The following are my personal observations / beliefs. Not intended to set out universal statements.
Set up vs. follow thru -
Both are important. Arguably set up is more important, tho good set up can be ruined by bad follow thru. I say set up is more important as a bad (meaning “inconsistent”) hold / shouldering WILL affect point of impact every time, as the recoil of the rifle happens every time, and being shouldered badly / inconsistently will move the muzzle WHILE the bullet is still in the barrel, in between release of the lock or firing pin and the moment the bullet leaves the barrel. Poor follow thru MAY do this, but bad set up WILL do this. Every time. I say poor follow thru MAY do this as the poor follow thru would have to happen while the bullet is still in the barrel. Poor set up WILL have an effect while the bullet is still in the barrel.
Semi vs. Bolt
Semis increase the importance of follow thru, as they have a longer “lock time.” Granted it is in the hundredths of a second, but since its longer, it increases probabilities that poor follow thru will affect point of impact.
Semis and bolt guns have different challenges in set-up / shouldering for each round fired. The bolt gun pretty much requires the shooters shoulder come off the butt to some degree each time, to cycle the bolt. Care should be exercised to re-shoulder consistently.
Semis don’t require manual cycling of the action, so there is no need to deliberately change shouldering position like in cycling a bolt gun, but they have their own unique challenges. The recoil of the rifle can cause shouldering of the rifle to change minutely, in unnoticeable ways , and that however small change WILL affect point of impact. If care is not used to check shouldering each shot, and use a more exaggerated follow thru, the semi will be more difficult to shoot accurately for small groups. Further, the cycling of the semi auto action while the bullet is likely still in the barrel introduces additional force vectors after the lock releases and before the bullet exits the barrel. (This becomes more noticeably prominent in .308 platforms than in 223 platforms)
So… what’s more important, set up or follow thru? Yes.
In which platform is it set up / follow thru more important, semi or bolt? Yes.
It all matters. In every platform.
Happy shootin’ !!!
Set up vs. follow thru -
Both are important. Arguably set up is more important, tho good set up can be ruined by bad follow thru. I say set up is more important as a bad (meaning “inconsistent”) hold / shouldering WILL affect point of impact every time, as the recoil of the rifle happens every time, and being shouldered badly / inconsistently will move the muzzle WHILE the bullet is still in the barrel, in between release of the lock or firing pin and the moment the bullet leaves the barrel. Poor follow thru MAY do this, but bad set up WILL do this. Every time. I say poor follow thru MAY do this as the poor follow thru would have to happen while the bullet is still in the barrel. Poor set up WILL have an effect while the bullet is still in the barrel.
Semi vs. Bolt
Semis increase the importance of follow thru, as they have a longer “lock time.” Granted it is in the hundredths of a second, but since its longer, it increases probabilities that poor follow thru will affect point of impact.
Semis and bolt guns have different challenges in set-up / shouldering for each round fired. The bolt gun pretty much requires the shooters shoulder come off the butt to some degree each time, to cycle the bolt. Care should be exercised to re-shoulder consistently.
Semis don’t require manual cycling of the action, so there is no need to deliberately change shouldering position like in cycling a bolt gun, but they have their own unique challenges. The recoil of the rifle can cause shouldering of the rifle to change minutely, in unnoticeable ways , and that however small change WILL affect point of impact. If care is not used to check shouldering each shot, and use a more exaggerated follow thru, the semi will be more difficult to shoot accurately for small groups. Further, the cycling of the semi auto action while the bullet is likely still in the barrel introduces additional force vectors after the lock releases and before the bullet exits the barrel. (This becomes more noticeably prominent in .308 platforms than in 223 platforms)
So… what’s more important, set up or follow thru? Yes.
In which platform is it set up / follow thru more important, semi or bolt? Yes.
It all matters. In every platform.
Happy shootin’ !!!
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