Why a SST on a double gun?

[Kenny Graft]

Anyone know why they wanted to produce a SST when the double trigger system is functional, reliable, less expensive to make and faster to operate? Did any of the big makers explain their reasoning for them? Was this the first of the gadgets we really did not need? Or was there a good reason to invent it? In the time of the new repeaters (pumps) that have only one trigger, was it marketing ploy to be like them...just keep pullin that trigger. I really do not understand the need...Thanks all SXS ohio

[Brian Dudley]

Maybe it was for the same reason that they came out with the O/U shotgun. People just like some things certain ways and claim they cannot adapt to something different. I hear it all the time that it is Hard to get used to two triggers. But I think it becomes habit pretty quickly.

I do think that there is no better or quicker selector than just moving your finger to the other trigger.

[edgarspencer]

Most of my Parkers are double triggered, it takes me a few shots to get used to, when going back and forth. I suppose I prefer double triggers over selective singles, certainly over non-selective triggers.
I'm not sure why you say a single isn't faster, I believe it is. One thing I do know is many people miss their second shot because they are moving more than their hand when going for the second trigger. As their hand is moving back, the muzzle goes down.

[chris dawe]

Maybe it was for the same reason that they came out with the O/U shotgun. People just like some things certain ways and claim they cannot adapt to something different. I hear it all the time that it is Hard to get used to two triggers. But I think it becomes habit pretty quickly.

I do think that there is no better or quicker selector than just moving your finger to the other trigger.

I agree Brian with the ease of a double trigger set up ...I never had an issue from day one,because I never thought about it...as soon as you start thinking "which trigger ?"when a bird gets up , you'll probably push the top lever and open the gun .

I have a grand total of two with single triggers ,I can use them both just fine ,but they don't look right .

I always thought it was just mans desire to have the next best thing

[Brian Dudley]

I should rephrase... A single trigger is certainly faster to pull off the second shot. But double trigger is faster for selection process in a heat of the moment decision.

[Frank Srebro]

A single trigger and particularly one in the rear position is nice to have on a frosty morning, in the blind, etc when you had those period cotton work gloves gloves on. Some doubles have as little as 7/8-inch opening between the triggers.

[Mark Ouellette]

A single trigger and particularly one in the rear position is nice to have on a frosty morning, in the blind, etc when you had those period cotton work gloves gloves on. Some doubles have as little as 7/8-inch opening between the triggers.

Agreed! Same for hunting Ruff Grouse in the snow. I hate most single triggers but own a 20 gauge Sterlingworth with a Miller which is my late season grouse gun! I also own a Super Fox with a Kautzky single trigger which functions flawlessly on icy cold mornings!

Mark

[John Campbell]

Everyone has their preferences... and abilities.

I've shot double triggers all my life. And actually believe they're faster than a single trigger. For me.

As for "sales" advantages, I believe telling someone their length of pull stays consistent also has some weight. But in reality, that "advantage" is just hogwash.

Bottom line, they could charge a premium for a trigger that could fail far more often. Brilliant.

[Russ Jackson]

I believe it was a marketing strategy ,same as all of the Short Mag. rifle cartridges of today,totally unnecessary but sell like hot cakes, people in general love gadgets and this would have been something new in Doubles about the same period as the single triggered pumps and semis ! If it was a genuine issue to have a single trigger ,I think the Big gun makers like Parker ,Fox etc would have had it early on , if you think about it ,why not ,Rifles always were single trigger ! Again ,Just my opinion !

[charlie cleveland]

i think each poinnt thats been made here certainly has its merits.. i mostly shoot double triggers..i only have 1 gun with a single trigger its a lc smith 20 ga i only bought it because of the single trigger and ejectors and selector..yep i like them triggers one or two now dont know about 3... charlie

[Dennis V. Nix]

Possibly all of this is being thought about too much. For those who use double triggers and are used to them then the double trigger is superior. For them. Others grew up using the single trigger and for them it is superior. Does it really make a difference so long as each person feels comfortable with their chosen gun. For consideration though does anyone know when the first single trigger came about? Personally I believe it was a marketing ploy for those people used to a rifle trigger. The single trigger made no learning curve necessary to shoot a double shotgun. Also let's consider other subjects we could consider: Straight grip compared to a curved grip? If there are two triggers what is the point of having both barrels choked the same as in full/full etc.?

There are many variables in the shooting world. Many, probably most, are the result of manufacturers having to sell something new to us. The 270 Winchester has always been a fantastic cartridge in my mind yet the manufacturers decided to invent the Short Action cartridges for which I see no earthly reason whatsoever. Has anyone in history really had a problem getting a second cartridge in the chamber due to its being too long?

I won't ramble on any more here except to say I love double trigger shotguns but do own a Winchester 21 Skeet gun with a single trigger. I love it to death. If I could find an older 1930's with double triggers I would have no problem buying it as well.

Good shooting to you all,

Dennis

[John Farrell]

Single triggers have been around since the late 1800s. Parker first used the cranky Lefler patented SST. Pages 140-142 of The Parker Story covers this improvement in gun design very well. The Parker catalog of 1920 shows a single trigger used in their SBT trap gun. The first catalog showing the SST as an option is in 1926 according to the Muderlak - Parker Guns-The Old Reliable (page 70).

There were some car dealers that never believed the differential drive train improvement on 1900s era cars would supplant the cog and link drive chains used on earlier cars. Some of us still insist on fishing with bamboo fly rods. OMG - some people still shoot 140 year old SxS guns with double triggers. There are even some people who actually drink Scotch that's 18 years old. Go figure!

[edgarspencer]

I wouldn't pay a lot extra for a Parker with a single trigger, mainly because I love to hunt with my guns. I also love shooting them at sporting clays, but not for the competitive nature of the game; just the sheer fun of shooting Parkers.
There are those who take clay shooting very seriously and you would never get any of them to shoot a double trigger gun.
I never could figure why there was a SxS trap gun, but maybe that was before the advent of the single barrel trap gun. A skeet shooter won't lift his head, or at least he shouldn't between the first shot and the second, but when we're hunting, and are fortunate to get a second shot, when we weren't fortunate enough to down the bird with the first, or in the case of a possible double, we almost always raise our head, so the motion of sliding to the rear trigger is of no consequence.
As with almost anything, it's horses for courses.

[John Davis]

One day on a "hot" dove field and double triggers will no longer be a problem. I own one single trigger gun and that's for guests to use who are not double trigger savvy. I personally prefer double triggers but as my dad would say, "that's why they make chocolate and vanilla."

[Bill Murphy]

John, I know your dove field is a Parker only situation. I will honor that rule if I am invited. I will shoot a single shot on my first day there, a Parker SC with a Cutts compensator with the improved cylinder tube installed.

[greg conomos]

I don't like single triggers on a SxS as a matter of principle. But the one Parker I have with a single shoots just fine so I find I give it minimal thought.

[Dave Suponski]

Not to mention the fact that there are those that can't shoot a single trigger gun without making it double or balk. No joke this is a fact.

[Dave Noreen]

I grew up shooting side-by-sides with double triggers. While I'd shot plenty of repeaters at skeet and such, the first double I got with a single trigger was a Fox SPE-Grade Skeet & Upland Game Gun in 1977. I took it Dove shooting in September 1977 and found I could only fire one shot as I'd then be fumbling around feeling for the back trigger!! Never had that problem at Skeet. Apparently in my feeble mind a side-by-side double in the field needs two triggers.

I guess the manufacturers came up with these single triggers so "collectors" would have something to discuss a hundred years later!!

[todd allen]

IMO, the best reason for a single trigger on a double, would be the pigeon ring. Other than that, why would anyone give up the advantage of the double trigger, instant choke selection.
I watched my hunting partner make a perfect dead in air double on a pair of incoming doves this morning, tight bbl first. It was poetry, and would have been difficult without double triggers.

[John Davis]

Bill, you have a standing invitation. Just let me know we you want to make the journey way down south. John

[Mark Landskov]

Dennis, my Greener has a single trigger and was made in 1894. It was a gun Harry Greener kept 'in-house' as a platform for developing his various single trigger mechanisms. The gun was never proofed officially and was never retailed.

[Dennis V. Nix]

Todd, on a side by side with barrels choked the same what is the point of two triggers. To really get into a discussion what would ever be the point of having a double with both barrels choked the same. You would certainly lose the advantage of instant choke selection. No argument here on whatever each of us chooses to use but we all have choices of whatever makes us feel comfortable. For some it is a single trigger and for others a double trigger. I don't think one is a better choice than the other just different.

Dennis

[Dennis V. Nix]

Roundsworth, that is a gun worth having and shooting. Congratulations.

Dennis

[Bill Murphy]

A gun with two triggers and the same choke in each barrel is not much of a mystery. The two trigger choice is because it goes bang every time the trigger is pulled. That is not always the result in a single trigger gun.

[Rich Anderson]

I grew up on single trigger guns and the best way to get used to DT is to have a proper gun fit. I have a couple of Parkers with SST as well as my H&H 20 and have had no problems with any of them.

I hunt with a pointing dog and have never switched either barrels or triggers for the first shot. I recall a target presentation at the Southern where the first bird was farther out and I used the back trigger first but it would have been just as easy to select the left barrel with a SST gun.

[todd allen]

Todd, on a side by side with barrels choked the same what is the point of two triggers. To really get into a discussion what would ever be the point of having a double with both barrels choked the same. You would certainly lose the advantage of instant choke selection. No argument here on whatever each of us chooses to use but we all have choices of whatever makes us feel comfortable. For some it is a single trigger and for others a double trigger. I don't think one is a better choice than the other just different.

Dennis

Ideally, a double trigger gun has different chokes, where typically, the front trigger is the open choke, and the back trigger sets off the tighter choked barrel.
One of my favorites is a BHE choked 6k right bbl, 40k left bbl. Switching from Skeet to Full is instantanious
In contrast, my live bird gun with has a Miller trigger, and is full/full. (and no safety)
The closest you will come to magic in a field gun, is straight grip, double trigger gun, choked Skeet/Mod, or Cyl/Lt Mod.

[Fred Verry]

Kenny, according to W.W. Greener (The Gun and Its Development), the single trigger on a "double-barrelled" gun appeared at least as early as the late 17th century. Greener stated "the single trigger undoubtedly possesses advantages over the two-trigger gun, principally the facility with which two barrels can be fired in rapid succession; the same length of stock is secured (LOP)-with most mechanisms- for both barrels, and there is no necessity to relax the grip of the stock. What these advantages mean to the sportsman can only be fully appreciated by a fair trial at game."

For gun manufacturers the choice was simple, the competition had them, people wanted them and were willing to pay.

[Daryl Corona]

This is a great thread. I agree with just about all the posters and particularly with Todd. I too feel that SK or Cyl and Mod or Full are just about the perfect combo for a field or target gun. Shooters in the early 20th century must have also felt this way as there are a lot of guns choked open/tight. I love double triggers for their dependability. When I was younger I sought out single trigger Parkers because that's what I was used to. Now, I know that DT guns were the choice of many, many shooters of that era. Must have been a good reason for that.

[Bill Murphy]

They go "off" every time you pull one of the triggers. The single trigger, not always.

[Fred Verry]

Bill, you must be talking about properly cocked hammer guns. I cannot remember the last sxs shoot I was at where I did not see a target launched, and some shooter with a double trigger hammerless gun swing on it, pull on the trigger and when nothing happens say something about the "damn safety". I am often one of them. :banghead: Most reliable shotgun: single barrel hand cannon with large touch hole and kerosene torch. Every device added after that increased the probability of mechanical and/or operator failure.

[John Campbell]

And one of the most failure prone of them all: A single trigger!

[charlie cleveland]

i always figured a 2 trigger gun was like the old song if the right one dont getcha then the lefy one will... charlie

[Paul Harm]

IMO it's faster and easier to slide your finger back to fire the second shot than to let go and pull again. Over and over I watch guys with Browning O/U's not get the second shot off because they tried to shoot too fast and didn't let go of the trigger enough. If it's got two barrels, it should have two hammers [ hopefully exposed ] and two triggers - period.