Don’t Jerk It: Pistol Trigger Control Tips With Brian Zins

by
posted on January 16, 2018
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
Last week for Part 1 of our “Precision Pistol Tips with Brian Zins” video series, we covered pistol grip improvement. Now for Part 2, Brian, a 12-time NRA National Pistol Champion, reviews his pistol trigger control tips (watch the video above).

Part 2: Trigger control
What is trigger control? Brian Zins believes that trigger control is the ability to manipulate the trigger without disturbing the sights. Trigger control, simply put, is “getting the gun to shoot, once you get the sights where you want them.” Brian tweaks this advice to, “Align the sights as you pull the trigger.” More on this later.

Brian Zins on pistol trigger control
Stance, grip and aiming are important, but you can have a perfect grip, and hold perfect sight alignment all day long―but it only counts when the gun goes bang and only one action causes the gun to do that―pulling the trigger.


According to Brian, there are two fundamentals in shooting, aiming and trigger control. Trigger control is the more important of the two, because it’s the only part of the gun that’s actually moving before the shot breaks. There’s no sense in aiming if you can’t pull the trigger without disturbing the sights. This is not limited to precision pistol―trigger control is key for all pistol shooting disciplines.

Trigger finger placement in bullseye
Now for bullseye, where should the trigger make contact on the finger? We touched on this a bit in Part 1, so if you have not watched it yet, be sure to review it. The trigger should be centered in the first crease of the trigger finger. Why you ask? We have always been taught to place the pad on the trigger. Brian would rather have the hard surfaces of the creases on the trigger, because when pressure is applied, we know the trigger is actually moving to the rear, and we are not just feeling the fat and skin of the finger being pushed out of the way.

Brian Zins shares his tips for pistol trigger control in bullseye
In Part 3, which is upcoming, Brian will marry up his concepts of sight alignment and trigger control.


Trigger control, you should make yours nice and smooth. Learn it, live it, love it!

In Part 3 of our video series, Brian will cover the relationship between sight alignment and trigger control. The tips in these videos are taken from Brian’s instructional clinics. Learn more about Brian Zins pistol training at www.pointblankrange.com/training-instructor-bios/brian-zins

Latest

Trijicon Reap IR 50 2
Trijicon Reap IR 50 2

New: Trijicon REAP-IR-50 Thermal Riflescope Series

Trijicon’s REAP-IR-50 thermal riflescope pairs an in-house 1024x768 core with optional laser ranging, onboard recording and Wi-Fi streaming.

Collegiate Rifle: Akron Falls to No. 4 Nebraska in Season Opener

No. 4-ranked Nebraska tops No. 15 Akron 4743-4673 in season opener, with McClimans, Moran and freshman Maddie Allen leading the Zips.

Beretta Built This 92FS Around the Payment That Started It All

Beretta’s 92FS Ducato, limited to 296 pistols, marks 500 years with subfossil oak grips and an authentic 16th-century Venetian ducat.

A Miracle After The Tornado: 1998 National Matches

Brian Zins, Troy Bassham and Cory Brunetti claimed national titles at the 1998 National Matches, where Nancy Tompkins-Gallagher and Julia Watson made history.

New: WOOX M-LOK Leather Cartridge Quiver

WOOX’s new $69 M-LOK Leather Cartridge Quiver carries six rounds in handmade Tuscan leather and mounts to any two open M-LOK slots.

Benelli Invitational Raises $115,000 for Veterans

The 12th Benelli USA Invitational drew 200 shooters to Maryland’s Eastern Shore and raised $115,000 for veterans nonprofit Freedom Hunters.

Interests



Get the best of Shooting Sports USA delivered to your inbox.