I cant stay consistent at the bench.

[Grouse]

When i'm shooting i never feel the same. One time i feel perfect and i'm dead on. The next time at the bench i cant get comfortable. Is there some kind of routine to feel good at the bench every time? :?

 

[Rifleman]

Hmm, for starters I would cut back on caffeine.

 

[Blue-Dot-37.5]

Same bench, rifle rest, etc??

 

[Rifleman]

The bottom line is setting up and getting a "dead gun" if you don't do that you won't be consistent. Slow down and take your time getting set up, and that will solve the problem unless it is a problem with you such as anxiety, too much caffeine, sugar,etc.

 

[big6x6]

Riflemans advice with the caffeine is EXCELLENT advice! That cqn make a huge difference.

Another thing that helps me a lot is one of the good PAST slip-on recoil pads!

With me, PRACTICE makes the most difference of all. The MORE I shoot, the BETTER I shoot! When I set aside the time and go shooting a couple of days EVERY week for say a MONTH, I'm getting to where my mind is where IT should be, my technique is where it should be. and my confidence is where it should be as well.

 

[Grouse]

Thanks Guy's It's pretty tuff not having Caffeine in my system. Working 3 shifts and changing every week is tuff. I'm alway's in a hurry. Relaxing might be the best thing for me. :idea:

 

[Loggy]

Grouse, some good advice here!

I seem to do better when I go to the range alone. Plus, when there are no others there shooting or only 1 or 2. Sometimes hard but i hate hearing that BANG just as I'm ready to pull the trigger. :lol: For me, the less distractions the better.

 

[big6x6]

I seem to do better when I go to the range alone.

ABSOLUTELY!

 

[Okie Hog]

It is best to not drink any coffee or Coke if you are a frequent shooter.

If you do drink coffee, the secret is to not over do it on the day you shoot: Do not under do it either. If you normally drink two, six ounce cups of coffee, do not drink four cups on the day you shoot. Conversly, do not go to the range without your normal two cups.

Control of breathing is very important. When I am over-caffeinated it is much harder to control my breathing.

It is much better if there is no one else on the range.

 

[Spitpatch]

If I feel "off", as Grouse says, I slam 2 shots of Scotch, wait five minutes and pull the trigger. Works every time...

This will offset or negate the caffine.

SMOA groups are possible with 150 grains of the right brand :lol: :lol:

I'm going out to the shop and see how much 150 grains of Scotch actually is... 8) :wink:

 

[redpep]

start with your low power 22 rifle first pop of a few magazines gettimg you grip, breathing and trigger finger back in shooting form than move to you big gun

 

[funman]

Anxiety is alot of it, gets me alot. I prefer to shoot alone without much distraction. Alot of times ill be at the range on base and i am the only one with a muzzle loader. So i have people waiting on me to clear the range becasue they are ready to clear their targets. This is what made me go out and find a place in the woods i can shoot and relax. i find it alot more rewarding that way.

 

[RAF]

I think we all have days at the range when you could hit a bull it the butt with a scoup shovel. I know I've had those days. Then on other days I can't do any thing wrong. I still haven't figured out why. Coffee? Maybe. If I figure it out :idea: I'll pass it on :wink:

 

[Okie Hog]

i drink coffee. The only time that it has any effect on my shooting is when i drink more or less than usual. Having my normal amount of coffee and drinking a Coke is guaranteed to trash my shooting.

 

[cayuga]

Here are a few tricks I use. Whether they make a difference who really knows. It seems to work for me.

I have spots where on the bench my elbows rest.

Also I can feel the shooting rest against the inside of my right arm in a spot.

An old shooter taught me to mark where my cheek rests on the stock with a band aid of all things. He said to feel that band aid in the same spot each and every time. Then when I could set that cheek on that spot like second nature, take the band aid off. (I was once hunting with a friend and he asked me if my rifle stock cut itself. I was not sure what he was talking about until I saw the band aid.)

And he also advised me to slow down. I used to shoot way too fast.
Also he always stressed the importance of shooting through the shot. He used to say the shot was not over until the deer fell down. He used to tell me to shoot and see the hole appear in the target over the top of the barrel. I know all he was doing was trying to make me follow through the shot, but it did seem to pay off with accuracy.

Then some days I walk out there and could not hit a bull in the behind.

 

[john keyes]

thats why I love shooting rifles, centerfire and ML. slowly. I just can't get into pistols, as many as I own and carry for protection etc, its not fun to shoot them like people do.
give me a rifle any day, pretty day, take a shot, daydream, take another..heck I'm glad hunting season will be over and I can have fun shooting

 

[funman]

An old shooter taught me to mark where my cheek rests on the stock with a band aid of all things. He said to feel that band aid in the same spot each and every time.

thats really good advise i am going to try that thanks

 

[black powder]

Cayuga wrote "I have spots where on the bench my elbows rest" well so do i i use a sandbag under my right elbow ..i only use sandbags on the range to rest my front and rear stock and my elbow ..

 

[AJ]

When I shoot heavy recoiling guns, I also place a rest under my trigger hand. As you try to pull the gun tighter in to your shoulder you can put downward force on the gun and induce pressure points in the action. I rest my hand on a sandbag and only squeeze the trigger.

If you are a smoker, its also hard to get rid of the heartbeat. Watching the crosshairs dance through a 24x scope each beat of the heart can drive you nuts. Wearing a couple sweatshirts to pad the movement helps some.

Free recoil is best but you can't do that with a gun that has a lot of recoil. When I was shooting my benchrest gun (40x in 6 PPC) I sight it on the bull and take my head off of the stock and just watch the wind flags. When the conditions are right I touch the 2 ounce Jewell trigger and put another bullet through the same hole.

 

[mlnewb]

Great advice for calming your system and LOTS of other stuff

You mention working too much and needing caffeine? I have solid information on how you can significantly cut back your intake and still have the energy.

The information has been around for almost 20 years now... I've been using it for the last 10 and, just in the last few years, I'm finally hearing other people mention it.

Choosing your foods by blood type. http://www.dadamo.com/typebase4/typeindexer.htm

This will help you with any disease you currently have, calm diabetes, calm your brain a bit, allow you to need less sleep and a whole bunch of other benefits.

Really want to get healthy... drop/gain weight to your optimum and have energy coming out of your ears?? Don't eat any 'processed' foods. No hydrogenated anything, artificial anything, no oils other than oilve, no refined sugars or fructose only honey and possibly another natural and compatible sweetener.

So totally awesome I can't even begin to tell you all of the benefits I've gained. Just totally cool. Tough... but well worth it.