To get better at shooting, we need to keep pushing our capabilities. I don’t think that anyone would argue with this. If this is so widely acknowledged, then why do shooters tend to be so complacent in their skill development?
The first impediment to pushing our boundaries is that it is difficult. It’s going to involve a four letter word called W-O-R-K. Right now as I’m writing this it’s about 30° outside (don’t even consider that it’s 1:54 am and I really couldn’t shoot right now even if I was super pumped to get out there). The nearest range is about 15 minutes away, but chances are good that something (someone) at that public range will impede me from accomplishing my goals for the day. If I do go shoot, I will then have to maintain my equipment, creating further work. If I don’t go to the range, I can make a nice, hot, chocolaty, coffee drink and work my way up the blacklist of gun blogs.
Not only is it difficult to improve our skill, it can be expensive. Ammunition, fuel to get us to the range, cleaning and maintenance materials are all significant expenses if you keep track of that sort of thing. If you really want to improve and get some training, WOW!!!, it can cost a lot before you even factor in travel, lodging, and 500 rounds of ammo.
Improving takes time. Often, this is time that we need for other things, like work and family. At another level, our lives involve a finite amount of time. Combine those two things, and sometimes mediocre is the best we can hope for.
As to some of the things we could do, but usually don’t do to improve, consider that it takes planning to get good. How often do you sit down and consider your strengths and weaknesses, and devise a plan to correct your deficiencies? How many of your trips to the range involve working on something specific you planned to do way ahead of time?
This brings us to something very important to realize: It’s more fun to do what we’re already good at. It feels good. It reaffirms to us that “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and dog-gone-it, people like me.” The musician would see this as the difference between practice and playing. Practice involves planning and executing a specific exercise devised to address a particular deficiency. Playing is just playing.
A more significant impediment to our improvement is to know what we’re not good at. It’s hard to push the boundaries if you can’t find them. Our context of shooting is incomplete, so often our conception of relevant skills is unrealistic. Furthermore, there are aspects of ourselves that we are blind to, but are easily observed by others. This makes self-directed practice particularly challenging.
Hopefully, highlighting some of the impediments to success will help you to
1.) Get up off your rear end.
2.) Budget your time and money with shooting as at least somewhat of a priority.
3.) Plan your range time (and dry fire practice) to address specific deficiencies.
4.) Spend time doing things you are not good at and don’t currently enjoy,
and…
5.) Seek out advice and evaluate yourself as objectively as possible in order to
expose weaknesses that you are not currently aware of.
Get to it!!!
Speaking of range time, I'm hoping you can answer a question I left for you in my blog comments about whether I should keep my Mosin scope zeroed at 50 yards and compensate for bullet drop at 100, or if I should re-zero it at 100 and compensate for rise at 50.
ReplyDeleteOr tell me that I have a fundamental misunderstanding of ballistics...
I did some guessing about your scope height and cartidge specs. It looks like you'd be less than a half inch high at 100 if you kept your 50 yard zero.
ReplyDeleteThere's not a whole lot of drop kicking in until you get out past 250 or so. There will be some, but not enough to miss a decent size target if you just kept your rifle zeroed at 50. If you zeroed at 25, you could very likely just aim dead on out to about 250. You'd be a couple inches high in between 250 and 250. This is called a "point blank zero".
If you read this http://artoftherifle.blogspot.com/2011/10/trajectory.html
I think it will help your understanding of the trajectory mystery. If not, I probably need to rewrite it. Good luck.
Wait... so I should zero it at 25 for maximum effectiveness at long distance?
DeleteI am confused, and being moderately innumerate doesn't help me any.
Also, being a couple inches high between 250 and 250 makes no sense to me. I suspect there is a typo there.
For the record, I have a 7 power scope on a scout mount and am firing milsurp rounds.
Sorry, I meant 25 and 250. With a closer zero, you make the round travel up at a sharper angle to meet the crosshairs sooner. There will generally two times that the round will cross the crosshairs, once on the way up, and once on the way down. The first one (going up) is called the "initial intersection" (or II [aka, double I]). The closer the initial intersection, the farther the second one will be, hence the 25 yard zero being somewhat "on" a little farther out than the 50 yard zero. The round will be travel in a shallow arc, like a sad little rainbow, between the II and the zero.
DeleteEverything depends on what you want to do with the rifle, and what you mean by "long distance". The Mosin is not really a precision instrument, so the point blank zero (25 yards to 250) would make sense. Past that, you'd be in a whole 'nuther ball game.
7 power is probably more than enough power. A good rule of thumb is to have 1X power per 100 yards. Going by that you'd be good out to 700 yards.
For now, you could easily leave it alone to play at 100. That's what I would do if I were you. The rest is just contextual information.
I need to hire a comment proof reader. "The round will be travel in a shallow arc". That's just great, but that's how I sound in person.
DeleteOK, cool. My range doesn't have anything past 100 yards anyway, so I have no way to practice my long shots.
DeleteWhat I want to do with the rifle: be a good shot with it in case I ever need to use it for hunting or self-defense in a grid-down scenario.
100 yards will be plenty to get good at. You'll know it's time to move on when it's easy and you get bored. I would just continue with the bipod so you can isolate your sight and your trigger control. Then start working on position shooting.
DeleteErin Palette, attend an Appleseed shoot if you haven't already....
Deletewww.appleseedinfo.org
Erin - Pete's on the money, just wish we had something similar to Appleseed here in Australia. I have to be content with downloading their scaled targets (available off internet) for practice with my .22 in the backyard (neighbours have horses so centrefires are out for now).
DeletePlease forgive me, I like the sound of the scout scope mount on your Mosin but 7x sounds like a lot of magnification for <200 yds.
Another suggestion, yep, we're all experts here on the internet :) , and I mean this respectfully (without any knowledge of your shooting background), especially if you have a "prepper" bent (i.e. want basic proficiency with your rifle in case of shtf or similar) then consider ditching the scope altogether and hone your skills with the irons - nothing is as dependable as iron sights when it all goes to hell.
Anyway, that's what just I practice (this advice is only worth what you paid for it).
Best wishes
Erin, look on the internet for "Rifle Marksmanship with the M1 Rifle" Parts 1 & 2. Watch very very carefully, especially listen very very carefully, numerous repetitions. You will learn much.
ReplyDeleteThanks Colorado Pete, for this source - I wasn't aware of these and don't mind admitting I got a LOT out of them on the first watch (aiming to go through them again from time to time if I can work out how to download a copy - I'm a real computer whiz!). Again, thanks.
DeleteJonno, you're welcome. They are a great resource.
DeleteI saw from your prior posts you are "down unda". Always wanted to travel there.
Once upon a time I was a regular on britishguns.net. Big contingent of Aussies there on the Enfield rifle forum. Since that website went under years ago, most migrated to the Enfield boards on Culver's Shooting Pages (www.jouster.com). Good folks.