Good trigger

Drummer101 · July 8, 2011, 06:19 PM

On rifles when I am doing some slow shooting I can feel a bad trigger.

But in shooting clays I have never noticed a trigger on shotguns.

I have shot a few Browning Citori's
Beretta 3901
Remington 870
Western Field thing (trigger pivoted really funny so that is a little different)

Of which none of them I could say was any different because when shooting clays I am not creeping on the trigger. Just pulling it when I need it.

Does anyone else notice it more than me?

BigJimP · July 8, 2011, 06:41 PM

Yes, I notice bad triggers on shotguns ...and bad triggers will screw up your wing shooting or clay target shooting big time ....

A trigger with a lot of slack, or a lot of creep ...or one that breaks heavy ( over 4.75 lbs ) would drive me nuts. Instead of it breaking cleanly - and when I expect it to ....it'd be like trying to squeeze the head off a chicken...!! I have seen some poor triggers on a lot of pump guns and semi-autos -- that break up around 6 lbs ...and creep and wobble all over..

A good gunsmith can fix a bad trigger ...on a shotgun ...its usually $ 50 -
$100 to clean up a trigger.

Life is too short to shoot ugly guns / or guns with bad triggers ...or drink bad beer or cheap wine for that matter.... Browning makes 26 models of their Citori line of guns ...priced from $ 1,750 - $4,000 ....and the lower end guns, occasionally have some pretty crummy triggers. Most of my Browning O/U's like the Citori, XS Skeet model or the XT models ....break at 4.25 lbs ...and nice and crisp / with no slack or creep. Out of the dozen or so Browning O/U's I have ...I've only had to have one trigger re-worked ...and it was on a Citori Lightning .....new, out of the box, is was marginal - at around 6 lbs ...

My Browning BPS Hunter model guns ...pump guns in 12ga and 20ga ...have a lot of shells thru both of them ...but they both break right at 4.75 lbs ....and that's ok on a gun I use in the field / although these days, I shoot a lot of my O/U's in the field as well.

oneounceload · July 8, 2011, 06:41 PM

Where you;ll notice trigger differences is between the low-end guns and the Browning,Beretta level, and then again from the Beretta/Browning level and the high end guns like Perazzi kreighoff, Ljutic, etc. High-end target guns rely on perfect triggers and that requires hand-tuning - and that costs money in labor

Take a cheap revolver with its gritty, creepy trigger and compare it to a tuned S&W in single action - the differences can be that great.

Otherwise, Jim summed it up nicely

BigJimP · July 8, 2011, 06:47 PM

I'm even fussier ...about the triggers on my collection of S&W revolvers ( model 18's, 19's, 27's, 28's, 29's, 66's, 686's, 629's ...) .....both double action and single action especially.

and on my 1911 semi-autos ...where I want a really good trigger to break like glass right at 3.5 lbs ...and I don't care if its a target gun or a carry gun. Bad triggers on handguns ...are really noticeable ..

I'm not a rifle shooter ...used to be a big game hunter ...but these days I have a few .22 rifles ...and a Henry rifle .../ but for the most part, I want match grade triggers in all of those guns too.

zippy13 · July 8, 2011, 08:48 PM

"Does anyone else notice it more than me?"

Yep, I'm even fussier than BigJimP. A bad shotgun trigger can be a major distraction and a confidence breaker. For a serious shooter, it often becomes a head game. When you're down to the last few targets and you're working on a winning score, the slightest distraction can quickly change you from a potential champ to a chump. A bad trigger isn't tolerated under these circumstances. The quest for better triggers is one of the major reasons competitors will upgrade to higher grade guns.

Yes, as BigJim mentioned, a bad trigger can often be improved by a competent smith. But they can't work magic, some trigger designs allow for more improvement than others.

Slugo · July 8, 2011, 09:37 PM

BJP, speaking of well tuned 686's. One of the first generation 4" L-frames. My hiking gun...

.300 Weatherby Mag · July 8, 2011, 11:26 PM

I will not shoot a shotgun with a crappy trigger... I was spoiled in the beginning by my fathers Brownings and other quality guns, so I will not tolerate a bad trigger..

mete · July 9, 2011, 12:19 AM

I tuned up the trigger on my Benelli years a go and dropped it from 8.5 to 5 lbs and smooth . Yes a very noticeble difference.

BigJimP · July 9, 2011, 05:44 PM

Nice revolver Slugo .../and I agree a good 4" revolver is a nice gun for hiking ...and I have yet to see a S&W revolver with a bad trigger ( made prior to 1990 or so at least).

July 8, 2011, 06:19 PM	#1
Drummer101 Senior Member Join Date: October 22, 2009 Location: DFW Posts: 943	Good trigger On rifles when I am doing some slow shooting I can feel a bad trigger. But in shooting clays I have never noticed a trigger on shotguns. I have shot a few Browning Citori's Beretta 3901 Remington 870 Western Field thing (trigger pivoted really funny so that is a little different) Of which none of them I could say was any different because when shooting clays I am not creeping on the trigger. Just pulling it when I need it. Does anyone else notice it more than me? __________________ "I would say that we have to make up criteria." OK, which is better for 2 Bantu, 5 Hottentots, and 3 pygmies playing a war march on a calliope at 3 a.m. during a monsoon? Show your work and round to the nearest decimal. -Mike Irwin

July 9, 2011, 12:19 AM	#8
mete Senior Member Join Date: June 14, 2004 Location: NY State Posts: 6,575	I tuned up the trigger on my Benelli years a go and dropped it from 8.5 to 5 lbs and smooth . Yes a very noticeble difference. __________________ And Watson , bring your revolver !

July 8, 2011, 06:41 PM	#2
BigJimP Senior Member Join Date: February 23, 2005 Posts: 13,195	Yes, I notice bad triggers on shotguns ...and bad triggers will screw up your wing shooting or clay target shooting big time .... A trigger with a lot of slack, or a lot of creep ...or one that breaks heavy ( over 4.75 lbs ) would drive me nuts. Instead of it breaking cleanly - and when I expect it to ....it'd be like trying to squeeze the head off a chicken...!! I have seen some poor triggers on a lot of pump guns and semi-autos -- that break up around 6 lbs ...and creep and wobble all over.. A good gunsmith can fix a bad trigger ...on a shotgun ...its usually $ 50 - $100 to clean up a trigger. Life is too short to shoot ugly guns / or guns with bad triggers ...or drink bad beer or cheap wine for that matter.... Browning makes 26 models of their Citori line of guns ...priced from $ 1,750 - $4,000 ....and the lower end guns, occasionally have some pretty crummy triggers. Most of my Browning O/U's like the Citori, XS Skeet model or the XT models ....break at 4.25 lbs ...and nice and crisp / with no slack or creep. Out of the dozen or so Browning O/U's I have ...I've only had to have one trigger re-worked ...and it was on a Citori Lightning .....new, out of the box, is was marginal - at around 6 lbs ... My Browning BPS Hunter model guns ...pump guns in 12ga and 20ga ...have a lot of shells thru both of them ...but they both break right at 4.75 lbs ....and that's ok on a gun I use in the field / although these days, I shoot a lot of my O/U's in the field as well.

July 8, 2011, 06:41 PM	#3
oneounceload Junior member Join Date: April 18, 2008 Location: N. Central Florida Posts: 8,518	Where you;ll notice trigger differences is between the low-end guns and the Browning,Beretta level, and then again from the Beretta/Browning level and the high end guns like Perazzi kreighoff, Ljutic, etc. High-end target guns rely on perfect triggers and that requires hand-tuning - and that costs money in labor Take a cheap revolver with its gritty, creepy trigger and compare it to a tuned S&W in single action - the differences can be that great. Otherwise, Jim summed it up nicely

July 8, 2011, 06:47 PM	#4
BigJimP Senior Member Join Date: February 23, 2005 Posts: 13,195	I'm even fussier ...about the triggers on my collection of S&W revolvers ( model 18's, 19's, 27's, 28's, 29's, 66's, 686's, 629's ...) .....both double action and single action especially. and on my 1911 semi-autos ...where I want a really good trigger to break like glass right at 3.5 lbs ...and I don't care if its a target gun or a carry gun. Bad triggers on handguns ...are really noticeable .. I'm not a rifle shooter ...used to be a big game hunter ...but these days I have a few .22 rifles ...and a Henry rifle .../ but for the most part, I want match grade triggers in all of those guns too.

July 8, 2011, 08:48 PM	#5
zippy13 Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2008 Location: SoCal Posts: 6,442	"Does anyone else notice it more than me?" Yep, I'm even fussier than BigJimP. A bad shotgun trigger can be a major distraction and a confidence breaker. For a serious shooter, it often becomes a head game. When you're down to the last few targets and you're working on a winning score, the slightest distraction can quickly change you from a potential champ to a chump. A bad trigger isn't tolerated under these circumstances. The quest for better triggers is one of the major reasons competitors will upgrade to higher grade guns. Yes, as BigJim mentioned, a bad trigger can often be improved by a competent smith. But they can't work magic, some trigger designs allow for more improvement than others.

July 8, 2011, 09:37 PM	#6
Slugo Junior member Join Date: September 15, 2001 Location: Central PA Posts: 1,007	BJP, speaking of well tuned 686's. One of the first generation 4" L-frames. My hiking gun...

July 8, 2011, 11:26 PM	#7
.300 Weatherby Mag Senior Member Join Date: September 6, 2008 Posts: 1,777	I will not shoot a shotgun with a crappy trigger... I was spoiled in the beginning by my fathers Brownings and other quality guns, so I will not tolerate a bad trigger..

July 9, 2011, 05:44 PM	#9
BigJimP Senior Member Join Date: February 23, 2005 Posts: 13,195	Nice revolver Slugo .../and I agree a good 4" revolver is a nice gun for hiking ...and I have yet to see a S&W revolver with a bad trigger ( made prior to 1990 or so at least).