stock fitting? (aka What am I doing wrong?)

[Nuts590]

I'm trying to fit a stock on a 500 for "general purpose" shooting. Here's my problem that I'm having... the factory stock fits me like $#&^. When I shoot so I'm comfortable and have a good low sight picture I'm kissing the knuckle of my thumb (think archery). If I consciously haul my head back onto the stock where it "should be" I can't seem to get low enough to get a good sight picture. Shooting from either of these positions is starting to cause shooting pains in my right wrist after about 10-15 shots also. Am I limp-wristing and not realizing it?

Any suggestions would be great, I'm beginning to get frustrated and it's causing more harm than good right now (ever seen a 6'5" 320 pound man flinch with #8 shot? Let's just say I'm not particularly proud of my shooting lately...)

 

[TrapperReady]

What's the length of pull on the gun right now? Measure the distance from the front of the trigger to the part of the recoil pad which contacts your shoulder.

It may also be an issue with form (which of course also relates to fit). Shotguns should be raised into shooting position without much head movement. If you are crawling forward on the stock then you can bash yourself pretty good.

For example, when I'm shooting an AR in service rifle matches, I use the "nose-to-charging-handle" method of indexing my position. Of course, the rifle is weighted as much as I can get away with and is only shooting a .223 round. My shotguns are set up so that my head doesn't move at all when I raise it up to shoot.

Also, if your hands are quite large, then you may be wrapping it too much around the top of the stock, which will shorten this distance to your nose. You may want to try keeping your hand a little lower and more on the right-hand side of the stock.

 

[Dave McCracken]

Let me add to TR's excellent advice.....

As a loose rule, having one or two finger's width between one's thumb and schnozz is a good starting point. Add some length and see what happens.

When the stock gets longer, drop at heel increases. In your case, this may be a good thing. Longer may help you get to a heads up position.

Gottan idea your shooting side wrist is bent a bit and that's why it hurts after a few shots. Pain is nature's way of telling you something's wrong. Adding LOP can clear this up also.

Add an inch with a slip on pad, spacer, moleskin, etc. Pattern or use a trap locked down to throw only straightaways to figure out where it's hitting, then move the stock as needed.

Nothing beats an experienced fitter to get this right, but this can get us closer.

HTH....

 

[Nuts590]

Thank you both, this helps a LOT! I'm playing recliner to the new addition to the family (One month old as of yesterday) so when she finally decides that nap time is over I'll go get those exact LOP measurements and see if I can con the wife into taking a few pics so I can let everyone see what things look like when it's mounted.

 

[kudu]

To what TR and Dave said. Adding the recoil pad lower on the stock so it hangs below the gun will help bring the gun up to your face more while still having the pad firmly in the pocket of your shoulder. This will help if your crawling your face up the stock or have a longer neck or face. My .02cents.