Well lucky for me i have small girl hands so i can basically get a full grip on the LC9 without the finger plate extension. Ys it does help noticeably, but i can shoot it just fine without it.
I just wanted to point out though that learning the trigger on this gun is everything! There are a lot of people that can shoot the PF9 but can't shoot the LC9 for crap, and it all comes back to the trigger pull. where t breaks, and practice.
You yourself even contradict what you said about the trigger by saying the trigger pull is "under life and death stress you WONT notice the pull," but then you say "but you might drag the gun off target clinching it to pull the trigger, or not releasing it enough to reset."
That my friend is ALL about the trigger in accuracy wwith this gun, if you shoot it like a regular pistol you're going to have problems, this is a gun you have to learn the trigger break and learn how to shoot since it's different genre of gun and when it comes to accuracy, knowing the trigger is basically EVERYTHING!
Like i said before first time out to the range i was all over the place, i stopped and dry-fired for a while until i figured out that i needed o use a bit more finger on the trigger so im pulling more at a straight back motion when the trigger breaks, and AMAZINGLY next time out the gun was shooting to POA whereas i was all over the place before i stopped and dry-fired it, (using snapcaps) once i stopped the jerking after the trigger break and i got it to where i was still holding on target after the trigger broke, i went back out to the range and i was honestly AMAZED at how accurate this little pistol can be once you get it down! Only took me ~600rds. and ~2k dryfires to really learn the gun enough to feel comfortable enough to CC it, but still could get a bit better with some practice but again im proficient enough with it to carry it now.[/quote]
Egalloway said:
Your overthinking this, my statement comes from years of training with very good instructors, and years of training lots of students. I didn't contradict myself but I guess I didn't make myself clear. A small frame DAO pistol like the LC9 is harder to get a grip on, it's smaller. Since girp is directly going to affect accuracy it is critical to have a good grip on it to make the hits needed to use a handgun effectively. Full size pistols are more forgiving on drawstroke and grip due to being bigger, more surface area to purchase on, usually a shorter lighter trigger once your mounted, short reset too. The LC9 and like guns are thinner, shorter grip and have long heavy trigger pulls that require more force to overcome, increasing flinch and clinch, add in adrenline, fear, chaos etc and it really gets harder to do anything. Don't try to make the LC9 a service pistol, it's not, my response was to the OP asking about trigger pull work. I've had lots of requests for work on it. Most people do not understand why it is so long and heavy to pull or long to reset. If your familiar with revolvers you already know why.
Sounds like you learned the most basic skill of working with any firearm after safety, you've learned trigger control, congrads, you would no doubt shoot rings around me with us both using LC9 pistols.
Trigger control along with drawstroke are auto pilot response in fight mode, I tell students 2500-3000 dry draws with trigger pull at the end and your on to a good start for auto pilot. So no you won't notice the heavy long pull under stress, but if your used to standing squared up to a piece of paper, breathe control, squeeze the trigger, all the time in the world, then yes you'll clinch under stress. A trained finger is a trained brain.
I had a customer call me that thought he was a gun fighter with his first pistol, a LC9, he explained how he had watched a few youtube videos and now had the "double tap" down at 7 yards, he could hold them both on a sheet of notebook paper. He then complained the gun would not fire (reset) without releasing the trigger all the way forward but his buddy's glock 19 reset right off the back of the trigger guard... yea it's made that way. He then wanted me to fix his so it reset short like that. No, I didn't. He now has a SR9c, short reset with plenty of safety devices, he is shooting much faster now and doesn't think a double tap is a death ray anymore either.
I have nothing against the LC9 or like sized guns or the dozens and dozens of emails or phone calls for solutions to the trigger problem, just remember they require more practice to be effective due to their smaller size. It's on my list things to do.
Eric
Ok i see what you're saying, i don't have that problem of it being too small for my hands (again, i have small girl hands lol) but i have seen some videos of people with larger hands who have to basically adjust their grip after every shot. Totally agree with you on that and i overlooked it, but now thinking back, i remember watching a video on youtube of Hickok45 shooting the LC9 when it first came out, and if you know him at all or seen any of his videos he's a GREAT shot with just about any gun! He really stressed that the LC9 is definitely a gun you need to LEARN how to shoot.
As far as revolvers go, you're absolutely right if you have a lot of practice with revolvers you'll pick up the trigger pull on the LC9 easier since it's got a long, consistent trigger pull like a lot of revolvers have.
Funny thing is, when im not at the indoor range by my house and get a chance to go to the outdoor range a bit farther away, my friends and i actually set up a little tactical course specifically to get your heart rate up, get you moving around, and shooting from behind cover to make things more realistic. I will say it definitely takes some practice, shooting while on the move/breathing hard/and shooting from behind cover that sometimes gets in your way is totally differnt type of shooting than range shooting, but it's GREAT practice and gives you a better idea of how you'll shoot in a defensive situation since it semi-simulates an attack. Obviously nothing is going to get your adrenaline pumping like it would be if you really were being attacked, but it gives you that muscle memory that you'r talking about, which is why i dry-fired my gun so many times. It gives you the muscle memory so it's more of a reaction than a thought process of what you have to do.
Also, learning how to shoot this little LC9 has also improved my handgun shooting with my other pistols. My LC9 is by far my smallest pistol, and the reason why i bought it (for CC durning summertime in smaller, tighter clothes). After i got proficient enough with it to be comfortable enough to carry it, i went to the range with my FNP-40 again (my EDC gun for all other months) i saw a noticeable improvement in my accuracy with it. I'm thinking since the LC9 is so small and harder to get centered and directly on target, with my bigger FNP-40 i noticed i'm on target quicker now and since the trigger pull is A LOT shorter/lighter i get off my rounds quicker and stay on target much better.
Anyways sorry to the OP for getting off subject. What helped me the MOST in accuracy with this gun was dry-firing it repeatedly. Once you can continuously dry-fire it and keep the sights on target without jerking, you're ready to go to the range and practice with live rounds.
Another drill i like to do is dump 5 dummy rounds into a pile of 50rds. and load the mags with my eyes closed. This way you'll come up on a dummy round and not know it, and this way you'll REALLY see how much you're anticipating the shot. This was another great drill that helped out my accuracy with the LC9 a lot. Again this is a gun you basically have to learn how to shoot. It's similar to other guns, but with how small it is and the trigger pull on it, it's something that you need to practice with to get good at it.