Marksmanship Question

[AuburnHunter]

Ok I have a marksmanship question for you guys.

I have been taking a few marksmanship classes at a local range. Last night I discovered I have an interesting mind game issue.

Typically we shoot a silhouette targets in the class. To show/teach us not to focus too much on the X ring the instructor had us hang a standard piece of letter size paper up at 15 yards. He said that this is basically the same size as the 10 ring/COM and to focus on keeping all shots on the paper. Doesn't really matter where on the paper as long as it is on the paper. The point was to teach focus on the front sight and trigger pull.

At 15 yards I have no problem keeping all shots on the paper. Then when we hang a silhouette up I keep the majority of the shots in the 10 ring/COM however I start to drop a few into the 8 ring.

This obviously gets more noticeable at 25 yards. So to kind of reinforce the concept and give visual feedback the instructor sets up soda cans at 25 yards. I can hit that damn soda can at 25 yards every damn time. But when we switch back to the target most of my shots are in the 8 or even 7 ring.

Long story short the instructor said that when shooting at the target I get too focused on trying to hit the X, rather than just COM. So I start jerking the trigger, not focusing on the front sight, etc.

Any tips on how to get over this? I know focus on the front sight, smooth trigger pull. So do I just need to practice, practice, practice. Should I shoot at more soda cans and blank pieces of paper to build my confidence at 25 yards?

[rycerz]

If trigger control is an issue, then dry firing will help.

[AuburnHunter]

Originally Posted by rycerz

If trigger control is an issue, then dry firing will help.

That's what is part of what is frustrating. Trigger control is part of the issue, and I am going to be doing a lot more dry fireing.

But when shooting at the blank sheet of paper or the soda can I'm pretty smooth with the trigger. When shooting the silhouette at 7 & 10 yards I'm still smooth. When shooting at the silhouette at 25 I start mind f'ing myself and start jerking the trigger.

Part of it is probably that I don't shoot at 25 yards all that often so my confidence isn't as high.

[THaves]

It may be that your moving your other fingers just a tad when you pull the trigger,which at short range has no noticable effect however as you go out further that slight movement has ever increasing effects.

Try firing a gun without a gun, with your bare hand pretend to hold an imaginary gun and then pull the imaginary triger. Notice the movement in the three fingers below your trigger finger, the finger directly below your trigger finger probably moves the most.

The trick is to practice this until the only finger that moves is your trigger finger.

I hope this helps

[akulahawk]

You can do this in addition to your dry firing practice: visualization. Clear your mind of all thoughts. Close your eyes (not now or you can't read this). Imagine your target downrange at 25 yards. See yourself acquiring sight alignment. Now a good, steady sight picture. Good! Now feel yourself applying pressure to the trigger. Preeessssss with building pressure. BANG!!!!

You can hit soda cans at 25 yards. You've proven that to yourself. If you want, you can also visualize those soda cans on the target at COM as you shoot. You just shoot the can and the target just happens to be there...

Now there really isn't any difference between the target at 7 or 10 yards as it would be at 25 yards. It's all the same. Distance doesn't matter. Just Sight Picture and smooth press.

Dry fire, visualization, talk to yourself and remind yourself that 25 yards is the same as 7. Smaller maybe, but all the same.

You can do this!

This visualization technique is widely used by high level athletes too. They use it because it works and develops the very same neural pathways as doing it for real. Properly done, you will actually have some slight motor activation... IOW: you'll squeeze the trigger a little bit! Your mind won't really know much difference if done right.

[swdr]

Note, for these practices you will have emptied your gun. So, treat it as loaded and never point it at others or at any parts of your body, not even briefly. Safe directions, only!

Natural Aim Point

Put a blank page on the wall. (Don't use a page with lines on it.) Move all ammo out of reach. Hold the gun at low ready. Close your eyes. Bring up the gun toward the blank page. Open your eyes. Are the sights aligned? If not, adjust your grip and try again.

Once you've gotten it right, do it another 20 times right. (Remember, you want to outnumber the number of times you got it wrong, by at least double, because what you do most of is what you'll do naturally.)

NB, If you are not at your natural aim point on target, then when you squeeze the trigger, there is a tendency for the gun to move off alignment.

Sight Alignment

Move all ammo out of reach. Hold the gun at low ready. Eyes open. Bring up the gun toward the wall. Align your sights. (We're assuming a blade and notch pair of sights. If your sights have painted dots, you can do the same with the dots.) Focus on the front sight, the blade. Notice how high the top of the blade is relative to the notch top. The notch top should be fuzzy because you're focusing on the blade. Spend 10-15 seconds to note exactly how fuzzy the tops of both the blade and the notch are. Try this again a dozen times. Rest for a bit.

Bring up the gun toward the wall again. Focus on the front sight, the blade. Notice how much light is spilling through on either side of the blade between it and each vertical of the notch. The notch verticals will be fuzzy, so the spill light will have some fuzzy shadows. Of course, you want the exact same amount of light on each side of the blade -- spill light balance. Spend 10 seconds to note exactly how fuzzy the spill light is. Try this again a dozen times. Rest for a bit.

Natural Aim Point with Sight Alignment

Now, redo the Natural Aim Point closed-eyes exercise, but pay attention to the height of the blade against the fuzzy notch top, and to the amount of fuzzy spill light on either side of the blade within the rear notch. Hold each aim, after you open your eyes, for 5 seconds and notice how the height and spill light look each time. Especially, notice how much natural movement there is for the blade height and spill light balance. Repeat this a dozen times. Take a long break.

Sight Target Alignment

Rule a vertical line on your blank page on the wall. Adjust your distance so that the muzzle is a hands breadth away from the wall. Bring up the gun toward the wall again sighting on the line. Watch how the fuzzy spill light balance changes as you attempt to keep aligned and on the vertical line. Hold this for 20 seconds or so. Adjust your grip and stance so that you only get the natural movement of your sights while you're maintaining on the line. While sighting "on the line" your focus should be on the blade height and spill light. Repeat this a dozen times. Rest for a bit.

Rotate the page so that the line is horizontal and at your normal aiming height. Repeat the exercise but watch the blade height a bit more than the spill light balance. Repeat this a dozen times. Take a long break.

Trigger Pull Feel

Insert a snap cap, empty case, or other chamber protection if needed. Bring the gun to low ready. Close your eyes. Leave the gun at low ready and squeeze the trigger. Once you start to squeeze, keep the movement smooth and determined. Take at least a second to release the hammer. If you're getting to the end in less time, slow down. Notice the feel of the pull, and of the break. Notice if you're trigger finger is completely smooth or not throughout the pull. Repeat this a dozen times. Rest for a bit.

Trigger Pull Movement

Find a bookshelf at chest height, or a high-backed plush chair. (The point is to naturally rest your hands, so there are other possible positions that work.) Bring the gun up from low ready and set your hands on the shelf or chair back to rest them and your arms. With your arms resting, watch the blade height and spill light. There should be very little natural movement because of the support. Now, start your slow trigger squeeze, and immediately focusing on the blade height and spill light. The trigger squeeze should continue automatically while you focus on blade height and spill light balance. Did you see just the natural movement throughout or was there new additional movement? Once you've corrected (removed) any unnatural movement, repeat this a couple dozen times correctly.

Blank Point Trigger Pull

Put up another blank page on the wall. (Don't use a page with lines on it.) Bring up the gun from low ready toward the blank page. Adjust the sight alignment if needed. Hold the alignment and notice the natural movement of the blade height and spill light against the fuzzy notch. Now, start your slow trigger squeeze while watching the movement of the blade height and spill light balance. Remember to follow through for a half second, holding the trigger. Did you see just the natural movement throughout or was there new additional movement? Go back to low ready, and repeat. Once you've corrected (removed) any unnatural movement, repeat this a couple dozen times correctly.

If, after all this, you can go out to the range and not notice the blade and spill balance while you shoot, then don't engage any BGs at close range. Heh.

[AuburnHunter]

Originally Posted by akulahawk

You can do this in addition to your dry firing practice: visualization. Clear your mind of all thoughts. Close your eyes (not now or you can't read this). Imagine your target downrange at 25 yards. See yourself acquiring sight alignment. Now a good, steady sight picture. Good! Now feel yourself applying pressure to the trigger. Preeessssss with building pressure. BANG!!!!

You can hit soda cans at 25 yards. You've proven that to yourself. If you want, you can also visualize those soda cans on the target at COM as you shoot. You just shoot the can and the target just happens to be there...

Now there really isn't any difference between the target at 7 or 10 yards as it would be at 25 yards. It's all the same. Distance doesn't matter. Just Sight Picture and smooth press.

Dry fire, visualization, talk to yourself and remind yourself that 25 yards is the same as 7. Smaller maybe, but all the same.

You can do this!

Funny, that's pretty much the same thing the instructor said.

swdr, thanks for the practice tips. I've printed them up to use with my next dry fire practice session.

[Bombard]

I had a similar problem a LONG time ago (like, 30 years).

My dad put me back shooting revolvers only. He had a S&W Model 10 with an incredibly smooth DA trigger. I shot a couple of thousand light wadcutter rounds double action only. It hard-wired in the "squeeze, don't jerk" motion. When I went back to autos it held.

[rundmlee]

Originally Posted by AuburnHunter

I know focus on the front sight...

Make it a "hard" focus on the front sight. I once thought I was focusing on the front sight, then realized that I was able to focus even more, i.e. the edges of the front sight got sharper.. I'd focus hard on some tiny detail of the front sight, like one of the corners of the blade.

[Rodsteal]

Tape the soda can to the target. Then just hope the perp is wearing a Pepsi shirt

[cksh8me]

If you can hit the soda can at 25 yards with regularity then you can shoot.

The problem is you are getting lazy/sloppy when the target gets bigger and you lose concentration.

The smaller the target the more you concentrate.

[AuburnHunter]

Originally Posted by cksh8me

If you can hit the soda can at 25 yards with regularity then you can shoot.

The problem is you are getting lazy/sloppy when the target gets bigger and you lose concentration.

The smaller the target the more you concentrate.

I blamed it on shooting soda cans since I was 6 years old. It's programmed into me to hit cans. Seemed like no thought required, line up the front sight and press the trigger.

Then when I switch to the target I think I over concentrate and start jerking the trigger.

[Sigman]

Originally Posted by AuburnHunter

Ok I have a marksmanship question for you guys.

I have been taking a few marksmanship classes at a local range. Last night I discovered I have an interesting mind game issue.

Typically we shoot a silhouette targets in the class. To show/teach us not to focus too much on the X ring the instructor had us hang a standard piece of letter size paper up at 15 yards. He said that this is basically the same size as the 10 ring/COM and to focus on keeping all shots on the paper. Doesn't really matter where on the paper as long as it is on the paper. The point was to teach focus on the front sight and trigger pull.

At 15 yards I have no problem keeping all shots on the paper. Then when we hang a silhouette up I keep the majority of the shots in the 10 ring/COM however I start to drop a few into the 8 ring.

This obviously gets more noticeable at 25 yards. So to kind of reinforce the concept and give visual feedback the instructor sets up soda cans at 25 yards. I can hit that damn soda can at 25 yards every damn time. But when we switch back to the target most of my shots are in the 8 or even 7 ring.

Long story short the instructor said that when shooting at the target I get too focused on trying to hit the X, rather than just COM. So I start jerking the trigger, not focusing on the front sight, etc.

Any tips on how to get over this? I know focus on the front sight, smooth trigger pull. So do I just need to practice, practice, practice. Should I shoot at more soda cans and blank pieces of paper to build my confidence at 25 yards?

You just have to accept that you aren't a good shot

[AuburnHunter]

Originally Posted by Sigman

You just have to accept that you aren't a good shot

Ouch! Watch it Mr. Pumpkin Shooter

[akulahawk]

Originally Posted by AuburnHunter

I blamed it on shooting soda cans since I was 6 years old. It's programmed into me to hit cans. Seemed like no thought required, line up the front sight and press the trigger.

Then when I switch to the target I think I over concentrate and start jerking the trigger.

Soda Cans, B27 Targets.... All the SAME!!!! No Difference.