Yep, I r dumb.(range woe)

[Matt-J2]

So, any day at the range is a good day, but sometimes, you almost wish you had waited.
I'm out on the private land I shoot on, trying to sight in this .30 carbine Blackhawk. Set the target out to 25yds, blacken the front sight with a match, follow the advice I had been given about resting my wrists/hands on the bag rather than the barrel, etc. Ammo is a single box of the Federal Power Shok 110gr soft point. First 3 shots are high. Next 3, also high. Adjust the sights. Next 3, still high, one on paper. Same with the next set. So I keep going, adjusting the sights each time, and I can't even hit paper. Shots appear to be high each time. Try aiming lower as well, shots still high. Rounds expended, I get a bit depressed that I can't seem to shoot this revolver well. I had actually done better with the cheapo Aguila ammo at 75yds. Switch to .22lr pistol and rifle to perk myself up, everything goes fine. I just can't figure this revolver out.
So after a few hours I get to talking with my fiancee's father, and I check out his .357 Blackhawk on the mantle. He gets to telling me he's been shooting low lately, we compare pistols a bit, I notice his sights are adjusted pretty far down. That's when it hits me.


I had adjusted my sights the wrong direction the entire time I was trying to sight in that morning. I proceeded to kick my own rear end, then got on with my day. Oh well, at least I got to make a lot of noise, and I still have the brass.
Anyone else have a tale of range 'duh' they'd like to share?

 

[Guillermo]

we all make mistakes

I remember sitting at the 200 yard bench at Eagle Peak and wondering why I couldn't get on the paper. My spotting scope was aimed at the target on the next lane.

I felt pretty stupid. When I got it lined up I was pretty happy with my Remington 700 (.308)

It is a better shot than I am

Once a buddy told me about competition that nobody ever remembers how well or poorly you shoot, only how unsafe you are.

 

[TimboKhan]

we all make mistakes

Nuts to that. I have used the same target for the last 15 years. When you shoot through the same hole everytime, it just doesn't make sense to buy a new one.

Noobs.

 

[Guillermo]

Wow Timbo,

one of two possibilities exist

either A
Carlos Hathcock couldn't carry your jock.

or B
you have only shot at one target in the last 15 years

I wonder which one it is?

Always Faithful

 

[mnrivrat]

At least you didn't have the same problem the guy I ran across one day was having with shooting high.

He was trying to sight in his scoped rifle using the top of his car as a rest. The other side of the roof had a nice groove cut in where the rounds had been skipping off and hitting high !

 

[TimboKhan]

you have only shot at one target in the last 15 years

One shoot-n-see target, one hole, hundreds of thousands of rounds of top-secret government sniper ammunition. With iron sights. In the wind. At night. While snowing and cold. At ranges exceeding a mile. With a Mosin-Nagant.

What can I say? I am really awesome at shooting stuff.

 

[JohnBlaze]

:lol:

seriously that post cracked me up big time.

 

[smee781]

I needed a good laugh to start a Monday!

 

[General Geoff]

Yeah, that post made my day.

 

[CajunBass]

I took some targets back and tried to exchange them once. They were defective somehow and the bullet holes kept patching themselves.

Very odd.

One shoot-n-see target, one hole, hundreds of thousands of rounds of top-secret government sniper ammunition. With iron sights. In the wind. At night. While snowing and cold. At ranges exceeding a mile. With a Mosin-Nagant.

What can I say? I am really awesome at shooting stuff.

And it was uphill. Both ways.

 

[Eightball]

Did near the same thing adjusting the front sight on my AR for a while. Spent a lot of ammo until I figured that one out, and I felt pretty dumb.

But it makes it fairly simple to correct later.

 

[308win]

Wait until you install the scope with the windage adjustment turret on the side instead of the top and the elevation turret is now the windage adjustment. Up is now left or is it right? Not wanting to completely waste a shooting opportunity I sighted it in that way although for the life of me I am unsure why. Now I get to undo all of that and do it again.

 

[Virginian]

Man, I never thought anybody else ever had their spotting scope set on the wrong lane. Glad to know I'm not the only one after all.

 

[Guillermo]

Man, I never thought anybody else ever had their spotting scope set on the wrong lane. Glad to know I'm not the only one after all.

Eagle Peak is very anal about shooting in your lane. At 200, rather than wander down there I cheat and put targets on two lanes and "shoot across" when there is no body else there.

As dumb as I felt my group was pretty good after I was looking at the right target.

 

[ZeSpectre]

Mounted a new scope and happily set out to the range to sight it in.

Now usually I'm a 3-5 shot MAX and it's sighted kinda guy but this one kept wandering on me and I was getting pretty puzzled and frustrated.

Then I noticed I hadn't ever put the top half of the front ring on <um, DUH!>.

 

[Anna's Dad]

Nuts to that. I have used the same target for the last 15 years. When you shoot through the same hole everytime, it just doesn't make sense to buy a new one.

I think it's more likely you only got one on the paper in the last 15 years!

There was a comedy where the bad guy throws up a coin and shoots a hole in the center of it. The other fellow throws up the same coin and claims to have fired through the hole. Blazing Saddles maybe?

 

[The Wiry Irishman]

I did the spotting scope on the wrong target thing. It was right at the beginning of the free pistol portion of a pistol match against Ohio State. I hadn't shot the free pistol in a good long while, since I was working on my NRA qualifications that required a semi-auto. During the sighting period, I was looking at my friend's target next to mine and adjusting for his error. Shot my first scored target, brought it in, and I had a beautiful little group right on the upper left right edge of the rings. I shot the rest of the match with Kentucky windage.

 

[give]

lol.thts funny,glad to hear it turned out to be a easy fix

 

[Big B]

I spent all day at the range recently, trying to sight in a 22 my father in law gave me. After 5 targets at 50 and 100 yds (adjusting the scope after each rally) I still couldn't place my groups in the middle of the target.
Later at home, I went to remove the scope to clean the gun and I realized that the front mounting ring had worked itself completly off the barrel. Every time I adjusted the scope at the range, I just pushed the crosshairs in a different direction.
I now know to check the mounts regularly as the rifle and scope are Sears Roebuck & co. and over thirty years old.

 

[greener]

I took some targets back and tried to exchange them once. They were defective somehow and the bullet holes kept patching themselves.

Very odd.

Quote:
One shoot-n-see target, one hole, hundreds of thousands of rounds of top-secret government sniper ammunition. With iron sights. In the wind. At night. While snowing and cold. At ranges exceeding a mile. With a Mosin-Nagant.

What can I say? I am really awesome at shooting stuff.
And it was uphill. Both ways.

Standing on one leg, in a hammock.

Bought a Mossberg L44 at a Boy Scout camp auction years ago. Took my son out to shoot my new $30 deal and couldn't hit squat past 10 yards. Put it in the closet for several years and gave it to my son. A while back he sent me a target with 5 rounds just slightly larger than a dime. Note on the target said "shoots pretty good, if the front sight isn't so loose it almost falls off."

 

[rainbowbob]

One shoot-n-see target, one hole, hundreds of thousands of rounds of top-secret government sniper ammunition. With iron sights. In the wind. At night. While snowing and cold. At ranges exceeding a mile. With a Mosin-Nagant.

And it was uphill. Both ways...

Standing on one leg, in a hammock...

With one hand tied behind my back...

 

[chriske]

Dumb ? How's this :
Although I mostly shoot .38 spl & 9mm, every so often I treat myself to BigBore time (i.e. .44 & .45).
On one such occasion, shooting my 4 5/8" Ruger Blackhawk, something weird happened :
I knew the .45 LC ammo I handloaded was mild, but these felt even lighter than .38 wadcutters from a 6" N-frame S&W. Besides, I wasn't able to hit ANYthing with them. Really, not a THING.
Now I sometimes have "a bad shooting day" when I really have to concentrate & try hard & pay attention & do my very best etc... to
achieve anything worth mentioning (do you, incidentally ?).
Was this one of them? So I tried & tried ...pop! pop! pop!... Nothing doing.
Finally i decided to pack it all up & gathered my brass...
.44 Special brass.
Bloated, blackened .44 spl cases out of a .45 LC Ruger cylinder.
After the initial shock of surprise & after having checked if I hadn't damaged anything (I hadn't), I felt very stupid indeed & even a little ashamed.
Anyway : I now know you CAN shoot .44's out of a .45.
If you're dumb enough.

 

[HiWayMan]

F....front
O....opposite
R.....rear
S.....same

That little acronym has saved my butt and budget many times. It is written in the lid of my shooting box as well......now.

 

[Matt-J2]

Soon as I find me a sticker, I'm putting that on my ammo boxes. I'm much too poor to waste any more ammo like that!

 

[gearbox]

A few years ago I decided I'd try my hand at IDPA. The first time I was holstered up and then realized I have left ALL my magazines at home. The second time I forgot the keys to unlock my guns :banghead:

45 minutes -in each direction- of time AND gas wasted!