Posted: 12/15/2001 10:42:20 AM EDT
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I’ve listed below the 4 marksmanship principles that I was taught in the Canadian Armed Forces combined with tips and techniques I’ve learned through 11 years of instructing soldiers and correctional officers. This isn’t meant to be the “be all end all” on shooting but merely a resource that hopefully will help some or all of you. These principles apply to shooting as a whole but some will be hard to accomplish outside of competitive shooting. (IE actual self-defense). Also for simplicity I’m writing this as it applies to a right-handed shooter. It applies to left-handed shooters the same way by using your left hand where I say right or strong hand. [b]Position & Hold.[/b] Position is important in that you have to be as comfortable as possible. This will take practice to know what is the best position for your shooting style and body type. I’m going to separate hold into 2 parts, rifle and handgun. [b]Rifle[/b]. When holding a rifle it is important to keep it firmly into the shoulder without applying so much pressure that your arm starts to fatigue and shake. If you are not sure of the proper spot on your shoulder for the butt then you can “roll into position”. Simply raise your right elbow up parallel to the ground while holding the butt into your shoulder then lower it. This will position the butt in the proper place. Exert enough pressure straight back to keep the butt in your shoulder but again not enough that your arm will tire quickly. Your strong hand should be as high on the pistol grip (if the rifle has one) as possible. This will ensure you get a straight back pull with your trigger finger. Don’t squeeze the pistol grip like your clenching your fist. I keep my fingertips relaxed thus not putting any side pressure on the grip. Your left hand should be placed on the hand guard, fore stock or where ever it is comfortable for you to reach. Grasp the fore stock with a relaxed grip. Basically all you are doing is supporting the front of the rifle. If you grip it tight enough that your fingertips turn white that is to tight. You will exert pressure on the rifle and cause movement. Whenever possible use bone to support your rifle. IE in prone keep your left arm as straight as possible under the rifle. [I]To demo this I would hold a rifle in the prone position and get a soldier to sit on the fore stock. If you had proper position you could support their weight. If your arm was off to the left then you couldn’t hold them up because you were using muscle instead of bone to support your rifle.[/I] |
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[b]Handgun[/b] Having the proper hold or grip on a handgun is more important then a rifle because unlike a rifle that has 3 points of contact with your body..A handgun has 1 or 2 depending on your grip. Because it is a short barrel weapon it is affected more by improper grip as far as point of impact. Grasp the pistol grip as high as you can. Either with the web between your thumb and index finger touching the beaver tail or at the top of the grip frame on a revolver. This serves two purposes. It gives you the straight back pull with your trigger finger and it gives you a place to “index” your hand so you get the same grip every time. You want the gun as low in your hand as possible to help control muzzle flip. Grasp the pistol grip with your strong hand shaped like a C. You want the pressure from your hand to be straight back and straight forward on the grip frame. You should exert just enough pressure with your strong hand to keep the gun from falling out of your grasp. [I] If you squeeze the grip for all your worth 2 things will happen. You will put side pressure on the gun causing your shots to hit left or right and your control of your trigger finger will suffer. I get students to try this. Clench your fist as tight as you can. Now move your trigger finger like you were squeezing off a shot. Then make a relaxed fist and try it again. Notice the difference?[/I] Now take your weak hand and place your fingers on top of your strong hand fingers and your thumb on your strong hand in the V formed by your thumb and index finger. Keep your weak hand fingers as straight as possible and apply firm pressure on your strong hand with your weak hand. Apply the pressure like a C-clamp. If your curl your fingers around the fingers of your strong hand you will have a tendency to apply side pressure[b] Be sure to press straight back & forward.[/b] It will take some practice to find the right spot for your thumb as applying pressure in the wrong spot will cause the muzzle to move. If you can’t get a comfortable grip with your weak hand thumb on your strong hand, place it on top of your strong hand thumb and apply pressure down. This will work but not as good as placing your thumb on the V. If you have the proper grip you should be able to shove a pencil up between the pistol grip and the palm of your strong hand. [I]I make a conscious effort to push the tips of my strong hand fingers out against the palm of my weak hand to ensure I’m not applying side pressure with them.[/I] |
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[b]Natural Alignment[/b] To check if you have “natural alignment” on your target take up a shooting position and sight in on center of mass. (I will refer to standing unsupported with a handgun for the explanation.) Now close your eyes and lower your weapon down to a 45-degree angle or more. With your eyes still closed raise your weapon back up into shooting position. If you are “naturally aligned” your sights should be on center of mass again. If not adjust your stance or body position and repeat until you are. What you are doing is finding a position that you will naturally point at the target without using muscle to bring the sight on target horizontally. If you have to move your arms or upper body left or right to find center of mass your point of impact will move because as you shoot you will relax and your body will move back to it’s “natural” position. [b]Sight Picture.[/b] Sight Radius : The distance between the rear and front sight on a weapon. The greater the distance the more accurate it will be. Eye relief: Is the distance between your eye and the rear sight. It is important to have the same eye relief every time to get the same sight picture. When you engage your target with your sights ensure the front sight is centered in the rear sight and centered in the target. Humans like things to be centered and will do this subconsciously. With a peep sight you will naturally center the front sight in the middle of the aperture. With handgun sights make sure the tip of the front sight is level with the top of the back sight. With fixed sights you might have to adjust this to move your point of impact. As for the target you will naturally center your front sight in the middle of the target but focus on the target long enough to confirm it is your target. People have a hard time believing that you will center the front sight on the target naturally and will try and focus between the front sight and target trying to make sure it is still in the center. I cannot emphasize enough to [b]focus on the front sight[/b]. Don’t worry about the sight moving around on the target. You cannot hold your weapon perfectly still so don’t bother trying to. When shooting a rifle try your best to place your head in the same spot every time. I touch the charging handle on my AR with the tip of my nose thus ensuring the same eye relief and the same sight picture. One more thing..[b]FRONT SIGHT…FRONT SIGHT…FRONT SIGHT….FRONT SIGHT.[/b] |
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[b]Shot Release & Follow Through or Trigger Control.[/b] Trigger control and grip are probably the most important part of shooting a handgun. You can have the best position, sight picture and match grade weapon but if your grip and trigger control are bad..your shot will be too. When you squeeze the trigger it should be a steady, not to fast, not to slow pressure. Once you commit to squeezing the trigger don’t stop. [I]This applies only if you are still engaging your target.[/I] Some shooters have a tendency to watch the hammer as it moves and try and predict when the round will go off. These people will start and stop their trigger pull. Don’t do it. The same applies when your front sight is moving like it is in a hurricane. Ignore it and concentrate on front sight and smooth continuous trigger control. When the round is fired continue holding the trigger to the rear. This is proper follow through. It is possible to release the trigger before the round has exited the barrel and cause your point of impact to move. The AR family of weapons will tell you if you have proper trigger control. If you hear a click when you release the trigger your follow through was good. What you are hearing is the disconnector releasing the hammer and the sear engaging the hammer. If you don’t hear it that means you released the trigger to soon and the noise of the round covered the sound of the trigger group. With a revolver you won’t hear any sound. With a pistol you might. Train yourself to hold the trigger to the rear. [b]Breathing[/b] We all do it..so why stop when you’re shooting. Different methods work for different people. Here is a base from which to experiment. Take a deep breath and let it all out. Take a second breath and let half out and pause. This will give you a 5 or 6 second period where there should be minimal movement. Don’t hold your breath and try and squeeze off a shot. If you shoot IPSC or as in my case service rifle where some matches you are running before shooting.. you will develop a method real quick that works for you. [blue]Like I mentioned at the top. This is not the "be all end all" of shooting. This is the basics that you need to master in order to improve your shooting ability. Some might work for you, some might not. Old habits are hard to break and if it works..why fix it? But if you are having problems consistently..one of the principles above might solve it for you. I hope anyone who can share a different method or elaborate will jump in. If I can further explain anything let me know.[/blue] |