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Shooting technique

10K views 28 replies 22 participants last post by  Judson 
#1 ·
I've been shooting for years, hunt all the time, I have my own range, I'm a casual reloader...and I'm not as good a rifle shooter as I'd like to be. I do pretty well in field shooting situations, but I'd really like to improve my bench technique. It would help me test loads and work with my rifles. So, for those of you kind enough to help out a guy who is trying to improve, what's your technique off a bench? What do you use for a rest? How many shot groups do you fire? How often, and how, do you clean your barrel? How long do you wait between shots? Do you put your rifles away with dirty or clean barres? What other things do you do to shrink your groups?
 
#2 · (Edited)
Guys like Wind, Rowdy, M700 and others are far more the marksmen than I am but I will offer my two cents or so and you can make change if ya want. :)

Accurate rifle shooting starts with the fundamental premise that you are the weakest link. First, foremost, and almost always. What this means is, when bench (table, truck hood, side of tree, etc.) shooting for accuracy, or really any time, you want to eleviate as much of your influence on the gun as possible. Now, you can go a long ways with this and get gun vices and butt stock cushions and weighted sleds and all manner of things designed to make the rifle as steady as possible and thus reduce to varying degrees your influence on the shot. Any and all of these things may be to your liking and may suit your needs but that does not make them necessary. True, the more you you put into this the better you may perform or in some cases the longer you may be able to shoot but that doesn't mean you can't achieve satisfactory results without a lot of gear and expense.

A stable platform that offers comfortable natural seating is the starting point. Don't force yourself into an uncomfortable position to use a certain table or rest or whatever. If you're shooting at an established range this isn't usually an issue but if you're shooting at your own range as you say, make sure you put some thought into this.

A simple "U" or "V" shaped wooden front rest can do wonders. Since this is not going to be adjustable, be sure you get the height right to make things natural and comfortable. Whatever rest you decide on, pull it back so it is at least under the forearm of the gun.

From there, since I don't use any type of butt stock stablizer, I use my non-shooting arm to assist. I pull it back across my chest, with my elbow forward for stability and my hand on the bicep of my shooting arm, helping to support the stock. Might sound convoluted but when you sit down and play with it it will make sense. The idea being to form a solid position that reduces my influence on the gun (vs. my hand on the fore arm).

If you look close in this pic you can see my left arm tucked up under the gun:



Here's one of my oldest girl but note that she likes to use her hand to support the stock:




Once you are comfortable and as rock steady as possible it all comes back to what all shooting does, the fundamentals. No death grip with the shooting hand. In fact, the more stable you are, the less grip you need to apply and the less the grip the better the shot.

Proper finger placement on the trigger matters. Now I know there are those you can wrap their finger around a trigger to the last knuckle and do amazing things but by and large for the bulk of us, how you place your finger on the trigger will affect accuracy. About half to the end third of your pad is best. If you look at your finger prints and find the center loop that's an ideal place to put your finger on the trigger. This positioning helps reduce muscle strain and twitching.

I'm not a big fan of the term breath control. It's more breath awareness. Don't hold your breath. Just breathe, nice and relaxed. Ideally, your trigger breaks just as the last of your exhale is over but don't rush it or anticipate it. Slowly squeeze the trigger as you exhale and let it surprise you. Better to fire during exhale and missing that natural pause than to force the trigger. NEVER FORCE THE TRIGGER. This is why a heavy but crisp, repeatable trigger is still always better than a light but sloppy trigger. You want it to break clean the same way every time.

Now, all this is assuming you have proper sight picture and sight alignment if using irons or proper scope placement if using optics.

If it don't feel right, don't shoot. Shake it off - stretch, breathe, take a break if you need to, whatever, but never force the shot. Doing so just again makes you the big bad influence on accuracy and once that frustration ball gets rolling it is often nothing more than an act in futility.

I fire three shot groups. If sighting in, then I don't want the distance any more than 25yrds. Sighting in at 100 yrds is fool's folly. Do it up close and know you, the gun and the round are accurate, then adjust for distance. I will not make an adjustment of any kind until I have at least one three shot group. By group I mean something no more than say 1-2" in spread. I don't really know how long I wait between shots. I don't speed shoot them by any means but I don't get up and walk around between shots either. More often than not what I do is load one round at a time. The time it takes to unload the spent casing, load another round and get back into position is in my experience generally sufficient.

But, every rifle is different and you'll have to learn your guns. I remember one day at the range with Rowdy and I was shooting one of my guns and he was watching my shots through his spotting scope. I stopped to BS with him a bit about something and he said, now see if it that were me and my CB I wouldn't have stopped shooting. That gun appreantly likes to be shot rather quick and warm. He knows that from a lot of shooting and cyphering.

As to a fouled vs. clean bore, again this is going to come down to your gun but I suspect more guns prefer a fouled bore vs. a clean one. But, that doesn't mean I would foul a bore before hunting season and keep it that way. Hunting accuracy is a different quantifier than bench accuracy.

That kind of stuff is going to come to shooting time and knowing your gun and what you are and are not okay with.

Hope some of that helps. :)
 
#3 ·
Hard to add to what Erik posted, but here's my quick-n-dirty version.........Bench height is important. I like to have a straight back, not leaning into the gun, especially the hard kickers. So you have to find a happy medium between seat height, bernch height, and the height of the rest. Once you find the right balance it will feel a lot more natural than crawling up the stock.

Proper eye relief is also important, especially if you're using a scope.

Some guns shoot better with your hand under the forend, including most of my Marlins.

I like to keep the front rest close to the action, where it meets the barrel/magazine. Any time I get a lot of vertical stringing, it's usually because I've let the gun move forward. It has to be in the same place for EVERY shot.

Marlins tend to string shots upwards as they heat up, mine also push shots to the left (usually) as they get warm. Don't feel the middle of the barrel of the gun to determine if it's cooled down, check the front of the action around the chamber area. That area gets hotter, has more metal, and takes longer to cool.

Above all, try different things. See what works for YOU and that particular firearm. It can be time-consuming and expensive, but in the end it will save you time and money. Be patient, and keep good records!
 
#4 ·
PJ makes an excellent point about notes. Date, time, weather conditions, gun, load, etc. can all be very valuable info and you will be amazed at how quickly you forget details, especially if shooting more than one gun in a session and/or you go a while between sessions.

On another occassion that I was at the range with Rowdy, I pulled out my 336W that I was convinced in my mind I had sighted in after installing the rear peep and scout scope setup. Well, the scope was dead on and my irons were in perfect alignment with the bullseye. Only the groups were about six-eight inches high. I had indeed sighted it in and surely I must have discovered I needed a new front sight but I had completely forgot about it. I'd changed the front on another gun not long before that range trip but somehow forgot about the W. Had I taken notes (like I was taught to do but ignored) then I would've had something to remind to me and could've had the new sight installed before heading out.
 
#5 · (Edited)
Good advice given so far. Shooting tiny groups from a bench is not as easy as some may think, and while you may not strive to be a competitive benchrest shooter, using good technique when testing loads or sighting in, can not only reduce the variables, but save time and money as well.

Limiting my reply as much as possible...and assuming the basics like trigger control have been mastered...the most important thing I've learned in 35+ years of testing a wide variety firearms with my handloads or factory ammo, is the willingness to be flexible with your technique and experiment a bit with an individual rifle to see how it will respond. The techniques that work best with a heavy-barreled varmint or benchrest gun may not be the best for a lightweight sporter, heavy-recoiling big bore, or a typical levergun.

As a quick example..I have a Remington 700VS .22-250 that will consistently shoot groups of less than a quarter inch at 100 yards, but to shoot it's best, I found almost no contact with the rifle was necessary. Set up on a pedestal rest and a rabbit ear rear bag, I would simply put my shoulder behind the rifle to limit rearward movement and "pinch" the trigger with my thumb on the back of the trigger guard. Sounds unconventional, but it was very consistent, and the reams of one-hole targets I collected with this technique proved it's worth.

Using that same technique with my 6 lb .350 RM, the .375 H&H, or the .45-70 1895 with "warm" loads would be...let's just say...less than successful. Like PJ, I long ago found some of the harder kicking rifles, and nearly all the leverguns, respond best when the forearm is hand held, the back of the off hand resting on a sandbag. When using this technique, some rifles may respond best to a light grip, some to a more forceful hold, but in either case, always strive to keep the same amount of tension from shot to shot.

The position of the forearm on the front bag, rest, or hand, can have a definitive effect on group size. Generally speaking, the closer to the receiver the front rest is placed, the better...until that point is reached where the length and weight of the barrel tries to lift the butt off the rear rest...but like everything, experiment to see what each rifle prefers. I have some that settle down only when the front rest is placed farther out on the forearm. Once you determine the favored location, a bit of masking tape to mark the stock makes repositioning the rifle in the exact same location after every shot easy.

Some rifles will shoot their best when allowed to move on the bags, recoiling freely with your shoulder there to simply arrest that movement. When this is the case, I take pains to make sure the sling swivel studs, if present, are not hanging up on the bags during recoil. I've also been known to dust my leather bags with talc or a bit of motor mica when summer humidity can make them a bit tacky, so the rifle may slide freely and smoothly...consistency always being the key.

I've already gone beyond the brief reply I intended, but the point to take to heart is; don't give up...don't be discouraged when a particular rifle doesn't perform as expected. Be willing to experiment, be open to the feedback the firearm gives you. I truly believe the vast majority of rifles today can give far better accuracy than most folks achieve and it's you, as the shooter, that has the greatest influence over that performance. Be open-minded enough to realize that, and flexible enough to make it work when you do.

Roe
 
#7 ·
Hard to add to what has been said already.
The #1 thing I see people do wrong, is they want to put both hands on the gun at the bench. When shooting from a bench, One should utilize sandbags, a good shooting rest, and cradle the rifle in the position it needs to be in for sight alignment. Then, if right handed, the shooter's right hand should be on the grip of the stock, while the off hand should be tucked under the stock, or off the gun completely. many people want to hold on to the forearm with the off hand, and often this pulls the gun off, and results in inaccuracies.

Guns need to be shot, when bench shooting for accuracy, as cool as possible. Depending on caliber, some heat up faster than others. Three to five shot groups will give good enough indication on the accuracy of a load when testing. Hot weather is also a factor in keeping a barrel cool. When testing a load, do not attempt to site the rifle in for the load, aim for the center every time, and look at the consistency of the given group. The hotter the barrel, the more effect there will be on accuracy. I have placed a rifle in the cab of an AC'd pickup before to help cool it down.

cleanliness is key. i clean my rifle barrels thouroghly approximately every 30-40 rounds. With a brushing and swabbing in between.

Rifles, especially bolt action rifles, can be modified to help improve accuracy. Glass-bedding the action is a great , and very effective and inexpensive option. Free-floating the barrel is also a good improvement you can do on the cheap. Most, but not all, bolt action rifles have an adjustable trigger. Lightening the trigger pull is also a good way to improve accuracy. Most factory triggers are set north of 5lbs. This is more than enough to cause one to "pull" a shot off target across a bench. This , of course, is a tedious job, and should not be attempted by a beginner. Most gunsmiths will lighten a factory trigger for $50.00.

Quality glass is also important, if shooting considerable distances (200 + yards) The better one can see, the more accurate the shot will be.

Stay calm, and don't walk back and forth to the target too much. A normal heart rate is important.
The only real way to improve one's skill at the bench, is practice. Putting rounds down range, and taking your time will develop your skill. Invest in a quality adjustable shooting rest, some sandbags, and get comfortable.
 
#12 ·
One thing that was not mentioned is be careful with drinking coffee, sodas and other drinks with caffeine before shooting.Drinking a lot of alcohol the night before and smoking can also give you the jitters while you are trying to hold your rifle steady.I am sure there are other stimulants to avoid also but I will refrain from mentioning them. :)
 
#13 ·
Another thing I might add about beverages is that I recently read that when you are dehydrated, your eyes don't work as well. I've definitely noticed that at the end of a long day where I haven't stayed well hydrated, which is most days, my eyes are tired and not as sharp. This whole getting old thing kind of sucks like that...
 
#14 · (Edited)
None of us can control the weather and while atmospheric conditions like gusty, variable winds and mirage can play havoc with group sizes, there are ways to minimize their effect. Obviously, avoiding windy days when testing loads is the easiest answer, but if you're anything like me, our schedules seldom allow total versatility. We often have to take what we get on those days we can get to the range.

When I was serious about wringing every last bit of accuracy from my rifles, I would make it a point to get to the range as early as possible and be set up and ready to shoot as soon as club hours allowed. By doing so, I was able to take advantage of the often still morning conditions, before the heat of the day caused the wind and mirage to pick up. Mirage is seldom an issue at 100 yards, but can become a real problem at longer distances, as the heat waves cause the image of the target to shimmy and move like a hula dancer. A quiet, slightly overcast weekday morning was about as perfect as could be, and not surprisingly, I often had the entire range to myself. I miss those years when I worked nights.

More likely, our schedules force us to accept less than ideal conditions in which to test our firearms and loads. Being aware of the wind, if not actually "doping it", becomes critical to achieving accurate test results. Fancy wind gauges and meters are not necessary...we really aren't concerned about the numeric velocity or compass heading of the wind...just that we fire each shot in a group in as close to the same conditions as we possibly can. Visual aids in the form of wind flags, that can give us some feedback as to what those wind currents are doing, can be extremely helpful.

Again, fancy wind flags are not necessary...a bit of trail tape on a stick or wood dowel is really all that's necessary. Two or three, placed at intervals between the bench and the target downrange, will give you a good read on wind direction and velocity. I try to place them where they are in the periphery of my scope as I aim at the target, but as long as they are visible as you sit at the bench, they will be useful. The key, as always, is consistency. Strive to fire each shot when the flags indicate similar conditions, at the very least, the same direction for each shot...if possible, the same, or similar velocity.

By studying the flags at bit, you may notice a pattern with the winds...a lull between gusts on a windy day, or a light steady breeze from the west overidden by intermittent stronger gusts from the east, for example. I would often wait for that lull, then fire all three shots (of a three shot group) as quickly as I could while maintaining a perfect sight picture and trigger control...allowing conditions to alter my normal rhythm to take advantage of any brief consistency.

While it's great fun, and a wonderful learning tool, to go out on a windy, gusty day and shoot to see what effect those devil winds have on the bullets we fire (and will pay big dividends in the hunting and varmint fields) testing loads, or the accuracy of a particular rifle, on days like these is seldom wise. If the winds are such it's physically rocking you at the bench, save your carefully assembled test loads for another day. Pack a handgun or two, switch to a shorter range, and practice your defensive skills instead. After all, a day at the range is better'n a day working...no matter what the conditions are.

Roe
 
#15 ·
One thing I found was that the beat of my heart would move the crosshairs in my scoped rifle. If I timed my shot to my heartbeat I could tighten up my groups a bit.
 
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#16 ·
Wow! How can I add anything to all that has been said? I'll try, though. :)

Psychologically, it is important to clear the mind and calm the nerves. Slow down. Get everything just right before you fire the first shot. I find that dry firing a few shots, once I'm set, helps me to calm down and also to focus. All this is easier said than done, at least for some of us. You would think that after shooting for forty years, I would be all cool, calm and collected when I get to the range. Not so. I really have to work at slowing done the pulse and breathing, normally. Guess that's the down side of loving shooting so much.

And then there are the fundamentals that we sometimes overlook. I think follow through is one of these. We get in such a rush to see where we shot, we pull our head up way too quick. I like to tick off a good three seconds after the shot without moving the head and mentally follow the bullet through the target.

As for the trigger, every gun is a bit different. Learn the trigger on the gun you are shooting. No two are exactly the same. If you switch to another gun in a range session, do some dry firing, once again, to get in tune with the gun. For instance, there is a world of difference between shooting one of my tuned Contenders and a typical lever gun and I often shoot both in a session.

Limit the length of any shooting session to shooting while you are at your best. Fatigue can often slip in, unannounced. Shooting when you are tired is counterproductive and a quick way to develop some bad habits. Ay my age, even shooting with a scope, the old eyes give out all too soon.

These days, we all too often find ourselves crowded shoulder to shoulder at the range. I try to shoot early in the morning during the week and only rarely on weekends. Of course, if you are practicing self-defense shooting, the pressure of having a crowd around you is a good thing. On the other hand, if you are shooting for group size, having someone at the next bench trying to impress everyone with his latest ported magnum or how fast he can create a mountain of brass around his feet (and yours) is not fun.
 
#17 · (Edited)
what's your technique off a bench? What do you use for a rest? How many shot groups do you fire? How often, and how, do you clean your barrel? How long do you wait between shots? Do you put your rifles away with dirty or clean barres? What other things do you do to shrink your groups?
Use sand bags for rifles that don't have a bipod. I usually shoot 5 shot groups from standard calibers. Then wait till the barrel cools, depending on the caliber and thickness of the barrel. Thin "mountain" barrels no more than 3 shots. Heavier barrels take longer to heat up. When the next shots widen the group, I stop.

One of my rifles shoots best with 3 shots then the 4th & 5th climb widening the group. Stop at 3 and wait to cool. Cleaning depends on the caliber. Magnums get cleaned sooner because more powder is used, I clean about every 20 shots for them. Standard calibers about 40. All my rifles are cleaned after I shoot them.

How I shrink groups: shoot with both eyes open. With the sight's on the target, hold it there and close my eyes for a couple seconds. If the sights are off readjust my position, not the rifle. Repeat until sights are centered on target. I seat the bullets just off the lands for best accuracy. Using spire point boat-tail bullets also gives me best results. I stay away from any bullet with an exposed lead tip. The tip is soft and tends to deform in the magazine when fired, especially in my magnum caliber rifles. Not good for accuracy. Nosler ballistic tip and Accubond bullets have a hard plastic tip which cures the problem for me. These bullets are quite accurate in all rifles I've tried them in.

When not out shooting sometimes I post a target on the far wall and load a few dummy rounds to practice. Works well for offhand shooting.
 
#20 ·
The best advice every provided to me, beyond the fundementals. Imagin, sighted on the target, the sights are going to move about a bit and would if drawn on the target, represent a line moving thru and around the bullseye. Trust that your brain is going to drop the hammer only when the moment is exactely right, and just keep pullin the trigger. To wait and agressively or delibertaley pull the trigger only when it appears just right, remeber the sights are always moving...only if a tiny bit...result in the impact being just a little off...since it moved a smig since you thought it looked perfect, better to let the subconcious decide for you that the upcoming moment is right and let that part of your brain pull the trigger. Think of it as Zen and the art of the trigger control.
 
#21 ·
Many good things written here. The only thing I can think of that was not mentioned was stock drop. Stocks with a lot of drop to work with metallic sights (such as Marlin lever actions) shoot better from a rest using your off hand to support and control the forearm. The same is true with hard kicking rifles. All of this is even more true with rifles that are both like an 1895.

For the purpose of sighting in a three shot group works best. I disagree with the advise to sight in only at 25 yds. That is fine if you are only going to shoot at 25 yds. My hunting rifles are zeroed at 100 yd. because that fits the ranges I hunt at. My rifles I don't hunt with are sighted in at 100 or 200 yds. depending on what I usually do with them.

The thing we shooter tend to do with the least information is evaluating groups. I use ten-shot groups to evaluate a load/rifle/shooter/conditions combination. The Speer manual suggests a minimum of seven, but I would rather work in tens. Less than seven is wasting your ammunition. I enter the X and Y (windage and elevation) coordinates of the ten shots into an Excel spread sheet I made. It tells me many things, but of importance here is the group sizes. Those ten shots make 120 three-shot combinations. That is a lot of info if you can grab it.

For example I have a Savage 99 G takedown in 300 Savage made in 1927 with a Marble Arms tang sight. The best load I've tested in it was the 150 gr. Sierra SBT/41.5 gr. IMR4320/W-W Super cases/WLR primers. The ten-shot group, which is also the worst three-shot group, measured 2.432". The smallest three-shot group measured 0.280". The average of all the three-shot groups was 1.548". Any of these groups could have been the first one you shot, and either of the extreme would have been quite misleading. An easy way to get this info from the ten-shot group is the two farthest shots in that group. They define your ten-shot group. A quick and dirty way to get your average three-shot group is to take the ten-shot group size and divide by 1.6. This is close enough to work with. If you want to make distinctions between loads that preform similarly you need to do this, e. g. should I load 41.5 gr. or 40.5 gr.

If your needs are no more stringent than can all my shots hit the paper plate at 100 yd. then you don't need this.
 
#22 ·
There is many opinions on your subject. I suggest you get on good old You Tube and find David Tubb. There really ain't much shooting he ain't done from the bench and off of his hind legs, he is the real deal. I doubt he can remember all the competitions he has won.

I am not a "bench rest" shooter and my technique is a bit different. I keep my hand underneath of my rifles forearm and try to grip the rifle in the same way I would grip it from a standing, kneeling, or sitting unsupported position. The reason is when I am shooting at a critter I won't be shooting off of a bench, so when I zero my scope that is on the rifle I want my bench shooting to simulate my field shooting as closely as possible.

Some want to rest the forearm of the rifle on a bag or other shooting aid and have no other contact with the forearm, that may be ok for bench shooting, but I have never shot a critter that way. If I don't hang on to the forearm of my .338 Winny it gets a mind of it's own when I fire it, same with my 30-06. My .22's or AR 5.56 are much milder and do not bounce around.

For a bench I think good bags are the best as is sitting up fairly straight in a comfortable position. I do not care for the variety of forearm shooting rests that are three legs and adjustable with a pad on top to rest the forearm on, they bounce too. Bags are what I use when checking a scopes zero and the rifles groups. I have a Lead Sled and can never get as comfortable with it as I can my bags, so I only use it for chronograph work and early load development.

There are many good examples of bench rest shooting do's and don't on You Tube and they should be of help.
 
#23 · (Edited)
There is many opinions on your subject. I suggest you get on good old You Tube and find David Tubb. There really ain't much shooting he ain't done from the bench and off of his hind legs, he is the real deal. I doubt he can remember all the competitions he has won.

I am not a "bench rest" shooter and my technique is a bit different. I keep my hand underneath of my rifles forearm and try to grip the rifle in the same way I would grip it from a standing, kneeling, or sitting unsupported position. The reason is when I am shooting at a critter I won't be shooting off of a bench, so when I zero my scope that is on the rifle I want my bench shooting to simulate my field shooting as closely as possible.

Some want to rest the forearm of the rifle on a bag or other shooting aid and have no other contact with the forearm, that may be ok for bench shooting, but I have never shot a critter that way. If I don't hang on to the forearm of my .338 Winny it gets a mind of it's own when I fire it, same with my 30-06. My .22's or AR 5.56 is much milder and do not bounce around.

For a bench I think good bags are the best as is sitting up fairly straight in a comfortable position. I do not care for the variety of forearm shooting rests that are three legs and adjustable with a pad on top to rest the forearm on, they bounce too. That is what I use when checking a scopes zero and the rifles groups. I have a Lead Sled and can never get as comfortable with it as I can my bags, so I only use it for chronograph work and early load development.

There are many good examples of bench rest shooting do's and don't on You Tube and they should be of help. Good shooting to you!
 
#24 ·
Started doing prone at 600 yrds recently.Bolt action 308 with bipod and rear bag.
But,I bench shoot mostly.I use a Caldwell Rock and a Caldwell rear rest whenever I shoot levers.All bolts and ARs ,I use a Harris swivel bipod and a home made bag in the rear.
Bag is a sock filled with #60 silica sand.If I want lightweight,I use cat litter or air soft pellets.
Works well for me,my groups are pretty tight.
.
 
#25 ·
I always shoot off bags sighting in. Last year a buddy had the Lead Sled and I shot #3 Ruger in 375w off it. A #3 is a small rifle and
harder to shoot off bags than a full size rifle. It made a believer out of me, I was doing a lot better than bags. No more of the Flyers
that only occur because of "operator error"
 
#26 ·
I have some good shooting rim fire bolt rifles i shoot from the bench rest and i line up the rifle by moving the rest before i set then adjust the rest until the cross hair is where i want it to be then grip lightly the stock with my trigger hand with my thumb just behind the rear of the bolt, shoulder just putting slight pressure against butt stock all the time keeping the cross hair on the bull by only adjusting the rest not by putting pressure on the gun . Each one needs a slightly different approach you just have to learn each rifle. Some are hold sensitive so are not but when shooting my hunting levers i put my off hand under the fore end just like i do while hunting. I like shooting my old ML's more than any thing .
 
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