This came up on another thread, and I believe there's widespread lack of knowledge about this. Sporting guns and HD/"Tactical"/ WIHTF shotguns have different missions and requirements.
The Brits have made almost a cult about proper shotgun fit for their hunting and games. Since lots of those folks shoot rings around me, there's merit in their ideas, where applicable. Trouble is, most of the literature focusses on sporting guns and ignores real world needs.
And most of what there is has little to do with anything besides length, and that's only part of the story...
Let's deal with overall fit,and then break it down. By and large,this works with all sighting systems, optical, rifle, GR and simple beads.
First test. After ensuring your shotgun is empty and safe,assume a ready position. I prefer low ready. Face towards a wall and focus on a spot, the smallest spot you can. W/o moving any more than necessary, close your eyes and mount the weapon. Bring your weapon up to make a good cheek contact, not bring your face down to the weapon. Open your eyes and see how and if the sights line up, and whether they require any head movement to get them aligned.
OK, everything is lined up perfectly. SO, are you done?
Nope, repeat a half dozen times or so and see how it goes. If it still is good, the first stage is passed successfully.
Second stage is range time. Shoot it and see whether you're hitting.
But,you've opened your eyes and found that things are awry.
Let's go down the list and remember that all these things are interconnected.
First, WHERE was the shotgun pointed? Was it high, low, left, right?
Starting with length....
If, when you're in the classic position and your shooting hand thumb is 1-1 1/2" away from your nose,and you're shooting OK, the length is close enough.This assumes you can mount THAT shotgun easily and consistently. If you rap your nose smartly,or there's a mere finger's width between nose and finger,use spacers to lengthen the stock a little.Repeat, a little.A 1/8" spacer or two at most should fix.
If you have to struggle to get the the weapon into position fast, and your thumb and nose are further apart, you need a shorter stock. But it's not that simple.
Shorter stocks,all else equal, have smaller butts. Smaller butts mean less area to spread recoil forces around. Felt recoil climbs,meaning flinch building, misses, and slower repeat shots. Also, all else equal, shorter stocks shoot a bit higher.So, lopping off an inch or two of length will not serve as a panacea for stock fit.Most folks can handle a stock that's a little on the short side better than one that's a skosh too long, so there's some margin here.
Next, you opened your eyes to find the shotgun pointed way off L/R. I'd do an eye dominance test and see if my dominant eye and shooting hand were on the same side of my body.If that checks out,look to your form more than fit, few folks are grossly off L/R without cross dominance or major shooting form glitches.Since this is rare,let's move on.
How about elevation? At typical HD ranges,this isn't all that crucial, but if something happens outside, it may become so. A stock with too much drop to it may have the impact point raised by a number of ways, an addon cheekpiece, shimming the stock at the receiver,etc, will fix same. One that's too high is very rare, unless your only shotgun for HD is a dedicated trap gun.
After getting that to point where you want it to, pattern and target testing at the range is in order. Don't trust any shotgun for HD until you've got it shooting hwere it's supposed to.
A couple of notes....
First, stock material,wood or synthetic Polywhatever, is easier to take off that put back on. Measure twice, think it over 3 times, saw once.
Second, we all shoot our HD tools regularly, right? Try that bead sighted short bbled alley cleaner at skeet or Sporting clays. Besides fun, it's shotgun handling and firing at short time intervals. Or, join the local practical league and do a few COFS periodically.
Thanks...
The Brits have made almost a cult about proper shotgun fit for their hunting and games. Since lots of those folks shoot rings around me, there's merit in their ideas, where applicable. Trouble is, most of the literature focusses on sporting guns and ignores real world needs.
And most of what there is has little to do with anything besides length, and that's only part of the story...
Let's deal with overall fit,and then break it down. By and large,this works with all sighting systems, optical, rifle, GR and simple beads.
First test. After ensuring your shotgun is empty and safe,assume a ready position. I prefer low ready. Face towards a wall and focus on a spot, the smallest spot you can. W/o moving any more than necessary, close your eyes and mount the weapon. Bring your weapon up to make a good cheek contact, not bring your face down to the weapon. Open your eyes and see how and if the sights line up, and whether they require any head movement to get them aligned.
OK, everything is lined up perfectly. SO, are you done?
Nope, repeat a half dozen times or so and see how it goes. If it still is good, the first stage is passed successfully.
Second stage is range time. Shoot it and see whether you're hitting.
But,you've opened your eyes and found that things are awry.
Let's go down the list and remember that all these things are interconnected.
First, WHERE was the shotgun pointed? Was it high, low, left, right?
Starting with length....
If, when you're in the classic position and your shooting hand thumb is 1-1 1/2" away from your nose,and you're shooting OK, the length is close enough.This assumes you can mount THAT shotgun easily and consistently. If you rap your nose smartly,or there's a mere finger's width between nose and finger,use spacers to lengthen the stock a little.Repeat, a little.A 1/8" spacer or two at most should fix.
If you have to struggle to get the the weapon into position fast, and your thumb and nose are further apart, you need a shorter stock. But it's not that simple.
Shorter stocks,all else equal, have smaller butts. Smaller butts mean less area to spread recoil forces around. Felt recoil climbs,meaning flinch building, misses, and slower repeat shots. Also, all else equal, shorter stocks shoot a bit higher.So, lopping off an inch or two of length will not serve as a panacea for stock fit.Most folks can handle a stock that's a little on the short side better than one that's a skosh too long, so there's some margin here.
Next, you opened your eyes to find the shotgun pointed way off L/R. I'd do an eye dominance test and see if my dominant eye and shooting hand were on the same side of my body.If that checks out,look to your form more than fit, few folks are grossly off L/R without cross dominance or major shooting form glitches.Since this is rare,let's move on.
How about elevation? At typical HD ranges,this isn't all that crucial, but if something happens outside, it may become so. A stock with too much drop to it may have the impact point raised by a number of ways, an addon cheekpiece, shimming the stock at the receiver,etc, will fix same. One that's too high is very rare, unless your only shotgun for HD is a dedicated trap gun.
After getting that to point where you want it to, pattern and target testing at the range is in order. Don't trust any shotgun for HD until you've got it shooting hwere it's supposed to.
A couple of notes....
First, stock material,wood or synthetic Polywhatever, is easier to take off that put back on. Measure twice, think it over 3 times, saw once.
Second, we all shoot our HD tools regularly, right? Try that bead sighted short bbled alley cleaner at skeet or Sporting clays. Besides fun, it's shotgun handling and firing at short time intervals. Or, join the local practical league and do a few COFS periodically.
Thanks...