TRigger pull questions - not really Parker related

[Phil Yearout]

​Hope this is the right forum for this...?

I've never given trigger pulls a lot of thought, and I've never had a gun that caused me to worry about them one way or the other, but I just got a gun on which the trigger pull feels excessively heavy at least to me.* So I bought a basic pull gauge and have been checking some of my guns.* The pulls are all over the place, but most seem to be in the 5-1/2 to 7lb range.* So my question: just what does that mean?* Is a pound of difference a lot, or not very much?

Here's my little "case study": I have a trap gun that measures 2lbs. and the pull feels very light; in fact it took some getting used to when I got it.* I also have a trap gun that measures about 5lbs-10oz, and although I can tell that that it's heavier than the first, it doesn't feel particularly heavy and I've never felt a problem with it, and I've never sensed a problem going back and forth between the two guns.* I just got a third trap gun, and the pull feels VERY heavy - so heavy that I felt like it was causing me to jerk or even move the gun when I shot it.* It measures 6-8, not a lot more than the second and certainly not as much difference as between the first gun and the second.

*I'm not very techie when it comes to guns; I've always just got them and shot them without paying much attention to details.* But this gun has me confused.* I'm not going to mess with any that I've never felt a problem with but I may be looking to have the pull lightened on this gun.* Any input welcomed; feel free to enlighten me or even to further confuse me*��... *

​

[Phil C]

Triggers in the 3 to 4 lb. Range feel just about right to me. I don’t do well with heavy triggers.
Too light on double triggers and sometimes get a double when pull the front trigger.

[J. Scott Hanes]

I shoot more Trap than anything and have my triggers set at 3.5#. My view is, if the gun goes off before you "want" it to, surprising you, then it is too light. If too heavy, it will seem like it takes effort to do so. As Phil C stated, around 3-4# seems to be where most target shooters end up. I am so used to the 3.5# that if I go hunting with a heavier-weight trigger, such as an 1100, I may flinch on the trigger the first few times because my brain thinks it should have gone off with "x" amount of effort. It only takes a couple of those events to get re-acclimated to the heavier pull weight.

[mobirdhunter]

Some makers set trigger pull based on gun weight and/or intended use (i.e., “rough shooting” v. targets). Second trigger is generally set to be heavier than first. American doubles generally have heavier pulls. Again, these are generalizations.

[Craig Budgeon]

Miller single triggers are set at 4 lbs. 12 ga. guns with double triggers have there front triggers set at 4 lbs. and the rear at 3 1/2 lbs. Brits set there triggers at half the gun weight. Rear triggers are set slightly lower because of the increased leverage.

[Stan Hillis]

I am trigger pull weight obsessive. I will live with a 5 to 5 1/2 lb. pull weight, on a hunting gun, but not much above that. I'm used to a Perazzi. They're known for great triggers. I don't expect much less from my hunting guns.

When I have a double gun on which the triggers are too heavy, and i send it off to my trigger man, i specify 3 1/2 lbs. on the front trigger and 4 lbs. on the rear. Why the difference in the front and rear? The answer is ..... the leverage. There is usually greater leverage on the rear trigger, due to the hand and trigger finger position, than on the front. So, the slightly heavier pull on the rear is not felt as being heavier because of the hand position and the trigger finger position.

I don't care if the gun weighs 9 lbs., like my MX-8, or 4 lbs. 14 oz., like one of my little S X Ss. I want the trigger pulls as near 3 1/2 and 4 as I can get them.

[Craig Budgeon]

Stan is right I reversed the front and rear trigger pulls for twelve ga. guns.

[Richard Flanders]

I had a situation where a VH12 started doubling when if I pulled the rear trigger first. I pulled the gun apart and found that the front sear was more worn and blunt than the rear, I assumed from being fired more than the rear, causing it to double. I cleaned up the tip of the front sear and the issue went away.

[Phil Yearout]

I wonder if a good cleaning would help the heavy pull on this SBT. I'm not confident in my ability to take the gun apart though.

[Mike of the Mountain]

On our vintage guns sometimes a "heavy" trigger can be cured by a thorough cleaning and lube. Decades of dirt and hardened grease have a tendency to turn a crisp trigger into "pulling a brick on a string". Unless a trigger is excessively heavy I have no problem with it. I have more of a problem with creep than pull weight. My biggest issue comes from shooting a lot of rifle during shotgun seasons. I tend to get "rifle trigger" and expect my shotgun trigger to break at 2 lbs too. That'll lose ya targets in a hurry!!