How often/much to shoot to actually improve?

I go twice a week 100 rounds each trip. Helps to build muscle memory .
Doing all the things right at the same time is the hard part.
 
Another good alternative to dry firing is speer plastic primer powered bullets. You can get them from midway. They are reusable, inexpensive and can be used indoors with suitable backstop.
 
They are reusable, inexpensive and can be used indoors with suitable backstop.
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And suitable ventilation. Primers contain lead compounds. You'll want to be in an area that has decent ventilation and that is preferably not a living area since some of the primer residue will settle on exposed surfaces.
 
Lot's of good advice given here. There's nothing much I can add other than to confirm the most important things that others have said...

-Have someone else coach you for a few practice sessions It doesn't take an expensive class to learn marksmanship (it helps, but you don't have to have it). An RO, a trusted buddy who shoots and shoots well (and is somewhat intelligent), or the guy you shoot next to that knocks out the 10 ring at 10 yards every time with a pistol.

-Trigger control... you get that by dry-firing and practicing. Trigger control is the ability to pull, squeeze, press (whatever you want to call it) the trigger without moving the gun as a whole (or flinching, which definitely moves the gun as a whole). Dry fire is a good and free way to practice this. It is such an effective tool that the United States Marine Corps, known world-wide producing competent marksmen, forces it's recruits to spend a whole week dry firing before anyone ever fires their first live round. You can have a poor grip and still produce acceptable groups if you practice proper trigger control. Another good technique when you're beginning is to have a friend load dummy rounds and live rounds in a magazine and watch you as you shoot. If you have a flinching problem, the friend will see it when you pull the trigger on a dummy round

-Focus on the front sight post. It should be clear and the target should be blurry. This is the one thing that I learned when I was in the Marine Corps that took my abilities to the next level. I was a good shot before, but I could not make a 500 yard shot with iron sights for nothing. Learning this gave me that ability.



As others have also said, 10 rounds of quality practice is better than 100 rounds of junk practice. I grew up shooting rifles, and was darn good with one before I joined the Marine Corps. Never shot a pistol before then. To my dismay, when I went to coaches course I had a hard time with the pistol due to inexperience. After a couple of days and a few hundred rounds, though, it "clicked" and I got it. It was trigger control the whole time for me. I further refined my groups by proper grip, stance, "push pull," etc. Once it "clicks" for you though, it's all downhill.
 
OP, without the fundamentals of pistol: stance, grip, sight picture and trigger control, you are just blowing caps with no measurable results. Best thing you can do is take lessons from a USPSA Grand Master or IDPA Master. Practice drills should be no more than 200 rounds per session. But they should all be on scored targets under a shot timer.
 
Practice as frequently as you can. Dry-fire every day. You will see improvement quickly, if you do this.
(Assuming you are practicing proper form!)
 
I shoot twice a week. Practice or in a match, twice a week keeps me sharp.
I shot bullseye matches at first, after 20 years of casting and shooting too muc indoors, Lead levels went up. Now I shoot more rimfire ad centerfire rifle. I quit casting 10 years ago, now I buy the lead bullets.

In the winter I shoot sporter rifle once a week and some kind of intenet match. In the summer I shoot a 100 yard offhand rifle match and Silhouette metch every week.

David
 
Hmm okay, thanks.

I guess I'll just limit my shooting to just for fun for the next month since I can't practice with the gun I bought.

I'll refine my practice habits once I get my gun and actually start getting used to it.
 
You have to set goals - and work on all the fundamentals / all the little things --- stance, trigger press, trigger reset, mag changes both speed reload and tactical reloads....get some good instruction -- and read a little , like Massad Ayoob's book "combat handgunnery"....great info in there...in my view.

Once you reach a competency level --- dry fire 15 min a day is great / get to range "train" a couple times a week -100 to 150 rounds a session is plenty.....but work on specific things - and use a timer - like draw & fire 2 shots in under 4 sec .....and over time, work down to 3 sec....and maybe that 3 sec ( with center chest accuracy A zone hits ) becomes a long term goal... at 90% accuracy and under goal time.../ .... or ( draw and fire 3 shots - speed reload- and fire 3 shots ) in under 8 or 9 sec and work your way down to 7 sec......lots of drills you can work on to get better.

And don't ever forget to have fun with the process !
 
For just general shooting proficiency, 500 rounds a year, that's just one trip per month to the range. So you're going to need to budget for 1,500 rounds minimum, just to keep skill levels on a plateau.
 
Well, if you are a very lousy shot you will find you can just not practice and still keep your skills.

I find if before actually shooting I spend 15 min practicing my drawing technique with a empty gun, practice speed reloads, pivots, transitions, barricade technique, etc., then just put a few rounds in each mag so as to practice multiple techniques (like drawing, double taps, hammers, transitioning, speed reloading, and such) I can make a 100 round session a serious learning experience. And by the time the training session is over I'm real tired.

That way I can practice twice a month, 200 rounds, and see some real progress.

Deaf
 
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