My last range trip scared me a bit...

[csbassplayer2003]

Ok so I have a P220 that I like to shoot as I find it relaxing. Well I usually shoot about 50 rounds at 7 yards as a warmup before I work on thing that I need improving on. Im hardly a crack shot, but I shoot well enough (range safety people have noticed). Well as I was shooting my final sets on a brand new clean target I took careful aim at 7 yards on a larger 11-12 inch type (also has 2 2.5 inch circles towards the center on the upper and lower edges) lined up the shot, pulled the trigger. The gun went bang, and I checked my placement. Nothing. Nada. No hole. I was stunned. I have fired hundreds if not a thousand rounds through this pistol and at 7 yards this is the first time I have ever not at least hit paper when aiming for the large targets. I kind of got a chill up my spine. What if that was a self defense situation and that miss now means im dead? I know range trips shouldnt be taken super serious but still, at 7 yards I was always garunteed to hit paper.

So I thought back to my mechanics/technique. I lined up the shot correctly, I wasnt rushed, I was in a proper stance, nothing seemed amiss. I shot the rest of my set, and a later magazine blasted the middle out of the 2.5 inch target on the upper edge with little trouble. What am I missing in my sight acquisition? It seems so inconsistent in retrospect. I am about 6ft 1inch. The smaller uppermost target is about eye level, the larger targest are lower obviously. Are my sighs off (a set of tru glos, not factory) is there an adjustment Im not doing for elevation? Again Im not a tack driver with this gun, but I have plenty of saved large and small targets with no center left in them. I dont want to have that chill feeling again. Is there a good way to practice/ double check point of aim vs point of impact? Am I forgetting something? Help!

 

[txhoghunter]

Well you could have just yanked a shot, we all do it.

And in a self defense situation, god forbid you ever be in one, you cannot expect to hit 100% of your shots, it just won't happen

If you haven't adjusted your sights then I would say that they aren't the problem. And TBH, I was thinking that you had a squib load before I finished reading the story. That would have sent more than a chill down your spine

 

[JoeMal]

Relax. That may be part of your problem

 

[txhoghunter]

Relax. That may be part of your problem

Yep, settle down, it was a range trip. Take a defensive pistol class if you want to concentrate like it is a SD situation. A range trip is great, but I never take them as seriously as one missed shot means I'm dead

 

[JoeMal]

Hell maybe you had a bad round of ammo that just went wacky.

 

[youngda9]

You pulled a shot...chill...

 

[csbassplayer2003]

If I pulled a shot I dont understand how. I am usually pretty good at detecting when I yak a shot. I didnt feel that one this one. Hmmm. And btw the sights are after market installed by a smith, but it only took 25 mins. I was suspicious of them but have shot some decent groups since. Any good way to practice short of more range time?

 

[MtnSpur]

Everybody and I mean EVERYBODY who has ever shot a weapon has pulled/yanked/cranked/zippo'd a shot. Absolutely normal and expected. Keep practicing and you'll be just fine.

 

[Trebor]

Without seeing you shoot it's hard to accurately diagnois the problem.

That said, based on working with thousands of students, I'd say most likely you had poor trigger control for that shot.

Here's a fix: Do some dry-fire at home. Just five minutes a day for five days or so. When you do the dry fire concentrate on NOT MOVING THE GUN when you pull the trigger. Try balancing a shell casing on the slide and pulling the trigger so smoothly as to not have the casing fall.

After five days of practice go to the range. Do just a few dry fire reps first, to "remind yourself" that you are working on not moving the gun when you pull the trigger, and then load up and do live fire. I'll bet you'll see an improvement.

Uh, and one more hint: Don't look for the bullet hole after every shot. Just aim for the center of the target, pull the trigger, and watch the front sight as it recoils. After the gun settles down after the recoil put the front sight back on exactly the same place on the target and prepare to fire again. Do NOT look to see where your last shot went.

If you look for the bullet hole after you shoot you are more likely to pull the gun down WHILE you are actually shooting.

 

[Nushif]

I'll chime in with the people saying you're taking this way too seriously as well.
One shot went somewhere oddball. One. At a range session.

I don't think about self defense every time I go shooting. Not every last time I pull the trigger I think "What if this was some 300 pound dude running at me in level II body armor and a machete in each hand, with a Stinger strapped to his back who has Marine training and ten pounds of PCP in his system!"

That's way too stressful. And not very conducive to good shooting.

If I were you I'd grab some cans, head to some nice BLM land and lean back with a .22 and then reconnect with the joy of shooting, and reaquaint yourself with the comforting factor, rather than the fear factor that comes with a gun.

TLDR:
Chill, man!

 

[chris in va]

The gun went bang, and I checked my placement. Nothing. Nada. No hole. I was stunned.

That's why I sold my 220. Couldn't shoot it to save my life. I'm much better with my CZ and Glock.

Was that shot from the absurdly hard DA pull, or did you thumb the hammer back first?