I must admit that when the two-stage triggers were allowed on the hunter gun I was a little taken back as to whether they fit the spirit of the rules of the hunter gun, and if they would stick around.
After a bit of soul searching and a gun history lesson I learned that these two stage triggers have been on rifles long before my time. As I started playing around I realized that my 03-A3, and a few of my other surplus rifles have two stage triggers on them. So spirit of the rules issue was resolved for me...also the fact that was pointed out to me there has not been an increase in scores over the last couple years. (I haven't seen any 40/40 or for that matter 60/60, or the forever elusive 80/80 aggregate.
I decided that these triggers couldnt be that bad, so I tried a few. I must admit they felt nice, especially the ones that had the adjustable LOP feature. Well after being told that they were the only way to go, I decided to buy a 2-stage conversion kit for my 1712FWT. It was cheap and would give me this new trendy trigger that was sure to raise my scores.
I went into the deal with cash in hand, determined to walk away with a 2-stage trigger on my rifle. However, after talking to the Anschutz certified dealer/gunsmith, I walked away with no 2-stage trigger and with a notion that I might want to re-think my shooting strategy.
The gunsmith gave me a few points to ponder:
1. A two pound 2 stage trigger is nothing like the 3oz 2-stage trigger on my 54.18 due to the issue #2.
2. Many shooters are finding that their scores have gone down after switching to this new trigger. Reasoning: Say that you have a 2lb 2-stage trigger, with the weight set as 1.5lbs on the first stage and .5lbs on the second stage. As you move through the first stage, your trigger finger is holding 1.5lbs of weight. As you go into the second stage you are already holding 1.5lbs of weight and are trying to be able feel the remaining .5lbs of weight. Many shooters have found difficulty in being able to tell when the second stage is going to break because due the finger already holding the 1.5lbs. This becomes more apparent as you reduce the weight on the second stage and increase it on the first stage. This perceived loss of control on the second stage leads to early discharge, or to a jerking the trigger.
3. A single-stage trigger can be shot like a two-stage trigger. You apply 1.5lbs+ of pressure as you move onto your target, as you settle you squeeze the last -.5lbs and the gun goes off. This gives you less movement on the trigger and the ability to let off pressure without moving the trigger.
4. The two-stage triggers they are putting on these hunting rifles are old technology, not on par with the new lighter 2-stage triggers on the 54.18msr for example.
5. Many shooters have bought these triggers in hopes of fixing poor trigger control, and have found that it has made it worse.
There are other points that the gunsmith brought up, and I don't feel that I have made his case very strongly here. My biggest question comes down to the fact that it seems that you can shoot a single stage trigger as well as a two-stage trigger. It seems that both triggers require quite a bit of practice to be able to learn trigger control. So the 2-stage trigger may not be the fix-all that many shooters have thought when they bought it.
I still am not 100% sure that I will not have a 2-stage trigger on my hunter, I am just trying to decided whether it is worth trying to relearn how to control this type of trigger.
So what is the consensus? Are these triggers really cracked up to be what everyone thought they are?
I apologize about the lenght of this post, I have been analyzing this issue for a few months now.
