Whether you keep firearms for home protection, self-defense, hunting, or some combination of the three, a gun is only as useful as the person wielding it. All the guns in the world won’t keep you safe or your family fed in a survival situation if you can’t hit the target you’re aiming at.
Improving your shooting skills is largely a matter of practice and repetition. Here are some tips and tricks to help you quickly improve your skills at the shooting range?
Build Your Firearm Collection
If you’re just learning to shoot, the idea of buying a bunch of guns might seem intimidating. It’s an expensive hobby, between the cost of the guns and the rising cost of ammunition. Many shooting ranges may offer rentals, allowing you to try out new guns before buying them. This option is great initially, but it isn’t truly feasible in the long run – especially since you won’t have access to these rentals in a survival situation.
Take advantage of range rentals if you’re still shopping around, but make sure you’re taking the time to build your collection.
Understand Each Firearm’s Functions
Regardless of the model, the basic function of a firearm is usually very similar. Load your ammunition, disengage the safety, aim at your target, and pull the trigger. While the basics might be the same, each weapon has unique traits and idiosyncrasies that you’ll need to learn to become an effective shot. Maybe your pistol needs a bit more pull before the firing pin will engage or your favorite rifle has more than one semi-automatic setting.
Taking the time to get out to the range with each weapon will give you the time you need to figure out these quirks and help you make the most of them. The last thing you want to do is figure out that your favorite gun has a specific function-related requirement when trying to use it to preserve your life or protect your family.
Focus on Gun Safety
We have a lot of poor role models in popular media when it comes to firearm use. Forget most of what you’ve seen in shows and movies while learning to shoot. Dual-wielding your favorite pistols isn’t going to make you any more likely to hit your target, and it will probably get you kicked off your range for unsafe practices. On the range and off, gun safety will help keep you and the people around you safe while honing your skills. Keep these three safety rules, outlined by the NRA, in mind at all times:
- Mind your muzzle. Keep the gun pointed in a safe direction – such as downrange or toward the floor – at all times. Don’t point your gun, even in jest, at anything you’re not prepared to shoot.
- Keep your finger off the trigger until you’re ready to shoot. If you need to keep your hand on the gun, rest your finger on the trigger guard. This is especially important while honing your skills because a twitchy trigger finger could end in tragedy.
- Leave your gun unloaded until you’re ready to use it. This rule might seem counterintuitive if you’re honing your skills for concealed carry, but the best way to keep a firearm safe is to keep it unloaded as much as possible.
Gun safety is perhaps the most important skill you will ever learn. Don’t neglect these lessons.
Run Drills
The best way to improve your shooting skills quickly is to practice. That doesn’t mean heading to the range, emptying your clip downrange, and hoping for the best. Running drills is one of the best ways to hone your skills because this sort of repetitive practice helps build both confidence and muscle memory – two things that will be essential if you ever need to use your gun in a survival situation.
For ease of comprehension, we’re going to break these down into two categories: drills for handguns and rifles.
1. Handgun Drills
Handguns are a popular choice because they’re easy to conceal, come in various stopping powers, and are great for both home and self-defense. Their small profile means they’re often easier to handle, but that doesn’t mean you can skimp on your drills.
2. Trigger Control Drills
One of the most common mistakes a new shooter makes is jerking the trigger. It might get the job done, but the jerking motion will interfere with your accuracy. Instead, you want a smooth pull that keeps your sights on the target.
One drill for this skill requires a piece of spent brass. Unload your weapon – remove the magazine if possible – and reset the action. Gently place your piece of spent brass on the front sight and pull the trigger to dry fire the weapon. If you pull the trigger smoothly, the brass should stay in place. If you jerk the trigger, it will fall off. Work on keeping the brass on your sights.
Another challenge new shooters often face when honing their skills is “smearing” the trigger. Instead of pulling the trigger straight back, the trigger finger curves slightly, pushing it to the side. This can interfere with your accuracy.
For this drill, you just need a pencil. Place the pencil on the webbing between your thumb and index finger, with the eraser sitting on your trigger finger. The goal here is to keep the pencil on the webbing of your finger. If it drifts, it means you’re smearing your trigger.
3. Follow-Through Drills
Trigger discipline will only carry you so far when you’re shooting. You need to be able to follow through as well, keeping your sights lined up with your target. One of the most challenging things to overcome in the flinch – the reaction in anticipation of a shot firing. You’ll jerk the trigger and mess up your shot if you flinch.
The “Ball and Dummy” drill requires a shooting partner. Turn your back and have your partner reset your weapon – either empty or with a round in the chamber. Either way, when you pull the trigger, the weapon will function. The goal here is to keep the muzzle steady while pulling the trigger. If the muzzle dips, it means you’re anticipating the shot and ready to flinch. Alternating dry fires with the occasional live round can help you shed that anticipation and stop flinching.
4. Accuracy Drills
Accuracy is one of the most important parts of firearm drills. Start at the beginning with bench shooting. Sit on the bench, rest your arms on a shooting bag, and let those tools do some of the work while you work on sight alignments.
When you feel confident in your targeting skills, it’s time to move on to other drills. The Figure-8 drill is a classic. Move your sights in a slow figure eight around the center of your target. When you cross over the bullseye, pull the trigger and reset for the next shot. In addition to improving your accuracy, you will need to rely on your trigger control and follow-through drills to keep you from jerking the trigger and losing your target.
5. Rifle and Shotgun Drills
Handguns might be great for self-defense, but they aren’t the best choice for hunting or any sort of long-range shooting. Many of the drills we’ve already mentioned, such as those for trigger discipline and follow-through, will apply to your long-barrel firearms.
A rifle bounce drill can help add a bit of motion to your drills. You’ll need three targets set at varying distances in your range. This drill often works best in an outdoor range but may be adaptable for indoor settings. Start standing and firing at the closest target. For target number two, take a step and drop to one knee. For the third target, take another step and drop to prone before firing. In addition to a useful targeting drill, running this as a competition between multiple shooters can help spice up your practice days.
For shotguns, shooting clay pigeons is going to be one of your best drills. You have to be able to aim quickly and accurately while adjusting your targeting for the movement of the clay pigeon and the ambient air movement.
Practice Makes Skilled, Not Perfect
Improving your shooting skills is a lifelong task. Even professional marksmen and competitive shooters spend a lot of their time practicing. The goal here isn’t to be perfect. It’s to hone your skills and turn them into something that will help you stay alive in a survival situation. There’s no telling what might happen or what could go wrong that might turn the world as we know it on its axis. Being prepared for anything is the best way to ensure nothing can surprise you.
Take the time to practice your shooting skills as often as possible. Remember that you don’t always have to use ammo to hone your skills. Dry firing your weapon is just as important as sending lead downrange, especially when working on trigger control and follow-through.
[Note: This was a guest post.]
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