Recoil Anticipation

medic12

medic12

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I apologize if this topic has been covered elsewhere but I could not find it anywhere. I just got back from my first range visit in about ten years. I have found that I was anticipating my recoil. It improved with time and after 300 rounds I was shooting a decent group. Will I grow out of this? Are there any techniques I could use to get rid of this habit? If it helps I was using a Beretta 92 FS with 115 grain FMJ Winchester white box.Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

-Bryan
 
Dry firing- either at the range or at home, helps this immensely. Get
some snap caps, and find a safe area in your home to practice trigger
pulls. Be doubly safe when doing dry fire drills off the range... check
it twice, or however much you feel comfortable to make sure that no
live ammo is in the gun or even in the area. Safety first.

In any event... I find that lots of good dry fire practice (where you
are practicing trying to make -GOOD- trigger pulls in both DA and SA)
where the muzzle doesn't move when pulling the trigger... will help
immensely. You want to practice good, clean pulls.... no jerking,
just smooth continuous motion. When that hammer falls the front
sight shouldn't move much, if at all. If you -really- want to go
nuts, balance a dime (flat side of course) on the tip of your front
sight and try to get it to stay there while you pull through the
trigger. If you can keep the dime on the top of the front sight for
awhile you are doing pretty good.

Even at the range, if I start jerking or mashing the trigger, I stop
live firing and start dry firing downrange towards the target, and then
try to practice good, smooth trigger pulls. When I feel I've corrected
my behavior I start live fire again and see what happens.

Of course, there are two types of trigger control problems- there's either
just bad technique, or full blown whips and jangles recoil anticipation. If
you're afflicted by the latter, its going to take some conditioning to work
that tendency out of your system- you need to let the gun do it s
thing and not try to "nurse" the gun.

This sounds simplistic, but if you're new to shooting, make sure that
your hearing protection is more than adequate. The noise and muzzle
blast is difficult to get used to as a newbie, and its even worse if you
have mediocre hearing protection. You might want to use good plugs
and even muffs on top of that, initially.... to block out as much noise
as possible. It is hard to enjoy shooting if you're being thrown off
mentally by muzzle blast/noise. If possible, stay the hell away from
indoor ranges... as they're much noisier, and a lot of times the shooting
of the other people there will distract you.

Another thing that helps is "dummy drills". Bring a friend to the
range with you and have them load some dummies/snap caps periodically
into your mags so that every once in awhile you will get a dud... the
idea is they put the dummies in and then don't tell you where they
are. If you see the muzzle of the gun move when you hit the dummy(s) it
means you're still jerking the crap out of the trigger.. and when you see
that flinch, you will realize right away what you did wrong. (it exposes
your mistake a lot easier than a waffled live fire shot does. )

-Mike
 
Put a Dime on the Barrel when Dry Firing and do it until you can keep the Dime on the barrel. CONCENTRATION replaces ANTICIPATION.

Hold Tight

When at home, watching TV, handle it, fondle it, dry fire it and become familiar with it, very very very familiar with it. When it comes time to shoot it, it will NOT be a STRANGER to you.

I laugh at the jokers who take out their Hunting Firearms ONCE PER YEAR, run out and SIGHT IT IN, AGAIN. and then wonder why they can't the the Broadside of a Barn. I do NOT want a strange feeling object in my hands, I want something I am very comfortable with. Make Love to it, if you have to... HAPPINESS! IS A TIGHT ONE......


YES! as DR stated, SAFETY FIRST, check and physically check that it is EMPTY and no LIVE ammo within the practice area.
 
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Bryan,

If you shoot on a somewhat regular basis you will lose the anticipation. I find that the more I focus on the sights the less I think about the bang. Eventually you will lose the anticipation all together. It is a normal thing to have for someone who hasn't shot in a while. I will agree with Wingwiper. Concentration will replace Anticipation, as long as you're not Concentrating on the bang. [wink]
 
Thank you to all. I plan on shooting a lot more so hopefully I will get better. I just wished I stuck with it after I got out of the AF. I will definitely try the dry firing. Thanks again.
 
A big +1 on dry firing and the ball and dummy drill. I have been using it regularly now that I only shoot once a week. Double up on hearing protection to remove one source of distraction. Work on making the shot a surprise. Once you can make a the shot a surprise on demand you will be able to focus on sight picture without worrying about working the trigger.
 
Buy a magnum revolver and shoot it one handed with a few spent shells in the cylinder.
The 9 will seem like a pea popper after a few sessions.
 
Originally Posted by Wingwiper
When at home, watching TV, handle it, fondle it, dry fire it and become familiar with it, very very very familiar with it. When it comes time to shoot it, it will NOT be a STRANGER to you.

matt1956 said:
I'm.... I'm not sure I can leave this one alone [rofl]
Click to expand...

Ok! Matt, I was referring to the Firearm....... But if you live alone, take your choice.....[laugh2]

Handling your FIREARM even when not shooting was advice that has been passed to me by many shooters and it does work. If you only pick up a Firearm ONLY on your way to the Range it will keep a strange feeling about it. The Marine Corps had us sleep with it, carress it, and just about Marry it, We had a Marine Corps Rifle Creed and even if it may sound funny to some, by being with that Firearm as much as possible, it will become an EXTENSION of YOU, the SHOOTER and you will grow very comfortable with it.

Hope I cleared up all possible misunderstandings about what I meant..[iwojima]


"This Is My Rifle"


This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
My rifle is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life.
My rifle, without me, is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than my enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots me. I WILL...

My rifle and myself know that what counts in this war is not the rounds we fire, the noise of our burst, nor the smoke we make. We know that it is the hits that count. WE WILL HIT...

My rifle is human, even as I, because it is my life. Thus, I will learn it as a brother. I will learn its weaknesses, its strength, its parts, its accessories, its sights and its barrel. I will ever guard it against the ravages of weather and damage as I will ever guard my legs, my arms, my eyes and my heart against damage. I will keep my rifle clean and ready. We will become part of each other. WE WILL...

Before God, I swear this creed. My rifle and myself are the defenders of my country. We are the masters of our enemy. WE ARE THE SAVIORS OF MY LIFE.

So be it, until victory is America's and there is no enemy, but peace!

by Major General William H. Rupertus (USMC, Ret.)
(written following the attack on Pearl Harbor)


Every Marine is a rifleman.
 
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medic - to add to what derek said about the front site - I tell my students who show signs of anticipation to just keep repeating to themselves "front site, trigger squeeze, front site, trigger squeeze" over and over and over again before they pull the trigger and as they're squeezing the trigger. You're brain will be more focused on what you're repeating and what you're doing and hopefully won't think of the bang to follow. Just keep practicing hun, it'll get better. [smile]
 
Lynne said:
medic - to add to what derek said about the front site - I tell my students who show signs of anticipation to just keep repeating to themselves "front site, trigger squeeze, front site, trigger squeeze" over and over and over again before they pull the trigger and as they're squeezing the trigger. You're brain will be more focused on what you're repeating and what you're doing and hopefully won't think of the bang to follow. Just keep practicing hun, it'll get better. [smile]
Click to expand...

I know this is the main mantra of the current times. However, I tell my students not to even look at the sites - I have on occasion taped over the rear sight (just did this 3 weeks ago with a friend of mine) so they could actually hit the target. He went from shooting low left 10" out of a five inch "bull" to hitting 2" high center mass at ten yards - rapid fire.

I find that anticipation comes from slow fire bullseye type shooting. It is something that I have to be totally conscious about shooting high-power service rifle slow fire, or small-bore silhouttte. The longer time you have on target the more likely you are to anticipate and jerk the trigger or put your shoulder into it.

I don't bullseye pistol shoot. My pistol shooting is combat offensive / defensive type shooting.

The best way to stop anticipating a recoil in pistol shooting is to load up your magazines with five rounds. From a ready position, and with a good grip and strong wrist, draw and fire those five rounds in two seconds. Eyes on the threat and keep them in a 5" group at ten yards. (You can do this in about fifteen minutes of trying).

Stop shooting one round at a time and looking to see where it lands.

Do this drill the way I outlined it and it will make you a better shooter.

I know Clint Smith and others advocate "front site, press". I'm telling you that in real life you'll never see the sites. The only thing you'll be focussed on is the threat - that is the way you need to train.

If you want to be a high-speed IDPA / IPSC gamer, then go with the sites. If you want to stay alive in a real-life situation - always know where and what your enemy is doing and keep those rounds on target. You can't know what they're doing if you're looking at the front site post.

I am not an NRA instructor - I don't agree with their methods. My instruction is basically the same as the top names you see floating around. My instruction is based on experience and real-life training.
 
Once again I wanted to thak everyone for your help. I am going tonight so I will see how it goes. I will try it all and see what works best.
 
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