Learn › Track 02 · Equipment & physics
The trigger & the 500 g test
The trigger is the one part of the pistol you move during the shot. It is also the one part an official may test, right there on the range, after you finish. Start with that test.
Think first: At equipment control, an official hangs a 500 g weight on your trigger and lifts the pistol. Which result means you pass?
- The trigger releases: that proves it works
- The weight comes off the table and the trigger does not release
- The trigger releases, but only on the third attempt
Two stages
A match trigger works in two stages. The first stage, the take-up, is a light, long movement. Then you meet a firmer point. The second stage builds from there to the break, where the shot goes. A trigger stop behind the blade limits how far it moves after the break. Drag the slider to feel the sequence:
Almost everything is adjustable:
First stage: its weight and its travel.
Second stage: the break weight. Some pistols, such as the Feinwerkbau, set first-stage and break weights separately.
Trigger stop: how much movement after the break.
Blade: height, length and rotation, to fit your finger.
Most match pistols also have a dry-fire switch or lever, so you can practise the full press without a shot. How to use all this is the subject of trigger control.
Finger placement is a coaching matter: most coaches teach the centre of the first pad of the finger on the blade, pressing straight back along the line of the bore. Set the blade so your finger lands there without effort.
The 500 g rule
The trigger must need at least 500 g, and must keep that minimum throughout the competition. A test weight must be available on the range. Failing the test, or refusing it, means disqualification.
The test itself is simple and strict:
- The pistol is tested charged: air and gas pistols are not emptied first.
- It is held with the barrel vertical, muzzle up, so the weight pulls the trigger straight back.
- A 500 g dead weight with a metal or rubber knife-edge (no roller) is placed near the middle of the trigger blade.
- The pistol is lifted until the weight is clear of the horizontal surface. If the trigger holds, the pistol passes.
- There are at most three attempts. A trigger that releases on all three fails.
Now run it. Set your break weight, then lift:
Try 500 g exactly. Sometimes it holds and sometimes it doesn't, because any small jolt adds force. That is why many shooters keep a margin.
Many shooters set the break slightly above 500 g as a safety margin, and check it with their own test weight before a match.
You won't know in advance whether you'll be tested.
Think first: After qualification, officials test triggers at random: at least one athlete for every 8 firing points. Your relay uses 48 firing points. At least how many athletes are tested?
Electronic triggers
Several top pistols offer an electronic trigger. Instead of releasing the shot mechanically, the blade closes an electrical switch and a battery-powered unit does the rest. Because the switch is all you feel, dry fire and live fire feel the same.
| Pistol | Electronic trigger details |
| Morini CM 162EI | First stage 300–700 g, second stage 50–300 g. CR2 battery, about 33,000–35,000 shots. |
| Steyr Evo 10 E | At least 10,000 shots per charge, plus 300 after the warning light. Dry fires without cocking. Optional Bluetooth trigger analysis. |
| Walther LP500 E | Rechargeable battery and a dry-fire mode. |
Every part of an electronic trigger must be inside the frame or grip, and it must be operated by the shooting hand. The delay from release to shot may be at most 0.02 s. During competition it may not be connected to any device except a charger. Breaking this rule means disqualification.
Think first: Halfway through qualification your electronic trigger’s battery dies. How does the rule book treat that?
- As an allowable malfunction: you get time to fix it
- As a non-allowable malfunction: it is your problem, with no extra time
- As grounds to restart your match
Think first: Your trigger can stream force data to an app over Bluetooth. Can you leave it connected during a match?
- Yes, as long as you don’t look at the app while shooting
- No: in competition the trigger may connect to nothing except a charger
- Yes, in qualification only
- A match trigger has a light take-up, then a second stage to the break. Weights, travel, stop and blade adjust.
- The minimum is 500 g, held throughout the competition. Passing the test = the 500 g weight lifts without a release.
- Test: pistol charged, barrel vertical, knife-edge weight mid-blade, at most three attempts. Fail or refuse = DSQ.
- At least 1 in 8 firing points is tested at random, and the top 10 are checked after qualification.
- Electronic triggers: all parts inside the pistol, delay ≤ 0.02 s, no connections except a charger. A dead battery is your problem.