cant hit the target

D

dondi

Inactive
hi everyone i am fairly new here , just bought a 40 cal S&W.(my first handgun) its a nice gun i love it , but i cant hit the dang target lol,seems most of my shots are going low and to the left,i made a new wooden target holder and blew the left leg off it already. i had rifles and shotguns all my life and always thought i was a fairly good shot, hands sure are different.anyone have any advice other than keep practicing. i shot about 200 rounds so far,one day i counted out of 29 shots i only hit the cardboard 14 times ::o.
 
http://www.bullseyepistol.com/training.htm

Maybe the link above will help.

It's hard to know where to start. First let me say that learning to shoot takes time and practice, practice, practice. When I first started I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn. And that's if I was inside the barn! With the door closed!

There is a great deal to learn but that's part of the fun. Sight alignment, trigger control and more. Try to get the basics through research. Like asking questions here and with practice you will slowly improve.

The .40 is a great caliber but has a fair amount of recoil, This tends to result in flinching. Especially in the beginning. You will need to focus on grip, site picture, stance and trigger control.

We have some good folks here that will be a great deal of help. Another thing I did was take classes with a trainer. Youtube vids on the various aspects can be helpful also.
 
Hate to recommend something that's not likely very practical, but if you can I'd say get your hands on a .22 for a couple hundred rounds. The mechanics of handguns are indeed very different from rifles and shottys, and the mellow nature of the .22 lends itself nicely to getting down basics.

That said, the advice on this forum is typically pretty good, and the stuff already posted will probably help a bunch as well.
 
And then do some dry firing (read up on it, and make sure to do it safely, so you don't kill your tv, as some have).:)

Get some one-on-one instruction from someone who is a reasonably good shot. Even a few minutes willl make a difference.
 
robhof

If your group is relatively small and consistantly in the same location, then use Ky windage and adjust aim point to get to center of target. If you have driftable or adjustable sights then adjust the sights.
 
The .40 is not the best cartridge to learn handgunning with. It sounds like you are pulling your shots. A combination of factors could be at play- trigger control, improper grip, and fear/anticipation of recoil and muzzle blast. As suggested, try a .22 pistol (a good one) and see how your shooting improves.
 
What model is it? If it's a Sigma (SW40VE), the trigger takes some getting used to.

In any case, low and left means you're either pushing against anticipated recoil or tightening your grip while pulling the trigger. Dry-fire practice can be of help. The main thing to remember is to keep your vision locked on that front sight through the whole pull. If the front sight isn't sharp, don't pull. Take a breath and start again from scratch. Every time.
 
I agree with Bill, it sounds like you are pulling the trigger instead of squeezing it. Shooting low and to the left usually indicates you are pulling or jerking the trigger instead of a steady squeeze until the gun goes off.
 
Borrow a double Revolver and six snap caps. Put a nickel or quarter on the top strap. Double action it while keeping the sight on a target. Each squeeze of the DA trigger should be accomplished without the sight picture shifting or the coin falling from the top strap.

Or you can take up archery. It teaches you follow through which transfers over to handguns.
 
At what distance are you shooting? I just saw mention of shooting rifles and wanted to make sure you were not attempting to shoot at 100 yards. I mean to guy accustomed to 100 yrd shots @ 7 yards you may feel you are too close.
 
I agree with both the .22 and the range. I had a hard time when I first started shooting pistols at not putting the target 50m away and trying to shoot that. 25m seems really close, but even that is pretty far for a new pistol shooter.

And my wife's first attempt at pistol firing was with a glock 45. She'd hit the dirt in front of her or low on the target cause she'd clench up and jerk the trigger. I got her a walther P22 and she became remarkably better the first range trip, and that carried over to the glock later.
 
Here's what they are trying to say
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Sounds like a flinch or improper trigger control. While you may have grown up shooting rifles and shotguns, pistols are a different animal. I'd suggest getting some training at a local range and start with a .22 pistol. Once you get the basics mastered you can move up to a centerfire pistol.
 
I'm a big proponent of good professional training. Among other things, there is really no good substitute for a qualified instructor watching what you are doing and coaching you based on what he sees. Remember that practice doesn't make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect.

Practice also makes permanent. If you keep practicing doing something wrong, you will become an expert at doing it wrong. So some good training shows you what to practice and how to practice it. It thus helps you avoid bad habits which later on can be an awful hassle to try to correct.

The first principle of accurate shooting is trigger control: a smooth, press straight back on the trigger with only the trigger finger moving. Maintain your focus on the front sight as you press the trigger, increasing pressure on the trigger until the shot breaks. Don't try to predict exactly when the gun will go off nor try to cause the shot to break at a particular moment. This is what Jeff Cooper called the "surprise break."

By keeping focus on the front sight and increasing pressure on the trigger until the gun essentially shoots itself, you don’t anticipate the shot breaking. But if you try to make the shot break at that one instant in time when everything seem steady and aligned, you usually wind up jerking the trigger. Of course the gun will wobble some on the target. Try not to worry about the wobble and don’t worry about trying to keep the sight aligned on a single point. Just let the front sight be somewhere in a small, imaginary box in the center of the target.

Also, work on follow through. Be aware of where on the target the front sight is as the shot breaks and watch the front sight lift off that point as the gun recoils – all the time maintaining focus on the front sight.

Practice deliberately, making every shot count, to program good habits and muscle memory. Dry practice is very helpful. You just want to triple check that the gun is not loaded, and there should be no ammunition anywhere around. When engaging in dry practice, religiously follow Rule 2 - Never Let Your Muzzle Cover Anything You Are Not Willing To Destroy." As you dry fire, you want to reach the point where you can't see any movement of the sight as the sear releases and the hammer falls.

Think: front sight, press, surprise.
 
Thanks for all the those who have contributed their advice and to the OP for bringing up the topic. I've really been working on my accuracy lately and this thread has been really helpful.

I'm in a similar situation as the OP, fairly new to pistols, learning on 40 S&W. Several things have greatly improved my shooting lately.

One- pulling straight back on the trigger. I never really used to think about this one; I always thought "of course the trigger is being pulled straight back, It has to in order to fire," but I realized I was really jerking the trigger, making me shoot low and left.

Two- the Todd Jarrett video (already posted), particularly the part about getting pressure all the way around the grip, has really helped me to manage recoil and just control the pistol much more effectively. The grip he teaches is money- the pistol returns to the same point every time if you are doing it correctly.

Three- shooting .22lr. I've been practicing more and more on an old buckmark and practicing good mechanics without significant recoil really is a GREAT way to practice.

Like Frank Ettin said though, you have to be practicing CORRECTLY in order to see results. In my first couple months of pistol shooting, I shot a lot, but was shooting wrong and didn't see results until I really examined what I was doing wrong.

I'm absolutely still learning lots and am far from where I'd like to be, these are a few things that have really helped me improve lately.
 
Don't re-invent the wheel

Magpul has put out several videos titled "The Art of...." The relevant one for you is "The Art of the Dynamic Handgun". I have learned a lot from it and I would recommend it to everyone interested in pistol shooting.
 
dondi

Have you had the chance to shoot other handguns for comparison?

My SIL had a Sig 226 and had similar problems. Very frustrating for him. I let him shoot a few of my guns and he did really well. He never conquered that specific Sig and replaced it with a HK, which works good for him.
 
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