hunting practice

[Mike in Virginia]

My dad taught me this 50 years ago:  Most modern hunting revolvers are safe to dry fire without damage.  If you worry about dry firing, but some fired cases in the chambers. 
 
My dad (much to my mom's distress) drew a black dot on the wall of our living room.  He was a trooper and had a 6" .38.  After supper, he'd stand and aim at that dot with a one-hand hold.  Snap.  Snap.  Snap.  But to make it even better practice, he tied a bottle of pop to the trigger guard with a piece of string and let it dangle while he dry fired. 
 
When he taught me to shoot, it was with that same .38.  For the first few times, I only got to dry fire.  He'd ask me if the sights were aligned when the hammer fell. 
 
Then he loaded it, he said, it handed it to me.  This was outside of course.  The first fall of the hammer I jerked way off target.  But it was only a snap.   "What the heck dad?  I thought you loaded it."
 
"I did," he said.  "One live round and the others empty cases.  Don't jerk the trigger." 
 
He took the gun from me before I got another chance, and turned the cylinder.  "Try again. One live and 5 empty." 
 
This went on until I could hold on the center of the target and not jerk the trigger, and every "bang" was a surprise.
 
"If it's not a surprise," he said, "you're going to miss." 
 
Then I progressed to the swinging pop bottle. 
 
Part of that instruction included sight picture.  He told me to find the exactly correct sight picture and squeeze the trigger a little, but not enough to fire.  Hold that pressure.  The sight pictures swings out of alignment shooting one-handed, and I learned to put a little more pressure on the trigger each time everything was right.  Don't release the pressure.  Each time the sight picture is perfect squeeze a little more until the gun fires as a surprise and hits dead center. 
 
I've practiced those methods for all these years.  I don't shoot off hand with one hand in the woods of course, but such practice makes a revolver without a moving pop bottle attached to it a mighty east thing to hold steady with two hands.   
 
I'm wondering how much time you fellows put into practice with a handgun, and how you do it.     

[bulletstuffer]

If you guys haven't tried it yet go shoot a USPSA match.  A great bunch of guys like we have here.  You can get information on this at http://www.uspsa.com/  It is practical shooting practice and it is a blast.  Unfortunately the ammo crunch is putting the hurt on this fantastic sport


I spoke with many of the top shooters and they all practice dry firing, dropping and replacing magazines.


It all depends on what you want out of it and how important having good skills are to you.


Best of luck,


Bulletstuffer

[Ranger99]

i haven't live-fire practiced near
as much lately since the mess.
i do practice holding on target
as much as anything, as if waiting
on an animal to step clear of an
obstruction, such as a bush or tree.
holding a 48 ounce handgun out in
front of you for 5 minutes trying to
keep rock still teaches one to appreciate
having a good rest.
most of my handgun shots are bow range
or less if i can swing it.


practice is the key to a clean humane shot
in any form of hunting.

[shot1]

I was taught may years ago when I started bulleyes shooting how to build up your arm so you can hold steady. Bullseye required you to shoot one handed. Start out with a long neck wine or beer bottle partly filled with sand and capped. I used a tight cork to cap my bottle. While watching TV at night I would hold the bottle by the neck in my shooting hand and hold my arm straight out until I could not hold it up any more. When it became too easy to hold it there for a long while put more sand in the bottle. When the bottle is full of sand and it become too easy to hold for a while dump the sand out and start the process all over with lead shot. If you can hold a long neck beer bottle filled with lead for an hour straight out in front of you then you are ready to start practicing dry firing with a pistol. When you think you have gotten to the point that you have a good solid hold and a perfect sight picture and a perfect trigger squeeze then balance a dime on your front sight and see if you can dry fire the pistol without the dime falling off. 

I do admit these days that most of my handgun hunting is done with a scoped Contender and I shoot off a rest of some sort. In the stand I shoot off sand bags. In the field I shoot off of a Stoney Point tri-pod. It is the bi-pod with the third leg attached to one of the bi-pod legs. I shoot from the sitting position mostly. I place the third leg fully extended on top of my shooting hand shoulder while laying the forearm of the Contender in the V of the bi-pod and wrap my shooting arm around the third leg that runs up across my shoulder and rest my shooting hand with a classic two hand hold on this third leg. It is as solid as shooting off a sand bag rest.

[Rodent]

I shoot IHMSA, So I am shooting just about every weekend. I hunt with the same guns that I compete with. No better practice.

[FPH]

Personally, I would use Snap Caps for dry practice.  I have seen pins damaged due to being fired dry,  Practice is great though.

[Lloyd Smale]

any of the competive shooting competitions help alot. Not so much because they mimic any kind of hunt but because they put a guy under pressure and stress. If you can beat stress you will be a much better shot on live game.

[Rodent]

any of the competive shooting competitions help alot. Not so much because they mimic any kind of hunt but because they put a guy under pressure and stress. If you can beat stress you will be a much better shot on live game.

Also gives confidence at knowing and judging distances and being about to hit your target at said distances.

[Mike in Virginia]

Lloyd, that's a super valid point.  Practice does not mean setting up like you are hunting, but just get out and shoot at something regularly.  I'll be glad when the ammo comes back.  Fox news seems to think it'll be another 6 months.