Bad flinch

Summer of '84 I was having fun in a pistol league in a N Colo indoor range.

The 4 person team I shot on got 2nd place.I had the privilidge of losing to some gentlemen considerably older than .One of them,his last name was Fitzpatrick.He was in his 70's and spoke of shooting at Camp Perry.approached me,and was interested in my old 1950's Hi-standard GD or GB,I don't remember.He complimented on the sight I had made.White hair,shaking hands,bifocals.

I remember his score for one ordinary night.Slow,timed,rapid,one handed at 25 yds.
He shot a 297,I forget the X count.

I was proud to lose to him.And,I knew I had met a true gentleman.
 
Thanks so much for your advice gentlemen. I have no physical injuries however i do have quite a bit of arthritis in my hands as a result of my advanced age.
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Overhill,

Both of my wrists are bone on bone from cartilage loss. Arthritis is not a good thing for certain. I've shot at times when the recoil almost brings tears to my eyes and I will definitely flinch. Not as drastically as you describe, but enough to ruin a day at the range. I concentrate on my front sight and my trigger pull. I just put the discharge out of my mind. It works for me usually. Another trick you might use is as follows. Have a friend load your magazine for you. Only instead of using all live ammo have him slip a snap cap in the mix. You'll find out in a hurry if it is the actual recoil causing your movement, or if it's the anticipation of pain that's the culprit. I enjoy shooting so much that I wear wrist braces and grin and bear it so I can continue the sport. I also went from the isosceles stance to a modified weaver stance. The modified weaver allows my shooting elbow to absorb more of the recoil than my wrists. At least that's my theory as to why it's more comfortable. I have also gone away from my .45ACPs and tend to shoot a lot more 9mm, 32ACP, or .380. I still sneak in some .40S&W and .45ACP now and then. Good luck and you might really consider talking to your doctor about it.
 
Breathing and the front sight

You already have some excellent advice from people who know a lot more than I do. However, I'll throw in a thought that works for me when the pattern starts to spread out. If I just go back to taking a breath, holding it and focusing all my attention on the front sight the patterns start to converge again. Good luck.
 
I recall those release triggers working wonders for those that needed them.

I'm no expert in the mechanics but, if I'm remembering the "guts" correctly, it's not going to go into anything that most people think of as a "handgun".

One could probably be made to go into a Thompson-Center or possibly something like a Stryker/XP-100.

From a "mind game" perspective, I'm not sure that a deliberate shot from a T/C would benefit from a release trigger in the same manner as, say, a BT-99 which is much more dynamic in use. The T/C might be too "conscious" as it were, negating the benefit of a release trigger. A single set might do as well or better.

On a strictly speculative note: some portion of the release trigger "experience" might be realized with a combination of a 1911 derivative race gun firing powder puff loads. It's still a "pull" but difficult to predict if you're unfamiliar with the platform - perhaps someone familiar with both shotguns and handguns could build one such - Briley, maybe? Just guessing. :o
 
This forum is without a doubt, the most informative of all the gun forums i have visited. Your responses are intelligent and direct to the subject.
I talked to a sports psychologist friend yesterday and he stated that one or more the following could be causing my problem.
  • Weak consentration.
  • Incorrect set-up.
  • Failure to control emotions.
  • Inability to forget a bad shot.
  • Lack of patience.
  • Negative thoughts
  • Fear of recoil.
  • Improper eye focus.
  • Loss of confidence
.
I am confused and embarassed by this, but i am determined to beat it.
Again, my sincerest thanks.
 
Don't be embarrassed.

I'd once developed a reflex, due to over-training, by which my entire arm would drift to the right ( I'm a lefty ) just as I was releasing the shot. This was so consistent that I could have accommodated it by adjusting my windage. The weirdest thing is that I couldn't overcome it through my technique. I suspect that it was the result of straining the muscles used to stabilize my shoulder.

Something that you might try is to put the pistol down for a few weeks, and cross train on a 22 rifle, or an air rifle. This could give you the opportunity to focus on your trigger without stressing your wrist and shoulder. Plus I've found that sometimes it's just a good idea to take a break and regroup. Then you can start rebuilding your shot process from a fresh perspective.

Also you might be interested in these articles by Anatoliy Piddubnyy. He's a well known pistol coach from the Ukraine. The second article, in particular, describes some useful drills for establishing good wrist control and a consistent grip.

http://www.pilkguns.com/anatoli.shtml

http://www.pilkguns.com/anatoli2.shtml
 
Thank you Casimer They were very infomative articles. I am convinced that after 50+ years of shooting that somehow my eyes are saying ,pull the trigger and my brain is saying "not yet" because 95% of the time when i flinch, the gun never fires and the trigger feels as though there is a stop behind it. I will take some time off and slowly come back using the methods described the others who responded. My search for a release trigger has produced no positive results and most probally was a bad idea to begin with.
Regards to all
 
because 95% of the time when i flinch, the gun never fires and the trigger feels as though there is a stop behind it
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That sounds a lot like 'chicken finger'. It's 100% mental. Basically you lose the voluntary control of your finger and when you finally get the shot off, it's spastic. Your finger jerks and your grip flexes suddenly, and God knows where you're actually aiming at that point.

A common treatment for this is to practice shooting a blank target. Fixate on your front sight and focus on maintaining sight alignment through the release of the shot. Just use the paper as a general aiming area (a pie plate is a good target for this). What you want to accomplish, over time, is a consistent grouping. But don't attempt to aim for the group, just focus on the sights and good groups will be the result.

Chicken finger probably results from the attempt to release the shot at the exact moment that you see the sights at the center of the target. But this is nearly impossible to accomplish, for several reasons. A blank paper drill can help to establish the confidence that you can hit the center through consistent technique and mental focus alone - you don't need to hunt for the bullseye.
 
DA shooting and using a blank target (as mentioned) can help. Try using a .22 and putting a large blank target out far enough that you can't see the bullet holes.
 
Don't know about the release trigger, but I usually try to finish up a range session with a 22. I had a bad flinch with my 44mag, and using the 22 would get me back to form. I would buy a 22 and shoot it a lot.
 
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