Having trouble getting a student to see trace.....

[LoneWolfUSMC]

I had a friend drop by for some impromptu firearms practice and we got into a discussion about "vapor trail" or trace. I was shooting my .22 at that point and the conditions were right that I could see trace through my scope. During our discussion he stated that he had never seen the trace of a round in flight.

I dug out my spotter and my .308 and setup on the 380 yard gong. I put a couple rounds down to make sure it was dialed in then let him get on the rifle so I could adjust the spotter.

I got it setup so that I could see the trace just fine. We then switched positions and he got on the spotter while I rang the gong a couple times. Once he got over the flinch when I fired a shot he stated he was unable to see the trace.

He is an older gentleman who wears glasses. I made sure he was wearing his glasses while on the spotter since it was adjusted for MY eyes.

I was at a loss because I didn't quite know how to resolve this. When I was instructing Marines they were quite a bit younger with excellent vision. It was usually not a problem to dial the spotter on for them and then let them observe the trace.

So does anyone have any tips for the next time I have a student with older eyes? I realize that there is probably a point where it's just not possible even with corrected vision, but I would still like to try.

 

[Jimmy2Times]

Re: Having trouble getting a student to see trace.....

I can't offer any real help, you have way more experience then I do, but perhaps if you got a camera adapter for your spotter, you could videotape it. I don't know if your could see it on "film" or not, but I bet you probably could.

 

[J.Boyette]

Re: Having trouble getting a student to see trace.....

I would do this.

Have the person place the target in question in the lower 1/3rd of the spotters glass. Then have him get the target very crisp and clean looking to his eye.

Then have him adjust 1/4 out of focus.

When you shoot the round, he should keep his eye focused on the target and try to see the "Butterfly" flying to the target.

This has worked for me with a wide range of students in age.

Try it out and see if it helps.

Keep in mind, he needs to be directly behind the shooter, and with the target in the lower 1/3rd of the glass. It lets him see the bullets rise and fall to the target.

John

 

[LoneWolfUSMC]

Re: Having trouble getting a student to see trace.....

thanks john. I will try that.

 

[Okie Gordon]

Re: Having trouble getting a student to see trace.....

I have had similar problems in the past.
The best fix I have found is to utilize decent quality binoculars mounted to a solid base rather than a spotting scope.
The bino's I utilize are 12X and have individual eye focus with a tripod mounting bracket.
Have the person get directly behind the shooter and focus one eye on the target and one eye at something approx. half way down range.
The idea is that two eyes with binocular vision work better than one.
Typically it will look like a 3D effect with the trace initially showing up to the eye that is focused closer and then going to the eye that is focused on the target.

Everybody who has utilized them in the past does a "WOW" when the trace shows up as a 3 dimensional effect.
Much easier to use both eyes than just one.

The only limitation seems to be that my 12X bino's run out of magnification to see the trace out past about 600 yards.
I use a piece of steel placed at 550 yards and it works great.

 

[SOC308]

Re: Having trouble getting a student to see trace.....

it is most likely not something in his eyes or in your glass, but more in his head or focus. I see trace almost all the time from directly behind, beside, or off at angles close to the shooter. the only times i don't see it are when i'm not focused in right as the shot occurs. you mentioned he 'flinched' when the shots rang. he most likely was still mentally flinching, maybe just moving his eyes a very little bit, but thats enough to do it.