Bore Laser for Trigger Control

[Yerman]

Hey guys,

I'm getting back into handguns after being on an AR kick for a while. I'm going to start by getting my P226 (.40) over to Gray Guns to get some trigger work done and then pick up a Range Officer 1911 (.45) via a SSE.

I'd like to spend a lot of time improving my trigger control and figure dry firing with a laser pointed at a distant wall is the best way to visually see how much I am moving when firing.

However, I don't want to put anything like a Crimson Grip on my gun (guns) nor do I want to use a rail mounted laser because the RO won't have a rail. I figure my best option is to get a couple of the bullet shaped bore lasers for each caliber I want to practice with.

My question comes down to dry firing while the laser is inside the gun. I'm not worried about firing pin damage from dry firing but I am worried about the firing pin striking the back of the lasers. Do the backs of them have a soft spot similar to a snap cap for this exact purpose? Perhaps they are recessed so the pin does not him them? Other methods you think would work better to improve trigger control?

Thanks for your advice. Any specific makes and models of good lasers for this purpose would be appreciated.

[MossbergMan]

Regardless of which laser system you settle on, YES it will improve your trigger control.
Please use a "dry practice" target and not just a blank wall or stationary fixture to practice on. A blank piece of paper, a postit note sheet or an actual target will do. Be sure to take it down when you are done dry practicing and state out loud you are done dry practicing.
These habits will help prevent any unintended discharges. I know two people that failed to take this simple precaution and sure enough they thought they would see if they were still "tuned up" only this time their gun wasn't dry, they had loaded it and were just heading out the door and BANG! One of them now wears two hearing aids because he deafened himself. Don't be that guy.
I've been using a rail mounted laser to assist some of my clients overcome anticipation or mashing their trigger on both a Glock, XD pistol and a CT set up on my SW637 with great success.

[speedrrracer]

Do the backs of them have a soft spot similar to a snap cap for this exact purpose?

I use the laser-ammo cartridge, and it has a rubbery backing:

Other methods you think would work better to improve trigger control?

Dry practice always helps, but it's a general statement. Once you start dry and live-firing a lot, you can identify which specific problems under the umbrella of "trigger control" you have, and then start working on those.

[MossbergMan]

How about old school training tips? My training partner and I would place a piece of paper on the wall with an aiming spot on it. We'd then insert a #2 pencil down the bore (semi-autos only) and stood close enought to the wall that when the firing pin struck the pencil eraser it shot it forward and put a mark on the paper below the aiming spot. You need to keep 50% or more of the pencil in the barrel to keep the marks consistant.
If you are making one solid spot it's representative of a group that would appear on a target if live firing. If you're making a poka-dot pattern on your "target" your trigger control will require more training.

[soakedntorment]

Why dont you just practice with snap caps at the range? Have somebody watch your movement from a live round to a snap cap.

[Kempfer]

Hey guys,

I'm getting back into handguns after being on an AR kick for a while. I'm going to start by getting my P226 (.40) over to Gray Guns to get some trigger work done and then pick up a Range Officer 1911 (.45) via a SSE.

I'd like to spend a lot of time improving my trigger control and figure dry firing with a laser pointed at a distant wall is the best way to visually see how much I am moving when firing.

However, I don't want to put anything like a Crimson Grip on my gun (guns) nor do I want to use a rail mounted laser because the RO won't have a rail. I figure my best option is to get a couple of the bullet shaped bore lasers for each caliber I want to practice with.

My question comes down to dry firing while the laser is inside the gun. I'm not worried about firing pin damage from dry firing but I am worried about the firing pin striking the back of the lasers. Do the backs of them have a soft spot similar to a snap cap for this exact purpose? Perhaps they are recessed so the pin does not him them? Other methods you think would work better to improve trigger control?

Thanks for your advice. Any specific makes and models of good lasers for this purpose would be appreciated.

Best trigger control only practice is to dry fire 1-2 feet from a white background with one hand only.

The reason for the white background is so you can focus your brain primarily on burning good trigger control into your subconscious mind. The reason for using one hand is because two hands is cheating! No but really, a pure trigger pull only requires one hand. If you need the other hand to stop your sight from moving around then the trigger pull is not straight back.

Before I dry fire I do 25 perfect one handed trigger pulls against a white wall. Then I switch to a scaled down target and work on my dry fire which works the draw stroke, grip (two hands), sight alignment and trigger pull together. During that practice I don't think about my trigger pull, I only look for a solid sight picture that doesn't move even after hearing the firing pin hitting the dummy round.

[trigger hippie]

In addition to a lot of painstakingly safe - and I mean like ultra-crazy-paranoid-omg-I-am-aiming-a-gun-at-the-wall-of-my-damn-house painstaking - dry fire practice like the above posters are advising, I found that the $89 Laserlyte doohickey you stick in the end of your barrel helped me over a hump I was having with recoil anticipation. Not the cartridge that you chamber - I read some reviews that mentioned problems with the laser getting stuck and being faint - but the other one that you stick in the barrel of your gun with the tip sticking out.

Particularly when there is a second person watching your laser strikes, you can really "see" the effects of even miniscule mistakes like jerk, slap, buck and all those other myriad things that can mung up a pistol shot. In combination with a shot timer (caution - they're made to be heard through ear pro, don't be like me and jump two feet in the air like a moron in alarm the first time you hear it without earmuffs on) you can also get a very effective idea of your first-shot par times from low ready and draw.

Now get the picture of a hippie waving an unloaded gun around and jumping in alarm at a shot timer out of your head

[qtrxist]

Here is my take with laser for training. I had a laserlyte like TH mentioned above. It goes on the muzzle and is activated by sound so it is great when you are using a DA/SA gun. If SA, you have to cock each time.

They are great for stationary dry firing. Check your trigger control and what not. What I found early on is my gun is zeroed at 20yds. Point blank to 5 yds, the dot from the laser is covered by the front sight so I don't see it anyway. It has to go down 10 yds and over to see the dot above the sight.

Secondly, on repetition, I found that I am looking at the dot on the target.. not the sight. I am training for practical shooting and its not a good idea looking at the target.

Now those are my cons. It maybe okay with you. The pros;

Its great tool when training from holster. Its good too when you are doing shot to shot, you can see the laser dot move when squeezing the trigger.