Calling the shot/Recoil?

[Navybowhunter]

Hello all,

Posted up my best group ever at 300 yards Friday, .438 MOA.

All due to practice and using some of the advice from this group. It was from a bench, bipod no rear support.

I watched these videos on here, and hear about "watching the bullet hit the target"/"calling the shot"?

I found it IMPOSSIBLE from my shooting position (sitting), to keep the rifle on target. I was using 18 power on the scope, and when it went "boom", the target disappeared from the glass completely.

Is it possible to actually keep the rifle on target through the shot, when shooting from a bench? If so how?

I will work on "prone", and maybe that will be easier to do in regards to maintaining the sight picture.

Wondering if it even possible to do from a bench?

Thanks all!

Chris

 

[Andrew Blubaugh]

Chris, Recoil will move the weapon but if you are straight behind the rifle with proper natural point of aim you will return to the target. I am not sure about shooting from the bench and receiving the same results. I just don't shoot off of a bench.

 

[Lowlight]

Yes you can easily do it from a bench...

Recoil management is recoil management, no different.

On a bench your shoulders have to be far forward of your hips, most people sit up too straight on the bench and get rocked backwards.

Also if you are not good at recoil management, 18X is not gonna get it for you, the power is too high. Zoom in the magnification on a camera and see how hard it gets to hold steady.

Lastly a lot of people angle their shoulders on a bench, you have to be square, if you turn your shoulders the recoil will exploit the angle

 

[Navybowhunter]

Roger that....., will work on that. I figured that the 18x had something to do with it, but to be honest, the rifle never did return to point of aim. I did check for that. I guess I got lucky, just reset and did the same thing 3 times! LOL

SO, in my future drills, I will really work on seeing about getting that reticle back to POA.

LOWLIGHT, if it does not, I am doing something wrong correct?

 

[Lowlight]

In terms of cars, think of it this way, your everyday car, an 18 wheeler Tractor Trailer, and a GEN 6 NASCAR are all cars and are driven by putting it in gear and stepping on the gas. However how you handle each one is slightly different, you can't turn left at 180MPH the same in all three, they all require a different approach.

When you go from prone to a bench, the fundamentals are the same, but all require a slightly different approach. You have a lot more contact with the ground shooting prone, much less contact shooting from a bench. Also your head is at a slightly different angle to the rifle, your shoulders are slightly different, so that requires the necessary changes to account for the new angle of your body behind the rifle. Once you realize what is going on and that recoil is gonna take the path of least resistance as well as exploit any weakness you show the energy, then you can begin to adjust and manage that energy so the rifle stays on target.

 

[jasonZ]

That's a great analogy! Never really thought about it like that, but it serves the same purpose. I've always looked at "calling the shot" as a product of POA and the feeling the shot or recoil gave me. If it felt good and returned to POA, then I always felt like the shot would be right in the area that I intended it to be. If the shot felt bad or it didn't return to POA then it was the same, but with a bad result!

 

[proneshooter]

Are you using a sling (correctly) when shooting from the sitting position?

Sitting mostly sucks if you don't know how to use a sling.

 

[Lowlight]

He is sitting at a Bench, I highly doubt he is using a sling ...

 

[M40_A1]

... but to be honest, the rifle never did return to point of aim. I did check for that. I guess I got lucky, just reset and did the same thing 3 times! LOL?

If you got a group like that, chances are you had your natural point of aim, and CONSISTENCY. But, depending on your body position, what your rifle is resting on and how, and how you are holding (hard vs. soft), the recoil can still disrupt your natural point of aim once the shot is fired.

SO, in my future drills, I will really work on seeing about getting that reticle back to POA.

You can try to square up behind the rifle more, or hold "harder", but whatever you do, do NOT muscle the rifle as the shot is fired in an attempt to "get the reticle back on target". That defeats the whole point of follow through, and I'd bet your groups open up. You may find the trade-off is not worth it in the end. It's one of the reasons snipers have spotters.

FWIW, I have to get out to 500 yards or so for my rifle to have time to settle after the shot to see the impact. 300 is kind of close for that, IMHO.

 

[40xs]

A lot of people use a very light contact while shooting from a bench and allow the rifle to recoil freely. This may work if that is the way you are always going to be shooting, but a rifle sighted in this way will react differently ( as previously stated ) when changing to other positions and contact pressures. I once enjoyed great groups this way, but it is of very limiting in use for other applications.

 

[kis2]

Everyone here is absolutely correct about recoil management, I'd just like to extra highlight the idea of decreasing your magnification if its practical for you. I'm not saying that you shouldn't work on recoil management, but its worth noting that a larger field of view makes it easier to stay on target regardless.

Good luck!

 

[Night Eagle]

I have to say after watching lowlights vids here I have reevaluated my whole position and trigger finger and I am finally starting to understand what it means to be behind the rifle. Recoil is still there but i feel like I'm working with it instead of against it. Plus my groups have shrunk which makes me all kind of moist. Lol

Night eagle

 

[proneshooter]

He is sitting at a Bench, I highly doubt he is using a sling ...

OK, I saw this:
"I found it IMPOSSIBLE from my shooting position (sitting), to keep the rifle on target. I was using 18 power on the scope, and when it went "boom", the target disappeared from the glass completely"
and misunderstood

 

[jpretle]

It all comes down to repitition and developing muscle memory, in order to find the same position every time. Your return to POA is dependant on bone support, sling use and follow thru. Did I mention follow thru??? You can't call the shot if you do not have Follow Thru.

 

[jpretle]

Scope power does not increase your motion, but only magnifies it. Your movement/motion in recoil is the same whether you use irons or a 50X scope.

 

[punkwood2k]

Scope power does not increase your motion, but only magnifies it. Your movement/motion in recoil is the same whether you use irons or a 50X scope.

Following this line of thought.. What are your thoughts about "proper" magnification? I find myself consistently using 16x for anything from 100 yards up.. I know that it magnifies any movement in my rifle , but I also like that the target is bigger in my sights, so I can aim more precisely... I have this nifty little dial on my scope that goes from 4x-16x, and i have maybe touched it twice... lol

 

[jpretle]

I guess proper magnification then, would be what ever works for you. Sometimes leaving those dials alone makes the most sense.