Shooting Heavier Loads....

[Dave McCracken]

A 1 1/4 oz Brenneke from a 7 lb shotgun has about the same free recoil as the 300 grain 375 H&H Mag does from a 10 lb rifle.

Heavy loads from field weight shotguns WILL tear you a new one if form and fit are off.In 12 gauge, loads 1 1/4 oz and up are considered heavy.

9 pellet 00 loads aren't quite that heavy, but are still hard kicking and oft used in crisis situations demanding fast recovery and repeat shots. Or maybe you're recoil sensitive and loads not quite this stiff are still heavy by your lights.

So, how do we handle the monster masher loads?

Here's what I recommend and teach.

Watch a good trapshooter,skeeter,or SC shotgunner. They use an erect stance for more range of swing, flexibility and to reduce fatigue. They're also using heavier guns and lighter loads.

For heavier stuff, face the area where you want to hit. Step forward with your support side foot and keep that knee bent. Be way forward, your nose should be over your toes. Some folks now skew the rear foot sideways a bit. Avoid this if possible, it angles the body and means the butt moves more into the shoulder joint area where more pain receptors are.

As you mount the weapon, PULL it hard back into the cup formed when you raise the firing side elbow.There can be no room between you and the butt, any looseness here will compound the kick.

Use a firm grip. That takes some of the recoil energy so it does not even reach the shoulder.

The idea is for the weapon and you to recoil as a unit, with the kick spread out over the whole upper body. The forward stance means your back acts like a spring, absorbing the energy and redistributing it so no one place feels it all.

The downside, some flexibilty and range of swing is lost. Usually not a lot, and shots a little off the way we face are still quite doable.

Work up by degrees, both in size of the loads and numbers fired. Have fun.

HTH and sing out with questions...

 

[Preacherman]

Dave, your stance sounds similar to Mas Ayoob's "Stressfire" technique, which I learned in LFI-2 and -3 last year. It works well for slugs and buckshot. In fact, the technique applies equally well to rifles and full-auto long guns as well.

 

[Dave McCracken]

It's no ripoff of Ayoob, Preacherman, I've been using it since at least the early 80s. The mission then was to train a few hundred rookies. This method seemed to work the best for non shotgunners and beginners.

Lots of folks tend to slant their bodies, full frontal gives ALL the pad surface in close to equal contact and puts more meat behind the push.

Parallel research, IMO. I'm sure others will add their take.

 

[HS/LD]

Thanks for the post Dave, I am going to tweak my stance with the info you have given.

What you have posted is much the same as I learnt for the FN FAL L1A1 back in the dark ages. As a young kid then only 17 or 18 and weighing in at probably 160. It was important to be able to cotrol the .308 for rapid mutiple shots. We too, were taught to lean well into the rifle hold it snug and keep the body square.

I applied the same to shooting the shotgun. As I have said before I have had a lot of training with other platforms but little experience with the SG until the end of last year when I bought the Winchester.

I had to apply a little trial and error to correcting my technique. Although I am sure that I am no expert... yet. I am getting better and better. The 3" slugs and buck shot are certainly stout but I can now handle them pretty well. I try to shoot a few each time I go out. When we are busting clays, I make sure to throw a box of slugs and and magnum 00 buck shot down range. Practicing really quick mounts and moving and shooting. As I use 2 3/4" Magnum 12 pellet 00 as my serious load. I think it is important to shoot the same ammo you will when push comes to shove comes to shoot.

I believe one of the least praticed parts of shooting for self defense is the movement. Hunting and target shooting are usually done standing still. But, as I am sure you are aware Dave, standing still in a serious social situation makes you an inviting target.
So I try to practice shooting accurately on the move.

Trying to find that instant where the foot contacts the ground before the other foot leaves. Like a boxer punching in that instant of solid stance in the shuffle... thats what I am working on.

Thanks again I will re-read your post and burn it in before my next trip to Bailey.

Regards,
HS/LD

 

[Dave McCracken]

"...Standing still in a serious social situation makes you an inviting target"....

SO true. Move, shoot, move, shoot....

 

[45auto]

Good post on stance. Sounds simple enough to get beginners to "get into" a shotgunning stance.

I helped(tried) quite a few new shooters, for clay targets, over the years.

The hardest ones, for me, were the rifle shooters. Often, I had to physically "lean" them forward, smack them behind the knees, raise their elbows and try to get their "face" on the stock at the same time, funny to watch sometimes! After about an hour most of them would get it, trial and error and watching the "correct" method.

Often, the non-shooters were the easiest, particulary the athletic ones.

 

[Dave McCracken]

Amen! Give me complete rookies rather than self taught shooters, especially rifle shooters.

I've hands on'd quite a few, and still may have to again.