How do you dryfire?

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  • Abominator

    Plinker
    Rating - 100%
    4   0   0
    Jun 22, 2019
    81
    8
    Auburn
    I have 3 USPSA targets in my garage that I run different drills on 3-4 times a week, maybe 15-20 min a session. Just got into USPSA, having a blast. What do you guys do for practice? How often? Has anybody used Ben Stogers drill kit with the mini targets?:ar15:
     

    Xterminator

    Marksman
    Rating - 100%
    6   0   0
    Mar 11, 2018
    297
    28
    Terre Haute
    Just picked up 4 book package from Ben stoeger website & starting dryfire practicing his program. It's very informative. Actually it gives me a schedule & drive to practice. I try to practice 3 days dryfire for 30-40 min first if the week then live fire Thurs and Friday. Still learning..lol
     

    Fuzz

    Sharpshooter
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    4   0   0
    Jan 27, 2013
    738
    18
    LaFONTAINE
    I use the mini targets and like them. I also have 1 full size in the room and I made one out of some old Styrofoam stuff that is full size and put on a fence post outside the window in the dry fire room (mancave for me) Its at 20 yards and keeps it real.

    I have a range in my back yard so that helps.

    I have the best intentions of dry firing 5 days a week but it is usually 2-3

    I also try to do at least 2 live fire on the range 2 times a week. This I am a lot more serious about. Pretty much this is a minimum for me.

    I also video some dry fire session and watch for mistakes.


    I am also B for life Hope this helps.

    P.S. Remember that if you are dry firing and doing things incorrectly then you are making thing worse and creating Bad Habits. This much I know
     

    MuncieFud

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Jun 8, 2018
    51
    8
    Muncie
    I’m still new to the sport so take what I say with a grain of salt. I try to dry fire 5 days a week for 15 minutes. This has made huge gains in my shooting. I’ve been MIA from dry fire for about a week now and I can tell my reloads are very sloppy and my index is awful.

    You get what you put into it. I use the Stoeger books and I think they’re a great base to build on. It probably took me three months of off and on dry fire before I really started to notice lots of improvement. Don’t burn yourself out but also you need to be consistent if you want to make real gains.
     

    masterdekoy

    Expert
    Rating - 100%
    56   0   0
    Feb 12, 2013
    854
    28
    Columbus
    I’m cheap so I printed off some 1/3 scale USPSA targets and used them as a stencil on some old cardboard boxes. Outlined the A zones so I have a reference point for aiming. They seem to work well.

    Ive just started dry firing 5 times a week using Steve Anderson’s 12 drills. Live fire is a little harder to come by right now due to budget constraints, but I try to practice 2-300 rounds once a month and shoot one match a month. I think Anderson’s drills cover the necessities pretty well, but have to wait until my next match to see if there are noticeable gains.
     

    longbeard

    Expert
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    2   0   0
    Oct 15, 2013
    959
    43
    United States
    I like this book https://www.amazon.com/Refinement-Repetition-Dry-fire-Dramatic-Improvement/dp/1930847769

    Any would do fine. I will say that dry fire can be dangerous. Particularly when you are getting started. When I got hooked I thought I would dry fire my way into improving drastically. Instead, I developed really bad habits because I did not yet understand live fire well enough to translate the difference between two. Make absolutely sure you can see the sight or dot lifting and settling in live fire. Be honest about it because it takes time to see this. That's what happened to me. I dry fired my way into ignoring the sights and the results were really negative. Also, don't ignore pain. The repetition can give you a nasty case of tendinitis or tennis elbow.

    Time is all dependent on what you're doing. Personally, a short time with good focus is better than a long time for me. A good 15 minute session is what I prefer.
    Targets? I cut my own scale targets. Then I used full size targets with index cards for A zone. Currently using printed out paper circles for steel plates.

    Good luck
     

    rvb

    Grandmaster
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    4   0   0
    Jan 14, 2009
    6,396
    63
    IN (a refugee from MD)
    For the last few years this has been my typical dryfire routine....

    At the first stage's "Make Ready" command I draw my gun to a sight picture, cock it and reholster. I then draw to a sight picture and dryfire once before making the gun hot and reholstering. I announce "Look, I practiced!"

    If Corey is around he usually says "Proud of you."

    -rvb

    ps. This is not proving to be an effective regimen.
     
    Last edited:

    Abominator

    Plinker
    Rating - 100%
    4   0   0
    Jun 22, 2019
    81
    8
    Auburn
    For the last few years this has been my typical dryfire routine....

    At the first stage's "Make Ready" command I draw my gun to a sight picture, cock it and reholster. I then draw to a sight picture and dryfire once before making the gun hot and reholstering. I announce "Look, I practiced!"

    If Corey is around he usually says "Proud of you."

    -rvb

    ps. This is not proving to be an effective regimen.

    That's a true gangster regimen.
     

    rvb

    Grandmaster
    Rating - 100%
    4   0   0
    Jan 14, 2009
    6,396
    63
    IN (a refugee from MD)
    RVB as one of our residential GM's, what was your dry fire like when you were on your way up?

    Sorry, was real busy the last couple weeks.....

    Dryfire was usually 1-2 hrs/night, 5-6 days/week. I did some things almost every night, like reloads, trigger control, and index. Over the course of a week I'd work my way through Anderson's book, and later Stoegers to some degree (came out as my practice was dying off). Then start over.

    Try to replicate what you see in a match, moving into/out of position, reloading between positions, transition between easy/hard shots, and partial targets (lots of partial targets). get yourself out of breath. Build endurance. There were days I did so many reloads and Burkett reloads I could barely pick up a pencil or type the next day.

    Now there are mini targets available, and those are great. I had made 1/3 scale out of cardboard and paper.

    Make sure you are SEEING in dryfire. you HAVE to call every shot. you don't have a bullet hole to tell on you if you flub up, you have to be honest w/ yourself. It's not just about the "muscle memory," that's only a tiny part of it. If you dryfire around a wall to a partial and do it super fast but you don't SEE that 'shot' break in the upper A, then in a match you will wonder why you have all these misses, or M/NS to go w/ your fast time. Dryfire correctly and you will be a master at shot calling during a live course of fire.

    Then go out and shoot. Do the same drills in live fire... compare your pars to your timer results. If they are significantly different figure out why.

    Some people dryfire for years and never get better. the reason is usually either that they are not SEEING when dryfiring, they aren't self-aware of what motions they are going through where efficiency can be gained, or they aren't pushing themselves out of their comfortable pace.

    Video part of your dryfire routine. Compare your motions to videos of champions. look for places you can cut wasted movement, unwanted hesitations, etc.

    Plan out your dryfire season. I learned that for me winter is NOT the best time to hit it hard, it's best to have a break and try to peak your performance/motivation/energy around your favorite major match...

    I moved up out of B pretty quick, almost skipped A on my way to Master. Then kids came along, and I started competing less. Fewer matches meant lower motivation and that spiral continued to today where my gun stays in the range bag until the next match, and the only match I've been shooting is the one I MD. By the time I made GM I didn't even want it and was already on the downward slide. Making GM totally killed my motivation as I no longer had ANY goals to work towards. Today I would consider myself a solid A shooter (it *IS* a perishable skill!).

    Hope that helps!

    -rvb
     

    MuncieFud

    Plinker
    Rating - 0%
    0   0   0
    Jun 8, 2018
    51
    8
    Muncie
    Dryfire was usually 1-2 hrs/night, 5-6 days/week.

    How long did it take to work up to that? I usually do 15-20 minutes and my shoulders and hands get tense.

    Shooting may be a perishable skill but those splits must not be, I still show off the video of you shooting a 5 reload 5 from your intro to USPSA class.
     
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