What should my sight picture be like?

P

Pond James Pond

New member
I've not tried it yet but, having just bought a snubbie, I plan to throw some .38Spl around in the not-too-distant future!!

It is a 2", 6-shot with fixed blade and trough sights.

I dry-fire at home (with snap caps) and when looking at the sights, I try to imagine where the target circle should sit in relation to the sights.

On top?
Sights aiming at the centre?
Or is trial and error the only way to find out?
 
it's late but ill post a picture later. I studied some pictures from these forums and it improved my shooting. looky here in my picture.
(2.jpg)

My groupings used to be like all over this target, now I can punch holes through holes.

Ignore the small 22 lr holes and shots off the target center area, those were drill shots from SA/DA and its a sloppy shot. Some of those shots also were 15 yards. I really need to change my targets when I do this to get better scores.

The tight group was at 7 yards.


Edit to add, I notice sights are different on each gun. Like where to aim.

images


I was using #2
 

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For just about all my guns -- at 7 yards I use the #2 sight picture as presented above by 9MM; cut the bullseye right in half with the top of the front sight. The further out I get -- 15 and 25 yards -- then I have to figure whether each particular gun likes a more "6 o'clock hold" or a "cover it" hold.
 
Lay a ruler or better yet a thin yard stick in the back sight groove. Then adjust on the front sight to see where you are parallel to the barrel. This will give you a place to start when you shoot. Adjust from there when you shoot. Some or most ammo will be some different.
 
Pond James Pond:

The sight pictures posted by 9mm are corret except for one detail. Your eye can't focus on three points at a time: you are limited to good focus to one point. Some competition shooters focus on the rear sight other focus on the front sight. When they raise the pistol to shoot the target blurs. When the target blurs you know that you have a good sight picture. Think about it this way. The target will be standing in the same place before the shot, during the shot and after the shot. What moves is the sights so it's the sights to focus on. If the sights are alinged and the trigger is released without misaligning them the sights can move the distance of the diameter of the bullseye.

Dry firing against a blank white wall without a traget is helpful. Concentrate on getting the trigger to release without disturbing the sights.


Semper Fi.

Gunnery sergeant
Clifford L. Hughes
USMC Retired
 
sight picture

Have you ever seen a person with any type of target on the front of their shirts?
I'm not being critical of the answers but as a former police firearms instructor, I was the one who finally got the Louisiana POST target changed. They were using for years the standard B-27 which is used for various target matches.
The proper sight alignment that we taught was the number two.
As was posted the human eye can only focus on thing at a time and that should be the front sight. That is where the bullet exits the gun. You should practice the proper sight alignment and sight picture which is different on a target that shows a person in normal street dress or at least a outline with no center x or scoring rings visible.
This will help you understand where your correct point of aim should be on a person.
Many target shooters will miss when given a plain sheet of paper because they have no reference point.
Practice on a target that has what you are going to shoot.
Also better to have someone who knows how to instruct a shooter critique you.
 
Fairshake said:
I'm not being critical of the answers but as a former police firearms instructor, I was the one who finally got the Louisiana POST target changed. They were using for years the standard B-27 which is used for various target matches.
Click to expand...

Were you the one that did that? Not doubting your story, but the P1 target has been both the joy and bane of lots of cops existence for many years, but I've never heard anyone take credit for it.

I've been a cop in North Louisiana for 30 years and have shot that target most of my career. I agree that it's a really good training target simply because at most distances you can't see the scoring circle.
 
I have never 'looked' at my sights...

I 'see' where I want the bullet to hit, and the sights line up there...

I just had to grab one of my revolvers quickly and bring to point, and then consciously determine what I 'see'...

The Target is crisp, the sights are lined up underneath POA, and blurry...

They look like diagram #2...
 
Just keep shooting at point of aim.

I take a black marker (Magic marker*) on a white target and make a big black dot (1" or 26mm) and just shoot at that. We in the USA cal it rabbit, don't ask me why.
 
The spot you want to hit should be sitting right on top of your front sight. That makes sight picture #2 above best in my opinion.

sight picture #1 is imprecise, sight picture #3 blocks out 3/4 of your target. Both are unacceptable to me.

Many target shooters will miss when given a plain sheet of paper because they have no reference point.
Click to expand...

Miss what? The whole target?? Perhaps if they are a dim bulb. If you give me a plain sheet of copier paper and tell me to shoot it at 7 yards I'm not going to waste time saying "gee, there's no dot on it. Where should I aim?" I'm just going to point at approximately the middle and hit that paper practically every time.

Failing to hit an unmarked "target" because it is unmarked would seem to be a failure of thought, not a failure of aim.
 
I've not tried it yet but, having just bought a snubbie, I plan to throw some .38Spl around in the not-too-distant future!!

It is a 2", 6-shot with fixed blade and trough sights.

I dry-fire at home (with snap caps) and when looking at the sights, I try to imagine where the target circle should sit in relation to the sights.
Click to expand...

Basically, what 9mm said, picture 2.

With my Taurus 605 snub, .38 special loaded with 3.7 grains of Alliant Bullseye powder and 158 grain lead SWC bullets (which turns out to be the classic "FBI load") shoots dead to point of aim.

Or is trial and error the only way to find out?
Click to expand...

With a fixed sight gun, and varying loads, yes.
 
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