Here’s what I’m up against: I dry fire at about a 1:1 ratio as live fire. When dry firing I can build a good position, manage wobble, and break the trigger when I want to at the bottom of my respiratory pause. When I’m live firing, all of a sudden the trigger feels like it’s 20 pounds. I reset, breathe, and can eventually get a clean break, but it can take a couple tries. No flinch, proved when I forgot to prime a round and pressed the trigger. I watched my crosshairs never move. Please advise.
- Thread starter Dot3
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Happens in golf too.
Practice swing looks and feels pure.
Not hitting a ball so there's nothing on the line.
Set a ball on the tee and that beautiful swing becomes a hack.
You're doing the same thing with your shooting.
Dry fire more.
When actually shooting, talk yourself through the mental check list with some dry firing before you load the rifle.
Practice swing looks and feels pure.
Not hitting a ball so there's nothing on the line.
Set a ball on the tee and that beautiful swing becomes a hack.
You're doing the same thing with your shooting.
Dry fire more.
When actually shooting, talk yourself through the mental check list with some dry firing before you load the rifle.
Nasty brake and anticipating the blast? If so, double up on the hearing protection if you are not doing so already.
good things come to those that wait .
just to add video tape with your phone your finger squeezing the trigger and you while you shoot It might supprise you to see all the extra bouncing or fidgeting you could be doing , nervous ticks or other strange and bazaar things people do .
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I think most of the responses will be far better than mine. But I do have something that has helped me in the past that has nothing to do with anticipation, trigger control, dry firing, etc.
ENJOY THIS SHIT! Seriously, putting pressure on yourself when a round actually enters the chamber sets you up for failure from the beginning. Yes, focus on your checklist, but also try to remember that you're doing something you friggin' love (at least I hope you do, because you've probably spent some decent change to do so!) Smell the powder burning in the air, walk the shooting line and look at all the gun-porn you can feast your eyes on. And if you're in the US, remember that you've got a pretty damn good thing going with your shooting culture (don't think about how that's under attack).
I'm assuming you're not a sponsored pro, so don't expect to be one. I think we tend to take ourselves wayyyy to seriously. Remember to put your enjoyment over your results and you should see your results match.
ENJOY THIS SHIT! Seriously, putting pressure on yourself when a round actually enters the chamber sets you up for failure from the beginning. Yes, focus on your checklist, but also try to remember that you're doing something you friggin' love (at least I hope you do, because you've probably spent some decent change to do so!) Smell the powder burning in the air, walk the shooting line and look at all the gun-porn you can feast your eyes on. And if you're in the US, remember that you've got a pretty damn good thing going with your shooting culture (don't think about how that's under attack).
I'm assuming you're not a sponsored pro, so don't expect to be one. I think we tend to take ourselves wayyyy to seriously. Remember to put your enjoyment over your results and you should see your results match.
I can tell I’m focusing on not missing as opposed to executing my process. I shoot alone mostly so it’s definitely not about showing off.
I actually am sponsored/paid to NOT show up at an event by several brands who don’t want their products to be thought of as shitty and subpar.
I always shoot my best when I'm goofing around with friends and each of us trying to out-do each other.
Keep it lighthearted.
How so? What’s at work there?
I helped my brother by loading his mag and then the rifle. He didn't know if he was getting a live round or the snap cap.
Helped with a flinch or with breaking the trigger when he wanted to?
You will be able to easily notice your own flinch or the classic pushing the pistol forward in anticipation.
Once you can fully relax and pull the trigger on a empty or live chamber you'll be a better shot and never have to worry about recoil or muzzle blast.
There's no reason to overthink anything. You're forgetting the fun part: HAVE FUN.
At my work guys get all hemmed up on weapons quals because if they don't pass, they get sent home (overseas high threat security). We call it "shooting for money". Especially on the M249/M240 platforms, guys lose their minds and forget fundamentals. BRASS. Breathe, relax, aim, settle, squeeze. A dry fire is the exact same as a live fire shot.
I say play around and put yourself on a time clock so you don't have all this extra time to think about things that don't matter. I'd be willing to bet it takes you 10 seconds to dry fire and 20-25 seconds to fire a live round because you're thinking about whatever you're thinking about, which causes you to think more about thinking. Sounds like you wanting perfection on each live fire trigger press. It doesn't exist.
What caliber? No brake you said and I assume no can. A flinch can grow out of the noise or recoil expectation. If you are not managing recoil it could cause the same thing. If it’s the recoil, add a brake (and double up the ear pro). Add weight to the chassis if you can. Make sure that your body alignment, grip and grip pressure into the pocket are all good.
.02¢
.02¢
Here is some actual video footage of my trigger press
30-06. 13 pounds all in. It’s a bitch but I’m running it ok some days. I’m going to do the ear pro thing next time out, but flinching from recoil has been ruled out by a couple of dummy rounds
Thanks for all the input everyone.
My bet is on some kind of unconscious anticipation. If you are interested, here is my experience :
I'm shooting 7.62x54R on my Mosins on a very regular basis and despite not being as hard recoiling of a cartridge as 30-06, the metal butt plate on the 9lbs rifle makes shooting not that enjoyable sometimes. And I got bruised a couple times when fiddling with my shooting position.
I do not flinch either, at all, but same phenomenon you described applies to me : when shooting these rifles, the trigger feels heavier than what they are, the trigger pull also feels longer and inconsistent. And sometimes it might take me a second try to send the round downrange. That weirdness magically disapears when I know I'm pulling on an empty chamber or when dry firing at home with dummies. (Mind that I've reworked and polished all my sears and trigger springs to get a consistent lighter and crispier release on them and they aren't your typical soviet heavy gritty garbage rod trigger.)
On the other hand, my MAS 36 in .308 have a heavier trigger than my russians and it usually feels so for the first round after shooting a Mosin, but lighter than them afterwards.
I believe this is because the recoil is milder (this one also has a slip on recoil pad for extra LoP) and I guess my brain relaxes as nothing bad will happen with that setup. Same goes if I'm shooting a modern rifle in 308 or 6.5. What I did was purchasing a shoulder pad for the russians and things have improved a lot with the added comfort. The first few rounds of 54R still make me tense up on my trigger (cure isn't complete yet) but after the first reload, trigger feels like it should, as when dry firing the gun.
So I would not call this "flinching" as there are no parasite movement during the shot but I'm still anticipating for the uncomfort of the shoulder kick, most likely stiffening the trigger finger which gives the feeling of a heavier trigger than it really is.
What you could try to put aside your 30-06 for a while and try to borrow a mild recoiling rifle (223, 260, 6.5CM etc...) and shoot it exclusively to see after a few trips at the range if things are starting to change.
Shooting pool”loose” improves my game sometimes. Behind the rifle has similar operator input factors I imagine.
I have been struggling with this for decades. It worsened after hand re construction. I find I am pulling upward on the trigger. Partly because the stock does not fit my , me, properly. Fitting the rifle cannot be overlooked.
BTW, my dry fire is impeccable.
I have been struggling with this for decades. It worsened after hand re construction. I find I am pulling upward on the trigger. Partly because the stock does not fit my , me, properly. Fitting the rifle cannot be overlooked.
BTW, my dry fire is impeccable.
Anticipation might be your problem, the fact that you know it's not going to be just another dry fire could be putting you off your game.
Also, how you are dry firing makes a difference. If you are dry firing against a blank backdrop and concentrating solely on the non aiming aspect of the fundamentals it is completely different than focusing on a point of aim and executing fundamentals ONTO that point of aim. Correct NPA (natural point of aim) is a big part of it and unless your dry firing is onto a pinpoint target you are only practising half of the process.
When I find myself getting sloppy, I take a couple of deep breaths and tell myself it's just another dry fire and repeat click, click, click, click in the back of my mind as I go through the firing sequence. Repeating click, click, click like that kills flinch (or probably more correctly, anticipation) dead in myself and other shooters I've talked through it with. It might be worth a try for you too.
Also, how you are dry firing makes a difference. If you are dry firing against a blank backdrop and concentrating solely on the non aiming aspect of the fundamentals it is completely different than focusing on a point of aim and executing fundamentals ONTO that point of aim. Correct NPA (natural point of aim) is a big part of it and unless your dry firing is onto a pinpoint target you are only practising half of the process.
When I find myself getting sloppy, I take a couple of deep breaths and tell myself it's just another dry fire and repeat click, click, click, click in the back of my mind as I go through the firing sequence. Repeating click, click, click like that kills flinch (or probably more correctly, anticipation) dead in myself and other shooters I've talked through it with. It might be worth a try for you too.
I’ve upped my dry fire quantity substantially. It has always been at a precise aim point. Update: I shot my first match and had no issues breaking the trigger when I wanted to. The clock wasn’t as big of a hindrance as I thought it would be. Letting go of the expectation of perfection was important. I took on the mindset of getting quality shots off, but understand that the target is generally big enough to absorb a less than perfect break. Amd that helped ease the anxiety caused by trying to be perfect and my execution was actually pretty good
Great thread. I have the same problem. Along with the trigger feeling heavier the tension in my neck and shoulder increases as I think the shot is about to break.
If I can remain relaxed when the shot breaks magic happens.
If I can remain relaxed when the shot breaks magic happens.
Handgun shooting has improved my rifle shooting.
There are a lot of people that discuss the "surprise break" of the trigger pull but I'm not a fan. What you really should be trying is to get the trigger to break without upsetting the gun.
When you dryfire, try pulling the trigger as fast as you can without upsetting the reticle on target. Keep practicing that and when you get to the range, do the same. The key is not to jerk the trigger but when you decide to pull the trigger, keep adding pressure incrementally until it breaks.
Flinch
