[eflatminor]

I've recently gotten into shooting Bull's eye. After reading all I could, I got a routine down for slow fire shots that involved my shooting arm elbow cocked and at my side so that the barrel of the gun was ever so slightly pointed above the target (finger off the trigger of course). Then, I'd raise my arm locking the elbow, aim and fire, all timmed with my breathing. I got to like this routine much as a golfer has one for each shot he approaches.

I shot in 5 Bull's eye matches with no problems and did very well. But last week, a new Range Officer told me that my routine was not allowed. He said that I'd HAVE to keep my elbow locked with the gun pointed down, below the level of the target before I lifted to fire.

While I respect the advice anyone more experience might give, I wondered if this was advice or an official rule of Bull's eye. The RO was too nasty at the time for me to ask. Any thoughts?

[cdrt]

Given the description of how you're prepping for the shot, I have a feeling the range officer was concerned about a shot going over the target and berm and heading for parts unknown.
The older Bullseye shooters (me included) will grasp the pistol, extend their arm with elbow locked, slightly above the target and then settle in for the shot.
I was shooting a Bullseye match last year at one range and they requested we not raise our pistols above the target too high, since they were in the process of raising the impact berm and were worried about shots going over it.
There are no rules in the rule book (that I know of) about how you prep for a shot...holding over, under, etc. in NRA Conventional Pistol (Bullseye). In International, especially in the Centerfire Pistol and Standard pistol disciplines, the pistol is held at the ready, arm extended downward, and can only be raised after the targets turn in the duel portion or timed/rapid fire portion of the match.

Question: Are you using this prep with just the .22 or .45 as well?

Hope this helps.

Navy Vet & SWIFT Boat OIC

[eflatminor]

Both for .45 and .22.

The RO specifically said that I could not, at any time, point the barrel above the target, even when I wasn't yet aiming and my finger was not on the trigger...and we're talking about only a few degrees here. Oddly, this was in an indoor range, so I really didn't understand why he was so concerned about this.

What he wanted me to do was extend my arm pointed down, elbow locked, with the gun resting on the platform in front of me. When I was ready to shoot, I was to raise my straight arm directly up to the target. He did not like the fact that I started out with my elbow cocked, straightening as I brought the weapon up to the target.

I think he just didn't like that I was doing it differently than most other guys.

[cdrt]

It might be he was concerned because he thought your arc of travel when going from your "ready" position to firing position (arm extended) may have made it appear that your pistol was pointed at the ceiling rather than towards the impact area. Without seeing what the range looks like, it's hard to make an informed comment on that.

Second; you might want to check with whoever owns/operates the range and see what, if any, their rules are about handling firearms on the line. I would sugguest talking to the range officer in question and see if he had some concerns he did not make known to you, if you think he is approachable.

Your technique is different from the usual. You might want to elicit some comments from the ther competitors and see what they think, next time you see them at a match.

If you have any questions about Bullseye, you might want to send me a PM.
Are you going to Perry this year?

Navy Vet & SWIFT Boat OIC

[bdutton]

I like that you are taking the pre-shot sequence so seriously. I personally keep my arm straight (note: not locked) at the ready position with the barrel pointed down then, when the command (ready on the right) if given, raise my arm up high with the sights well above the target while I breath in and allow my exhale to bring the gun down onto the target and settle.

Given what you described what I do is probably a lot worse according to your RO.

But the rules are different range to range. And the RO is the man in charge and we all have to obey the rules of his range.

Don't get me started on follow through! :evil:

[lil ski]

I thought you removed the word follow through from the dictionary.:neener:

[owen]

Why do you point above the target for your prep? Your brain is very good at visually bringing two things together precisely. If you start below the target, and move up to the 6 oclock hold, you can stop very precisely.

If you drop down through the target, you can't really see your stopping point until you are past it. I found that coming up from the bottom allowed me to dramatically decrease my hold time. I rarely had to hold more than 2 or 3 seconds. My shot plan called for baccking out and trying over again if I had to hold for more than 5 -6 seconds. Most of the time the shot would break, just as the sight moved into the aiming area. On the NMC, I was shooting around 285 with a dot, and 275 with irons.

Oh, I just realized. You're probably using a dot. Never mind.

[cdrt]

As you can see, there is no one right answer in Bullseye. Right now, I'm dealing with a torn rotator cuff. It's a whole lot more comfortable for me to bring the pistol up slightly over the target and then settle back in for the shot. When I try and bring the pistol up to where it's even with the bull, I experience some stress on my arm between the elbow and shoulder which is not present when I aim a little high first.

The sighting below the target and bringing the pistol up to it is mandatory in International events, as I mentioned earlier, since you have to start at the ready position with the pistol pointed down on timed/rapid fire events. If you were to come up above the target and then settle back down, you would lose valuable seconds. Each discipline has it's own special requirements.

And the bottom line is, use whatever works for you as long as it's safe and you get results. If you're comfortable in how you're prepping for slow fire, timed, rapid, etc. go for it. And don't hestitate to ask questions from the other competitors at the matches. When I shoot matches at the Dallas Club, we usually have a couple hundred years of experience on the line and it's there to be utilized by new and old shooters alike.

oops, sorry about screwing up your name.

Navy Vet & SWIFT Boat OIC

[LanEvo`]

I shot in 5 Bull's eye matches with no problems and did very well. But last week, a new Range Officer told me that my routine was not allowed. He said that I'd HAVE to keep my elbow locked with the gun pointed down, below the level of the target before I lifted to fire.We have the same rule at my indoor range: rest your shooting hand on the bench in front of you; when it's time to shoot, bring the arm straight up to the target and take it from there. You can never have the pistol pointing up past the top of the targets. They've had too many guys accidentally squeeze rounds off into the lights, heating ducts, and ceiling.

[JackOfAllTradesMasterAtNone]

Indoor range...

Ten foot walls at the targets. Targets are at ~five feet. Unless the RO is looking right behind you, down your sights, then he'll never know if you raised to be a foot or even two above the target.

I do it. Hell, so do the two RO's we have. One was an Olympic alternate in her day. Their scores prove that this is good for them.

I have tried many different approaches to slow fire, and raising, then settling has been the best for me.

For timed and rapid fire, this is not the case. I raise, aquire, fire.

-Steve

[eflatminor]

Thanks all for your feedback. Bottom line, it looks like I'm going to have to change my routine if I'm to shoot Bull's eye at this range again. Too bad, I really like the system I had but since I'm still pretty new, it shouldn't be a big deal to find a routine that works for me and doesn't violate any RO's rules.

A little bragging??? In the first string that I fired, just before the RO yelled at me, I shot a 94...not too bad for a beginner with a stock .22 (S&W 41) with iron sights!

[Sunray]

"...an official rule..." There are several rule books for bullseye shooting. However, when I was shooting ISU, indoors, the pistol had to be down before the timer was started.
"...a stock .22 (S&W 41) with iron sights!..." That's how ISU(it's called something else now) shooting was done. No scopes or red dot sights allowed. The one thing I did to my 41 was change the grips. Found a set of Herrett, I think, target grips at a gun show. Nice walnut with an adjustable palm rest. The only other thing was trying as many brands of ammo as I could. 41's are very particular about what ammo they'll shoot well and cycle the action with. The price of said ammo doesn't matter either.