Tips for holding my rifles steady

[Flynt]

I'm trying to teach myself to hunt and shoot, and I need help holding my rifles steady. I zero in on a bench rest, with 9X or higher scopes. I must be doing something wrong because I have a little bit of wiggle that is of course exaggerated at 100 yds. In other words, I can't keep the reticles steady on the middle of the ten ring no matter what I try. Are there any good books or on line sources that can help me fix this? Thanks.

 

[Deer Hunter]

Do you steady yourself with a sling while shooting offhand?

 

[MMcfpd]

I have essential tremors and contemplate this a bit as I shoot. At the bench I anchor the handguard on my left hand and aim the rifle with my right hand putting a little tension on it with a slight pull. For standing and shooting a sling around the left arm makes a huge difference.

 

[rust collector]

Flynt, there are lots of resources out there, but nothing is as good as a personal coach. You can have that by attending a hunter or firearms safety course. In most states they are inexpensive or free, and you get a manual and other information that will help you a lot.

The international hunter education association has some good basic stuff at
http://ihea.com/ and you can learn plenty just by googling shooting positions (e.g. prone, kneeling, offhand) and shooting sling. Then, get you a mat and remember, the closer to mother earth you get, the less your muzzle will move. With practice you will learn what the position does for you, will control your breathing, and will master the trigger squeeze. It's an amazing process and fun too.

Get out with a competitive shooter during sight-in days or through a call to a nearby NRA or CMP affiliated club. They'll be glad to help you.

 

[skinewmexico]

Turning the magnification down on your scope will help a lot.

 

[dead on]

keepin steady

are you sighting your gun in?. are you using a bench rest that fully supports your gun?. or using sand bags? if your using the benchrest, i have found that sighting in my guns with as little human touch on the gun is the best for me, takes out the human error of not keepin it steady. was just wondering what caliber your shooting, if its a high power rifle, you might have a bit of a nervous feeling about it..i have had this when i would shoot my 300 win mag, all that recoil sucks, but i bought a lead sled rest and it now kicks like a .223....hope this helps

 

[jimbob86]

Google Nation of Riflemen. Kim du Toit has a link.

 

[Commander Guineapig]

I just picked up two books at the Libarry...
"The Hunter's guide to accurate shooting"
by Wayne Van Zwoll
and
"The Ultimate in Rifle Accuracy"
by Glenn Newick.
Because I have admitted to myself that really, my accuracy sucks and I need to work on it. Both books have been awesome, but the first more so. Techniques, dos and donts, etc etc.
Best of all, they're mine for a few weeks, and they're free.
what's not to like?

GP

 

[cracked butt]

I'm trying to teach myself to hunt and shoot, and I need help holding my rifles steady. I zero in on a bench rest, with 9X or higher scopes. I must be doing something wrong because I have a little bit of wiggle that is of course exaggerated at 100 yds. In other words, I can't keep the reticles steady on the middle of the ten ring no matter what I try

If you are shooting from a bench, use a pile of sandbags or a commercial rifle rest. What's rarely mentioned is that you need a sandbag or a rest to putt under the buttstock of the rifle as well which is critical to accurate shooting. You place a sandbag under it, you squeeze the sandbag to adjust elevation, You want as little contact with the rifle as possible- your nerves/pulse/muscle twitches are what make the rifle move.

Shooting from off hand/sitting/ prone requires a lot more from the shooter. Your nerves/pulse/muscle twitches cannot be eliminated, but they can be reduced by proper use of a sling, proper form, and strengthening of your muscles. The first two are best learned from a coach- an experienced highpower shooter can help you or go to a CMP clinic to learn. The strengthening only comes from doing a lot of shooting from the positions- you use your bones to actually support the rifle,but supporting muscles are neaded to keep everything tight. A powerlifter might be strong enough to hold any rifle, but if they don't have the right supporting muscles toned to provide balance, they are still going to have problems holding a rifle steady. Shooting strengthens/tones the small supporting muscles/ regular dryfire practice is an even cheaper way of doing it.

 

[ocabj]

For standing, every good shooter is going to tell you to "Accept your wobble." The best standing hold is going to still have wobble. You need to be quick on the trigger such that once the sight/reticle moves on the expected point of impact, you pull the trigger. It's almost like anticipating the trigger pull.

But that's not to say you should force the shot. If it's not there, it's not there. In competition, you can afford to (for the most part), pause, lower your rifle, regain composure, and reshoulder and reacquire sight alignment/picture.

Of course, there are those rare times when you are standing and waiting for the sight to get on target and for some reason, your hold is dead calm, the sight is centered on target, and it's lasting for a good 2-3 seconds. Those are great situations, and often, overthought. Lots of times that will happen to me and I'll be thinking, "Wow. My hold is great" and I'm so entranced that I almost forget that I should be pulling the trigger.

 

[funfaler]

My best suggestion on improving your rifle shooting is to attend an Appleseed Shoot http://www.appleseedinfo.org

You will learn the fundamental skills required to be able to accurately shoot your rifle out to 500 yards, with iron sights, from field positions (Standing, sitting, prone), without the use of a bench or bipod. Bring your scope if you wish, but you don't/won't need it.

You will be taught how to properly use a shooting sling. I highly recommend an USGI web sling for this.

These shoots are cheap at $70 for the weekend. You will shoot 400-500 rounds and leave with a confidence with a rifle that you never thought possible.

Properly applied, you should be competent to shoot deer out to 300 yards, in a responsible manner.

There will be about 100 of these shoots around the country in 2008, with many in Davilla Texas.

After looking at the web site, if you have any questions, feel free to PM me, I will be happy to answer your questions.

 

[everallm]

A lot of the time wobble is due to breath control or lack therof.

Bring the rifle snugly to shoulder, a sling or comfortable supported position will assist.

Sight and breath in and out normally, do not take up tension in your arms.

The wobble will mostly be vertical at this point and is a natural consequence of breathing......quite important to you....

When you have the target acquired, take any slack in the sling up and breath in and out deeply twice, FULLY. Expect the rifle to move up and down in a vertical plane.

On the second breath out, exhale, stop and do not "hold your breath", you have already flushed the carbon dioxide, which triggers the breathing reflex and you will not feel a need to breath for 5 -10 seconds.

Vertical wobble will be minimal now, bring the sights down to the target and squeeze the trigger, following through and then safety on and relax.

If you still don't feel you are sighted well, want to shift position etc stop, finger off trigger, safety on, tension off hands and arms, wait a short time and restart the process.

If you stay in tension or hold your breath you will quickly start feeling your lungs and blood flow pulsing and you'll be all over the target.

The idea is to surprise yourself when the round goes down range.

You can do a lot of this at home before going to the range so you are prepared before hand.

The biggest points are be comfortable in a position, know your limitations and enjoy what your doing. The more you fret the worse it'll get.......

 

[funfaler]

Getting your Natural Point of Aim (NPOA) will help a ton!

Getting a proper position, will make your rifle nearly rock solid.

Breathing correctly, may go a long ways to helping.

Just some helpful tips (the first one being the most important)

 

[HM2PAC]

My suggestion would be to practice a lot with a 22LR. Each weekend go through a brick.It's cheap and effective. Another thing to do is to shoot the 22 before, during, and after shooting the big centerfires.

I shoot my 10/22 nowadays more than I do anything else.

 

[Shawnee]

Gotta agree with Skinewmexico on this one.

Take the magnification down to 4x or 5x and I bet you'll be pleased.

 

[AZ_Rebel]

I'm trying to teach myself to hunt and shoot.

Flynt, there are lots of resources out there, but nothing is as good as a personal coach.

Exactly right!

Shooting a firearm is a skill not easily "self-taught". Trying so is invariably frustrating and leads to forming "bad habits" that can be hard to break. Best advise is to get an experienced and qualified instructor to teach you the basics of sight picture, trigger control, grip and stance. It will save you much time and aggravation - not to mention ammunition.

Be sure you get the advise of someone who knows how to teach you how to shoot. There are many people who shoot very well but don't know why...

 

[UnTainted]

I like my magnification low to help minimize the reticle wobble while shooting from a standing position. If I have to shoot far and need extra magnification, I will have more time and can move the scope variability up and sit down or lie down.

 

[Sport45]

For benchrest shooting the bench has to be steady as well. The best sand bags or rest in the world won't help much if you're shooting from a folding card table.

Find a range with good concrete benches or go ahead and get own on the ground with your sand bags.

 

[Twud]

That is some very good advice from everallm.
If your shooting from a bench I would recommend a front mechanical rest. It's probably the most accurate way to make minute adjustments in elevation, as you don't want to move your rear bag much. Don't get a death grip on the gun, the less pressure you apply to the gun to get zero the more the gun will wobble.
In a hunting situation I try to shoot prone with a bipod, almost as good as a bench. For standing shots you've got to learn to use a sling. Not a carrying strap, but a sling.
Also in the field try and find any natural rest you can. For 3 years I had a spot on a powerline where a large ash tree had fallen. It was great camo and a super rest. Probably killed 10 or 12 deer off that spot out to 300 yards.
Went back last year and the power company had cut it up and pushed the pcs in the woods. Oh Well. Finally, practice all you can.
Shoot a 22 at 50 yards or a 17HMR at 100. No recoil and very accurate.

 

[WinchesterAA]

I've always been really shakey. Spend enough time staring down your scope and you'll learn to guess where your shake will put your crosshair. It's a little slower at first, but it does work.

 

[13.45]

read jeff cooper's "the art of the rifle"

 

[unreal45]

Focus on Breath control, Trigger control, and use a good solid rest and everything should fall into place. Have someone single load the gun for you and at some point leave an empty chamber, with out telling you. If you flinch on the empty chamber back off on the caliber you are using. Try using a high quality rimfire and often your shooting will improve.

 

[larryw]

13.45 is wise.

 

[goon]

A couple things I was taught
- always shoot as soon as possible without rushing. The idea is to get the shot off while you're still steady before fatigue sets in. Try to rush and you'll miss, stand there too long trying to get steady and you'll start to wobble. Go for a happy medium.
- always use a rest if you can. A tree, fence post, whatever you got available that will help steady you. If that isn't possible, take the most stable shooting position and avoid offhand for anything other than quick shots or really close ones. As others have said, learn to use the sling because it really does help.
- keep the scope on a lower power unless you need more magnification. Really, you are wobbling around just as much whether you are looking down open sights or a scope. But with a scope cranked up to 9x you can see that you are wobbling. And that is a confidence killer. So turn it down to 3 or so and see how things look from there.

These are the things my dad taught me about rifle shooting and they serve me well. Hope they help you too.

 

[Lucky]

The other day I was shooting a .22 rifle off-hand standing, and noticed that using the sling in olympic standing position was LESS accurate than just plain offhand that Cooper recommended. Sling and Olympic positions FEEL better, less strenuous, but plain offhand was at least twice as accurate, for me.

What Jeff Cooper said was; 1)balance rifle on left hand palm. 2)using only left hand bring rifle to cheek weld, shoulder pocket. 3)lift right arm upwards to exaggerate pocket, then 4) chicken wing outwards while gripping the stock. And it works.

It's not 'steady', but it's good enough for grapefruit-sized groups at 50m and it'll only get better.