Correlation between the rifle, mags and shooter

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sarduy

sarduy

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Hello,

this is a topic that I would like to know how you guys feel about it. i was doing some rifle drills this morning with 2 somewhat new shooters and started thinking, the direct connection between magazine size and how people shoot. So I put it to the test today.

I give shooter #1 an ar15 with what I called a hunting mag “5 rounds” and he toke his time aiming and shooting slow, then afterwards I loaded the rifle with a 40 rounds mags and the first thing he does is mag dump like 25 rounds into the target then shot the rest relative fast, but the reload mag was a 20 rounds mag and then again the shooting speed decreased immediately.

This mirrored with shooter #2 when we shoot the AK with 5, 20 and 30 rounds mags. I have seen this happened before with new and experienced shooters but never toke the time to actually test it until today.

next time I’ll try this with a bolt action.

Has anyone experienced this effect themselves or seen it happen? What’s your thoughts about this?
 
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not really my experience. ime, most new shooters will shoot one round at a time slowly, no matter how many rounds in the mag and even if you encourage them to pull the trigger as fast as they can.
 
Bcwitt said:
A demonstration of mankind's waistful ways. Try putting 2 or 3 rds in a 30. See what happens then.
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Yeah i have done this, and the response is “what that heck? Followed by a confusing look on their faces, which I follow up with instructions on how to reload or go to secondary asap depending on the drill, but interesting to see it.
 
The Glockodile said:
Could be as simple as “the more pews, more fun.”
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Thats where Im at....im sure as heck not loading a 30rn magazine to shoot it slowly........not loading it more than once either.

With a bolt gun that holds more than 5 rounds, im usually out of focus by the time the mags empty, and im thinking "am I there yet?"

Im way worse with a handgun.......
 
The Glockodile said:
Could be as simple as “the more pews, more fun.”

Not everybody likes or wants to ruminate over each shot spent, or even how each meticulous handload skewed the SD...
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Yeah, i get you but this is not what I’m talking about. It’s about the attention where does rounds go compared from a 10 round mag to a 75 rounds drum. I shoot just as fast a 10 vs 30 rounds because i train to reload or transition, but its funny to watch 2 guys shoot faster or slower just by swapping the magazine capacity. You can see the effect just by loading 10 rounds in 30 rounds mag vs a full 10 rounds mag
 
If Im plinking, Ill take a gun with plenty of ammo and see what it can do.Slow, fast, aimed , pointed, Boom Boom boom.

If Im shooting at targets, Ill aim, but Im not one to take long doing that, and I can make a follow up and more pretty freeking fast.

Now if Im hunting, i usually require one shot, sometimes two.......but there times when a few shots are called for....follow ups, multiple animals and, yes, missing......LOL!!
 
I think its probably more about maturity, discipline, and being an experienced shooter or not.

Not saying mag dumps arent fun, and/or an indication of skill either, they are both, in the proper context.

Maybe for some, the extra rounds in the larger mags are just heavy, and they are just trying to get it over with, while they can still hold the gun steady. :)
 
sarduy said:
.... What’s your thoughts about this?
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I think it's just a case of having a good time at the range - both shooting and interacting with other shooters. No scientific conclusions, just a day spent doing something enjoyable and helping to make it enjoyable for others. :thumbup:
 
taliv said:
not really my experience. ime, most new shooters will shoot one round at a time slowly, no matter how many rounds in the mag and even if you encourage them to pull the trigger as fast as they can.
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You didn't see my kid the first time he ever shot anything more than his bb gun. Sounded like my Ruger MK3 had a binary trigger.

I do think it's a combination of maturity and "well, it's not my ammo".
 
I've definitely been guilty of pew-pewing a few times with a 10/22, high-mag scope, a good rest and a full magazine. Maybe it's from flashbacks to our local County Fair Midway and those galleries with full-auto BB guns, the ones you shoot to obliterate the paper star. Or maybe it's just that I don't handload 22 LR the way I do just about everything else.

Lately I've been doing a lot of single-loading with .32 H&R chamber converters into various .30-.303-7.5 bolt action rifles. The loading procedure slows you nicely between shots:

 
This has not been my experience either... context matters...

When you challenge a new shooter to hit a small target or far away, with the understanding that missing is bad, they’ll shoot slowly.

When you hand someone a firearm with the purpose of making noise, you can’t be surprised when they make a lot of noise.

Set someone in front of a drum kit. Tell them to have fun. They’ll bang fast and loud. Put a metronome on them and tell them to play a specific roll in time, and they’ll ask to slow the metronome.
 
I don't do mag dumps. Even with a 10/22 and 25 round mags. I'm too cheap to shoot a bunch of rounds and not try to hit a small target.
 
My mother in law grew up very poor. Her brother has shot with us a few times and he just stands around grumbling and complaining about how when he was a kid his dad would have whooped him for wasting ammo just to sight in a deer rifle. They were expected to produce something to eat for ever shot.
 
I know that I tend to shoot a semi-automatic a bit too fast. I am much more measured and slow with a bolt.

For perspective, I tend to start getting my eye in shape for deer season with handguns: Focus is on the breathing and trigger control. I went to the range the other day after a long layoff. I took a Super Blackhawk Bisley with a 3.5" barrel (possibly my most accurate handgun), a NIB Sig 250 C, a Browning Buckmaster with 5.5" Bull Barrel (also pretty darn accurate), and (my favorite warm up gun) a S&W 617 with 3" barrel. The targets were some 6" reactive "range balls" and a swinging steel prairie dog silhouette. The point is (back to the OPs observation), shooting slowly with the revolvers I tended to hit more. The Semi's were much more spray and pray. Except, the first shot with the Buckmark was a clean headshot on the dog and knocked the target over. I figured it wasn't going to get much better so I dumped the mag.

Now that I have begun to get the silliness out of my system, the next trip out will have me bringing my Savage 22 WRM to start shoot the prairie dog at a distance. But this will be after about a box of shells with the 617 to start getting things under control.
 
I have affected myself this way. Full mag equals faster shooting, not mag dumps, but faster. I now typically load and shoot 3, pop out the mag, reload, think about what I did. Start again.
 
Dave DeLaurant said:
I've definitely been guilty of pew-pewing a few times with a 10/22, high-mag scope, a good rest and a full magazine. Maybe it's from flashbacks to our local County Fair Midway and those galleries with full-auto BB guns, the ones you shoot to obliterate the paper star. Or maybe it's just that I don't handload 22 LR the way I do just about everything else.

Lately I've been doing a lot of single-loading with .32 H&R chamber converters into various .30-.303-7.5 bolt action rifles. The loading procedure slows you nicely between shots:

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Yup, with my vintage open-receiver .22 bolt guns, I usually just pull the magazine and single-load em- saves alot of busted knuckles and scraped fingers too! Deburring rimfire mags apparently wasnt a high priority back in the '30s.......:D
 
Even as an Infantryman I was prone to be deliberate with my shots. But every once in a while doing a mag dump with the switch on rock and roll was fun.
 
I've wondered about this too. I usually only load 5-10 rounds in a magazine unless I'm in a 3 Gun match. Some of the people I shoot with will fill them up every time though. One difference I have noticed is that when we pack up at the end of the session, I usually have more ammunition left than they do.
 
I think you will find if you load 2 or 3 in your 30rds. Your marksmanship & speed loading will improve quite a bit.
 
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