And as I know that no post would be complete without pictures, here we go. (click to enlarge all pics)
This is the view from the 7 yard line. The range has been certified by the Department of Public Safety for CHL testing so we have permanent 3, 7, & 15 yard lines.
I arrived at the clubat 9 am, there were already a dozen people on the various ranges, by the time I had left there were probably 40 people out there. That is the most I've seen in a long while on a week day.
Many folks were trying to get some practice in before it got too hot. By 10 it was already 90 degrees.
Here is the first group - 30 rounds of Winchester white box
I am still not sure about the Heinie sights on the PT-145....wondering if I should keep them or replace them. Probably will keep them for a while. Anyone have any experience with them or the Millennium Pro PT-145s?
After taking a break to hydrate (very important in the Texas sun...even if the firing line was shaded and covered) changing targets..I ran another 2 magazines through.
Currently, my supply isn't as high as I would like so I'm trying to balance expending rounds, getting enough practice and shooting enough to give me an idea of what I'm doing wrong.
Luckily, I have great in-laws. My Texas Father In Law has loaned me a couple of 22s, a revolver and a semi to extend my practice time.
I did better with the "traditional" sites on the Browning Buckmark that I used to today. I probably ran about 150-160 rounds through it. This set of pictures is typical of the shooting I was able to do with the Browning
The range provides targets for those that don't bring their own. That is an 8.5" by 11" sheet, standard copy paper size. I believe the center square is 1 inch.
I was a good day; put some lead down range, getting better with the Taurus, proved I can hit something and meet some other club members.
Please leave a comment,
10 comments:
Shooting low and left is, for a right handed shooter, an indication of (probably) anticipating the shot and 'pushing' the weapon, resulting in a low-left hit.
Discover this by having another laod the cylinder/magazine for you, putting in one or two blanks/dummy cartridges in (but not the first one- or maybe even then), handing you the weapon and watch you shoot (or, as I do, videotape the firing). They'll be able to tell if you're pushing the weapon forward as the trigger is squeezed.
Anon,
Thanks,I'll have to hit the range with a partner one day and try that.
I have two mags for the PT-145, I guess I could load snap caps in different locations and mix them up so I'm not sure which is which.
Have to think of a way to video the next session.
Thank for the tip. It is one of the great things about our support, the willingness of people to teach noobs like me.
Bob - That looks like 2 in the bullseye to me.
Good shootin'. Certainly minute of bad guy.
Mike W.
The phrase "pleased but not satisfied" comes to mind. I know I can do better. Figuring out HOW to do better is the trick now :)
Thanks.
If you were a cannibal, you sorta spoiled liver and onions if that'd been real goblins!
:-)
Pleased but not satisfied is how you should always be. If you ever become satisfied you shall cease endeavoring to get better at it.
Those are better than a lot of LEO qual targets I've scored in my life and they passed and are government sanctioned to defend you and your family :-( -- FWIW.
Load the gun with a snap cap or other dummy-round and start pulling the trigger with a dime balenced on the front sight. Do this as much as you can stand (you will be Very board once you get the trigger pull down...try to continue at least 100x after that)
then try again.
Also do you have a .22 of any sort?
If your groups start going south, stop, calm down, and switch to the .22 until the rounds are going right where they should be.
Then move back to the bigger gun.
Hsoi has a great little diagram on his webpage about how to diagnose exactly what you are doing wrong when you pull the trigger: http://hsoiblog.wordpress.com/2009/06/15/correcting-handgun-shooting-problems/ . I have been using something similar for years, and while it has been helpful, I have not quite been able to excise all of my bad habits.
Dry-firing is definitely recommended - you can watch the end of the barrel, and if it wiggles, you are doing something wrong :).
"...bad news I'm not as accurate as I would like to be."
Does anyone ever say "Oh, I'm good enough."???
James
I'd try to shoot off a rest before worrying about moving sights-A slow, careful shot off a rest will usually eliminate most user errors and tell you if it is you or the sights. I don't remember the exact details, but I think it was Tam who talked about some light for caliber gun where every used one she's seen had the sights cranked to compensate for flinch.
I've started shooting a mag of .22 between magazines of centerfire--This seems to make a significant difference in centerfire accuracy.
I intensely dislike lasers for sighting purposes, as the red dot projected on the target is often harder/slower to pick up than a proper sight picture but they are handy for dry fire practice. Not very useful shooting at somebody in a red track suit either, I'd imagine...
Pick a wall (white is a good choice) a decent distance away and practice dryfiring. The bouncing red dot on the far wall will tell you a lot about what you are doing to your muzzle with your trigger pull. Depending on how observant your shooting buddies are, it can be significantly handier than having a friend watch and you can even use a cheap laser pointer you bought at walmart for 3 bucks gaffer tapped to the firearm (gaffer tape doesn't leave residue like most tapes) because all you are using it for is a training device, you aren't actually using it as a method of aiming, so it doesn't have to be useful for actual sighting purposes.
Advanced version of putting a coin on the muzzle with more graphical input to the eyes of the man pulling the trigger.
If you have a laser boresighter...feel free to stick that in the muzzle and use that if ya like, just remember it's a DRY FIRE PRACTICE or you won't have a laser boresighter for long :-)
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