i heard some nitwit at the range trying to show someone how to shoot.  this someone obviously never held a gun and was terrified/excited, i dont know.  ive heard this expression many many times, but never quite understood it.

ive been around guns a long time and ive always been able to hit what i aim at.  so if someone knows the answer could you please explain?

One is smooth, steady continuous pressure.  The other is a quick jerking of the finger.


Squeeze doesn't have to take a long time.  Its about smoothness and repeatability.

Squeeze rifles.  Jerk shotguns.

Now it's being called "trigger press" by some folks.

It's all the same.  They just try to get across how gently one needs to activate the trigger so as to not disturb the weapon just prior to ignition.

usually about 3 inches

crazy gunrange wierdos.  that seems the only place i hear that and hear it often.

I understand why squeeze a pistol or rifle, but why is it better to 'jerk' a shotgun?

Quoted: One is smooth, steady continuous pressure.  The other is a quick jerking of the finger. Squeeze doesn't have to take a long time.  Its about smoothness and repeatability. Squeeze rifles.  Jerk shotguns.

That is it. Except for the "jerk shotguns" part.

With a squeezed trigger you don't jerk the gun OFF target when the trigger in engaged.

"Well I've got a shotgun.  I don't even have to aim."
Junior, Reno 911

If you squeeze a trigger, you are not trying to yank the trigger back. Doing so will result in bad

accuracy with your gun. If you squeeze, you want to let the shot be a surprise almost, if you 'pull'

the trigger, you will ultimately mave the gun slightly while shooting.

C'mon, this is kindergarten stuff.

The concept is that you apply positive reward pressure to the trigger while maintaining proper sight alignment. It does not have to be gentle, it does have to be smooth and positive. It needs to be smooth and break in a way that does not disturb the sight alignment when the gun fires.  The gun fires and recoils, as it recoils you should bring the sights back into alignment and see where it is pointing.  If you did it correctly, the gun is pointing towards the center of whatever you had hoped to hit.

Positive pressure is meant to describe a mildly aggressive movement, you keep applying pressure and you are watching the sights.  You do not press and slack off as you try and get the sights to sit perfectly in the middle of the target.  

For a twitchy new shooter it might be a good idea to let the new shooter fondle the gun and dry fire a bit to get over all the the excitment of handling as gun for the first time.  Then let them fire one aimed shot at a time.  

Quoted: C'mon, this is kindergarten stuff.

i understand that this term has been around for longer then ive been alive.  i just dont think that people without much gun experience will have any idea what it means.  

now if i was firing under instruction and the instructor to told me to take aim and squeeze the trigger id fire and hit what i was aiming at.  if the instructor told me to pull the trigger it would mean the same thing to me, again id hit what i was aiming at.  

i think the term should be changed to dont jerk the trigger, squeeze/pull it

Squeeze your rifle
Jerk your gun
When you get it right
Its alot of fun!

I feel sorry for your wifes titties  

Quoted: I feel sorry for your wifes titties

not if she likes that sort of thing

whats the difference between squeezing a trigger and pulling a trigger?

About 5MOA.

Way more if it is a handgun!

Quoted: I understand why squeeze a pistol or rifle, but why is it better to 'jerk' a shotgun?

- I think this a myth of shotgun shooting brought over from bird hunters and maybe skeet/trap shooters.  Should tie in with the swinging of the shotgun

+1 on about 3 inches,