{{Short description|Gun modification for faster firing}} {{use mdy dates|date=January 2023}} A '''hell-fire trigger''' is a device that allows a semi-automatic firearm to fire at an increased rate. The hell-fire clamps to the trigger guard behind the trigger and presses a "finger" against the back of the trigger to increase the force that returns the trigger to its forward position, effectively decreasing the time required for the trigger to reset, allowing for a faster follow-up shot.
Internally, the firearm is not altered. As in all semi-automatic firearms, only one round is fired with every stroke of the trigger. This allows the "hell-fire trigger" to avoid classification as a machine gun within the definitions used by United States federal law, as stated in an ATF private-letter ruling from 1990.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Owen |first=Edward |date=November 3, 2017 |orig-date=August 3, 1990 |title=POTD: Blast From The Past: Hell-Fire Trigger System |url=https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/IMG_20171103_114727.jpg |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220715220654/https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/IMG_20171103_114727.jpg |archive-date=July 15, 2022 |access-date=May 31, 2023 |website=The Firearms Blog |publisher=ATF}}</ref>
However, as with all private-letter rulings, this determination on the U.S. legality of hell-fire triggers is limited to the facts regarding the specific device being examined. The 1990 opinion may be modified or revoked at any subsequent time by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Furthermore, agency opinion is not always considered legally binding.{{Citation needed|date=August 2025}}
During the Waco siege, David Koresh, leader of the Branch Davidians, reportedly told authorities that he utilized semi-automatic guns with the part installed.<ref>{{cite news|first=Dan|last=Freedman|url=http://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/Add-on-offers-machine-gun-like-firepower-4237872.php|title=Add-on offers machine-gun-like firepower|publisher=The San Francisco Chronicle|date=January 30, 2013|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20221015194604/https://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/Add-on-offers-machine-gun-like-firepower-4237872.php|archive-date= October 15, 2022}}</ref> Another well-known case of its reported use is the 101 California Street shooting.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Letter to ATF From MOC |url=https://castro.house.gov/imo/media/doc/Letter%20to%20ATF%20From%20MOC%207.15.22.pdf |date=July 15, 2022|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230511200423/https://castro.house.gov/imo/media/doc/Letter%20to%20ATF%20From%20MOC%207.15.22.pdf|archive-date= May 11, 2023}}</ref>
==See also== * Bump stock * Binary trigger * Forced reset trigger * Trigger crank
==References== {{Reflist}}
Category:Firearm components
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