RELEASE TRIGGERS By Derek Partridge Originally published in Shooting Times January 1972 Recently, Gough Thomas again discussed release triggers. He posed a question: "What can the release trigger do to help the competitive shooter?" He felt the answer was that it could help the highly-strung, over-tense individual. I used to think this too -- and still accept that it can -- however, I also feel it can bring positive advantages to any shooter. Some time ago, I was living in America and most of my Olympic Trench shooting was done with US Army, Air Force or Marine Marksmanship Training Unit personnel. These are a mixture of boys with razor-sharp reflexes and men with years of shooting experience -- all seemingly nerveless. They shoot every single day -- for competition shooting, and training for it, is their job. Consequently it follows that, between them, what they don't know about shooting, isn't worth knowing, for, in their search for perfection, they can experiment theoretically and practically with every idea that exists. Most of the USAF team used release triggers for Trench and many of the Army team wanted to, but their CO wasn't convinced about them at the time. Today, he too shoots a release trigger and is a member of the ISU technical committee on clay shooting. Simple experiment All these shooters had been top-flight DTL shooters to start with, or they wouldn't have been on the military teams; but, those, who adopted the release trigger found their performances improved markedly and some then shot themselves into the superstar category. It must be significant that the top three performances by American military shooters at Trench have all been by USAF men, using release triggers: Ken Jones shot the world's first 200 straight and went on to win the 1966 World Championships in Wiesbaden with 297/300 -- also a world Record. Then Tom Garrigus won the Silver Medal at the Mexico Olympics -- in his first International level competition; lastly Terry Howard, shooting in the blistering heat of San Antonio, put up an incredible unofficial World Record of 299/300. The Army and the Marines had fine shooters, too, who had won many International competitions around the world, but these three release trigger users remain the "stars." They hadn't turned to release triggers to avoid flinching. They positively believed they were an advantage to good shooting. They made me conduct a simple, but dramatically-effective experiment. With an empty cartridge in my gun, I called for target and pulled the trigger as if for a normal shot. It was impossible not to notice how the barrels flipped downwards as I jerked the gun on "firing", or pulling the trigger. Other people did exactly the same. Then, in turn, we tried the same operation with release trigger gun - at the moment of "Firing," or releasing the trigger, the barrels remained perfectly stable and continued their swing through the target without the "dip" when pulling. Release of tension So, it was smoother. Why? Because it is difficult to make a sudden muscular contraction without sometimes jerking the object held. Add the undeniable tension of competitive shooting and there's a lot of tension going into that "pull." To release the trigger is merely a muscular relaxation. As such, it is an easier function for the body, is faster and involves the use of less muscles - the seats of tension. Take any game where a ball is struck or thrown -- all are releases, rather than contractions of muscles. The nearest sport to shooting, archery, is also a release of already contracted muscles, a release of tension, instead of its creation. Other benefits are that it is an aid to concentration at the vital moment of calling for the target -- if you're not concentrating, the gun will go off and rudely wake you up! In cold weather when your frozen finger is insensitive to the feel of the trigger, the release man has no problem and can also wear warm gloves for comfort. He just pulls back until he hears the setting click and then relaxes the muscle to fire. Question of safety If you're going to try one, it's a good idea to do some dry firing first. This way you can get the feel of it without embarrassing yourself by inadvertently letting off a couple of shots at a club. That brings one to the consideration of safety. Although a release trigger will occasionally be let off inadvertently, I have seen many conventional guns, also being let off, unintentionally. Providing shooters follow the most basic safety requirement of always pointing the gun in a safe direction, there is no more problem with a release trigger than a normal one ... with one exception that must be noted. On a DTL range, it is possible for an inexperienced trapper to stick his head up, instead of a red flag -- the construction of an Olympic Trench tends to preclude this. It is therefore vital that on any DTL trap where a release trigger is being used, it is incumbent on the shooter to inform the trapper either personally or through the referee or puller. The functioning of a .release trigger is very simple.When the trigger is pulled, the sear drops out of the bent in the normal manner, but the hammer is then detained by a form of detent hook. When pressure on the trigger is released, the detent slides off the hammer, which then strikes in the usual way. Pressure Levels The first barrel release trigger is applicable primarily to DTL double-rise and Trench and possibly to American Skeet, but not to ISU Skeet, where the gun is mounted from the hip, and certainly not to game shooting, for obvious safety and practical reasons. I cannot see the advantage of a double release system for one is losing a lot of time to re-set for the second shot, whereas, using release/pull, one is making the second shot faster. Gough Thomas also raised the question of the weight and quality of the release and of the setting pressure. These factors vary considerably, according to personal preference. My own research -- with leading American release trigger users and with Perazzi's chief designer -- led to these conclusions: the pressure to disengage the sear from the bent should be as any pull trigger, i.e.: 3-4 lb. but it is not critical. The pressure to hold the detent in place must not be too light, or there can be the risk of premature discharge, and not too heavy or it merely creates unwanted muscular tension. What is more important, is the degree of engagement of the detent on the hammer platform. If the lip of the hook only just engages on the platform, there is again the risk of premature discharge whilst moving towards the target. Mine are set so that the detent hook engages fully forward on the hammer platform, but both surfaces are highly polished with hard Arkansas stone to allow for a fast, crisp disengagement. A creepy or hanging release trigger is as much of a disaster as the same condition on a pull trigger.