Advanced Marksmanship cheekweld

[steelcomp]

I have an AR10 with a magpul PRS, a badger 22moa rail, and a Falcon with low rings. With this set up, if I have the cheek rest all the way down, my line of sight seems OK If I rest my cheek bone on the rest. Is this OK and/or proper? It seems comfortable enough, but it's a new setup and I have yet to take it to the range and try it.
Any input would be appreciated.

 

[Country]

Re: cheekweld

If you are getting cheek weld then just put some talcum powder on your face it will dry up the skin and help stop cheek weld.
I always carry it for bags and rests anyway.
An AR10 has some recoil to deal with so I would not try to fire it like a bench gun.
Getting into the gun and putting your face on the stock is what feels comfortable to me and helps tame recoil I feel.
The top edge of the bone of your cheek is not the best position to rest on but the stock required for prone shooting is a bit different to a stock for bench shooting and the same applies for standing unsupported. So its usually a compromise situation at some point.
So you may find it best to adjust the cheek piece in different shooting positions. Try and get the cheek bone just ontop of the cheek rest that way the recoil goes back and under the cheek bone not against it. Your head position may be looking too far up or down to get a good position.
Some people look out the top off their eyes and some out the bottom and some centered . It changes the head position that they feel they see the best and feel comfortable in.
You got to play with it until you get a good feeling and the shots are hitting the money and thats the best position for you.
Being ex military I have seen lots of shooters that don't control the recoil properly and take a flimsy hold of the weapon and invariably they are not good shots in all areas like , moving targets , shooting from choppers etc.

 

[Sterling Shooter]

Re: cheekweld

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: steelcomp</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I have an AR10 with a magpul PRS, a badger 22moa rail, and a Falcon with low rings. With this set up, if I have the cheek rest all the way down, my line of sight seems OK If I rest my cheek bone on the rest. Is this OK and/or proper? It seems comfortable enough, but it's a new setup and I have yet to take it to the range and try it.
Any input would be appreciated.</div></div>

You want a good chipmunk cheek, resting the full weight of your head on the stock with cheek rolled over the comb. The idea is muscular relaxation and a consistent perspective of aim. If you find yourself lifting the head, or crushing the cheek on the comb to get good sight alignment, then modification of the stock, and/or the sight mount will be necessary, as a consistent stockweld is essential to precision shooting.

 

[steelcomp]

Re: cheekweld

Thanks guys. Forgive my lack of the proper terminology. I think I need higher rings. The rest is all the way down and I still feel like the scope is just to low. Besides, even if it was OK, I have no adjustability, which kind of defeats the purpose of the stock.

And you mean you actually have to shoot these things???

 

[IC2SS19Z50C5]

Re: cheekweld

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Sterling Shooter</div><div class="ubbcode-body">You want a good chipmunk cheek, resting the full weight of your head on the stock with cheek rolled over the comb. The idea is muscular relaxation and a consistent perspective of aim. A consistent stockweld is essential to precision shooting. </div></div>

<span style="text-decoration: underline">I would add that always shoot with your mouth slightly open and relaxed.</span> (Don’t worry, no one is looking back up range at you, so don’t be concerned about looking stupid). This will allow more consistent contact with the stock and your cheek area, as Sterling Shooters said,

<span style="font-weight: bold">“A consistent stockweld is essential to precision shooting”.</span>

 

[Graham]

Re: cheekweld

I prefer a slight crush: it helps with consistency.

 

[KUSA]

Re: cheekweld

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: steelcomp</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I think I need higher rings. The rest is all the way down and I still feel like the scope is just to low. </div></div>

Try one of these.
http://www.americandefensemanufacturing.com/?page=shop/detail&product_id=5

 

[breezernate]

Re: cheekweld

This is a basic idea, and covered elsewhere, but proper cheek weld is just starting to sink in for me.

I have found most recenly my shooting improves when I get a good sight picture...ugh...dugh. What I mean is that in the past I would go ahead and shoot, even if my reticle wasn't crystal clear or my eye wasn't dead center in the scope. This doesn't work and I don't do that anymore.

I sometimes have lift my head, change the shape of my face by opening or closing my jaw a few degrees or pursing my lips a bit, then getting back down on the stock to get my eye in just the right position for each shot. I suppose that is not totally relaxed, but it has been working.

I find, and at least one other (good) shooter I talked to does also, that I shoot best without my cheek mashed flat and "chipmunked" out so much. A Palma shooter I know sets his rifle up to barely brush the side of his cheek. I think I feel more recoil with my face crushed to it and tend to flinch more. I set up with less pressure down on the comb. I guess that is not toal relaxation, but it seems sight picture through the scope is paramount.

Nate

 

[UKDslayer]

Re: cheekweld

Its been said before above...#1 is you need a consistent cheek weld, well, actually you need perfect eye relief first - so in your case the need to adjust rings/scope may be critical. The cheek weld should be second nature (remember muscle memory comes from doing the action around 3000 times). With maintaining a cheek weld and not lifting the head off the rifle, you should be able to adjust parallax and dope, load your magazine, orient the magazine in the well (this seems "basic", but a lot of top comp. shooters will place a little strip of skateboard tape on the foreward end to know there will be no error), do a chamber round check, be able to clear malfunctions, and that keep that cheekweld consistently in the same place to catch splashes in absence of first round hits. Do not start the muscle memory process without being 100% sure your eye relief is perfect, and if you are one to change optics depending on the scenario, I have actually marked my rifle and rails with sharpie marker or white-out on where I need to place my rings and where I want that front objective to be so if I have to dissamble, or switch out scopes, I can go right back to where one scope should be versus the other without establishing the whole eye relief exercise again.
I personally don't "chipmunk", because I don't like feeling recoil in my molars where I had a bad root canal with higher caliber.

For those that feel they can't hold a cheek weld well for hours because of sweat (esp. in the summer) and its critical to your line of work (you know who you are), please feel free to contact me to send you sample of an item than may help.

 

[Headgear]

Re: cheekweld

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">if I have the cheek rest all the way down, my line of sight seems OK If I rest my cheek bone on the rest. Is this OK and/or proper? It seems comfortable enough, but it's a new setup and I have yet to take it to the range and try it.</div></div>

I prefer the stock adjusted so that the comb fits tight, just below the cheek bone. This is a position that is easily repeatable for me. It fits perfectly. I have a tendency to put my face on the side of the stock/comb and them roll my head a very tiny bit to the right. (right handed) I have found that this puts my eye more in the center behind the scope.

All face contours, and all stocks are different. I have an AICS and have spacers under the comb. I have let several friends shoot my rifle and not one of them used the same amount of spacers.

This being a new setup, try dry/live firing a lot. If you are like me you will tweak your position and adjust everything on the rifle for a month or two and then settle in on what fits and is repeatable for you every time that you mount the rifle.

I'm by no means an expert. I don't really know what is in your words "OK and/or proper" but there doesn't seem to be too many other options. If you put higher rings on and raised the scope you could mount the rifle with your cheek higher on the comb but the comb touching the under side of the cheek bone is a good reference point. I'd be afraid of vertical displacement if you didn't have it as a reference point. Hopefully some experts will correct me if I'm wrong.

Good luck with the new rig!

 

[Sterling Shooter]

Re: cheekweld

Nate,

The key is muscular relaxation, you want to rest the full weight of your head on the comb, rolling the cheek over it. Crushing the cheek down upon the comb is not going to get the result desired.

 

[CleanMoostang]

Re: cheekweld

My problem with my SPS Tactical is if I rest all the way down on it, then I am looking at my ring mounts and rail lol... Needless to say I need a good riser mount or saddle pack.

But from my experience you need a good strong cheek placement on the stock so your completely stable and not having to adjust.

If your mounted on the stock, and your aligned at the scope, you should be fine.

 

[threefivesevenmag]

Re: cheekweld

Would it be the same for a collapsable stock? I have a CTR stock, locked down in place.