Group size

doubleh said:

Maybe if I get some tactical pants and a tight t-shirt with a gun logo on it I can even improve a little.

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You could probably "improve" some by shooting groups at 10 yards and then claim you shot them at 25 yards. You could even prove how much you've "improved" by posting pictures of your groups on the internet.
Sorry to hear you've got the covid and the flu. Get well soon!

This actually sounds like a thread I would like to follow, a shooters journey as it happens from tyro to expert.

It's gonna be 2023 and this is the year of tactical logo shirts and tight pants!!!

Try this, every week dry fire 50-100 shots. Concentrate on sight picture and trigger pull. If the sights move when you pull the trigger, it will be a miss.

When I dryfire, I use a totally blank wall. All I care about is how the sights move or don’t move while I squeeze the trigger. Gimmicks like balancing a coin or something on the barrel take your mind off the sights and squeeze. So does using a target.

Good luck!

Kevin

Leon tP said:

It's gonna be 2023 and this is the year of tactical logo shirts and tight pants!!!

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Wait... just how tight are we talking? I have a nightmare vision of tacti-cool yoga pants with cargo pockets and belt loops... of course, they would probably be pretty comfy

I use a 3" dot as a target and if I can keep them all in it offhand at 25 yards, I am happy. It pays to tune handloads to the gun, as layering mechanical accuracy on top of shooter ability can lead to great groups or terrible.

I can't speak to the tactical garb, as I usually wear something with a Carhartt label on in.

I am am amused by the 'tactical' style (unspoken, of course) of shooting attire.
Years ago (how many years? Read on) a buddy and I planned on attending and competing in the 'Soldier of Fortune' match. (Middle to late '70s I think.) I told him I had one condition to go. We rent tuxedos.
Camouflage is dress, artifacts or decoration which enables one to be inconspicuous in their milieu. Their own world. THEIR OWN CIRCUMSTANCE. Jungle camo was no help to me.

Groups. Yeah, I'm older and don't have the physical 'assets' I had in those days. At one time I could often put all my shots in the black in timed and slow fire. No more. But I can all my shots in the middle of a silhouette target from concealment right along. Groups vary in application.

I am not an expert pistol shooter by any means. But I can keep 15 rounds within a 3 1/2" to 4" group at 25 yards shooting my Canik Elite SC free handed. I am happy with that.

Edited to add the following:

I am fine with 3 1/2" to 4" groups at 25 yards with a subcompact pistol used for EDC. Same goes for rimfire handguns such as my Glock G44 and Taurus 942.

My rimfire target pistols and some of my 1911's would upset me if they can't shoot smaller groups then that at 25 yards.

21H40 said:

Wait... just how tight are we talking? I have a nightmare vision of tacti-cool yoga pants with cargo pockets and belt loops... of course, they would probably be pretty comfy

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Thank you for putting that disturbing image in my head.

I was thinking more along the lines of those 70's jeans! I certainly don't want to see Dudes in bike shorts, leggings, yoga pants, stretchy spandex of any type or even Larry Bird shorts all while shooting a course of fire.

Now I'm off to watch True Grit (the original) and try to brain bleach myself of your post

I can’t seem to get the groups I want from a bench rest. Must be the bench or the rifle or the scope or the wind or the trigger or the stock…..

doubleh said:

Maybe if I get some tactical pants and a tight t-shirt with a gun logo on it I can even improve a little.

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Did you get younger for saying this? This crap is so common from the older crowd online, I figure there must be some kind of exchange rate where lame smack talking online earns days back on your youth or something, otherwise, I just don’t quite see the motivation.

Worse, with grey in my beard, I still haven’t gotten the memo on when I can start cashing in. If I need to start bad mouthing younger folks to earn days back, I’d rather start early and stay younger for a hell of a lot longer… but maybe that’s the trade off, as if I have to act that bitter just for going blind and grey, maybe I’d rather just let death take me on time instead of bartering to be bitter longer.

earlthegoat2 said:

I can’t seem to get the groups I want from a bench rest.

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I’m with ya here. I never can seem to get the groups I want either. I do seem to get the groups I earn, but that seldom seems to align with what I really wanted. Thankfully, they’re typically better than what I need, even if I HAVE had to calibrate my expectations by removing myself from the applications which dictate the most demanding need.

I once saw an advert for Tactical Yoga Pants. Fortunately being modeled by a shapely fem.

Had to research that one…

https://www.gungoddess.com/products/concealment-leggings

jmorris said:

Had to research that one…

https://www.gungoddess.com/products/concealment-leggings

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Thank you.

jmorris said:

Had to research that one…

https://www.gungoddess.com/products/concealment-leggings

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Heck of a product, I never saw the gun.

I quit shooting for "groups" decades ago.
IMHO it's largely a waste of time.
I mean - why bother?

Hal said:

I quit shooting for "groups" decades ago.
IMHO it's largely a waste of time.
I mean - why bother?

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I initially target my revolvers or rifle to allow me to see what I need to do to improve them. Many require minor adjustments, sight changes, etc. Some, just get sold as too much work! Once they are sighted in to my satisfaction, I rarely shoot paper anymore. After that, they go on walks with me and are used on targets of opportunity, rocks, stumps, clods of soil, at various distances and from field positions. In other words, I use them to prepare for hunting.

Years ago, I did shoot for groups. I also shot competition and it got to the point it was no longer enjoyable so I quit shooting. It took a few years but when I resumed, I vowed not to go back to chasing groups. It is still enjoyable for me.

Kevin

Rifles - I can see where "groups" could reveal something.
But handguns?
Handguns are either on target or they need some minor adjustment to get them to shoot to point of aim.
I don't really need a cluster of shots to show me where the gun shoots in relation to where I want it to shoot.

These days when I go to the range it's usually with a very specific idea of one thing I'll be testing. Maybe it's ammo reliability or breaking in a new gun or testing a new set of grips. Sessions these days are usually really short, maybe a few minutes on the line then pack up, stop by What-A-Burger to pick up a BoB then home and clean the gun or guns.

But gotta admit I still enjoy simply punching a very large hole in a piece of paper at times.

I don’t get too wound up about group size as long as it’s the same or slightly smaller than last time.

DMW1116 said:

I don’t get too wound up about group size as long as it’s the same or slightly smaller than last time.

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Yep. Same for me.

I also don't get too wound up about other old curmudgeons (I'm one myself) poking fun at the younger generation, tactical pants or tight t-shirts. (I do it all the time, and no, it doesn't make me feel younger, but sometimes it makes me laugh).

Hal said:

I quit shooting for "groups" decades ago.
IMHO it's largely a waste of time.
I mean - why bother?

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For me, groups represent the capability for consistent accuracy. I like to see how well I can do, see what the gun and load can do, hopefully continue to improve or even get to the point that I'm happy with my performance, and then work to keep it up or make it more consistent.

I think it's kind of like the drag racer who works to achieve a lower E.T. or higher trap speed, or the golfer who chases lower scores. What's the point in just going out there and driving down to the end of the strip, or just whacking the ball around the course?

That said, any such endeavor can become a chore if you're not careful, where you lose the fun by becoming obsessed with improvement or new personal records. Sometimes it's fun to shoot something like the KYL target, or just plink at things that are more easily achievable.