A nit to pick at

[Ike666]

One of my guilty pleasures is Guns & Ammo. Both magazine and the TV show. I just finished watching the most recent edition and I have a question for y'all.

Craig Boddington is unquestionably a talented, competent gun bunny. But he's got a weird (my opinion) handgun grip. He's a left handed shooter but I don't think that has anything to do with it. He places the index finger of his support hand on the front of the trigger guard. Addionally, when he is shooting, the middle finger of his support hand is about a quarter inch below the trigger guard instead of locked up tight against it.

Now, I probably would have never noticed except G&A TV loves the slo mo shot as the hosts fire their pistols. What I noticed is that Boddington has to re-adjust his grip after each shot. Also, he'll shoot a string of five and almost always pull the last shot right at about 3 o'clock. I think this is probably the result of pulling with that right index finger.

This really doesn't amount to a hill of beans but I was wondering if this, or any other quirks on shooting shows, catch your attention.

[g.willikers]

Not unusual.
For gun enthusiasts to be less than stellar shootists.

[Ike666]

Yeah G but that's too easy. I don't disagree but he was in Col. Cooper's Corps. How'd he come upon that bizarre grip style?

[Aguila Blanca]

A number of years ago (possibly around the time Boddington was getting into shooting) there was a fad to square off the fronts of handgun trigger guards so shooters could place the index finger of the support hand there. You can still see that "feature" on a number of well-known pistols.

[g.willikers]

Guess the Colonel was talking, but Boddington wasn't listening.
That's not to say that particular grip style can't be successfully used by someone who knows how.

[Ibmikey]

The first batch of 659 pistols i purchased for the PD had squared guards, i tried to develop a workable combat grip utilizing that guard but determined it caused more officers problems as their groups went to hell. That effort was abandoned by most officers. The second order was for 5906 pistols and by then the guard had lost the square shape and returned to normal so the common hold was used with greater accuracy.

[Snyper]

People get too obsessed with using the "right" grip when it's more important to use what works for you.

Everyone's hands are different and there's an infinite variety of guns, so if one guy feels more comfortable with a slightly different grip, it's no big deal.

People tend to over think things when sometimes it's best to just focus on the end results instead of fractions of an inch difference in finger placement.

[Ike666]

Yep. And I know that this grip style is still in wide spread use in western Europe. Hence the trigger guards on SIGs, Glocks, Walthers, & HKs. I certainly wouldn't quibble with the "if its working go with it" approach.

Personally, I'd prefer the rounded guard style so I can wedge my index finger up a little higher.

What really caught my attention was the slow motion videography and the realization that he was having to re-adjust his grip after each shot. If he's happy with it, I'm happy with it - for him.

[njsco]

Here is a link to a video from a world class shooter that explains in some detail how to grip a pistol and the reasoning for sometimes placing the first finger of the support hand on the front of the trigger guard:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChSazF41q-s


Here is a link to another video that shows what is probably considered the standard two hand pistol grip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJrA7wMXuuQ

[samsmix]

I was always a shooter, but first got into fighting handguns in the late 90's. The support hand index finger on the trigger guard was big then, but by about 2003 no one training anyone seemed to teach it, and all the "experts" jumped on students caught using this grip faster than you could say "it's not a 'clip' it's a magazine!"

I ALSO remember hearing that the "Combat" trigger guard wasn't intended as a finger rest, but rather that the front corner was a way to focus the blow in the event the pistol had to be used as a makeshift club. I find this claim somewhat dubious given that many such trigger guards have/have a checkered front face.

[rodfac]

I ALSO remember hearing that the "Combat" trigger guard wasn't intended as a finger rest, but rather that the front corner was a way to focus the blow in the event the pistol had to be used as a makeshift club.

Geez, that's a stretch! I do find that that left over oddity makes fitting a holster around it a royal PITA. YMMV, Rod

[samsmix]

Yeah, it seemed a stretch then and now. I don't remember where I heard it claimed, but it seems about as silly as the pistol bayonets that haunted the back page of gun rags for a while...lol

[SIGSHR]

When I shot IPSC back in 1979-1981 the squared off/ checkered trigger guard was very "chic" and one of THE things to have. I personally found it awkward and uncomfortable and I shot fine without it. My early M639 and M659 do not have it, later ones do, looking at current production guns it seems to be out of fashion.

[shootbrownelk]

I don't like Boddington's red hair, or Lamb's goatee.

[MarkCO]

Boddington is not a pistol guy to me. Having worked some of the media and industry events, some of the "famous" gunwriters are "terrible" shooters. That is okay if they can stay in their lane, which most do. BTW, Jerry Miculek has been know to shoot with the weak hand finger on the front of the trigger guard.

Boddington is one of the few I like and I have his book. It is entertaining and I am sure I have learned some things from him. He is one (as is Shockey) that I think would be a blast to go on a hunt with.

[alaskabushman]

I enjoy Boddingtons writings as well, but I have never watched him shoot.
I'm also a lefty and have been accused of using a similar grip myself. For me its a simple fact that when shooting semi-autos lefty, that the usual high grip thumbs up style is hard to use when the ejection port is shooting brass at your thumbs.
Moving the support hand forward allows a high grip and keeps your thumbs out of the way. I also pull on the trigger guard with the support hand and push with the firing hand, which makes for a tight sturdy grip.
I don't know if its a "proper" proper grip and since I don't compete it's never really come up. its whats comfortable for me and it works.

A side note, I typically don't grip revolvers in the same way, since putting your hand this far forward puts it dangerously close to the cylinder gap.

[JDBerg]

I used to watch Guns & Ammo on TV and I'd read the mag, Kyle Lamb impressed me as more of a marksman compared to Craig Boddington. Patrick Sweeney's columns are some of the most useful and helpful advice I've come across.

[Cheapshooter]

People get too obsessed with using the "right" grip when it's more important to use what works for you.

Bingo!
What difference does it make if he is comfortable with it, and hits what he wants to?

[Jim Watson]

The up to the minute gunfighting schools no longer teach the off forefinger on the trigger guard hold but you can see plenty of guns out there with hooked or checkered trigger guards for the purpose. A friend has recently adopted that hold and says it reduces muzzle flip and reduces the occasional out shot at speed.

[Ozzieman]

I have used that handhold for over 40 years. It was taught to me by a great man that used to ride trains with Harry Truman.
I would not suggest it for new shooters and don't. You can get mirror trigger where when you pull the trigger with the right index finger, the left can have a very slight movement.
I have no idea if it reduces barrel flip but I feel very uncomfortable if I shoot without the week hand index on the trigger guard.