Targets smaller than sight picture.

S

sigcurious

New member
Thread about .22lr in the other section got me thinking about the shooting I was doing today. I was out in the desert and people had left a handful of clays set up along the way, so I felt obliged to make the targets feel useful and shot at them. They were set up at distances of about 30-50 yards from me few groups of 3-4 about every 10 yards. Anywho long pre-story complete. Since clays arent very big, most of the time once I raised my sights they completely disappeared. I managed to get them all, but took a few shots or more on some of them. I tried just imagining where it was but figure there are probably some better ways out there. Anyone have some tips for shooting targets that are smaller than the sight picture?
 
What does your sight picture look like?

1911holdoversightpicture.jpg

Anything like these?
 
Last edited:
lol clay :D

The closest it would look like is the 100yards one, but the targets themselves were small, so hold over for distance wasnt so much the factor as trying to imagine where the target was behind the sight picture, basically they were close enough that no/little hold over was needed to hit them, but the clays are small enough that at the ranges I was shooting them when focusing on the front sight they completely disappeared behind the sight picture.
 
Would replacing the front sight with a shorter one benefit you?
Say --- a front/rear sight arrangement that would allow you to have a 6 O'clock hold with a 3"-4" target at 25 yards and hit the center.
===
Most of my pistols are set to a 6 O'clock with a 1.5" target at 15 yards. Hits close or the same at 25 yards.
===
Cant comment on 50 yards; Have not shot much at 50 yards.
======================================
without sight adjustment/replacement, you just have to compensate with POA get to desired POI.
======================================
If target is so far that front sight covers it, maybe use rear sight only for windage and use other part of the pistol for elevation but try to keep the target on top of the front sight; like the 200+ yards at picture above.----------- all theory from me.
 
Last edited:
Depending upon ...

... the specific scenario:

A - Run away

B - Get closer

C - Pic an object 'higher' than the desired target, aim at that, and try to: observe hits/adjust.

D - Lie about how well you did.
 
Just reset the sights for a 6 o'clock hold and when at a distance "lower" the rear sight but keep the front sight at the 6 o'clock position. Sort of like the 200 yard hold illustrated in the drawings above...
 
Hello, sigcurious. Elmer Keith had the front sight on some of his long range sixguns dovetailed for different ranges with gold or silver bands. Same 6:00 sight picture was held below target..desired band held level with top of rear.
 
hmmm, I like the dot over target sight picture, I do have an adjustable rear sight so I think I can try out the 6 o'clock sight picture without too much fuss.

lol cwok, i just thought about running away from clays, AIYEEE orange discs! :D

thanks for the input guys, hopefully I'll get a chance to get out into the desert again tomorrow before its back to normal life and indoor ranges.
 
Now you say..thought you were using fixed. If you have adj. rear..crank er' up..But maintain same 6:00 or whatever sight picture you are using at shorter ranges. The first time I tried IHMSA silhouette..all I had was a 6" S&W Mod. 14 .38 spec. I was only using cast loads..had to crank that rear up so far to hit rams..there was only about 1/3 turn of thread holding rear in place!..Managed to hit 5..only 4 went down...I was hooked!
 
Sigcurious:

Delevope a six o'clock hold. You align your sights at six o'clock and adjust your verticle adjustment so that the bullet strikes the target. All bullseye competition shooters use this method.

Semper Fi.

Gunnery sergeant
Clifford L. Hughes
USMC Retired
 
Now that you have adjusted the sight for a 6 o'clock hold and learned how to drop the rear for different yardages let's go to the next step.
On some of my target pistols the load is more accurate than the front sight is narrow. In other words I know the bullet will hit on top of the front sight but I need it to hit exactly in the middle of the blade. I accomplish that with a needle and flat white model paint. Most all of my pistols have either a red ramp or are painted to look like one. I use the needle dipped in the white paint to make a very small dot in the middle of the red ramp right at the top so I now have a very precise aiming reference. Try it......
 
Bailey and all , thanks for the excellent suggestions! I'll post an update as to how things work out once I've had more time with the new set up and hopefully able to get back out into the desert to try more longer range pistol shooting than the indoor ranges allow.
 
I used to do some long range shooting with an open sighted 22lr using a mark on the barrel for an elevation reference. It worked well enough to hit or get really close to hitting a 55 gallon drum around 500 yards about 1 out of 10. I've also used the same technique to walk 38 SP bullets onto a similar size target at 400 yards. There's lot of lag time in the flight of those bullets at that extended range.
 
D - Lie about how well you did.
Click to expand...

I hear that. But never on the Internet.:rolleyes:

The ranged I used to go to, they would kick me out of the handgun range (25Y) so they could start cleaning it, they made go to the 50y rifle range. Time to get out my S&W 638 snub, my carry gun and try it at 50y for the heck of it.

Well, the front sight took up the whole (B-27) target. LSS, I could get 4 of 5 on taget with about 3 in CM.
 
I have all my guns, rifles and pistols set up for a 6 o clock hold on target. No matter how far, I aim to hit center mass with my front site holding the target pictures bottom.

Like catching a bubble on your finger tip.
 
There was a guy here who said he had such keen eyes and steady hold that he zeroed his guns to shoot to the top right corner of the front sight. That for physically small targets like shotgun hulls, small birds, etc; not targets visually shrunk by distance.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top