When to let the trigger reset

I have one of my usual and obvious dumb questions. During the shot process and during the follow through, when should the trigger be released to move forward and reset the trigger mechanism? I've collected books, made notebooks of posts here and elsewhere, searched pretty well and the best I have so far is from the MEC Pistol Shooting - The Olympic Disciplines that is SCATT intensive saying for Slow Fire shooting such as Air Pistol and 50 Meter Pistol (Free Pistol) that pulling the trigger and immediately letting the trigger go forward will disturb the shot. Sounds good, makes sense, I can see it in Air Pistol and in dry firing.

To test I tried it with a 22 conversion with a red dot on Slow Fire and two shots and liked the results of not letting the trigger move forward until the shot was complete (smooth trigger pull, shot, call, follow through).

Am I chasing my tail, or is this another detail in the shot process that doesn't get described well?

Stephen

Let the shot break, reset the trigger during recoil as you return the sights to the center of the target.

chiz1180 wrote:Let the shot break, reset the trigger during recoil as you return the sights to the center of the target.

Thanks. It was one of those simple things I couldn't find explicitly stated.

Depends some on the type string I'm shooting. Slow fire can be a bit more of a delay on reset to encourage follow through. TF and RF I'm resetting during recoil and want to be applying pressure to the trigger as my dot is lowering into the target.

Dammit, I have to say something nice about the NRA. (Slight sarcasm)

In the NRA Guide To The Basics Of Pistol Shooting training book (The course I took as a fresh beginner before seeing Bullseye/International shooting as the next logical step in shooting development. You know, shoot and actually hit something stuff.)

"During follow-through, the finger pressure is relaxed, allowing the trigger to reset. However, the trigger finger still maintains contact with the trigger."

Not a bad book and there is this Zins guy showing how to shoot with one hand.

Like most, I reset the trigger during recoil. I don't think about it or even realize I am doing it. It just happens.

I've known a couple of good shooters who hold the trigger back all the way through recoil and only reset the trigger as they are coming into the center. It is part of their trigger pull.

Still a fair question and something often overlooked. Another good point is "the trigger finger still maintains contact with the trigger". Small details often stack up to make a big difference.

I think that emphasis on trigger reset is a rather new thing. There are all kinds of videos on the internet. Mostly it is about plastic pistols. SteveT has the right idea. Bill Blankenship said that he worked on making most of the process "automatic" including trigger control. Someone once likened it to driving a car. When we first started, we had to think about every little thing we did. After a while we just drove. Overthinking the shooting process can really be a bummer.

I asked about letting the trigger move forward with the intent to not disturb the shot. I had noticed I had gotten into the habit of releasing the trigger immediately and had to tune up my shot process. I don't have any actual talent at shooting so it is a mechanical process and all the parts have to fit together.

I always like the stories about Bill Blankenship liking to practice under imperfect conditions, such as on rainy or windy days.

Trigger pull and reset is a trained skill. In other words it is learned. You should be finessing the trigger to the rear and finessing it forward to reset. Having said that, I quickly reset because I start my trigger squeeze while still recovering from recoil. It keeps you ahead in the game. You do not want to fall behind. Waiting until your in the black to start squeezing the trigger will keep you in the marksman/sharpshooter classes.
The bullet is already on its way down range when you are resetting the trigger, so that’s not an issue. 
You should actually spend time training and focusing on trigger reset. Both in dry practice and live fire. It does help!
Jon

I have never had any notice of my trigger reset.  No memories of LtC Miller ever mentioning it those 50 years ago.  It just happens.

While acknowledging that I am Nobody from Nowhere, I would argue that this may be a more noticeable part of the shot process on an air pistol, free pistol or 22 than on a 45. I've have talked with few AMU team members that shoot 45 great say air pistol gives them fits.

Jon, I like your reply as, like everything in this sport, there seems to be a Goldilocks zone that needs to be found and settled in. Not too fast or too slow.

As for me, I begin the reset process as soon as sufficient follow through is completed. Too pin the trigger to the rear beyond that, serves no useful purpose. To do so, robs useful time which could be used on prepping the trigger for subsequent shots.