I can’t shoot double action revolvers!

[P7M13]

View attachment 1021866

Excellent model - inexpensive plus the adjustability let's you do thumb vs. Index finger exercises, etc.

 

[Longwalkhome]

Just a little history to refresh the old guys memories There was a long time in America when the vast majority of law enforcement only carried revolvers. Many departs like NYC rendered all the revolvers to double action only and the acceptable pull for double action was 9 pounds. The thinking was a 9 lb pull was the safest for under stress shooting.

That thinking has carried over today with NYC glocks have what's called a NY trigger. It's 8lbs now.

Point being is the trigger pull in a court case can be an issue.

 

[grpolarbear]

Install a laser grip and practice double action dry firing,it will give you instant feedback to help you develop a nice straight trigger pull.

 

[crstrode]

Boy am I just a bad shot with one.

I own a few, and I for the life of me can't shoot them worth a damn in double action.

I usually bring my Ruger SP101 with me on trips (vacation and or camping), it's stainless, doesn't require magazines, and can be loaded with stout 357 loads. So I figured I'd give it some much needed range time as it's been a bit since ive last shot it. I remember why I don't shoot it often. Anything past 5 yards, I'd be lucky to hit it in double action. My 38 special LSWC loads where ok, they aren't ghost farts, but I did the best with those. I shot 40 full power 357 loads, HUGE FIREBALLS LOL, but the best I could do is some wild 8" or larger group. Some 5 shot strings with those I was definitely pulling off target and missing the 12" x 12" target altogether. I was definitely anticipating recoil and F'ing up something by doing so. I did shoot a few 5 shot strings single action, and low and behold the groups with all ammos tightened up dramatically.

So after about 300 rounds of misc 38/357 I called it quits and moved on to the 8 shot Taurus 22lr.

And…

Pretty much the same thing. I was all over in double action. I even tried Colibri rounds and shot them horribly in double action. I know this gun can shoot as in single action it prints small groups with most CCI products.

So, thanks for listening to me complain about my day of shooting. I did hit some paper with one of my ARs as well and got a very nice 10 shot group at 50 yards with the Primary Arms GLX 2x prism optic. Made the earlier part of the range day less noticeable.

If you've read this far, got any pointers for shooting double action? I was really thinking about buying a tiny concealable revolver for pocket carry, but this has me thinking I may need to reconsider.

Is a trigger job worthy?

Or should I just shut up and shoot it more?

Thanks,

Reno

Practice.

That is how Jerry Miculek does it.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Install a laser grip and practice double action dry firing,it will give you instant feedback to help you develop a nice straight trigger pull.

So do iron sights. Wow.

 

[Longwalkhome]

Only way you get good with any machine in our world is through experience.

 

[OldBroad44]

So do iron sights. Wow.

Not really. Not unless you can see the iron sights much better than I do (which is likely.) If you pull the gun off in your DA trigger squeeze, the transient misalignment of iron sights is nowhere near as obvious as when you start out with a bright red dot on a paper plate on your wall, and as you dry fire DA the red dot jumps left to way off target and then returns to target after hammer drops. And keeps doing that until you hold the gun lots harder, and shift the position of your trigger finger on the trigger so that you automatically pull the trigger straight back instead of pulling it left during DA trigger squeeze.

 

[Flopsweat]

Not really. Not unless you can see the iron sights much better than I do (which is likely.) If you pull the gun off in your DA trigger squeeze, the transient misalignment of iron sights is nowhere near as obvious as when you start out with a bright red dot on a paper plate on your wall, and as you dry fire DA the red dot jumps left to way off target and then returns to target after hammer drops. And keeps doing that until you hold the gun lots harder, and shift the position of your trigger finger on the trigger so that you automatically pull the trigger straight back instead of pulling it left during DA trigger squeeze.

I've used laser sights for training and the definitely help. I've been using the Mantis X for the last few years and it's terrific. It attaches to the gun (usually picatinny but apparently there is a way to use it on a revolver) and connects to your phone or tablet via Bluetooth. It shows you a trace of where the gun was pointed during, just before and after the break and a lot of other stuff too.

 

[Member 34319]

Ordered up some snap caps. Definitely going to be doing a lot more dry firing with the SP101.

Thanks @OldBroad44 for the write up and taking the time to do so. Lots of good advice and experience in your words.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Not really. Not unless you can see the iron sights much better than I do (which is likely.) If you pull the gun off in your DA trigger squeeze, the transient misalignment of iron sights is nowhere near as obvious as when you start out with a bright red dot on a paper plate on your wall, and as you dry fire DA the red dot jumps left to way off target and then returns to target after hammer drops. And keeps doing that until you hold the gun lots harder, and shift the position of your trigger finger on the trigger so that you automatically pull the trigger straight back instead of pulling it left during DA trigger squeeze.

If one has vision problems it stands to reason far sightedness would be as problematic as near on an individual basis.
There's no shortcut. The bottom line is the gun must go off while it is on target, no matter how it is witnessed/verified.

 

[Certaindeaf]

I'd slow down. Focus on the front sight. Only. The eye can only focus on one thing at a time and at this time it is the only thing that matters.
Maintain a perfect sight picture through the stroke, particularly towards the end of the stroke.
Eureka, you hit the target. You don't even need to look downrange or fire live ammunition to know where the shot went. You just saw where your sights were.

 

[RMc]

Effectively running a DA trigger is fast becoming a lost art.

I've already mentioned the most often overlooked aspect is using the first distal joint to pull the trigger. This gives much greater leverage in managing the long, heavier trigger stroke.

This also means the trigger reach has to closely match the size of the hand. Indeed, "back in the day," the FBI was forced to approve the smaller Colt D frame revolvers for female agents in order to accomodate their smaller hand size.

Also, forget the now popular "thumbs forward" two handed grip. Use the stronger "traditional" thumbs down grip - weak hand thumb over strong hand thumb. This also keeps your week hand thumb behind the cylinder gap on small revolvers.

 

[Flopsweat]

Damn it's good to see my advice repeated over and over. Not dissing anyone, there's a ton of good advice in this thread.


Note to self: Distal
[situated away from the point of attachment or origin or a central point especially of the body]
[sounds way smarter than "choke up"]

 

[Certaindeaf]

. the most often overlooked aspect is using the first distal joint to pull the trigger. This gives much greater leverage in managing the long, heavier trigger stroke..

I disagree. I've always hooked my finger, using the furthest third of the second joint for most any handgun I've fired and especially DA revolvers.
Retired Master PPC competitor etc.
Your grip upon the weapon will show you where your finger should be, don't force it to get some "leverage".

 

[RVTECH]

OK - now my interest is piqued.

What is a 'typical' target distance for shooting a revolver DA ? Reason is I am going to give it a try with my Mod 66 & Mod 60 S & Ws. I'll shoot the 66 with some 'lite' .357 and of course the 60 with Specials and I'll report my results!

 

[Certaindeaf]

OK - now my interest is piqued.

What is a 'typical' target distance for shooting a revolver DA ? Reason is I am going to give it a try with my Mod 66 & Mod 60 S & Ws. I'll shoot the 66 with some 'lite' .357 and of course the 60 with Specials and I'll report my results!

Whatever needs hit, if you can hit it.
In PPC, max distance is 50 yards. 98% should be in the ten and gobs in th X. B-27 target.

 

[Flopsweat]

OK - now my interest is piqued.

What is a 'typical' target distance for shooting a revolver DA ? Reason is I am going to give it a try with my Mod 66 & Mod 60 S & Ws. I'll shoot the 66 with some 'lite' .357 and of course the 60 with Specials and I'll report my results!

10 yards should be fine. I see postings from 10 and 25 yards a lot here and I do most of my pistol shooting between 10 and 25.

 

[Quirt Evans]

n every revolver I've owned, there has been a point in the double-action pull of the trigger where it could be 'staged'.

That is the key,, learning where the release point is.
When you have DA capability in a revolver, USE IT, practice with it,, after a while you'll learn and have muscle memory where the "let off" is.

 

[Member 34319]

OK - now my interest is piqued.

What is a 'typical' target distance for shooting a revolver DA ? Reason is I am going to give it a try with my Mod 66 & Mod 60 S & Ws. I'll shoot the 66 with some 'lite' .357 and of course the 60 with Specials and I'll report my results!

I've always done 7 yards as that is supposedly the distance one can travel in the time it would take to unholster your weapon. Technically closer should work too.

 

[Pete F]

I started out with revolvers and practiced both DA and SA. My first competition was the Snowflake Shoot at the St Helens range for LE only. I was told that I could only shoot revolvers and they would supply the .38 special ammo. What they didn't say was DA only out to 25 yards.

I was shooting against Trojan Nuclear Plant Security, Sheriff's department and City of St Helens. I snuck into the Trojan Security Management team (my wife worked in that department).

When I arrived, I saw contestants with semi-autos along with revolvers, and competition holsters. Each stage was 12 rounds, putting the revolvers at a distinct disadvantage.

Back to the subject, I did very well because of my DA practice. I always concentrated on the sights as I pulled the trigger - especially when the hammer drops. Practice makes perfect.

I bought a SCCY CPX1 from BiMart. It has a very long 8-9 lb pull, DA only. When I went to buy it, I practiced keeping the sights on a target while pulling the trigger. I decided that it would not be a problem and bought it for $169. I bought a Galloway short stroke trigger kit for it to shorten the pull distance.