How to improve your shooting

[Bird-man]

This is a subject some will find controversial, but I read in a recent thread about this and thought I would post some tips. And this is good no matter if you are new to shooting, or an old hand. Here we go.

NUMBER ONE, MOST IMPORTANT, NOTHING ELSE MATTERS IF THIS IS WRONG!

Get a gun that fits.

How do you know it fits? Stand there. Shoulder your gun in an unhurried way. Just put it up there like you were going to shoot casually at nothing. You should be looking down the barrel and see nothing but the bead. Whether you have vent rib or not, one bead or two, doesn't matter, you should only see one bead. If you are seeing the top of the rib, or top of the barrel, or two beads, or the top of the receiver, the gun might not fit.

Or you might not be shouldering it properly.

Check where the butt pad sits in your shoulder. It should be right in that crease there where your arm meets your chest. If not, you need to practice getting it there. Just stand there and practice. Practice in front of a mirror. See what you are doing. The gun should shoulder properly, and shooting at yourself in the mirror you should only see the bead, and in the mirror all you should see is the open maw of that scatter gun.

Practice shouldering that gun. Go for smooth. Don't try to do it as fast as you can. You have more time than you think to get on that bird. Just bring it up from the ready position and snug it in your shoulder. Practice this A LOT!!! Practice until it is like putting a fork in your mouth. You can read a book, watch TV, look around the room, look out the window, do just about anything and you will still hit your mouth with a fork. Practice mounting your gun to the same position, seeing nothing but bead 50 times a day. Just stand there and do it. Then put on a heavy coat and do it some more. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.

If you are not able to accomplish this with the gun you have, it doesn't fit you and you will have a difficult time becoming a good shot. Go get a gun that fits.

You'll know it fits, because when you shoulder it the first time (and after all that practice you will shoulder it properly), all you will see is bead. I don't care if it's a Browning, Remington, Winchester, Savage, Mossberg, it doesn't matter, they all put out rounds and that's all they need to do.



SECOND, AND THIS IS ALMOST AS IMPORTANT. USE NOTHING TIGHTER THAN IMPROVED CYLINDER CHOKES.

If you have removable chokes, get rid of that modified choke and move to improved cylinder.

Todays shot gun shells are designed to keep the shot pattern together. The plastic wad used in the modern shotgun shell is all the choke you need. Using anything tighter than improved cylinder keeps the shot pattern too tight. Check it yourself. Go to a pattern board and shoot at 30 and 40 yards. Exchange the chokes and you will see what I mean. Or you can just take my word for it. You will kill more birds and YOU WILL NOT LOSE ANY EFFECTIVENESS AT DISTANCE. I guarantee it. Modified and full chokes are for duck hunters.



THIRD----GET TO A SPORTING CLAYS RANGE AND ONLY SHOOT ON THOSE STATIONS THAT SIMULATE CONDITIONS IN THE FIELD.

You will need a hundred rounds of ammo, and the clays course costs about $35-40 bucks.

Don't bother with high tower, or incoming, or those high looping throws, rabbit runs, etc. You want to be able to hit clays that erupt close in and fly either straight away or crossing from either side, or flying away going either left or right. If you are missing crossing shots, do this----GET YOUR GUN BARREL 5 FEET OUT IN FRONT OF THE CLAY TARGET. Watch the target, watch your gun barrel, and see that target 5 feet behind. Doing this will get you used to leading the bird, and, you will hit more birds in the head. Here is a picture of the result of a double on blue grouse from last week.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...1073741825.1328930038&type=1&relevant_count=1

One bird was coming at me slightly right to left and the other was about 40 yards out crossing right to left, flying hard. One breast had some bb's in it, but both birds were in great shape.

If you are missing shots going away, get the bead below the clay. The bird should be sitting on the bead. The farther out the lower you need to be. Unless it is climbing, then you need to see the bird disappear as your barrel comes above it. You don't want the bead on the clay or, in the field, on the bird. LEAD IS EVERYTHING.

SO, FINAL TIP----PRACTICE YOUR LEAD.

I have a beautiful pheasant print in my office downstairs. It is two roosters flying across a corn field with a rusty old tractor and falling down barn. I really like it. Anyway, I take my shotgun out probably two or three times a week before and during season and I swing on the first bird and I see the sight picture with the bird 3-5 feet behind the barrel of my gun, and I shoot, with the gun still moving. And I do that 40-50 times on the days I practice. I shoulder my gun, it hits me right where it should, I see the bead, I see the bird, the bird is 3-5 feet behind my sight picture and I tug the trigger. They say it is okay to dry fire any gun, but I am old school and just don't do it. I keep the safety on and just tug the trigger as though shooting.

You don't need a pheasant print to do this. You can practice on a lamp, or a kitchen cabinet, or a light switch. The important thing is train your eye to see the target behind the gun sight, pulling the trigger when the sight picture is out there in front. Muscle memory takes over after a while. And your mind will begin to automatically adjust your lead based on distance, angle, speed of the bird, etc. It is an amazing thing.

Do this. It will only cost you about a hundred fifty bucks in shells and clays course fees. (unless you need a new gun, but what could be more fun than that!!)


DO THESE THINGS AND YOU WILL BE A MUCH BETTER SHOT.

As that guy on TV says, I GUARANTEE IT!!

 

[thornton]

Just on general principles, I'll comment.

#1) Fit is overrated....however, familiarization with one's scattergun is waaay under-rated.
I was fitted with a LOP of 15 7/8" but I shoot just dandy with a factory standard 14 1/4".
Fit does indeed have a degree of importance(certainly with clays) but the human body adapts better than one might expect in the uncertain nature of a day afield involving weather, fatique, the nature of flushed birds, etc....especially, if we like the scattergun at hand.
Unless there is a physical reason that inhibits shooting with a reasonably standard stock, concentrating on other points than fit will allow one to shoot...better.

2) Eh, depends....IC is a darn good choke though....so is M or SK for swatting game birds.

3) Avoid a SCs course and find a skeet field. Shooting low gun, informal skeet offers better practice at the Big 3 fundamentals of Familiarization, Focus and Follow-thru....and, is a heck of a lot cheaper :thumbsup: and easier to opt out of a round when one begins practicing missing than SCs.
The basics of scattergunning are best, easiest and quickest learned on a skeet field.

4) Lead comes automatically with swing, focus and follow-thru if the swing is never checked in mid-stream by thinking too much....avoid every call to "watch your barrel".
It is true that some clay target presentations will be more easily shot with a certain manner of lead determination...game birds though are not clays.

5) Practice with those three mentioned fundamentals in mind, don't shoot too much and time will deliver a better shooter...in a pheasant field or deep in a grouse woods.

YMMV

 

[pheasantaddict]

Nice post Bird-man.

 

[Kismet]

Between the two of the first posts, that'd be everything I'd advise someone, were someone to ask my opinion. Primary for me would be "shouldering the shotgun." As OP said, more time for you, less for the bird.

Have fun, be safe.

 

[Bird-man]

Thornton,

To clarify.

If you read my post I am in no way talking about a "fitted" gun. I don't care about length of pull any more than you do. But, if a gunner has a good smooth consistent mount and they are not seeing a proper sight picture it may be the gun.

I was not intending for anyone to "watch their barrel." If you will read it my post says "IF you are missing shots..."

A gunner cannot improve what he does not realize. If you are missing you need to see why you are missing. Are you shooting over the target, under it, but mostly behind it. Most shooters miss behind. See where your barrel is in relation to the target. Once you see it you can correct it by "seeing the barrel of the gun out in front of the target." Once the gunner corrects that by "seeing" the proper sight picture they won't see the barrel, they won't even notice it. The proper sight picture happens automatically.

 

[thornton]

I agree that there are different roads to the same end.....looking for "a lead" is one way and works for many.
Requires too much thinking for me....each to their own successful way of shooting.

We all miss shots for many reasons, perhaps mostly from shooting too quickly or lifting our head from the gun.
Having the gun "fit" as you mention or being familiar with it in mine, can be much the same and will go far toward connecting often enough for government work.

Regardless, it is good to be always considering just a bit on how to be a bit better shot.

Other than the SCs mention, you had good thoughts to consider for us all.
:cheers:

 

[Bird-man]

I've never shot skeet, but what I like about the SC course is that there are such a variety of angles that simulate birds in the field. Straight away, away left, away right, crossing left, crossing right, crossing right going away, etc, etc, and like I said I ignore those stations that don't look like something I would see a wild upland bird doing.

I will have to see if I can find a skeet range around here and take a look.

And, one final thougth, my suggestions were for guys who were having trouble. If anyone has any method that works why fix what ain't broke.

It's like Jim Furyk's golf swing. There isn't a golf coach anywhere that would say, do it that way! :cheers:

 

[Bird-man]

Nice post Bird-man.

Thanks, addict. Too many guys think they can put the gun in the closet for 9 months then walk out in the field and start dropping birds. Makes no sense.

Not sure if people have noticed, but Tiger Woods warms up and practices before every round....along with every other golfer, and every professional athlete in every sport...the best in the world. They all practice. But for some reason hunters think they can just dust off the old scatter gun walk out there and bang away and the birds should drop.

Doing those things I posted has altered my bird hunting experience 1000%.

As hunters it is in our, and the birds, best interest to practice. More dead birds, fewer misses, fewer lost birds.

 

[carptom1]

Thanks, addict. Too many guys think they can put the gun in the closet for 9 months then walk out in the field and start dropping birds. Makes no sense.

Not sure if people have noticed, but Tiger Woods warms up and practices before every round....along with every other golfer, and every professional athlete in every sport...the best in the world. They all practice. But for some reason hunters think they can just dust off the old scatter gun walk out there and bang away and the birds should drop.

Doing those things I posted has altered my bird hunting experience 1000%.

As hunters it is in our, and the birds, best interest to practice. More dead birds, fewer misses, fewer lost birds.

The same guy's don't work with their dogs on, at the very least, simple obedience then wonder why they won't preform in the field. I don't lose many birds either, that might have something to do with running retrievers. One of the things I would add to being successful would be shot selection. Too many guy's want to make a miracle shot of 60+ yards. For every one of those that is made and found, many more are lost and not recovered.

 

[Bird-man]

carptom,

Agreed and agreed. I spent too many years in the field missing easy shots, cussing a blue streak wondering what the he11 was wrong. And for years I never did anything about it.

 

[mustistuff]

chokes

This is a subject some will find controversial, but I read in a recent thread about this and thought I would post some tips. And this is good no matter if you are new to shooting, or an old hand. Here we go.

NUMBER ONE, MOST IMPORTANT, NOTHING ELSE MATTERS IF THIS IS WRONG!

Get a gun that fits.

How do you know it fits? Stand there. Shoulder your gun in an unhurried way. Just put it up there like you were going to shoot casually at nothing. You should be looking down the barrel and see nothing but the bead. Whether you have vent rib or not, one bead or two, doesn't matter, you should only see one bead. If you are seeing the top of the rib, or top of the barrel, or two beads, or the top of the receiver, the gun might not fit.

Or you might not be shouldering it properly.

Check where the butt pad sits in your shoulder. It should be right in that crease there where your arm meets your chest. If not, you need to practice getting it there. Just stand there and practice. Practice in front of a mirror. See what you are doing. The gun should shoulder properly, and shooting at yourself in the mirror you should only see the bead, and in the mirror all you should see is the open maw of that scatter gun.

Practice shouldering that gun. Go for smooth. Don't try to do it as fast as you can. You have more time than you think to get on that bird. Just bring it up from the ready position and snug it in your shoulder. Practice this A LOT!!! Practice until it is like putting a fork in your mouth. You can read a book, watch TV, look around the room, look out the window, do just about anything and you will still hit your mouth with a fork. Practice mounting your gun to the same position, seeing nothing but bead 50 times a day. Just stand there and do it. Then put on a heavy coat and do it some more. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.

If you are not able to accomplish this with the gun you have, it doesn't fit you and you will have a difficult time becoming a good shot. Go get a gun that fits.

You'll know it fits, because when you shoulder it the first time (and after all that practice you will shoulder it properly), all you will see is bead. I don't care if it's a Browning, Remington, Winchester, Savage, Mossberg, it doesn't matter, they all put out rounds and that's all they need to do.



SECOND, AND THIS IS ALMOST AS IMPORTANT. USE NOTHING TIGHTER THAN IMPROVED CYLINDER CHOKES.

If you have removable chokes, get rid of that modified choke and move to improved cylinder.

Todays shot gun shells are designed to keep the shot pattern together. The plastic wad used in the modern shotgun shell is all the choke you need. Using anything tighter than improved cylinder keeps the shot pattern too tight. Check it yourself. Go to a pattern board and shoot at 30 and 40 yards. Exchange the chokes and you will see what I mean. Or you can just take my word for it. You will kill more birds and YOU WILL NOT LOSE ANY EFFECTIVENESS AT DISTANCE. I guarantee it. Modified and full chokes are for duck hunters.



THIRD----GET TO A SPORTING CLAYS RANGE AND ONLY SHOOT ON THOSE STATIONS THAT SIMULATE CONDITIONS IN THE FIELD.

You will need a hundred rounds of ammo, and the clays course costs about $35-40 bucks.

Don't bother with high tower, or incoming, or those high looping throws, rabbit runs, etc. You want to be able to hit clays that erupt close in and fly either straight away or crossing from either side, or flying away going either left or right. If you are missing crossing shots, do this----GET YOUR GUN BARREL 5 FEET OUT IN FRONT OF THE CLAY TARGET. Watch the target, watch your gun barrel, and see that target 5 feet behind. Doing this will get you used to leading the bird, and, you will hit more birds in the head. Here is a picture of the result of a double on blue grouse from last week.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...1073741825.1328930038&type=1&relevant_count=1

One bird was coming at me slightly right to left and the other was about 40 yards out crossing right to left, flying hard. One breast had some bb's in it, but both birds were in great shape.

If you are missing shots going away, get the bead below the clay. The bird should be sitting on the bead. The farther out the lower you need to be. Unless it is climbing, then you need to see the bird disappear as your barrel comes above it. You don't want the bead on the clay or, in the field, on the bird. LEAD IS EVERYTHING.

SO, FINAL TIP----PRACTICE YOUR LEAD.

I have a beautiful pheasant print in my office downstairs. It is two roosters flying across a corn field with a rusty old tractor and falling down barn. I really like it. Anyway, I take my shotgun out probably two or three times a week before and during season and I swing on the first bird and I see the sight picture with the bird 3-5 feet behind the barrel of my gun, and I shoot, with the gun still moving. And I do that 40-50 times on the days I practice. I shoulder my gun, it hits me right where it should, I see the bead, I see the bird, the bird is 3-5 feet behind my sight picture and I tug the trigger. They say it is okay to dry fire any gun, but I am old school and just don't do it. I keep the safety on and just tug the trigger as though shooting.

You don't need a pheasant print to do this. You can practice on a lamp, or a kitchen cabinet, or a light switch. The important thing is train your eye to see the target behind the gun sight, pulling the trigger when the sight picture is out there in front. Muscle memory takes over after a while. And your mind will begin to automatically adjust your lead based on distance, angle, speed of the bird, etc. It is an amazing thing.

Do this. It will only cost you about a hundred fifty bucks in shells and clays course fees. (unless you need a new gun, but what could be more fun than that!!)


DO THESE THINGS AND YOU WILL BE A MUCH BETTER SHOT.

As that guy on TV says, I GUARANTEE IT!!

while fit, custom, is likely over rated, being comfortable handling the gun is not. you have to be fluid and that takes time using the gun. as far as your statements on imp, cly. chokes you are either all wet or at least incomplete in your implied effectiveness of chokes. distance surely effects choke pattern and 40 yards is a long ways, the size, ie: number of pellets in that choke pattern is important, you failed to take that into consideration, also some of us use different guages which effect densities and you don't seem to understand that. a mod. choke in most guns is a very viable and useful choke, full is mostly obsolete. while you may not reload, some of us do, those that do can reload a shell to change any choke and change it a great deal. about the only thing you have said that is mostly correct is that more people would kill more birds with an open choke rather than a closed one regardless of the size of pellet. you are painting with a pretty broad brush here but i enjoy a kinda different post. speed kills and that was not mentioned either. anyway

cheers

 

[birdshooter]

I've never shot skeet, but what I like about the SC course is that there are such a variety of angles that simulate birds in the field. Straight away, away left, away right, crossing left, crossing right, crossing right going away, etc, etc, and like I said I ignore those stations that don't look like something I would see a wild upland bird doing.

You just described everything you can simulate on a skeet layout.

Nothing wrong with using a trap field either as upland birds are generally flying away from you in some manner of quartering or going away motion. Both Skeet and trap shot in a low gun ready position is good practice for most wingshooting. Add in more realism and have the trapper release the bird at his discretion not yours.

One more thing you may have overlooked that many people take for granted is your master or dominant eye. Much more important than a perfectly fitting gun. A right handed shooter with a dominant left eye will not be looking where his barrel is pointed and vice verse for a lefty with a dominant right eye. There are a number of things you can do to try overcome an opposite dominant eye and if your new to shooting, changing the side you shoot from is always recommended.

If I may make a point on wingshooting or target shooting with a shotgun. The moment your eyes leave the target/bird and goes back to the barrel, gun speed or barrel speed will suffer and you will likely shoot behind. Shifting your eyes from target to barrel and back again trying to make it perfect will result in the same thing. Seeing the barrel in your peripheral vision is entirely a different thing altogether. You can stay focused on a target 100% time and still have barrel awareness. More times than not if you focus intently on the leading edge of the target/bird, your brain will know where to put the gun instinctively. The exception to this may be a very long crossing type shot where a conscious gap may need to be seen as in pass shooting waterfowl.

 

[huntsem]

Those are some good tips.

In my opinion gun fit IS IMPORTANT and I always adjust or cut and shave my shotgun and rifle stocks to fit my shoulder, neck, face and sight plane. The amount and type of clothing I'm wearing also has an effect on my gun handling.

When shooting a double I do use a tighter choke in the second barrel, usually modified but my choice usually depends on hunting conditions and how the birds are acting. Late season birds can often pose longer range shots on average.

I also frequently exercise shouldering and pointing my gun for practice at home and in the field, it gets my dog pretty excited and ready too.

I read a couple of Orvis books on wing shooting that I found very informative and helpful.

Practice on clay targets is certainly a big plus.

Here's a recent post on DU's web site on shooting tips for waterfowl which in many cases can also be applied to shooting upland birds;
Master Five Important Shots



*

 

[birdshooter]

In my opinion gun fit IS IMPORTANT
*

It is.

However, a gun not need fit PERFECTLY (key word) to be serviceable. Most off the rack guns will fit someone with an average build reasonably well. If you are tall and have long neck and or arms or smaller stature with short arms then getting a gun fit will certainly become more important. Same goes for a round fat face or thin face. Cast and drop at comb will probably be two measurements that will have the biggest affect.

 

[SetterNut]

This is a nice thread.

I know that when I am in a shooting slump, practicing the mount for a while will generally fix the problems. :thumbsup:

 

[NOPLCLKNEB]

Good thread, lots of good info.

 

[mustistuff]

master eye

don't believe that your master eye has much of anything to do with your shotgun shooting if you are doing it correctly. hitting the bird properly comes not from aiming but hand eye coordination, in other words the shot should go where you are looking and in that regard your eyes are working together. having the wrong master eye would matter only if you are seeing your gun barrel, seeing you gun barrel is a pretty sure way of missing most shots especially those under 45 or so yards. seeing your barrel on long cross shots and actually aiming is viable at the 50 or 60 yard cross shots . you should be looking where you want the shot to go and nothing else, your hand will follow your eyes if the gun is mounted properly.

cheers

 

[carptom1]

I have noticed that as I get older I need to practice more. Reaction time, movement and everything else is slowing down. Much like anything else much of it lies in your footwork. If you are unbalanced on your feet your shot will often times be off. I was always taught to step towards the target. Funny when I was young I never missed hunting over pointy dogs. But once I got these damn Labs, my misses have been more frequent. But if I can get them on the ground, they are in the bag.

Funny thing, one of the best shots I ever hunted with was this old guy named Al. Al had been severely injured when he was younger and it left his left arm basically useless. He shot an old a-5 with a full choke. The full was fine for him because he was so slow getting the gun up that the bird was never closer than 35-40 yards when he shot. He basically shot one-handed with an assist from his worthless left arm. Great blocker pass shooter. Much of shooting is in your head. If you miss a couple forget about it and get the next one.

 

[mustistuff]

spot on

I have noticed that as I get older I need to practice more. Reaction time, movement and everything else is slowing down. Much like anything else much of it lies in your footwork. If you are unbalanced on your feet your shot will often times be off. I was always taught to step towards the target. Funny when I was young I never missed hunting over pointy dogs. But once I got these damn Labs, my misses have been more frequent. But if I can get them on the ground, they are in the bag.

Funny thing, one of the best shots I ever hunted with was this old guy named Al. Al had been severely injured when he was younger and it left his left arm basically useless. He shot an old a-5 with a full choke. The full was fine for him because he was so slow getting the gun up that the bird was never closer than 35-40 yards when he shot. He basically shot one-handed with an assist from his worthless left arm. Great blocker pass shooter. Much of shooting is in your head. If you miss a couple forget about it and get the next one.

missing will get you thinking and thinking will get you aiming and aiming will get you missing, then you need a beer, clear your head and then just go do it

cheers

 

[thornton]

don't believe that your master eye has much of anything to do with your shotgun shooting if you are doing it correctly......... having the wrong master eye would matter only if you are seeing your gun barrel,....

Nope, on both.

One can be tight to the gun using proper shooting procedure and if the wrong eye, derived either through the Master eye or through an eye becoming the master eye from fatique or a bad prescription or a changing prescription, takes over first sight strongly enough....the clay or bird will be more difficult to hit.

One also must factor in the lucky BB when some shots are ended positively....and be wise enough to disregard those as indicative of any more than that luck.