Military Vet looking for advice on firing stance.

[billybob44_Jr]

When I was in the Army I had no problem firing a rifle/machine gun and qualifying expert. The problem is with a pistol I am way off. Any tips/tricks on how you target shoot, or am I just a crappy shot when it comes to a pistol? What stance do you take, breathing, and technique? Thanks for your help!

 

[whitetailbowhunter]

Tagged for Advice as well!

 

[billybob44_Jr]

Thanks Bowhunter. I would love to hear from a former or current Police Officer or Military member who knows certain tips to share and help me out. My Dad is embarrassing me with his target shooting....and I'm just embarrassing...

 

[billybob44]

Just Range Time--just range time..

Thanks Bowhunter. I would love to hear from a former or current Police Officer or Military member who knows certain tips to share and help me out. My Dad is embarrassing me with his target shooting....and I'm just embarrassing...

You really NEED to shoot more than a box or two every 6 months or so..HA HA..Bill.

 

[Sylvain]

For me stance with a pistol is not important.
If you have a proper stance while shooting a pistol you're not moving fast enough.
A good grip and sight picture/sight aligment are probably the most important.
Maybe you just need to take a basic pistol class.

 

[ParaManAR15]

Like Sylvain said you need a good grip and sight picture/alignment and breathing is important as well. Use this chart and compare a target that you shoot and you can get a good basis of what you're doing wrong. Just keep practicing and if need be take a basic pistol course, it'll really help.

 

[Sylvain]

Like Sylvain said you need a good grip and sight picture/alignment and breathing is important as well. Use this chart and compare a target that you shoot and you can get a good basis of what you're doing wrong. Just keep practicing and if need be take a basic pistol course, it'll really help.

It all depends what kind of shooting you're doing.
If you practice for defensive shooting at 7 yards or so then breathing is not important.
If it's for precision shooting at 25 yards then breathing is important.

 

[jonny4523]

Honestly, if you want to learn to shoot the pistol well, start shooting USPSA (or any pistol competition). There is a lot of top notch shooters who love to teach and will make step function improvements in your handgun skills.

 

[averycustom]

Billy,

I've used the Weaver stance for years as taught to me by Jeff Cooper with good results. There are proponents of Isosceles and other variants, but the mechanics of Weaver make the most sense for me.

Regards,

Mark

 

[wrnyhuise]

Being former military as well do not get prideful and pass over the training classes. take every chance that could come up to learn something new.

 

[Fordtough25]

For me stance with a pistol is not important.
If you have a proper stance while shooting a pistol you're not moving fast enough.
A good grip and sight picture/sight aligment are probably the most important.
Maybe you just need to take a basic pistol class.

+1, your grip, how smooth you pull the trigger, and sight alignment. And practice more than anything, well practicing the proper ways.

 

[Dirtdart504]

I was Infantry for 8 years on active duty. I was really good with a rifle, but sucked with a pistol. I was a mortar gunner in Desert Storm and was issued an M9, but they never really trained me how to shoot it. I didn't learn much about a pistol until I got hired on the PD, and then went into CID in the reserve. It's hard to give any advice on a message board because there's no observation or feedback. I'd recommend training, and the competition idea is really good.

 

[Mango]

First and foremost, find out where your handgun is sighted.

6 o'clock? POA? On the dot? See picture.

Once you know where the gun is supposed to shoot, then work on technique to get accurate, then consistently accurate, then work on speeding up.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[N8RV]

Training. Training. Training. Period.

There's no way anyone here can diagnose what you're doing wrong over the internet. There is no substitute for having an instructor watch you shoot and start making corrections as necessary.

Before I had any formal firearms education, I was self-taught and it showed. I got pretty frustrated as I'd spray a box of ammo all over the target, usually low and left (I'm right-handed.) My solution? "OK, I just have to remember to aim high and right with this gun."

Looking back, I wasn't bright enough -- or consistent enough -- to realize that ALL of my pistols tended to shoot low and left. There was my first clue.

Once an instructor dialed me in and I started practicing good habits instead of bad, my groups showed it. Yeah, I still have occasional stinkers, but now I just blame the ammo.

There was a student in a recent class who had a Glock and was convinced that his poor results were because the sights weren't lined up. He asked me to shoot it and see if I got the same poor results.

Knowing that I was setting myself up for embarrassment, I accepted the challenge and put 5 rounds literally into one hole. I NEVER do that. Felt good.

"I'm guessing that the sights are OK," I said. He just needed to work on his trigger control and anticipation.

Unless you're a total ham fist, a good instructor will be able to correct your form and, with practice, get you shooting much better in a short amount of time.