Maintaining constant grip pressure throughout shot

[Philadelphia]

Seems I've cycled back to a "stinkin' thinkin' in the weeds" phase and discovered that my gripping fingers, especially the pinkie, want to slightly loosen as I apply increased pressure on the trigger.

The stiffer the trigger, and the more slowly I apply pressure to the trigger, the more there seems to be a tendency for my grip fingers to want to do that.

I've been working on consciously trying to focus on maintaining consistent grip pressure while ignoring scores but a short experiment last night showed me that I still have this slight tendency no matter how much mental focus I direct to the grip. My assumption / belief is I can improve consistent trigger manipulation if I can eventually learn to automatically (subconsciously) isolate out any change in grip force -- so I'm trying to do that.

So, I'm curious -- from a biomechanical point of view, is this a common issue and from a training standpoint, are there suggested exercises to help further isolate this issue? Am I crazy and should just stop worrying about it? lol

Thanks for any and all insights.

[melchloboo]

You are 100% on track. Experiment with different grip methods, grip panels, grip firmness, etc.. When firing the grip should be consistent with the only change being the trigger finger. Some shooters leave the pinky off the grip altogether. Watch out for the thumb too.

[2650 Plus]

Just MHO but would it help to review the requirements of the shooting grip for pistol ? I will contend that there are at least five things that the grip must provide. First the grip must allow perfectlyalligned sights when the pistolis raised to the line of vision between the shooters eye and the hold area on the target. Second, it must allow for a totally independent trigger finger that applies pressure straight back along the axis of the barrel causing the pistol to fire without mis alligning the sights or causing any reaction on the part of the shooter to disturb the stillness of the pistol. Third, the grip must be consistant and uniform from day to day , week to week and year to year unless the shooter after considerable thought decides a modification is necessary. Fourth, the grip must be strong enough to prevent the pistol from shifting in the hand from the recoil of firing. And fifth, the grip should be comfortable enough so that fatique does not weaken it during the competition. If you believe there is more please feel free to add your comments. Good Shooting Bill Horton

[Philadelphia]

Just MHO but would it help to review the requirements of the shooting grip for pistol ? . . . Second, it must allow for a totally independent trigger finger . . . without . . . causing any reaction on the part of the shooter to disturb the stillness of the pistol.

Bill, yes, I think this is what I'm working on. Maybe it is an odd reaction in my hand, but as I increase pressure on the trigger, my gripping fingers want to slightly relax in reaction. In many cases the pistol does not move in spite of that and I get the shot I want, or the slight movement is sufficiently consistent that I can hide it from myself (previously without knowing what exactly was going on) with the sights. But when the above doesn't happen, I get those "surprise" sevens and I'm working on ironing this out.

I discovered this basically by accident. (long story, but it started with playing around with a laser, that happens to be turned on by a pressure switch, to try to improve hold).

I'm not exactly sure why my hand wants to do that or how to train that reaction out.

[2650 Plus]

In order to deal with the same problem [Grip tensios changing while applying pressure to the trigger] Itook two approaches. I used a slightly harder grip and a set of the simple V shaped spring exercisers. I put a dollar bill between the grips and squeesed the grip to hold the bill in place. As long as my grip was consistant the dollar bill was held by the exerciser. If my gripping pressure changed the bill would fall. Of the two methods I believe the harder grip technique was most helpful. Good Shooting Bill Horton

[Philadelphia]

Thanks to both of you for the info. I'm going to keep trying to work on this issue as it seems to be a necessary (but not sufficient) condition for perfect trigger control.

Bill, as you suggested I tried a very, very hard grip and that approach is indeed very, very helpful. Of course, it is also tiring and I have to work up more stamina in my hand strength to be able to do it over the course of many shots.

Has anyone tried our sponsor's "Grip Master" hand exerciser to try to get a good balance of grip strength and independent control of the fingers?

http://www.pilkguns.com/gripmaster.shtml

It's only 13 bucks plus shipping so I'm considering getting one to try. Worth it / not worth it?