nerd-with-a-gun
Member
I recently acquired a new handgun and was anxious to take it to the range and see how it shoots. Well, my first outing with it was disappointing to say the least. I was shooting high and to the left by 4"-6". Previously I was shooting pretty accurately with a 9mm semi-auto and a 6" revolver, and was very happy with my progress. I am new to handguns and just started shooting only 6 months ago and at this point I can keep all of my shots in the 9 ring at 10 yards.
The first thing I thought is that I need to adjust for elevation and windage. I thought that maybe the rear adjustable sight had gotten out of alignment. So I cranked the rear sight a few notches up and to the left. My next range trip proved to be much better. I was hitting the target pretty much where I wanted to, but still not as good as I had before my new acquisition. Then I looked at the rear sight and noticed that I had moved it all the way to the left. I realized that there is no way that the gun could be that much out of alignment. That got me to thinking... it can't be the gun, it has to be me.
So my next range trip I really concentrated on trigger pull. After all, I had already learned that the real key to accuracy is a smooth, consistent trigger pull. I set the rear sight back to where it was and went back to basics, that is really concentrating on my trigger pull. Lo and behold, I was hitting the 10 ring again. All I did by adjusting the rear sight was compensate for poor technique.
Perhaps this is old news to many, but it taught me a lesson. I was so excited over my new gun, I forgot how to shoot. I forgot to concentrate on what I consider to be the single most important aspect of shooting accuracy and that is trigger pull. I also learned that if you don't know if it is the gun or the shooter that is at fault, work on the shooter first, usually that is where the problem is.
The first thing I thought is that I need to adjust for elevation and windage. I thought that maybe the rear adjustable sight had gotten out of alignment. So I cranked the rear sight a few notches up and to the left. My next range trip proved to be much better. I was hitting the target pretty much where I wanted to, but still not as good as I had before my new acquisition. Then I looked at the rear sight and noticed that I had moved it all the way to the left. I realized that there is no way that the gun could be that much out of alignment. That got me to thinking... it can't be the gun, it has to be me.
So my next range trip I really concentrated on trigger pull. After all, I had already learned that the real key to accuracy is a smooth, consistent trigger pull. I set the rear sight back to where it was and went back to basics, that is really concentrating on my trigger pull. Lo and behold, I was hitting the 10 ring again. All I did by adjusting the rear sight was compensate for poor technique.
Perhaps this is old news to many, but it taught me a lesson. I was so excited over my new gun, I forgot how to shoot. I forgot to concentrate on what I consider to be the single most important aspect of shooting accuracy and that is trigger pull. I also learned that if you don't know if it is the gun or the shooter that is at fault, work on the shooter first, usually that is where the problem is.
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