Why don’t all hunting rifles have winter trigger guards?

I just got one of those hand tubes. I like it. I can keep crap in there and keep my hand warm without needing puffy gloves.

I have a pair of thinsulate/gore-tex gloves that have the finger slits for poking your trigger finger and thumb out. They have tiny magnets made into them that as soon as I poke my finger through, the flap "locks" open, folded back out of the way. Gotta use both hands to get my finger back in, but they do what I need them to.

Thin jersey gloves.
Fingers cut off on middle three. Can run a tab in archery or shoot rifles.
Yes, my hands get cold.
I learned to wear one pair getting into stand. Frosty steps and wet haul lines will dampen the gloves.
Change to the shooting ones when in stand (dry).
Hanging bow or rifle on a hook, can keep hands in pockets. Just out of the breeze adds a bunch of warmth.

My current deer spot sucks compared to my old one so only hunt half days.
Closer to home too. So I haven't invested in a trip, no need to stay out all day.

So it dosent get freezing cold here very often.....low 30s probably, a little colder first thing in the AM after a clear night.
But I cut the finger off a heavy winter glove I got at the good will, and keep that hand in my pocket, or my index finger wrapped in my fist. Still gets cold, doesn't go numb.
Worse Is trying to get my scope to my face without taking my nose out of my jacket.

Also, my triggers all are set at 2lbs now. No way would I put my hand in the guard if I couldn't feel my trigger finger, glove, cold, or otherwise......Thinking about it tho, my Christensen has a big enough guard I could get a gloved finger in there.

ms6852 said:

Don't get that cold here in Texas, if it does I ain't hunting.

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Yep.

army_eod said:

How do Soldiers in combat do it?

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Either by using "winter triggers," or, more commonly, by just hacking off the trigger finger off their issue gloves.
The issue glove liners are pretty thin, and will mostly fit trigger guards.
For Arctic issue, there are gloves with separate trigger fingers and the ability to expose those fingers, if required.

The Soviets just assumed that if you were in sub-zero temperatures, you were acclimatized enough to not need some fancy bourgeoisie trigger guard.
The Finns, Swedes, and Norse appear to have just sucked it up.

End of November and its only 37 degrees in my corner of Alabama. Not really cold enough (for me) to need gloves to pull the trigger. Gloves to wear and slip off. Now training in the Army where shooting in negative temps was the standard, I would do entire field training sessions with the trigger guard folded down toward the grip. The M16 family did it right by having a pin you can push to give you more room in the trigger guard. It is just a pain to do so in a hurry. Thick outer gloves kept my hands warm while thinner inner glove liners gave enough protection and dexterity to use a trigger for short periods, depending on temperature. I dislike cutoff trigger fingers for winter gloves. Because if it gets cold enough, you feel that draft anyway.

I live in Northern Michigan, daytime temps can get down to -20* during deer season but not very often. I never wear a glove on my shooting hand just stuff it in my coat pocket that keeps my hand warm and once every four or five years I use a hand warmer.

Looks, most likely.

Note the awkward-looking CZ 82/83 (Google often works---).

And most people still haven't figured out the reason for the large sharp safety on AKM rifles.

MacArthur had all his troops drive their jeeps with the windows down in Korea to be ready for cold weather combat... I imagine their fingers were pretty numb.

army_eod said:

How do Soldiers in combat do it?

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don't know, but this comment made me flash a meme a veteran friend of mine posted with a picture of a soldier in winter that said. "You've never really been cold until you've been army cold..."

earlthegoat2 said:

Growing up hunting in MI, once I got one of these, all my problems like this just melted away. This is just a representation of the one I have. Mine is a Grabber branded product. The same company that used to be the worldwide distributor of Grabber Warmers chemical hand warmers until they got bought by Hot Hands. I even used to work for them long after I had bought that muff.

That combo makes your hands too hot, even in sub zero temps. I just wear a thin pair of fingerless gloves.

Amazon.com : HOT SHOT Men’s Camo Shaped Textpac Hand Muff – Insulated Warmer, Realtree Edge, Outdoor Hunting Camouflage : Sports & Outdoors

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This is how I keep my hands warm too with a thin pair of gloves and a chemical hand warmer. If it's going to be really cold and I plan to sit all day, then I put one of these in the hand muff:

https://www.cabelas.com/shop/en/zippo-12-hour-hand-warmer

You'll have to take your hands out once in a while so they don't sweat!

I've never had much luck with heavy gloves. My hands always get cold anyway. Once it gets cold enough to warrant gloves, I wear a light shooting glove and find that my hands warm quickly when stuffed in a pocket. Then they're slower to get cold when I grab my gun and get ready for action. This year I've started using an Oakley light tactical glove and they seem to work as well as my old thin leather shooting gloves.

The AR 15 series in military usage HAS a winter trigger guard. There is a detent at the front of the bottom of the trigger guard and the straight bottom swings away and along the pistol grip. One reason I do not like the now common A2 pistol grip is that it seems to get in the way of this operation. Some lowers and civie produced ARs have a fixed trigger guard and some are extended downward to allow use with gloves.

The M-1 and M-14 had add on kits that gave you a squeeze lever sort of like the trigger on the USAF survival under overs for a winter trigger, they were screwed onto the grip of the stock. I did not like the only one I played with.

The Germans in WWII had some K98 series Mauser made with large trigger guards and they had a lever arrangment that clamped onto a standard trigger guard that allowed trigger manipulation with mittens.

On winter patrols our medic would loan out his heat packs from his big kit. The packs produced heat for a while if one added a bit of water to them through a corner flap. Carried in the parka pocket they could keep a hand warm or quickly warm up a hand that had its mitten removed for whatever detailed chore. Those heat packs were much in demand.

-kBob

As a person who’s hands and feet were limiting factors on stand hunting in extreme cold an added benifit of the mittens were that a small hand warmer packet could be stored in the mitten. My rubber boots with thinsulate inserts were roomy enough for the packets also.

I just keep my hands in my coat pockets when I’m in a blind or stand. I rotate which hand is in my pocket and which one is holding my rifle when stalking. Never been a fan or gloves other than work gloves to keep my hands from getting cut up and beat up.

kBob said:

The AR 15 series in military usage HAS a winter trigger guard. There is a detent at the front of the bottom of the trigger guard and the straight bottom swings away and along the pistol grip. One reason I do not like the now common A2 pistol grip is that it seems to get in the way of this operation. Some lowers and civie produced ARs have a fixed trigger guard and some are extended downward to allow use with gloves.

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That's right. The current unpopularity of the hinged AR trigger guard tells you all you need to know as to why hunting rifles don't generally have winter trigger guards.

I think the fear of the hinged trigger guard on the AR15 is because so many folks "Build" their own lower (Assemble a bare lower with parts) and installing that trigger guard is the MOST likely place they are going to break their lower. Buying a lower with a fixed trigger guard removes the fear of that.

-kBob

CapnMac said:

Either by using "winter triggers," or, more commonly, by just hacking off the trigger finger off their issue gloves.
The issue glove liners are pretty thin, and will mostly fit trigger guards.
For Arctic issue, there are gloves with separate trigger fingers and the ability to expose those fingers, if required
The Soviets just assumed that if you were in sub-zero temperatures, you were acclimatized enough to not need some fancy bourgeoisie trigger guard.
The Finns, Swedes, and Norse appear to have just sucked it up.

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When I was stationed in Germany we were issued leather gloves and knit wool liners They were good enough most of the time. Like CapnMac said they had special issue gloves for the artic. I used to buy stuff like that in surplus stores when I was a surveyor in Northern Minnesota. They make much better stuff now.

Arctic mittens with glove liners underneath. No need to thank me.

Elkins45 said:

None of my several hunting rifles have trigger guards big enough to fit a gloved finger inside easily unless I’m wearing gloves so thin my hands are basically numb. I can’t be the only hunter who gets cold hands and needs to wear heavy gloves, can I?

I basically have to jam my trigger finger into the guard making absolutely sure the safety is on before very carefully disengaging it. Getting off a quick shot is essentially impossible unless I walk around with my finger on the trigger, and I’m really not comfortable doing that.

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Warm gloves of some sort with the trigger finger cut and Aviator gloves underneath, as such;


These hold me to about 0 F; below that, I agree with daniel craig; USAF Arctic mittens with the same aviator gloves, or if really cold, issue trigger finger liners over the aviator gloves, under the USAF Arctic mittens.

FWIW, You can fit the surplus "trigger finger gloves", with the liners inside them, and aviator gloves inside them, in the USAF Arctic mittens, just in case The Day After Tomorrow hits. Or you live in Wisconsin.