When to pick apples

I know the general rule of thumb is pull slightly and if they come away then ok for picking, however I have tried this and the apples still feel firmly attached, with it now being October should I just pick them or leave.

I dont know what variety they are.

 

I picked a russet yesterday that still wasn't ripe

 

Hi @Scudo the normal rule of thumb for testing to see if your apples are ripe is to hold each one that you can reach in the cup of your hand and lift the apple up slightly towards the branch and give a quarter turn.Any that are ripe should come away easily in your hand then you will know they are ready for picking.Any with any resistance won’t be ready for another day or so so it is a task you will have to keep doing.You will soon learn by experience as the years go by.

We have had to take all ours off of our trees ripe and unripe because of the strong winds we keep having and any that are fallen are being eaten by rabbits on our allotment so t was a question of just getting the crop harvested.

 

Our Russets aren't normally ripe until the end of October.