Trigger finger discipline and safety question - Page 5 - XDTalk Forums

redhatchbox · 08-13-2008, 02:07 AM

USMC Safety Rules

Treat every weapon as if it were loaded
Never point a weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot
Keep your finger straight and off the trigger until you are ready to fire
Keep your weapon on safe until you intend to fire

Semper Fi!

Godless Gun Guy · 09-20-2008, 10:04 PM

stipple a small area as a finger rest, giving you something to "grab" to keep your finger occupied so to speak.

adk · 09-24-2008, 10:44 AM

I'm happy to find the XD forum. I don't have an XD yet, but getting close. I appreciate all the great information here!

As for trigger discipline, this may have been mentioned already, but starting out with the Glock I put bright red lipstick on the face of the trigger safety and on the corners of the trigger itself. Then I would go through various drills, and check my finger to see if I'd been on the trigger.

ADA · 09-27-2008, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gwagner

No such thing as a accidental discharge, only negligent discharges.

In the Marine Corps, if a round was fired when it wasn't supposed to be, someone went to jail.

Galen
Alabama

Really? Even on the range? In the Army I don't know how many times I've heard the RSO go: Ready on the right-ready on the left-BANG!

curlyjive · 10-24-2008, 09:20 PM

I am a new gun owner and I have been thinking about this exact subject today. I picked up my XD9 last night. I will be taking a NRA course next week. For now, I have one box of ammo and it is unopened and kept in another part of the house. The only thing allowed in my magazines right now are snap caps so I can practice proper finger control.

For me, I realized that since we were kids and play with cap guns, toy guns, water guns, ect. we just automatically rest our finger on the trigger. It feels natural and that habit needs to be broken.

I practice going through the motions of unpacking my gun, loading rounds (snap caps for now), loading the magazine, racking and locking the slide.....basically all the things you need to do. While doing so, I am careful to watch that my finger rests on the frame. The hardest one for me is when pulling back the slide and using my thumb to engage the slide lock. I find my finger drifting lower as a I concentrate on locking the slide with my thumb. I also found that was mostly being caused by my grip not being high enough, and thus making it harder to reach the slide lock without moving my index finger.

For me, no magazines will be kept loaded until I am sure as I can be that I can perform all operations while keeping my finger where it should be without thinking about it.

GREAT TOPIC!

TimXD9 · 10-25-2008, 05:32 AM

Congrats on your new XD, curlyjive! I think you're doing the right thing by learning your gun's controls and functions before shooting it for the first time. And you've chosen a terrific way to learn by taking an NRA course to start.

I'm not sure of the dimensions of the other XD-9s, but with my 4" service model the ball of my trigger finger rests nicely on the back side of the takedown lever. There's a small indentation there. Get used to feeling the contours of that spot with your finger.

curlyjive · 10-26-2008, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TimXD9

Congrats on your new XD, curlyjive! I think you're doing the right thing by learning your gun's controls and functions before shooting it for the first time. And you've chosen a terrific way to learn by taking an NRA course to start.

I'm not sure of the dimensions of the other XD-9s, but with my 4" service model the ball of my trigger finger rests nicely on the back side of the takedown lever. There's a small indentation there. Get used to feeling the contours of that spot with your finger.

You're a lefty then? I have the Service model as well and the takedown lever on the opposite side for a righty!

**TheGreatDane** · 11-13-2008, 12:13 AM

I didn't know this thread existed until tonight. Previously, I had been working on the exact things mentioned here, for the same reasons mentioned here. I've been carrying mine around the house, drawing, holstering, putting down, and picking up with finger down the slide. Old habits are hard to break! Snap-Caps are where it's at.

dirty magazine · 11-13-2008, 01:25 AM

Great thread!

ThomasA · 11-13-2008, 11:50 AM

Is the takedown lever able to be flipped? Seems like it should. Or perhaps place a piece of grip tape behind the lever hole on the right side.
-Thomas

08-13-2008, 02:07 AM	#41
redhatchbox XDTalk 500 Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: U S and A Posts: 733	USMC Safety Rules Treat every weapon as if it were loaded Never point a weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot Keep your finger straight and off the trigger until you are ready to fire Keep your weapon on safe until you intend to fire Semper Fi!
	Share

09-20-2008, 10:04 PM	#42
Godless Gun Guy XDTalk 500 Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Saratoga NY Posts: 871	stipple a small area as a finger rest, giving you something to "grab" to keep your finger occupied so to speak. __________________ "The rifle itself has no moral stature, since it has no will of its own. Naturally, it may be used by evil men for evil purposes, but there are more good men than evil, and while the latter cannot be persuaded to the path of righteousness by propaganda, they can certainly be corrected by good men with rifles." - Col. Jeff Cooper XD40 Service + 9mm conversion barrel S&W 642 (.38 snub) a "small pile" of long guns
	Share

09-24-2008, 10:44 AM	#43
adk XDTalk Newbie Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Kern County, California Posts: 2	I'm happy to find the XD forum. I don't have an XD yet, but getting close. I appreciate all the great information here! As for trigger discipline, this may have been mentioned already, but starting out with the Glock I put bright red lipstick on the face of the trigger safety and on the corners of the trigger itself. Then I would go through various drills, and check my finger to see if I'd been on the trigger.
	Share

10-24-2008, 09:20 PM	#45
curlyjive XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 260	I am a new gun owner and I have been thinking about this exact subject today. I picked up my XD9 last night. I will be taking a NRA course next week. For now, I have one box of ammo and it is unopened and kept in another part of the house. The only thing allowed in my magazines right now are snap caps so I can practice proper finger control. For me, I realized that since we were kids and play with cap guns, toy guns, water guns, ect. we just automatically rest our finger on the trigger. It feels natural and that habit needs to be broken. I practice going through the motions of unpacking my gun, loading rounds (snap caps for now), loading the magazine, racking and locking the slide.....basically all the things you need to do. While doing so, I am careful to watch that my finger rests on the frame. The hardest one for me is when pulling back the slide and using my thumb to engage the slide lock. I find my finger drifting lower as a I concentrate on locking the slide with my thumb. I also found that was mostly being caused by my grip not being high enough, and thus making it harder to reach the slide lock without moving my index finger. For me, no magazines will be kept loaded until I am sure as I can be that I can perform all operations while keeping my finger where it should be without thinking about it. GREAT TOPIC!
	Share

10-25-2008, 05:32 AM	#46
TimXD9 XDTalk 500 Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: NE Ohio Posts: 725	Congrats on your new XD, curlyjive! I think you're doing the right thing by learning your gun's controls and functions before shooting it for the first time. And you've chosen a terrific way to learn by taking an NRA course to start. I'm not sure of the dimensions of the other XD-9s, but with my 4" service model the ball of my trigger finger rests nicely on the back side of the takedown lever. There's a small indentation there. Get used to feeling the contours of that spot with your finger.
	Share

11-13-2008, 12:13 AM	#48
TheGreatDane XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Colorado Springs Posts: 253	I didn't know this thread existed until tonight. Previously, I had been working on the exact things mentioned here, for the same reasons mentioned here. I've been carrying mine around the house, drawing, holstering, putting down, and picking up with finger down the slide. Old habits are hard to break! Snap-Caps are where it's at. __________________ acquiring a small arsenal, one piece at a time...
	Share

11-13-2008, 01:25 AM	#49
dirty magazine XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Northern IL Posts: 245	Great thread!
	Share

11-13-2008, 11:50 AM	#50
ThomasA XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Ames, IA Posts: 1,014	Is the takedown lever able to be flipped? Seems like it should. Or perhaps place a piece of grip tape behind the lever hole on the right side. -Thomas __________________ IowaCarry.org - Story Co. Coordinator "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." -- Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759. Sometimes history repeats itself. But some things always hold true. Call me conservative.
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