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Posted: 5/10/2006 6:25:14 PM EDT
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Hello, I'm a fairly inexperienced shooter, and I am very slender. I usually stick with ARs due to the lower recoil, but I do go hunting, and so I shoot higher powered rifles hunting. Last dear season, I was sighting in my rifle for a new scope, and for some reason it would hit me in the face every couple of rounds. I would adjust my position to make sure the stock was tight against my shoulder, and my friends/hunting buddies never had the same problem when they shot it. So, after a few outings with this rifle, I ended up flinching every time I shot it. Fast forward about 6 months, and I'm still having problems. My marksman ship (though never anything to brag about) has complete gone to the crapper, to the point where I always miss game animals, and i have problems getting good groups and shooting 3-gun. So, I'm desperate, here, what can I do to stop it? I know it's really bad because if my rifle doesn't go off, I tense up, and it pulls the rifle really badly. If I ever want to hit anything again, I must get rid of the flinch. Any tips/pointers would be greatly appreciated.  Couch-Commando |
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Move your scope to where it doesn't hit you if you haven't already done so. Buy some snap caps and random load them into your mags as your loading them. Concentrate on pressing the trigger slowly slowly. Take your time with each shot. Don't think about flinching just concentrate on pressing that trigger just as slowly as you can. It should come as a complete surprise when the sear breaks. Also do a lot of dry firing. You can also have a friend slap you upside the back of the head everytime you flinch. Use caution with the last method. It can sometimes make you flinch for no reason at all. Especially when your friends are standing behind you. 
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On the flinch - Get someone to load the rifle for you without you knowing if its loaded or not. Then fire at your target, concentrating on the usual, frontsight trigger control. Get them to watch your master and non master eyes while you squeeze. If you flinch they are to hit you with a wet bus ticket or something else (BUT NOT an elephant, they will put their back out). Easy fix. Keep doing that til your flinch problem goes. On the scope issue. If its a big gun, get an extended eye relief job. Do they call that half round cut the top of your scope leaves above your eye an "Idiot Ring" over there
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*** crap you beat me to it, millsie*** Have your buddies load your rifle for you, inserting used brass(or a dummy round) randomly to first gage the severity of your flinch(this way you won't know when it will go boom and when it won’t, thus reveling how much of your problem is you, and how much is recoil). It sounds somewhat physiological, proper cheek wield, and the stock firmly seated should help. Proper eye relief in relation to your scope could be an issue. Know your weapon, heck shoot it without a scope a few times to eliminate your apprehension about getting black eyed by your weapon. You may even adjust you cheek wield and form if you are not used to scoped weapons. Hope this helps. |
What would you use intead on an elephant. A noodle? A pic of David Hastlehoff? I have cut my eye brow a couple of times. But mostly shooting up hill from a prone position when I had to get a qucik shot off (and not holding onto the foreend, so it jumped a bit (.270 semi)). It hurts, but a bit of clarit running into your eyes is a good look 
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In a pamphlet I have by Steve Casull titled, "Real Ergo Shooting Technique", he outlines this problem. He advises to start by taking a wood board, and a mallet. place your hand on the board, fingers spread wide, then hit the board with the mallet 50 times, leaving plenty of room, so as to not hit your hand, obviously. Then change hands. Also just shoot fast at different targets laying on the ground before you go for targets, get in tune with the weapon. Sounds a little wacked, but it worked for my wife and daughter. The pamphlet is circulated around government agency weapons training facilities. It's free, but asks for an "honor donation" to any pro gun foundation of your choice. FYI, another interesting part is "eye to barrell coordination", at the range, start with a .22 pistol. Set up targets about 3 feet from you. Don't look throught the sights, just shoot at the target. Take notice as to the feel of the weapon and how it is following where you want to target. When you master 3 feet, go to six, then nine and so on to 25, maybe 50. Next time shooting start at 3 feet again, and follow the regimen again. It won't be long before you can REALLY shoot. His reasoning is that in a real situation, sighting is practically a waste of time. And we're supposed to be training for a purpose. |
 Your kidding right? |
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Dry fire followed with .22. Shoot with no recoil until it is absolutely mind numbingly boring, then dry fire and shoot some more .22. Having someone else load the rifle is very good once you go back to centerfire recoil. Dont do more than a very few centerfire rounds at a time. Swap back and forth from .22 and centerfire. Flinches are nasty insidious things, once you get your mind programed to anticipate the recoil, it takes a lot to get yourself trained past it. |
Yeah, I did move the scope, but the damage has been done. thanks for the tips. |
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What caliber is the rifle? Do you have the Butler Creek scope covers on it? I had this same problem with a .300 win mag, dropped down to a .270 never had the problem again. Had Butler creek covers it kept slapping me on the recoil, I removed them. Saw a person flinching with a M-16, the range officer stacked quaters on the handguard and had them shoot until they stopped flinging coins, another range officer would stand behind another person with the flinch and whip them on the back or accross the helmet with a cleaning rod.
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