4 Firearms Safety Rules
- Treat every weapon as if it were loaded
- Never point the weapon at anything you don’t intend to destroy
- Keep your finger straight and off the trigger until you intend to fire
- Be sure of your target and what lies beyond
Whether you are picking up your first gun ever or are a professional that lives and works with guns every day, you should know, use, and live these four safety rules. This week we are going to review all four in depth.
Today is part three and the most important rule, keep your finger straight and off the trigger until you intend to fire. Sounds simple enough but for some reason it’s the hardest to do. I don’t know if it’s the design of modern weapons, or something in a person’s brain. Every beginning shooter will respect this rule at the start, but once we start shooting will remember the rest, but forget about keeping the finger off the trigger.
Proper Finger Placement on my Glock 19 9mm
There are a couple arguments in the shooting communities about this one. As a police office I was taught this rule as “keep your finger off the trigger until your sites are on target.” I have even read about some trainers saying this rule is for beginners, and in the real world doesn’t apply. Both are bull, and will cause you to discharge the weapon before you intend to. And, if your sites are on target, you will shoot someone that may not deserve to be shot.
The bottom line; this is the most important rule. Modern firearms will not fire unless you pull the trigger. The designs are that good, and have been perfected over the last 150 years.
Even if you violate all the other safety rules, but keep your finger off the trigger until you intend to fire, no one will get hurt.
Stay Safe,
Ben