Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire two stage vs single stage trigger

two stage vs single stage trigger , does it really matter?

I like single stage but I don't know if it matters if your used to it.

I have some of both, mostly single stage.
And I prefer the single stage.
It’s a personal preference in my opinion.

Much prefer single stage.

Big +1

RS

I like both just fine as long as they're good, meaning a crisp, clean break with minimal overtravel.

The patient man with a modicum of mechanical savvy and some oilstones, can make a 2 stage trigger sweet enough to make angels sing.with joy. Why, since single stage are just as good for a light crisp pull?
3 reasons, safety, safety and lastly safety. You can drop it, you can thump the butt on a concrete floor, you can accidentally brush it when closing the bolt, you can pull the trigger with the safety on and then move the safety to fire and the rifle will not discharge, you can slam the bolt home as fast and hard as human muscle will permit...it ain't going to go off. There is a reason that liability conscious Savage came up the accu-trigger...it solved 2 issues, it gave customers a target grade trigger pull but it added a large margin of safety, almost lawyer proof. Smarter people than me have referred to a well tuned 2 stage as "the poor man's set trigger". When hunting in the company of my family, I use a 2 stage with a striker block safety in the form of a Win model 54.

I think the Mauser two-stage trigger is the BEST trigger there is for a rough use hunting rifle. As stated, it cannot fail to function and can be tuned to be an excellent trigger. I have several two stage triggers which break clean at 3 pounds. Two stage target triggers are another thing altogether and are usually more complex than a similar single stage trigger but I think they can improve trigger control. It's pretty hard to judge 1 1/2 pounds of pressure on a two pound trigger but this is easily done if the trigger design does it for you. GD

After having used true match grade two stage triggers (Geissle NM for the AR and Geissle Super 700 for the Rem 700) I've found that I REALLY love them. Seriously considering swapping my Jewell triggers to Super 700s.
When the only two stages triggers I had used were on military rifles I had a strong dislike for them. But that all changed after spending time with the Geissles.

This... I have two stage Geissele's on my hunting AR's I prefer this. On bolt guns I prefer single stage

On a sporting rifle it doesn't bother me...on a work rifle I insist upon Jewell.

Yes it does matter if you are an accuracy nut, or a tactical shooter - or at least it does for me.

In both long range and tactical shooting the first stage provides feedback on your trigger pull geometry so if it’s wrong you can adjust it safely.
It also pre-loads you muscles so if you have any misaligned twist in your trigger squeeze you can correct it, if not you should have the feedback that your grip is right.

For me taking up the slack in the first stage gives me the opportunity to make the platform (both me and any rests) the rifle are on when I move the trigger are right, if I take up the slack in the first stage and anything wants to move - it isn’t right… and I adjust - because if you don’t when she recoils it’s going to recoil differently and it’s not going to be as precise.

Tactically it’s the same with the added timing component of shooting in a split second (some targets move)… so the pre-loading (prep to shoot where I place my weight, hold, …. ) and loading the trigger finger weight as I’m timing the shot is all part of the equation.

I can shoot without a 2 stage very well, but I prefer a 2 stage mostly because I think it adds to consistency.

I’ve hunted a fair bit over the last couple years with good 2-stage triggers and found that I’m fine with them. They are my preference on a semi-auto and aren’t hard to adapt to on a bolt rifle. I was somewhat surprised, as I’ve always looked for a crisp single-stage in a hunting rifle and found trigger quality to be paramount.

Either or. I really like the two stage trigger on the new Weatherby Vanguards.

On an auto rifle, the only way to get a safe 1 1/2lb trigger is with a 2 stage. (Obviously not counting the 1st stage weight.)

Light triggers are scwary to some people.


18 oz tuned factory trigger on my mod 70
2.2oz pd accu trigger on my savage 220
2pd accu trigger on Savage MKII .22
2pd 4 oz timney on my sako Kar 98
3 pd velocity on my FN carbine
Little over 4 pd factory on my ZPAP
3.5 Pd on G17 gen 5
4.5 pd on .45 kodiak pro mag ml

I forgot about the Vanguard/Howa HACT. The one on my .257Wby is pretty dang good. I like my Ruger target trigger on my M77 as well.