General Statements for Beginning Shooters - Step 2
Multiple posts from the ‘HOME IMPROVEMENT SHOOTING, PART 1’ thread were re-titled and re-formatted with the permission of the author; j-huskey.
Steps 1, 2 & 3 are now titled "General Statements for Beginning Shooters" and posted on Page 1 of the SH FAQ's located under the Bolt Action Rifles thread. The FAQ Links in each post have been updated and re-ordered.
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Maybe we call this Step 2?
a. Find a training rifle that fits. The rifle should fit properly, have a weight that allows the competitor to hold it comfortably in all positions, and has a low power scope that allows the beginner/competitor to shoot as closely as 25 yards.
b. A 22LR rifle is not a bad choice to begin with.
c. Using this 22LR rifle at 25 and 50 yards, the beginner/competitor learns and imprints the fundamentals of shooting on ever increasing smaller targets until they can hold 1INCH groups in all shooting positions at 25 yards, through 10 repetitions. Then 50 yards. Since the 22LR begins to lose it’s edge somewhat at 100 yards, unless a biathlon grade rifle with biathlon grade ammunition, and biathlon grade physical fitness, the next step is to upgrade from the 22LR training rifle to a larger rifle.
d. Rifle II, should fit properly, have a weight that allows the beginner/competitor to hold it comfortably in all positions, and has a middle range scope that enhances the use from 50 to 200 yards. This rifle also should be a caliber that does not punish the beginner/competitor in recoil. Magnums are NOT recommended. At this point the beginner/competitor should put significant study into a caliber that is readily available, has match grade ammunition, has a proven track record of barrel longevity, and reasonable recoil, then purchase such a rifle.
e. The two most common of these rifles are 308 Winchester and 260 Remington.
f. Using Rifle II, the beginner/competitor learns this rifle’s handling characteristics and continues to imprint the fundamentals of shooting on ever increasing smaller targets until they can hold 1 INCH groups in all shooting positions at 50 yards, through 10 repetitions. Then 100 yards (1 INCH groups) and further to 200 yards (2 INCH groups). Past these distances, holding MOA groups should be the shooter’s goal.
g. The beginner/competitor should begin to train at further distances, “stretching their legs”, gaining experience and knowledge, learning their level experience needs to be broadened as external ballistics are now coming into play with extended distances. A good coach here is a very good idea.
h. The beginner/competitor should start attending some forms of competition with this rifle, and with the gained experience may decide that Rifle II meets their needs. However, the beginner/competitor may find that a 3rd rifle selection may be in order to meet specific competition needs.
i. This is the path many national champions have taken to reach national championship. The above events are a clear example of “crawl, walk, run.” This is a proven formula.
At this point, the beginner/competitor has established the fundamentals of marksmanship with at least two rifles, has begun to stretch their limits, learning their present limits, and has gained some idea of where they wish to advance to.
More to follow:
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And, I know some of you may not like the idea of buying a 22LR for the first rifle. Some good reasons for doing this are:
1. The rifle is reasonably priced for most people.
2. A Nikon 4.5-14 mildot scope is pretty cheap too and will work very well for what you want to do.
3. The ammunition is very affordable. Remember, you need 3000-5000 repetitions to get a physical action imprinted.
4. There are way more places to shoot a 22LR than there are "the evil Sniper rifle".
5. There are way more people who would be willing to help with a 22LR than they would be if you had a more intimidating rifle.
6. A 22LR is a rifle that your dad, mom, brother, sister, girlfriend, wife, son, daughter, cousin etc would enjoy shooting and would be the easiest way to get them involved in your shooting sport. Think support....
7. A 22LR is easy to go back to when you don't have time or a place to carry the bigger rifle.
8. A 22LR is a great small game hunting and survival rifle.
9. A large number of professionals recommend it.
10. A 22LR is just plain fun.
To do Step 2 mentioned above, a 22LR can be as challenging as anything else you will ever do with a rifle.
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Yes, I know, this is here in another post, but this IS the most important part of you learning to shoot, knowing AND applying the fundamentals.
The best way to start on these is to DRY FIRE your weapon at home before ever going to the range. Try at least 1000 dry fires before you ever shoot a live round.
Put a dot on the wall and assume the most stable shooting position you can get into in your house, prone or off your table, and dry fire until your sight picture does not move off the target. Repeating, Try at least 1000 dry fires before you ever shoot a live round.
FUNDAMENTALS OF MARKSMANSHIP:
*HOW TO HOLD AND SHOOT YOUR RIFLE: Aka The Fundamentals of Marksmanship. (for a scoped rifle class)
*How to Hold, *Aim, *Eye Relief, *Sight Alignment, *Sight Picture, *Breathing, *Trigger Manipulation, *Follow Through, and *Recovery.
When your rifle fits you properly and you have learned to properly clean and maintain your rifle, you must learn how to hold the rifle. ACCURACY IS A FUNCTION OF CONSISTENCY, BOTH WITH THE RIFLE AND AMMUNITION, AND THE SHOOTER'S ACTIONS. You must hold the rifle the same way each time. You will practice holding the rifle, your sight picture, your breathing, and trigger manipulation through dry firing. You will practice building a good steady, stable, solid position each time, bone on bone, not held by muscle power. Although you have to exert some muscle control, the position should be a natural relaxed position to avoid muscle fatigue, tension, and shaking that occurs after muscles are overextended for any period of time. You will check your natural point of aim before each shot.
NATURAL POINT OF AIM is a position that allows the rifle to point naturally at the target without any muscle tension required to hold it on point of aim. You should keep the same position each time, changing nothing, to maintain consistency, to keep your natural point of aim the same each time. Before beginning this portion, or preceding sections, or any exercises, you should stretch first to loosen up your muscles. Besides the natural relaxing effect of stretching, it helps to prepare you mentally as well. Being physically fit will help you shoot better, and if you are not physically fit, you should make it a point to become fit.
*HOW TO HOLD YOUR RIFLE:
Assume the prone supported firing position.
The front of the rifle will rest either on a bipod attached to the stock or on a sandbag placed under the front of the stock.
Use the non-firing hand to support the butt of the rifle. Place your hand next to your chest and rest the TIP of the butt of the rifle on top of your hand. Ball your hand into a fist to raise the butt of the rifle or relax your fist to lower the butt of the rifle. A preferred method is to use a sock filled with sand or a small sand bag placed in your non firing hand and squeeze it to raise the rifle butt and release the bag to lower the rifle butt. Using this sock or bag method lessens body contact with the rifle and can eliminate an added human variable.
Place the butt of the rifle firmly in the pocket of the shoulder. The shooter can place a pad in his clothing in the pocket of his shoulder to reduce pulse beat and breathing movement.
With the firing hand grip the small or pistol grip of the stock. Using the middle through little fingers, exert a slight rearward pull to keep the butt of the rifle firmly in the pocket of the shoulder. Place the thumb over the top of the pistol grip of the stock. Place the index or trigger finger on the trigger and insure it does not touch the stock and does not disturb the lay of the rifle when the trigger is pulled.
Find a comfortable position for your elbows that provide the greatest support for you and your rifle without creating a strain.
Place your cheek in the same place on the stock each time. This is called the stock weld. Changing your position changes sight alignment and will cause misplaced shots.
*AIMING THE RIFLE:
Begin the aiming process by aligning the rifle with the target when assuming a firing position. THE RIFLE SHOULD POINT NATURALLY AT THE DESIRED AIMING POINT. No muscular tension or movement should be necessary to hold the rifle on target. To check the Natural Point of Aim (NPA), you assume a comfortable, STABLE, firing position. Place your cheek on the stock at the correct stock weld then breath, and entering the natural respiratory pause, look away from the scope moving only your eye and relax. Let the rifle drift to its natural point of aim, then look back through the scope. If the crosshairs remain on the correct position on the target, the natural point of aim is correct.
If the NPA is not correct, you must change your body position to bring the sights on the target. If muscles are used to bring the rifle to NPA, the muscles will relax when the rifle is fired and the rifle will begin to move to its NPA. Because this movement begins just before the weapon discharges, the rifle is moving as the bullet leaves the muzzle. This causes displaced shots with no apparent cause as recoil disguises the movement. By adjusting the rifle and body as a single unit, rechecking, and readjusting as necessary, you achieve a true natural point of aim. Once this position of established, you will them aim the rifle at the exact point on the target. Aiming involves three areas, eye relief, sight alignment, and sight picture.
*EYE RELIEF:
This is the distance from the firing eye to the scope tube. This distance is fairly constant with a scope. You should take care to avoid injury by the scope tube striking the eyebrow during recoil.
You should place your head as upright as possible behind the scope with your eye directly behind the scope. This head placement allows the muscles around your eye to relax. Incorrect head placement causes you to have to look out the corner of your eye resulting in muscle strain, causing blurred vision and eye strain. Eye strain can be avoided by not staring through the scope for long periods of time and correct stock weld alleviates eye strain as well by maintaining consistent eye relief.
*SIGHT ALIGNMENT:
Sight alignment is the relationship between the crosshairs (reticule) and field of view. You must place your head behind the scope so a full field of view appears in the scope tube with NO DARK SHADOWS OR CRESENTS. Center the reticule in a full field of view with the vertical crosshair straight up to ensure the scope is not canted.
*SIGHT PICTURE:
Sight picture is centering the reticule with a full field of view on the target as seen by you. Place the reticule crosshairs on what portion of the target you wish to hit.
*BREATHING:
You must exercise breathing control during the aiming process. Breathing while trying to aim, with the natural up and down motion of the chest while breathing, causes the rifle to move up and down. Up and down movement occurs while lying down. Breathing movement can be side to side when sitting at a bench rest type table when your body is against the table. You must therefore accomplish sight alignment while breathing and finish aiming while you are not breathing. You do this by inhaling, exhaling, and stop at the moment of natural respiratory pause before beginning to inhale again.
You do NOT try to HOLD your breath, this takes a specific type of muscle control, and it takes away from the natural relaxed position you need for consistency in shooting.
A respiratory cycle lasts four to five seconds. Inhalation and exhalation take only about two seconds, thus between each respiratory cycle there is a pause of two to three seconds. This pause can be extended to ten seconds without any special effort or unpleasant sensations. You should fire during this pause when your breathing muscles are relaxed. This avoids strain on the diaphragm.
You should assume your firing position and breath naturally until your hold begins to settle.
The respiratory pause should never feel un-natural. If it is too long, the body suffers from oxygen deprivation and begins to send out signals to resume breathing. These signals produce involuntary movements of the diaphragm which interfere with the shooters concentration and lack of movement needed to make a correct shot.
*TRIGGER CONTROL:
Trigger control is the most important fundamental of marksmanship. It is defined as causing the rifle to fire when the sight picture is at its very best, without causing the rifle to move.
Trigger Squeeze on the other hand is defined as the independent action of the forefinger on the trigger with a uniformly increasing pressure on the trigger straight to the rear until the rifle fires. Trigger Control is the last task to be accomplished before the rifle fires.
Proper trigger control occurs when the shooter places his firing finger as low on the trigger as possible and still clears the trigger guard, thereby achieving maximum mechanical advantage. He engages the trigger with that part of his firing finger (middle of the pad of the last digit) that allows him to pull the trigger straight to the rear. In order to avoid transferring movement of the finger to the entire rifle, the sniper should see daylight between the trigger finger and the stock as he squeezes the trigger straight to the rear. He fires the weapon when the reticule is in a position to insure a properly placed shot, or when the reticule is on target.
As the stability of a firing position decreases, the wobble area increases. The larger the wobble area, the harder it is to fire the shot without reacting to it, attempting to influence the sight placement when the trigger breaks. This reaction occurs when the shooter:
1. Anticipates recoil. The firing shoulder begins to move forward just before the rifle fires, thus pushing the rifle out of line with the target.
2. Jerks the Trigger. The trigger finger moves the trigger in a quick, choppy, spasmodic attempt to fire the shot before the reticule can move from the desired point of aim.
3. Flinches. The shooter's entire body (or parts thereof) overreacts to the anticipated noise or recoil (jerks). This is usually due to unfamiliarity with the weapon.
4. Avoids Recoil. The shooter tries to avoid recoil or noise by moving away from the weapon or by closing the firing eye just before the weapon fires. This again is caused by unfamiliarity with the weapon and a lack of knowledge of the weapon's actions upon firing.
Trigger control is best handled by assuming a stable position, adjusting on the target, and beginning a breathing cycle. As the shooter exhales the final breath approaching the natural respiratory pause, he secures his finger on the trigger. As the reticule settles on the target at the desired point of aim, and the natural respiratory pause is entered, the shooter applies initial pressure to the trigger. He increases the tension on the trigger during the respiratory pause as long as the reticule remains on the desired point of aim to insure a properly placed shot. If the reticule moves away from the desired point of aim, and the respiratory pause is free of strain or tension, the shooter stops increasing the tension on the trigger, waits for the reticule to return to the desired point of aim, and then continues to squeeze the trigger. This is trigger control. If movement is too large for recovery, or if the respiratory pause has become uncomfortable (extended too long), then the shooter should whenever possible, release the pressure off the trigger and start the respiratory cycle again.
*FOLLOW THROUGH:
Applying the fundamentals increases the odds of a well aimed shot being fired. There are however, additional skills, that when mastered, make the first round correct hit even more of a certainty. One of these skills is follow through.
a. This is the act of continuing to apply all the marksmanship fundamentals as the weapon fires as well as after the weapon fires. Follow through consists of:
* Keeping the head in firm contact with the stock (stock weld) upon firing and after firing.
* Keeping the finger on the trigger pulling all the way to the rear when and after the weapon fires.
* Continuing to look through the scope when and after the weapon fires.
* Insuring the muscles stay relaxed when and after the weapon fires.
* Avoid reacting to the recoil or noise during and after firing.
* Releasing the trigger only after the recoil has stopped.
b. Good follow through insures that the weapon is allowed to fire and recoil naturally, and the shooter/rifle combination reacts as a single unit to such actions.
*CALLING THE SHOT:
Calling the shot is being able to tell where the bullet should impact on the target. The shooter must be able to accurately call the shots. Proper follow through will aid in calling the shot. The dominant factor in calling the shot is, where-ever the reticule is when the shot is fired. This location is called the final focus point.
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The reigning national champions in most of the shooting disciplines for this year (2008) have stated in print more than once, the fundamentals of marksmanship are the most important basic building block for a shooter.
For a shooter to not master the fundamentals, or re-check them each time they fire a shot, is a risk at failure. The reigning champions will tell you they have a mental checklist of the fundamentals they run through each shot.
The US Military uses these fundamentals in all disciplines to bring new shooters up to a level where they can "appreciate" the need to know more advanced topics like range and wind measurement and estimation, along with knowledge of compensation from drop and wind deflection.
Mastery of the fundamentals has been seen to be one of the most continually asked questions of a generation not raised with firearms or the access to a good coach and controlled practice.
Knowledge of the fundamentals without practical experience is not going to produce a skilled marksman. Knowledge and poor practice will not produce a skilled marksman.
Knowledge, positive practice, lessons learned, corrections made, and continued practice under known conditions build a basic foundation to a skilled marksman.
Once that foundation is laid, the marksman should advance to more advanced topics.
Too much, too fast, is detrimental to a student trying to learn. Remember, Crawl, Walk, Run.
