PRS Talk Target acquisition

[firefighter1178]

I have been shooting PRS for a number of years now, I have always struggled with target acquisition. I am color blind so when the target gets beat up it’s hard for me to find it. Looking at tinted glasses to maybe make the targets pop more. Anyone else have similar issues.

I have tried better optics and that didn’t change anything Nightforce ATACR but currently running a Burris XTR Pro. 

 

[hlee]

Better optics may help, but you’d need to spend into tier 1 (ZCO, TT, etc) for a hope of an appreciable improvement.

I also have some red/green color blindness, and blood trailing an animal mostly turns into quartering an area until I trip over it.

Regardless of anything else, color blindness correction glasses are 1000% a scam.

Target acquisition starts with getting the gun pointed in the right direction before looking through the glass. Find the reference points. Sight over the optic to the target. Some people use a top mounted RMR for this purpose. Then drop into the scope. Just like finding that big buck in a tangle of underbrush, you’re looking for shapes.

That said, a beat up Grey target in an earth tone background can be hard for anyone to spot quickly. There’s nothing better than practice.

 

[Sheldon N]

Agree with hlee, the key is reference points. Spend the time prestage to get a very precise mental image of where the target is located, both under magnification and with naked eye.

Then as you're building a position take an extra moment to carefully line up the rifle and your body so that you expect to already be on the target in scope when you first look through it. If you can do this accurately then the target should already be in front of you and easier to find.

Ideally you should never be panning around looking for targets in scope on the clock. The key training point is learning to be extremely precise in how accurately you point the rifle when building a shooting position.

A good training drill is to set your scope on max magnification then dry fire different positions and different targets trying to have the target appear in scope first look every time.

 

[firefighter1178]

Agree with hlee, the key is reference points. Spend the time prestage to get a very precise mental image of where the target is located, both under magnification and with naked eye.

Then as you're building a position take an extra moment to carefully line up the rifle and your body so that you expect to already be on the target in scope when you first look through it. If you can do this accurately then the target should already be in front of you and easier to find.

Ideally you should never be panning around looking for targets in scope on the clock. The key training point is learning to be extremely precise in how accurately you point the rifle when building a shooting position.

A good training drill is to set your scope on max magnification then dry fire different positions and different targets trying to have the target appear in scope first look every time.

I do all that, but still struggle seeing where target ends and dirt starts. I guess I shouldn’t have use the term target acquisition. Most the time I know where on the range the target is. Just seeing the target in relation to dirt.

 

[Sheldon N]

That makes sense. I've never struggled on that aspect, but am not colorblind myself so don't have direct experience.

Maybe at your next match when you find a stage that's challenging to see the target edges ask some squad mates if you can look through their scope and see if it helps at all. I would think a TT or ZCO or newer Kahles would be an improvement over your Burris.

 

[Mongo68]

As someone else that struggles after the target is shot to gray, I wish the MDs would paint the target post as well.
But it’s a me issue so I don’t ask.