulse or the twitch of a shoulder muscle. Heavier triggers on lighter rifles put movement into your sight picture from the trigger squeeze alone. I’ve fired 6-lb. rifles with 6-lb. triggers. Which moves first?

Applying 6 lbs. of pressure with one finger, your body brings other muscles to bear, affecting your position and its forces on the rifle. Even tripping a 3-lb. trigger, you’ll engage forearm and pectoral muscles.

Powerful scopes show how even a careful tug on a light trigger can move the rifle. Rifle shake isn’t so obvious through the low-power glass I prefer for big game, or with metallic sights. We tolerate or dismiss the pre-shot shudder of the sight against big targets if it doesn’t affect results. Not long ago I shot a Cape buffalo offhand as it came. My Mauser wasn’t steady, but at 15 steps, gopher-eye precision was less important than speed.

Besides bearing the weight of a ready finger, double rifle triggers must also have the sear engagement and resistance to prevent an inadvertent follow-up, either from the jar of the first shot or the incidental brush of the finger during recoil. On rifles for mountain game, triggers with some starch make sense under chilled fingers.