Help Shooting Off Sticks

[farrokhrt]

Practice and anticipating the shot. You will have movement. The trick is learning to control the movement sufficiently to anticipate the shot as the crosshairs touch the exact target point. You can learn to do that with a scoped .22 as easily as a full bore. Dry firing in your basement is almost as effective. Again, the key is training eye and trigger squeeze to touch off the shot at exactly the right moment in...

That’s been my way of shooting rifles off hand!

 

[Red Leg]

That’s been my way of shooting rifles off hand!

Exactly.

 

[Scrumbag]

Those "Hog/Pig" saddle type things are an interesting idea but not that quick setting up

 

[Inline6]

Those "Hog/Pig" saddle type things are an interesting idea but not that quick setting up

The one in the middle is set up like a hog saddle. The one on top which is the system I use. You replace the factory hand guard with one from RRS. That actually has a dovetail that will clamp into the leveling head. It's fast enough, when the time starts on a stage, I carry the tripod up (legs extended) unfold the leg, clamp the rifle in, insert mag, and run the course of fire. Usually 10 rounds in 90 seconds. In between 5 to 10 targets and various ranges.

 

[BigSteve57]

That’s been my way of shooting rifles off hand!

Exactly.

If you shoot offhand with a scope...
Do either of you find that your shooting offhand accuracy goes down the higher up in power you go with scope magnification?

As bad as I am shooting offhand I get WORSE with more scope magnification.

 

[Red Leg]

If you shoot offhand with a scope...
Do either of you find that your shooting offhand accuracy goes down the higher up in power you go with scope magnification?

As bad as I am shooting offhand I get WORSE with more scope magnification.

Absolutely. Magnification not only magnifies the target, but also any movement of the rifle. The less stable the position (offhand is the least), the greater the perceived movement. I can't prove it, but I am convinced the progressive unsteadiness is geometric rather than arithmetic as power goes up - in other words, 9X isn't three times more unstable than 3X, but is closer to thirty times. Anything above 4X and any offhand shooter will spend for more time chasing the reticle than he will actually aiming at the target. It is why I never hunt with the scope set higher than 4X. In Africa particularly, an offhand shot will likely be fairly close and need to be made very quickly. On a really long range reach from a solid rest, one normally has time to crank up power. At shorter ranges it is just the opposite.

 

[BigSteve57]

Absolutely. Magnification not only magnifies the target, but also any movement of the rifle. The less stable the position (offhand is the least), the greater the perceived movement. I can't prove it, but I am convinced the progressive unsteadiness is geometric rather than arithmetic as power goes up - in other words, 9X isn't three times more unstable than 3X, but is closer to thirty times. Anything above 4X and any offhand shooter will spend for more time chasing the reticle than he will actually aiming at the target. It is why I never hunt with the scope set higher than 4X. In Africa particularly, an offhand shot will likely be fairly close and need to be made very quickly. On a really long range reach from a solid rest, one normally has time to crank up power. At shorter ranges it is just the opposite.

Interesting. I can agree that things appear to get worse in a non-linear way with higher magnification. But it's just too hard for me to make any kind of determination on that as my shooting literally appears random at 4x and above. I will say that at higher magnifications I do jerk the trigger as I try to "catch" the target, which appears to move faster and faster with higher magnifications, as I float over it. If I shoot at 1.5x my results are about the same as open sights; again at 4x it's a disaster.

BTW I noticed this in competition with the offhand shooting stage of service rifle at 200 yards. I was NOT practicing this on game. Knowing my limitations with offhand shooting, I seldom if ever hunt shooting offhand. The few times I have shot offhand at game it has been at a very close distance or it was because I saw no other alternative. Two examples were when a large buck seemingly appeared out of nowhere at about 20 yards in front of me and another was startled being charged by a hog at about 30 yards. I'll do my best to get into a better position (kneeling, setting rifle on tree, prone, on sticks) other than offhand, again knowing my limitations.

 

[Newboomer]

My PH on my last trip was using one of those four legged contraptions and I couldn't get used it. I'm used to a tripod and his sticks were too limited in sideways movement. I like the tripod where I can pivot myself around to follow the animal. The 4 legged worked OK if I had plenty of time to set up and the game wasn't moving.

I did get a good suggestion from him, though. My triggers are too heavy for good shooting. I'm set at about 3 1/2 to 4 lbs and he said turn them down to 2 to 2 1/2 lbs. I can shoot well enough but I can see where the lesser trigger pressure will help. My Win 375 HH has no slack but the Ruger 6.5 does, almost like a two stage which I don't like. Have to remember these aren't carry guns where heavier triggers are the norm.

 

[VertigoBE]

Hello all,

Just got back from a small visit to the gunstore where I was discussing with the owner that I'll be going on my first safari in 2 months (fingers crossed) and I asked him if he had any additional .300WinMag Snap Caps for me to practice more with my rifle. (shoot, work the bolt, shoot, reload two).

He looked at me as if I had just mentioned that I'd be interested in removing my manhood. 'Why?'he asked, I explained to him for practice off the sticks, dry fire at home (all gun ranges have been closed since October last year) and getting used to shooting and operating the bolt while on the sticks.

He told me that it was a bad idea to practice... as I was more likely to ingrain a bad habit than instill any good ones. And that once being there, I would be way too excited to be paying attention to anything else than just getting the rifle up and taking a shot. All fine motor skills go out the window. (he does like to exaggerate a little...)

Now I do know that "practice does not make perfect. practice makes permanent". So what kind of bad habits could I be ingraining? He did not want to elaborate on 'what I'd practice wrong' just "everything"...

Btw, I'm practicing on 4Stable sticks, not 3-legged ones, I'll be taking mine with me to Africa.

V.

 

[Inline6]

I would not worry about what others say in regards to dry fire. All the crazy looks I have received over the years when I tell people that I try fire, well it's a lot.

It sounds like you are incorporating a lot of the correct steps. I would suggest to really focus on the movement of the crosshairs, their should not be any. As in when the hammer drops the cross hairs should be exactly where they were, hopefully that makes sense.

Good luck on your upcoming adventure.

 

[Dean2]

Vertigo

What your story proves is there are really misinformed people everywhere. Guys that work in gun stores are just as prone to being full of useless and unfounded opinions as the next guy, they just get to pass them on to a lot more people. One suggestion, practice off off two and three stick set ups as well. You may find a four stick a little unwiedly if you are doing any amount of walking. Dry fire and practice working the bolt, mounting the gun etc will create muscle memory that will be useful, just make sure you do it the same each time. Hope you have a great trip.

 

[VertigoBE]

Vertigo

What your story proves is there are really misinformed people everywhere. Guys that work in gun stores are just as prone to being full of useless and unfounded opinions as the next guy, they just get to pass them on to a lot more people. One suggestion, practice off off two and three stick set ups as well. You may find a four stick a little unwiedly if you are doing any amount of walking. Dry fire and practice working the bolt, mounting the gun etc will create muscle memory that will be useful, just make sure you do it the same each time. Hope you have a great trip.

I agree, I was not too impressed by him. Especially with some of his other remarks, such as:
-"I still need to go to Africa for the first time"
-"I'll be going with 10 other guys, to do a driven hunt, the goal is to get 400 pieces on the tableau"
-"All of Africa is fake, you just go hunting in one garden or another"

Anyhow, not much choice but going to this gun store, as they are by far the biggest in Belgium, with the biggest range of items and brands available. And they do have superb stuff in the shop. He is just very sure about his own opinions. Caveat Emptor

 

[Tanks]

...
-"All of Africa is fake, you just go hunting in one garden or another"

He must think all of Africa is located in RSA.

 

[IvW]

He must think all of Africa is located in RSA.

You always have BS comments about hunting in RSA...

Below your name it sais AH elite, I guess you also place yourself status above the other 99% of hunters on this site......Mr. Elite.....

 

[Jon Glajchen]

”Perfect practice makes perfect“
I would just focus on getting as stable as you can quickly and then focus on breathing and squeezing the trigger so that the crosshairs don’t move off the target.
Sounds like you are doing it already. Keep it up and enjoy your hunt, your time doing dry work will not be wasted!

 

[fourfive8]

I think the key is to practice good form and habits. From the beginning only practice to memory good habits especially if shooting a heavy recoiling rifle. No doubt some of the two point rests are very steady. Either the PH or one of his guys will be setting them up when it comes time to shoot. Sometimes there is not a lot of time. Make sure whomever does the stick setting knows how to use them if they are different from their normal, tripod sticks.

 

[Tanks]

You always have BS comments about hunting in RSA...

Below your name it sais AH elite, I guess you also place yourself status above the other 99% of hunters on this site......Mr. Elite.....

Sarcasm is lost on you? A "legend" like you should understand it.

I have always advocated RSA hunting for plains game to people as one can get multiple species and a great time at a game ranch much cheaper than the cost of a guided Elk hunt (about a 35% success rate) here in the States.

 

[Happy Myles]

As as been often mentioned, do a lot of dry firing on sticks at home, focus on trigger pull and follow through. If the crosshairs are jumping slightly keep at it until they do not. When you first get to campi have a discussion with PH on how you are used to having sticks set up. Do not wait until an exciting moment when time is of the essence and adrenaline is pumping. Hopefully good habits will help good results. At least that has worked for me over dozens of Africa adventures. Kindest Regards

 

[IvW]

Sarcasm is lost on you? A "legend" like you should understand it.

I have always advocated RSA hunting for plains game to people as one can get multiple species and a great time at a game ranch much cheaper than the cost of a guided Elk hunt (about a 35% success rate) here in the States.

Sarcasm is the lowest form of whit....mix a rich attitude in and it gets worse...

 

[shootist~]

A professional shooter I know (instructs for a NGO), happed to notice I was holding my breath sometime back.

I found out the lack of O2 to the brain and eyes affects you much faster than I ever considered.

To relax into the shot you need a deep relaxing breath, letting it out slowly into breaking the shot. He also had me widen my stance some to improve stability.

I totally agree with the comments about Lots of dry fire, and practice with low recoil rifles. And follow through on the dry fire - watching what the cross hair is doing.

And if you are a bit yippy at the range, try a dry fire between each live round.