Sunday afternoon being as good a time as any, I loaded some guns in the truck and went for a shoot. Part of that meant taking down White Flyers which were placed at various ranges in these cunning brackets that stick into the ground on a spike.
It was neat shooting the clays down with a Ruger American .17 HMR and I told myself that the targets simulated small game, like rabbits. These notoriously glow bright orange. My ancient enemy, the green silhouette, took a beating too, with a CMMG AR15. Lots of fun to shoot and I worked on breathing, which affects accuracy.
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| Some Ancient Old Guy With A Gun |
Sometimes I'm tempted to hold my breath when I squeeze the trigger. Don't do that. Here's an excerpt from Art of the Rifle on how to breathe:
"Say you’re in the prone position. You’ve slung up, gotten your position just right, found your NPA and you’re ready to fire. Inhale. You’re reticle should drop. Now relax and let your breath escape naturally until it stops on its own. The reticle should rise. If your NPA is truly on, your reticle should rise and stop exactly on your target. You should now break the shot within 3-5 seconds. If you go longer than that, take another breath and start over. If you wait too long, you’re likely to have trouble focusing your vision, you’ll feel panicky and rushed, and your trigger finger may not perform its duty as well as you’d like.
"Now you know the proper method of breathing for optimum accuracy. What if you are in more of a hurry and the demand for accuracy is less pressing? Then just do what you need to do that will work to get the job done in the time allotted. This is rifle shooting, not dogma. One method may not apply to all situations. Just use your head."
Just use your head. I like that, good advice.
Shoot straight,
LSP
8 comments:
I breathe out and squeeze at the same time. It's my pattern. It works, but everyone has to find what works for them and for their particular shooting style. Results matter.
My style too, pretty much. But for sure, do what works.
For example, if a box of old socks sent to Dobby gets Patton on the Calendar -- do it.
We know that Dobby loves to get a sock. That's far more scientific than any shooting method. It's sort of like Golum and "the precious".
That's our Dobby.
I, for one, am looking forward to being issued with an ivory (genuine) handled revolver.
I always squeeze the trigger on the exhale as well. There must be something to that. Sometimes I'll even hit the target with that method.
Works for me, too. Just getting enough practice in to make it muscle memory is problematic at the moment.
I sometimes manage that too, Euripides!
If only ammo was cheaper, Brighid...
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