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  1. #1
    I am a Forum User
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    Ionia
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    Help Me Become A Better Pistol Shooter

    Hi there everyone!

    I've been reluctant to start a thread asking for help with this, mostly due to my fear of not articulating my strengths and weaknesses clearly enough, but here we go!

    In the last 5 years or so I've really strived to improve my speed, accuracy, and most importantly, consistency with my handgun shooting. I try to shoot year-round at least twice a month but life gets in the way sometimes as we all know. This year has been a struggle achieving my goals, whereas last summer I was very pleased with myself.

    My non-range training involves dry fire at home 3-6 times/week and grip strengthening.

    It seems I'm getting stuck on the fundamentals and transitioning from dry fire to live fire. I can dry fire every night for 10 minutes then hit the range on the weekend and all my hits are low/left and/or scattered. Recoil anticipation is my 1st weakness, followed by inconsistencies in grip. I usually shoot my Glock 17 and I might start out strong, landing hits in a 2.5x2.5" post-it note at 7-10 yards but after awhile, shots start going low and left. I've done enough dry fire that I believe my low and left hits isn't a trigger manipulation issue as much as recoil anticipation.

    What are some things I can do to improve? I'm keeping up on dry and live fire but it seems I've flatlined and cannot move forward. Thanks for any help you can offer.

  2. #2
    I am a Forum User
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    Jul 2002
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    Mask free in the gunshine state!
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    20,586
    This might help:

    Name:  correction_chart.gif
Views: 789
Size:  44.0 KB

  3. #3
    Banned
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    Apr 2017
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    Macomb Area
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    Very easy, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. and then PRACTICE some more. All the best to you.

  4. #4
    MGO Member
    Join Date
    May 2014
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    michigan
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    1,493
    Just a personal experience, I found myself missing left a lot and couldn't figure out why. Before this I was pretty much on target. Realized I was flying my elbows, pulled them in and got back on target. Try it when you practice at home and watch what it does to your hands.

  5. #5
    I am a Forum User
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    Feb 2019
    Location
    Ionia
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    58
    Thanks guys!

    I've seen that chart several times but it is always good to review it. Lots of good information there!

    I'll definitely check on pulling my elbows too. I don't think I've noticed my elbows moving during dry fire, but may be when live firing.

    Man, I can dry fire so well usually, studying that front sight and being able to make corrections if my grip is inconsistent. When I get to the range, I struggle to integrate those skills into live fire.

  6. #6
    I am a Forum User
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    Dec 2010
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    West of Bravo
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    Improve your upper body strength with some free weight training. Articulating 10 to 15 pound dumbbells provides the arm and shoulder strength necessary for good pistol shooting.
    Increase your hearing protection NRR.
    Get your eyes examined for acuity at your handgun front sight distance. Get corrective lens shooting glasses accordingly.
    Don't waste your time and ammunition going shooting if you did not get a good night's sleep the night before.
    Shoot on an outdoor range, well away from rifle shooters.
    Buy an Advantage Arms .22lr conversion kit for your Glock and use it for 50 rounds or so at the outset of each range session to focus on trigger manipulation.
    Conclude each range session with 10 to 20 rounds of .22lr through the conversion unit to assess your status.
    Shoot five round strings, not full magazines, until you are satisfied with your trigger manipulation. The more frequent breaks give you a chance to calm down and assess your progress.
    Practice some single handed shooting, interspersed among the typical two handed shooting strings. Poor single handed shooting often indicates weak upper body strength.

  7. #7
    I am a Forum User
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    Feb 2019
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    Ionia
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    58
    Quote Originally Posted by 10x25mm View Post
    Improve your upper body strength with some free weight training. Articulating 10 to 15 pound dumbbells provides the arm and shoulder strength necessary for good pistol shooting.
    Increase your hearing protection NRR.
    Get your eyes examined for acuity at your handgun front sight distance. Get corrective lens shooting glasses accordingly.
    Don't waste your time and ammunition going shooting if you did not get a good night's sleep the night before.
    Shoot on an outdoor range, well away from rifle shooters.
    Buy an Advantage Arms .22lr conversion kit for your Glock and use it for 50 rounds or so at the outset of each range session to focus on trigger manipulation.
    Conclude each range session with 10 to 20 rounds of .22lr through the conversion unit to assess your status.
    Shoot five round strings, not full magazines, until you are satisfied with your trigger manipulation. The more frequent breaks give you a chance to calm down and assess your progress.
    Practice some single handed shooting, interspersed among the typical two handed shooting strings. Poor single handed shooting often indicates weak upper body strength.
    Thank you, great points to consider. It's funny you mention using an outdoor range; I've only shot at an indoor range twice, the first time for my CPL class. Every time someone fired a shot, I flinched. I could not get used to that.

    Last year I was getting a lot more exercise and lifting some weights and that's when I felt like everything was gelling well as opposed to this last winter and summer.

  8. #8
    MGO Member DEVIL DOG's Avatar
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    Is your hearing protection adequate? Could be contributing to your anticipation issue. Learn to SQUEEZE the trigger slowly. Also controlling your breathing can affect how you shoot. Also, relax your grip just a tad. Don't hold the pistol so tightly that you may shake. You're not shooting a S&W 500. Relax your grip. The 9mm will not hurt you.
    ΥΣΜΧ SEMPER FIDELIS !

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  9. #9
    Try using a revolver for a bit. Leave some empty cylinders, close eyes and rotate. That
    will tell you a lot about trigger pull and anticipation.
    [QUOTE]["Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Benjamin Franklin/QUOTE]

  10. #10
    I am a Forum User
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    Dec 2010
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    The ugly part of Hell, Michigan
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    Dear heyshookme:

    If you are really serious about becoming a good pistol shooter, try giving weekly competitions a try. If you become interested in the competition, you will be inclined to train on the basics to improve your scores and it is in a fun and positive environment with lots of encouragement.

    Your results will be scored and your improvement will be easy to see, especially if you keep a small note book.


    Check out the CMRPL and while my team is based in Lansing, the league has a team based in Ionia and they are a great group of people. Usually when we shoot against Ionia, we all end up at the bar together after the match.


    Basically, we are a indoor winter bullseye league with seven teams scattered around the Lansing area. We have a competition every week from December through April newbies are encouraged and welcome. When we compete as a team, only the top four individual scores count for the team score which removes the excuse that newbies have that they are not good enough for a formal competition. In the summer, we all go our individual ways but we all look forward to the winter competitions.


    IN the winter leagues, we are limited to 22LR but that is a fine round to build your core competencies to become a good pistol shot.


    If you are interested shoot me a PM and I will get you contact information for the Ionia team.


    Regards,

    George (aka Cranky)
    Last edited by crankythunder; 07-13-2019 at 06:40 AM. Reason: misspellings added to verify authorship by engineer

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