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Advanced Marksmanship What to do during the lockdown to build, improve, maintain skills?

DROWN

Sergeant of the Hide
Full Member
Minuteman
Oct 31, 2019
474
234
Rapidan watershed
What are your suggestions for what I can do to build, improve and maintain skills and stay motivated while ranges are closed.

My short list.

Clean and maintain rifles.
Mount scopes.
Dry fire practice.
Watch training videos and other online learning.
More dry fire practice
yard practice with bb gun.
 
Get your data setup on paper and wrist coaches.
Study ballistics and effect on the bullet during flight. Environment, MV, bc.
Reload if you have the components
Reloading is on the longer time frame. Without the ability to learn from qn experienced reloader and test the output I think it’s a risky proposition right now. Seems like powders are also in short supply?

keep them coming. Barricade training is a good one. Suburban neighbors might be worried. So maybe now is time to start that fencing project.
 
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You can also do indoor barricade practice if you get a system like the DFAT. I do this in the winter. You don't even need a specific barricade you can shoot off ladders, chairs, a bag on top of your tripod set to different heights etc.
 
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Suburban neighbors might surprise you. Some of mine are fairly liberal, but just give a nod of understanding and respect. They know I shoot competitively, and respect someone training/working at what they love. And if they don't, well, too bad.
 
Suburban neighbors might surprise you. Some of mine are fairly liberal, but just give a nod of understanding and respect. They know I shoot competitively, and respect someone training/working at what they love. And if they don't, well, too bad.
One of my neighbors shoots and has his CCL. He won’t care. The renters I don’t know too well.
 
Reloading is on the longer time frame. Without the ability to learn from qn experienced reloader and test the output I think it’s a risky proposition right now.

Worked for me..........
 
Tell me more. What was your process for learning? Just utube videos? Books? Mentors?
Books and websites. Not much in youtube back in 2002 - 2003 timeframe.

No mentors

I'm very good at self-teaching and I learn very well by reading then doing. Some people can't learn that way.

YMMV


Where to start for the most basic info?
 
Books and websites. Not much in youtube back in 2002 - 2003 timeframe.

No mentors

I'm very good at self-teaching and I learn very well by reading then doing. Some people can't learn that way.

YMMV



That's how i tore down and put back together my first engine back in the 70's when i was just a teenager and broke. Couldn't pay someone to fix my car when i dropped a valve. Bought a Chilton repair manual, went step by step. Figured out from that experience if u can read and comprehend , there's not much u can't achieve. Been doing it ever since.
 
That's how i tore down and put back together my first engine back in the 70's when i was just a teenager and broke. Couldn't pay someone to fix my car when i dropped a valve. Bought a Chilton repair manual, went step by step. Figured out from that experience if u can read and comprehend , there's not much u can't achieve. Been doing it ever since.
We did the same with our junkyard abandonned salvation army Ford Econoline.
 
I'm in the new house so I have to set up new range cards for each side of the house. I still have access to the local range. It usually empty so I don't have to worry about anything that way but it's only 100 yd compared to what I had at the old house. I started some seeds, and am getting the new garden plot ready. Other than that I've been cleaning and sorting gear to go canoe camping when I can.

I also need to get my AO/AI maps updated.
 
Get your data setup on paper and wrist coaches.
Study ballistics and effect on the bullet during flight. Environment, MV, bc.
Reload if you have the components
I have had a whole bunch of things written down chicken scratch style in my wrist coach for a while now (some of which came from you) that I've been meaning to clean up and organize. Now would be a good time to get to it..
 
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What we should do: everything already listed

What we will do:

E969114A-DDCF-49A6-B3AF-53433F66D53F.jpeg
 
I like to set up on my roof and glass people walking and driving through the neighborhood, quietly saying, "Pew!" when the crosshairs are on their foreheads. Have had a few dirty looks.
 
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I’ve gotten some decent pistol / carbine time since the crackdown. I’ve also written two classes on patrolling / small unit tactics & another on improvised shooting positions for this year when training resumes.
 
I like to set up on my roof and glass people walking and driving through the neighborhood, quietly saying, "Pew!" when the crosshairs are on their foreheads. Have had a few dirty looks.

Only if they walk into the field of view. ?

The eye test serves as dual purpose to check scopes and to bait people in to stopping.
 

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Great information and experience right here
 
MG34... one wall has those blocks they put into federal building... not kidding!

that was a loud day.... ?
 
Bahahaha.... I'm not gonna see a COVID check... gov'ment's to busy taxing us at 47% overall. (That's right, altogether they take half of what the wife and I earn... and we're not even in the 1%.)
 
Bahahaha.... I'm not gonna see a COVID check... gov'ment's to busy taxing us at 47% overall. (That's right, altogether they take half of what the wife and I earn... and we're not even in the 1%.)
Same here. No check. Still have a job though so...I'm grateful.
 
Setup my 10m air gun range in the yard yesterday. Pistol practice for now, Crossman challenger on its way for rifle training. Nothing like shooting to get better at shooting.
 
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I was bogged down in stagnated incomplete projects before the lockdown. Many of the intentions have become both redundant and inconsistent.

The lockdown actually presents a needed breather.

In my own case, the time would be better invested by clearing the deck completely, establishing a current status for each firearm, and plotting a new set of goals for each of them. None of them lack for the gadgets needed; the need is for a cogent plan to take advantage of those gadgets.

I have too many guns, but that will not be changed; guns sold are immediately missed, and forever. I'll never do that again, especially when they can be kept in the family by the pass me down approach. Some of the new goals will likely result in some functionally identical pairs, and that can work within the stated approach.

My bolt guns are already at an acceptable status; the ARs need the main attention. I never had a preponderance of bolt guns and their status has never required any extreme upgrades.

My pet loads are in disarray. Here, too, goals need to be rewritten; and a series of plans plotted for prioritized load development.

It's a matter of getting back up out out of midstream by returning to the starting point and entirely replotting the paths from that initial point.

Oh, well, let's get to work replanning. Much of that set of new goals will be framed around the basic intent to get things running right; then getting them into the younger hands in the family.

Greg
 
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I've been getting a lot of reps in with my sling. Went so far as to make my own based on the knowledge I have gained over the last few weeks to really tailor it to what I need it to do, and not do. Prone is solid. Sitting and kneeling are much, much better, but still have room for improvement.
 
Setup my 10m air gun range in the yard yesterday. Pistol practice for now, Crossman challenger on its way for rifle training. Nothing like shooting to get better at shooting.

I shoot airguns on the property as well. There's rarely a day that I don't get some trigger time in. Between airguns and dry firing the real ones, trigger time isn't a problem.

I'm lucky that my local range isn't shut down, so I'm trying to go once a week.
 
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I've been working 13hr days...so not much time off like most of you. I still dry fire for 15-20mins a day. I've also received a bunch of new toys. K&M arbor press....Sinclair/LE Wilson bullet seater....neck dies.....mandrels....reamers....cutters.....lot's and lot's of hand tools for reloading....magazines.....etc

My biggest thing was backing out each screw/bolt in my 300PRC in the MDT chassis....and re-tightening and adding blue loc-tite. If I go to a match and someone shoots crappy because their scope rails are loose...their action screws are loose...or some other excuse...I may lose it. Every weapon you own should have already been gone through 100%...twice...in this down time.
 
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