[Shmackey]

Last week, I took my new Kimber Classic to the range. I put the first magazine all in the black, and then proceeded to shoot low-right the rest of the day. I thought it was the pistol, so I stripped and cleaned it. All looked normal.

Went back today. Sure enough, the first three shots were in the black, and then they started creeping off low-right.

Now, according to those charts, I'm squeezing the gun while pulling the trigger. Is there anything I can do besides dry-firing to remedy this? And how would I know, when I'm dry-firing, if I'm still doing it?

I guess a general question would be: before, during, and after a shot, what should your hands be doing? "Nothing" isn't really a good answer; just letting the muzzle flip all the way up in the air appears to be a bad habit too.

Thanks.

 

[Maxthemutt]

I would say not to concentrate on the recoil. Hard to do with heavier calibers. Just let the recoil happen. It is what it is. Just concentrate on THE shot.
JMO, good luck, Max

PS Thats the mental aspect, you can prepare for the physical by lifting weights, etc.

 

[mavrick]

I'll start this by saying I'm no expert.. this is just how I do it, ok? But here it is anyway, for what it's worth.

First, when you dry fire.. really concentrate on that front sight, as you "break" the shot. If the sight moves, or dips when you fire the shot, you should see it. That front sight movement will show you if your squeezing or milking the gun. The idea is to get to where you can drop the hammer and front sight doesn't move.

A couple of things that helped me were one, prepping the trigger. What I mean is, as your getting the gun on target, you press the trigger untill you feel alittle resistance. Now, hold against that resistance, refine your sight picture, focus on the front sight and then fire the shot. Without getting too long winded.. prepping the trigger allows you to break the shot more cleanly, it's a small thing, but it will help you to be more accurate, and consistant. The second thing is the grip. I firmed up my grip and it helped alot. Not so firm that I'm straining muscles or having the pistol quiver. I'm not talking about a death grip, but firm enough to see a faint grip mark in my hands when I let go. I know your "supposed" to grip the gun with equal pressure, but my grip is closer to 60 percent with my support hand and 40 percent with my shooting hand. That allows my trigger finger to be more relaxed and I can break the shots more easily.

It's already been mentioned, but dryfire is a great way to practice.. dryfire lets you practice that old "principles of marksmanship" thing.. align the sights, prep the trigger, focus on the front sight, let the rear sight and target blur, then fire the shot. front sight, trigger... front sight, trigger....

There's a couple of things you may wanna try.. hope you can gain something from it. Good luck and great shooting.

mavrick




[This message has been edited by mavrick (edited 11-02-2001).]

 

[dsk]

I take it that you're left-handed? Right handers usually throw their shots low and to the left. Your focus should always be on the front sight, and making a smooth, consistent pull. What your hands do after the shot is inconsequential because the bullet has already been sent on its way.

The best thing to do is shoot one mag, then dry fire at the range, then another mag. It may also help to get a .22 conversion unit for your gun.

------------------
D. Kamm
USGI M1911/M1911A1 Pistols Website
http://www.geocities.com/M1911_M1911A1

 

[Shmackey]

Nope. Righty here. I got the same question last time. That's why I don't think it's the standard flinch from anticipating recoil. Fact is, I don't give a hoot about recoil. Kinda like it, actually.

I have two guns because I'm interested in bullseye. The other is...you guessed it...a .22. And I never have any trouble with that.

 

[Highspeed]

Have your tried having someone else load your mag with a random dummy round? You may be flinching even though you think you aren't. Most righties flinch low/left, though, as was said.

Sorry I'm of no real help...just thought I'd throw an idea out there.

 

[MuzzleBlast]

Something else to try, in addition to dry fire practice: Load your mags with only one round, shoot one round at a time. Make sure you are focusing entirely on the front sight. When the shot breaks and the muzzle flips, your focus should still be close so you see something else in clear focus, like the hammer of the gun, your shooting hand, etc.

 

[Baer1911]

Shmackey,

Check out http://www.bullseyepistol.com and read the pages "Application of the fundamentals" and "Error analysis and correction".

Hope that helps.

------------------
Matthew 24:6
"You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things MUST take place...

 

[bountyhunter]

Hold the right hand GENTLY on the gun and clamp tight with your left. Just tickle the trigger until it fires and let the gun rise and fall back without any interference from you. It should lift straight up. If not, maybe that's the problem. Direction of recoil can pull shots off slightly as the gun muzzle does lift a slight amount before the bullet exits. Off-center muzzle rise also indicates a grip that is not even in pressure. Another thing to try is revers hands and try left-handed and see if it is mirrored..

 

[jra]

What has helped me is to load 1 rnd in the magazine and insert the mag into the gun. I would proceed to dryfire 3 shots at my target as if my gun were loaded. I would then rack the slide to load the gun and repeat the process only now I would have a live rnd in the chamber. Do this with a box or two of ammo and you should notice a good improvement in your shooting skills. This has helped me and several of my friends overcome the dreaded flinching problem.

 

[Shmackey]

Thanks for all the advice!

Think I cleared up most of the problem. The biggest problem is that it helps if the shot break is a surprise, and I was making that impossible. I was squeezing the trigger until I could feel that the shot was about to go, and then I'd finish up. Instead, now I start a steady squeeze from the very beginning of the trigger.

I also found that I'm almost as good one-handed, which leads me to believe that my two hands are doing battle down there rather than steadying things.

 

[GLV]

I shoot a good bit at 100 yards--from a braced sitting position with a 1911. My target is a 12 inch round steel plate. I also like to shoot regular 8 inch plates offhand at 50 to 75 yards, and pepper poppers at 200 yards.

All of the above requires excellent sight and trigger concentration. A surprise break and the ability to call each shot are necessary for success.

Ball and dummy training really helps--in that with no recoil, you can see exactly what is going on. Just mix a couple of dummy rounds in each magazine, put mags in pouch, and start your practice. Do this each time you go to the range.

The benifits are mulitple--makes one aware of sight and flinch problems. Gives one the opportunity to perform remedial action drills, and will make one very aware of any sharp edges on the gun.

Try it! You will like it! GLV