Here's a little Group Therapy for you...Off Hand Shooting

[Group Therapy]

I went out and shot 12 groups of 10 rounds each. All Standing Off Hand at 50 yards with the Ruger 10/22. Nothing special about the rifle. It is older and only mildly tuned up.

Here's the best three targets:

View attachment 232752

And the hardware that did it:
View attachment 232751

 

[ColtPythonElite]

Try rimfire silhouette. It can be a humbling experience.

 

[Hardtarget]

So few shoot "off hand" anymore. Some ranges won't even let us shoot unless we're scooted up to a bench! That was some pretty good shooting you showed. I don't do very good any more even though I get some practice every so often. I think I need to put more effort into honing that skill. Thanks for reminding. I need to not let that slip any further.

Mark

 

[Group Therapy]

So few shoot "off hand" anymore. Some ranges won't even let us shoot unless we're scooted up to a bench! That was some pretty good shooting you showed. I don't do very good any more even though I get some practice every so often. I think I need to put more effort into honing that skill. Thanks for reminding. I need to not let that slip any further.

Mark

Hi Mark. Thanks for appreciating the post. I have been practicing off hand more lately. Bench shooting was getting old. So here are a few current tips I have learned. Mostly stolen from others and tested me:

I use a hasty sling set up to help hold the rifle to my body when I raise it up.

Holding the rifle down in a relaxed position I take about 7 slow deep breaths while relaxing against a tree with as little body muscle tension as possible. Almost hyperventilating. The wobbles diminish the closer you get to hyperventilating. It's weird. But its true.

Then I take position with my best natural point of aim and cheek weld and aim on the target focusing on the reticle, not the target.

Trigger control has to be coordinated with breathing and the wobbles, since there is no "stationary moment" off hand. I's all "on the run" so to speak.

If I wait more than 7 seconds before breaking the shot, I start over. Wobbles only get worse after 7 seconds.

Always try to break the shots with the same lung inflation through the breathing cycle, usually about 1/3 lung full, either in or out, but always the same. Breaking at different points of the breathing cycle messes with your natural point of aim since your bones are aligned differently.

From a good position I try to break two shots, rest, then three, then rest, then three more, then rest, then the last two. For 10 total. Rifle down and relaxing between the mini-groups.

Take your time. This is not machine gun training. If it takes you two minutes to shoot the group of 10, you will do much better than trying to fire them all off in a couple of breathing cycles.

There are a lot of vids on the internet to help with the sling. Play around with the sling and find a fit and configuration that helps. I put a full 360 degree clockwise twist back to front in the sling, then a reverse 180 on the return from the front swivel back to the buckle. This last part forms a "basket" under your front hand when you sling up. Look at my rifle pic real carefully. Especially where the buckles are and the direction they lay. Its all there.

Happy shooting. Hopefully I have encouraged you and others to new skills and adventures on the range. Be safe. Be successful.

 

[readyeddy]

I've been shooting off hand mostly for about the past 2 years. My observations:

Press your support arm against your ribcage to achieve skeletal support.

Balance the gun on the palm of the support arm.

Confirm the point of aim. When shooting with a scope my point of of impact is lower than off the bench so I aim higher when standing.

Don't squeeze the pistol grip when pulling the trigger.

Shoot from empty lungs.

Take notes to remember everything.

 

[Group Therapy]

I've been shooting off hand mostly for about the past 2 years. My observations:
Press your support arm against your ribcage to achieve skeletal support.
Balance the gun on the palm of the support arm.
Confirm the point of aim. When shooting with a scope my point of of impact is lower than off the bench so I aim higher when standing.
Don't squeeze the pistol grip when pulling the trigger.
Shoot from empty lungs.
Take notes to remember everything.

Great points to add to the list. When I look at the scored targets of High Power shooters I am stunned. Somehow they put it all together! Once you have proven your rifle and ammo from the bench, off hand becomes an addictive discipline!

 

[hdwhit]

Looks good, Group Therapy.

I applaud you for doing your shooting offhand. As Hardtarget pointed out, so many people have to shoot from a bench to shoot at all that it seens offhand is becoming a lost art. Yet, most of us didn't buy our rifles for bench rest shooting, but for hunting and self-defense and we can't count on the deer to walk in front of our bench and in a self-defense situation, we can't count on the bad guys waiting until we find something to rest the gun on.

 

[Jason_W]

Offhanding a .22. That brings me back to how I learned to shoot as a kid. My dad didn't believe in rests, calling them a crutch or cheating.

I remember being able to hit Red Squirrels off hand out to 50 yards with a peep sighted single shot Savage/Stevens, though I'm sure my brain recorded hits and forgot many, many misses.

What I like about off hand shooting is that the goal is to hit targets, not print groups. That's somehow more gratifying to me.

 

[Captcurt]

I practice offhand a lot. Most trips to the range gets a bench session with some new loads or toys and then the rimfire comes out of the case. It pays off when deer season comes. I will use a rest anytime that I can on deer, but a few years back I got caught crossing an open field by a buck. There was not a tree close and the grass and weeds were too high to sit or kneel. I wrapped up in the sling, took aim and sqeezed. The buck was quartering to me and the crosshair was on his shoulder. At the shot he disappeared. When I got to him looked as if he had collapsed with a bullet hole on the point of the shoulder. I doubt if I could have pulled that shot off without practice. It was 108 yards. Doesn't sound far, but try it sometime.

 

[Group Therapy]

Offhanding a .22. That brings me back to how I learned to shoot as a kid. My dad didn't believe in rests, calling them a crutch or cheating.

I remember being able to hit Red Squirrels off hand out to 50 yards with a peep sighted single shot Savage/Stevens, though I'm sure my brain recorded hits and forgot many, many misses.

What I like about off hand shooting is that the goal is to hit targets, not print groups. That's somehow more gratifying to me.

Totally agree!! Those memories of squirrels and bouncing beer cans! Included in my range kit even today is an orange cube that bounces all over the place when you hit it. I always bring "fun" targets as well as the paper targets.

 

[Group Therapy]

I practice offhand a lot. Most trips to the range gets a bench session with some new loads or toys and then the rimfire comes out of the case. It pays off when deer season comes. I will use a rest anytime that I can on deer, but a few years back I got caught crossing an open field by a buck. There was not a tree close and the grass and weeds were too high to sit or kneel. I wrapped up in the sling, took aim and sqeezed. The buck was quartering to me and the crosshair was on his shoulder. At the shot he disappeared. When I got to him looked as if he had collapsed with a bullet hole on the point of the shoulder. I doubt if I could have pulled that shot off without practice. It was 108 yards. Doesn't sound far, but try it sometime.

And THAT'S what it is all about! Congratulations on performing in the moment.

 

[Group Therapy]

Not to take away from any Marksman's skill and effort. Everyone's interest is different. What got me hooked was the flip up targets on the multi-distance range at Ft Ord 45 years ago. It was fun and I got real good at it.

 

[readyeddy]

I'm like captcurt. Deer hunting forced me to take up off hand shooting. Of course go supported whenever possible, but sometimes the terrain forces you to stand.

Another good thing about practicing off hand is that you become familiar with your limitations. The size of the target, distance, how hard the wind is blowing, and how steady you are holding that day all get factored instantly when you're looking through the scope and you'll know whether you can take an ethical hunting shot.

 

[Sauer Grapes]

Your right, most people just sit at a bench and blast away. When I was young, I shot a lot off hand. I remember as a kid watching my father flip an old metal 2 gal.bucket around off hand at about 200 yards. Yeah long time ago, like late 60s early 70s.

 

[Captcurt]

Back in our teens my best friend and I purchased a Quick Skill game. It was a Daisy BB gun that had no sights. It came with 2 pair of safety glasses and 2 steel disk. If memory serves , these were about 2 1/2 and 3 1/2" in diameter. The idea was for one guy to toss the disk up into the air and the shooter was to point and shoot. We got good enough to hit them consistently out to 20 feet. The lawyers today would have a windfall, but back then it was cool.

 

[Group Therapy]

Back in our teens my best friend and I purchased a Quick Skill game. It was a Daisy BB gun that had no sights. It came with 2 pair of safety glasses and 2 steel disk. If memory serves , these were about 2 1/2 and 3 1/2" in diameter. The idea was for one guy to toss the disk up into the air and the shooter was to point and shoot. We got good enough to hit them consistently out to 20 feet. The lawyers today would have a windfall, but back then it was cool.

So that is where that came from! Back in the early '70's at Ft Ord our rifle instructor worked with us for a couple of days on just that! BB Guns and small discs he would toss out there. We were all surprised at how good we got. His point was familiarization and practice. In the combat field you just have to do what you have to do. Little time or facility to get set. Just have to know your stuff and respond. And have confidence doing it.

 

[Fiv3r]

I always shoot off hand at the range with my handguns.

So many people worry about seeing if a micro .380 can nail head shots from a bench at 25 yards. For me, I'm worried about shooting it at 7-10 yards center mass. A 3" group in the chest with an lcp at combat distances is good enough for me. Hitting a the chest area at 25 yards with an off hand pocket gun is more than what I would expect.

I shot what I would consider a "ragged hole" at 12 yards off hand with a Beretta 92fs today. Not the tightest groups, but resulted in one very "dead" bad guy.

Shooting off hand is an absolute must when it comes to defense. I took time to shoot 3 magazines from my weak hand today because I tend to carry my pocket gun on my left side. I feel that I am 100 times more likely to need to draw and fire rapidly with my left hand as quickly as I can than I am to hunker down and saddle up to a bench rest and make controlled shots.

Will you end up with a group you are proud to hang on the wall of your man-cave? Nah. However, should you find yourself in a scuffle, hitting center mass six times quickly may be more effective than trying to find a perch to make a "perfect" shot.

 

[Group Therapy]

I always shoot off hand at the range with my handguns...
Will you end up with a group you are proud to hang on the wall of your man-cave? Nah. However, should you find yourself in a scuffle, hitting center mass six times quickly may be more effective than trying to find a perch to make a "perfect" shot.

Familiarization. Familiarization. Familiarization. Your comments are well received. What worries me are these guys (and we all know some) who think that carrying = self defense, but they are so unfamiliar with their firearm they have no proper reaction skill and little target skill. But they have the CCW piece of paper! So they walk around big. Yeah. A big accident waiting to hurt themselves or the wrong person.

 

[HB]

This summer I'm getting back to basics. Busting out the old 22 savage heavy barrel, tons of ammo, and shooting the 4 positions with the sling. I have a 5.5" steel plate I plan on shooting at 100 yards.

I've been shooting 2 gun with decent success but it all comes back to natural point of aim, breath control, and trigger squeeze... applicable whether you are shooting a service pistol in USPSA, deer, or a steel plate at 400 yards.

EDIT: If anybody has a routine they'd recommed please let me know. It doesn't take many rounds down the pipe if dry fire is added to sharpen skills. I am thinking 1x week 50 rounds each session. Make sure rifle is zero'd in prone with 10 shots then work my way up to standing. A 22 at 100 yards will give me wind reading practice as well.

HB

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I recommend a set of rimfire rifle silhouettes set up at NRA distances to really hone your skills. You can order just the animals minus the feet and make swingers out of them so you can practice without setting them up over and over.

 

[Group Therapy]

This summer I'm getting back to basics. ...If anybody has a routine they'd recommed please let me know. ... I am thinking 1x week 50 rounds each session. Make sure rifle is zero'd in prone with 10 shots then work my way up to standing. A 22 at 100 yards will give me wind reading practice as well.
HB

That is great! Hopefully this thread has been an additional encouragement.

But one more tip: I notice that I usually shoot my best groups at 40 to 50 rounds. I can go out to 80 or 100 or more and perhaps be more attentive to the fine points and develop the mental part, but don't seem to get the results. I think it is eye and body fatigue. I bring this up because someone else in another discussion mentioned the same thing. Just something to put in the mix of ideas for what it's worth.

It might not be a big deal shooting .22. But when I take the M1A out it can get expensive just throwing lead pointlessly after 50 rounds.

 

[readyeddy]

I agree on the round count. I max out at around 50 rounds shooting off hand. Fatigue starts setting in and concentration effort starts increasing dramatically.

For keeping costs down, 22 LR and air rifle off hand helps a lot. The closer deer season gets is when the 30 06 comes out to shoot the 10" gong at 100 yards.

 

[U.S.SFC_RET]

I started shooting standing unsupported about 10 years ago. A rifle team invited me to a shoot and I was humbled. There is no challenge shooting from a bench.

 

[Captcurt]

I started shooting standing unsupported about 10 years ago. A rifle team invited me to a shoot and I was humbled. There is no challenge shooting from a bench.

Oh, there is always the challenge of trying to put 5 rounds in the same hole, but how do I get a leadsled up in a tree when deer season comes? Quigley didn't use no rest.

 

[MrBorland]

Well done & kudos for working on your off-hand shooting.

When I look at the scored targets of High Power shooters I am stunned. Somehow they put it all together!

They put it all together through a boatload of practice. For a little break from handgunning, I shot High Power for a bit, and easily 90% of my practice was offhand.

There are a lot of vids on the internet to help with the sling. Play around with the sling and find a fit and configuration that helps.

Generally, a sling is used when the weak elbow is supported, as in the seated and prone positions. A hasty sling might help you a bit while standing, but a sling isn't generally used when standing. It's not even allowed to be used in High Power during the Standing Slow Fire CoF. For precision shooting while standing, the general method is to lean back and rest your weak elbow on your torso/ribcage. As someone earlier mentioned, this allows your bones, rather than your muscles, to support the rifle.