Revisiting the fundamentals

Well, it’s that time of year again and the festive season is upon us. I think it is a great opportunity in revisiting some of the key fundamentals of shooting. Many shooters can often get sidetracked with technical approaches and technical details and often overlook the bigger picture when it comes to shooting better scores. Shooting good scores comes down applying the fundamentals in the competitive environment.

Applying he Fundamentals

So let’s start with the fundamentals. What are the key fundamentals to shooting? The first is learning to hold still, the second is holding the proper sight picture and finally there is trigger control. I have spoken in past articles about the mind and concentration. They are still important however without these fundamentals shooting good scores becomes a challenge.

Hold still

For increased performance every shooter must continually strive for a motionless hold whilst maintaining perfect sight alignment. However, experienced pistol shooters soon realise that this aim is rarely if ever achieved. Often a shot may break during a motionless phase of the hold however; the hold itself is never entirely motionless. So you must accept (this can be difficult for some shooters) movement. Maintain focus on correct sight alignment.

To increase overall stillness one should always work from the ground up. When is the last time you checked your stance? There is no one way to stand. Each person has to find their own optimum stance to minimise body sway and reduce overall body movement. However, here are some general guidelines:

Feet: The feet should be shoulder width apart. This is a comfortable way to stand and also helps to keep the body balanced.
Legs: Should be straight but not necessary locked at the knee joint.
Hips: Should be near level.
Back: Should be straight.
Head: The head should be erect and kept in the same position.
Arm: The arm should be straight, the muscles firm, the elbow locked.
Wrist: Should be set so that there is no movement of the hand.

Now hold your aim at a cross on a wall. You may find that by aiming perfect sight alignment on a horizontal line that the movements up and down are exaggerated and while aiming at a vertical line the movement from side to side are exaggerated.

Sight picture

Focus the eye on the front sight. Don’t let the focus shift back and forth between front sight and the target otherwise it will end up somewhere in between Perfect sight alignment is necessary to get good scores, and having a natural alignment of the arm, hand and gun to the eye will keep the sights perfectly aligned. Sights can become misaligned if the wrist is not being held in a stationary position. In addition, the position of the head is very important in keeping the sights aligned. The head should be kept in the same exact position at all times.

Hold a firm grip consistently!

But not firm enough to induce muscle tremble. It will assist in maintaining constant grip pressure. However, be careful of muscle fatigue. This is where holding exercises come into their own. They train the muscles to maintain desired hold over a match period. When you do practice make it as realistic as possible (i.e. include number of holds for sighters etc).

Hold the grip the same way consistently!

This is developed through time and practice. Watch closely how you grip the pistol each time. This will educate you to see as well as feel. Doing this will make it easier to duplicate one’s efforts each successive time. Here are some general guidelines:

Pick up the pistol by the barrel or slide.
Place the grip of the pistol between the thumb and forefinger of the shooting hand and push the pistol firmly to the heel of the hand, being careful to watch how the pistol seats.
While pushing the pistol into the hand, wrap the fingers firmly around the grip of the pistol
All the fingers are used to grip the pistol and equal pressure by all the fingers is necessary to control the weapon. No excessive pressure should be exerted on the side of the pistol by the thumb.
The greatest pressure should be between the heel of the hand and that portion of the fingers on the front of the grip.
While gripping firm, the trigger finger must be able to work back and forth enough to give it an independent action. Check this through dry firing.
Sometimes the grip is not placed in the hand the same way every time, causing the pistol to feel differently and hesitation on the trigger squeeze.

Breath control

One most hold ones breath to reduce body movement. However, holding it to long will starve the brain from oxygen and visual acuity will decrease. In addition, your body will want to take a breath. This will in itself cause unwanted body movement. Personally, I feel it is important to develop a breathing technique that is not only natural to the shooter but also works with the movement of the limbs of the body. For example in a precision event, breathing in as you raise the pistol and breathing out as you lower the pistol into the aiming area. This ensures that your arm movements coincide with your ribcage as you inhale and exhale through your lungs.

Settling into the aiming area

Remember our aim is to make our body movement as motionless as possible. It is possible for most individuals to hold the arm and pistol almost motionless for a short period of time just after the arm has settled. This means that the arm and pistol stops or ‘settles’ into a certain area on the target and becomes as still as it is possible. Stillness of arm and pistol is ultimately a result of lot of practice and concentrated effort.

Trigger Control

Developing good trigger control is often a major discussion point amongst shooters. The consequences of poor trigger control can often undo all the hard work undertaken by aspiring shooters. Good trigger control like all major technical areas in shooting should be honed until it is perfected. What is important here is that some shooters are not able to detect poor trigger control technique and consequently develop through diligent practise a bad habit.

One should squeeze the trigger positively back straight to the rear in such a way as not to disturb the perfect alignment of the sights or the stillness of the pistol. This is where maintaining a good stance is important. The arm should be solid with elbow locked, the wrist straight, and a good firm grip on the pistol. Hold the pistol with perfect sight alignment as still as you can with the focus of the eye on the front sight As the gun settles in the aiming area and the movement is such that you can accept, the commit yourself decisively to deliver that shot and commence the trigger squeeze with positive pressure.

Trigger pressure must come from the trigger finger only. You must place the trigger finger on the trigger in such a way that you can squeeze straight to the rear and thereby have no disturbance to the sight alignment in any way. Having the arm so solid, the wrist straight, and the grip firm will aid your trigger control. By gripping firmly you can maintain the same grip on the pistol throughout the shot or series. The trigger finger must move independently from the rest of the hand.

Conclusion

Besides the correct application of technique consistency can be the secret of doing anything well. If you are consistent in your stance, hold, sight picture, breath and trigger control then consistent scores will come your way.

I would like to take this opportunity in wishing everyone not only a happy but safe festive season. Good shooting in 2004. With a little luck I may be able to get out from behind my desk and be able to join you in actively in the pursuit of this fantastic sport

Regards

Dieter