Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa Developing Marksmanship Skills

Gents, may I be honest here? I have shot rifles for 45 years, but I don't even know if I'm using the best "field" technique.
Would you more accomplished riflemen provide input or tips on how to properly and correctly shoot a rifle from air gun on up so that others learning this craft have a place to go? In this generation, not everyone getting into hunting has a dad, uncle or grandfather who introduced him/her to the ways of the nimrod. Perhaps this could become a "sticky," if our most revered moderator thinks it is appropriate.

We have some well-known authors amongst us and some very experienced, proficient hunters who might provide some great guidance to the uninitiated.

I'm asking this in this forum as shooting skills for Africa may be a little different than shooting deer or elk in the west where you might have days to squeeze the trigger!

Personally I mount a low power scope, take the sling off the rifle and practice offhand...lots of it. Then, when you get into the field and grab the nearest anything for any kind of rest...it seems luxurious after having done it the hard way for so long...

Practice until you can do this! I don't know if you can practice nerves of steel!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR5XET14RtA

Try this link

Kinda expensive there. To prepare for a dangerous game hunt, the training might be worth $4k for four days, but I think training applicable to most other hunting scenarios can be found for less.

I also had to laugh at the photo of the javelina they have in their trophy fee brochure (again pricy on their fees). If you look closely, you might see milk still on the mouth of that javelina.

PNW,

I am an NRA certified marksmanship instructor. Have shot some competitively. Since you live sorta close by, why don't we hit the range together once or twice, might be able to get Jim Hackewicz out for a meal or something all together as he is also out this way and I will give you as much help as I can including proper use of stand up and shorter sitting position shooting sticks. No charge, just for fun and to help out a guy who is headed to Africa. Let me know if this idea appeals to you at all. Others here are better shots than me I am sure, but I know how to teach and instruct properly, which is different than just being proficient ones self by some mechanism that may or may not be repeatable or easily taught. MARK

All day to pull the trigger in "the west?" Maybe on "The Best of the West" TV show when they need time for the rock music to reach a crescendo before the shot Where I hunt in "the west" you have to shoot fast either from your hind legs or from a solid, improvised rest. From what I've read about Africa, hunting Roosevelt Elk in the Coast Range of Oregon is alot like hunting Sitatunga or Bongo--if you see, you shoot and if you miss or wound you're in for a very long clean-up job.

The most underrated markmanship skill I see among hunters is decisiveness. Find the sight picture and pull the trigger; break the shot and call it, keep both eyes open and work the bolt while keeping the rifle at the shoulder.

Too true. That and looking at a game animal through binoculars when one should be up on the sticks looking through the riflescope!

RE read the OP's first request so I will give a tip or pointer or two here. 1) Get as close to the ground as the terrain and conditions allow. 2) The triangle is your friend. Make traingles using your body and other implements / shooting aids such as your rifle, sling etc. as a part of your technique. 3) Use a rest of some kind if at ALL possible. This can be standing or sitting shooting sticks, a large rock, a tree. What you use is dependant upon the situation. I took a large Kudu on my last trip at 350 measured yards by ustilzing a large tree limb that hung out nearly level with the ground for a long ways that happened to be armpit high for me. Perrrrrffffeecccctttt. In my video you will see the use of shooting sticks and large rock outcroppings as well as my going to one knee to take a Bull Elephant. 4) And this is likely the most important.... Get away form the damned bench once the rifle has been sighted in. Shoot from sitting, kneeling, standing with and without sticks and from improvised field positions. One of the best ways to do this is load some light recoiling ammo for your DGR and shoot varmints with it. I will attest to the effectiveess of a 416Rigby on ground squirrels!

Kind of what I thought.

Thanks for your input and redefining hunting in the west. At the time I wrote it, I was thinking of shooting antelope in Wyoming at 280 yds or Elk across canyons with your mega-magnum and a 10x scope. My bad! In Oregon, our shots can happen in split seconds to be sure! Thanks again...

Mark,
That is a very nice offer and perhaps it could work out some time. I'm about 5-6 hours away though, so it might be a trick working it out. BTW, I used to fly in and out of Walla Walla every week, hundreds of times over the years. I loved the brownies at the Back East Deli, or whatever it was called!

JBM ~ Get you a .22 rifle with a scope and practice free hand @ 50yds. This will get your timing down between your cross hairs and your trigger finger. Do this until your sick of it. As Ingwe said when you get in the field and have sticks or a tree you will be rock steady.

rej

That's exactly why I bought a 22 Hornet along with my 9.3x62, both CZ rifles.
Practice, practice, practice! As long as it's the correct practice!

Shoot aq bunch of rodents with BOTH of them.

Only perfect practice makes perfect. That being said, lots of dry fire time, and lots of firing time. Lots of good advice here. Grab as much of a rest as you can... in a hurry on downhill shot last fall, the sling would not be right as set... I tossed my wife down in front of me and rolled her on her hips... resting over a hip it made for about a 5 second later perfect shot around 300 yards or just over. Improvise.

Beyond that know a few other things..... You can be QUICK on the trigger and still smooth.. just don't yank her. Take the first good shot that comes across but realize that it often takes a few seconds for that shot to get good.
Consider the distance... up close it doesn't take much, farther out it does.
Don't wait for movement to stop, only realize once movement is small enough that any break in that movement is lethal, activate the trigger.

I always think back to a seminar held by AMU... offhand shooting... By a top shooter. He said it was simple, pick up the gun, move teh sights to the center of the target, break the shot without moving the sights off target. And while its much more complicated on one hand, on the other its that simple.

Also realize that buck fever is not...its actually mental target panic... the fact you are afraid you can't hit what you are about to shoot at. Very simple. Calm down, do what you have to, get excited later...

Best of luck! Couple of cases of 22 ammo(5000 round cases not 500 round bricks) later and you'll be ahead of the game!

I have a drill I used to do for hunting target practice. At the 100 yard range, using an 8" pie plate as a target, load the rifle and leave the chamber empty, safety on, rifle on the sandbags. Drop and do 25 pushups. Get up, chamber a round, remove the safety and fire three shots working the bolt from the shoulder each time and maintaining your sight picture. If you can get all three on the pie plate you'll do just fine.

Accurate shooting at hunting ranges (100-200 yards) is not that hard, technically speaking. What makes it hard in the field is the fact that you might be hot, tired, winded, nervous, scared and looking at an animal you've never seen before. Reproducing that adrenaline dump is very hard to do; but with the pushup drill it is possible to simulate elevated heart rate and lack of breath. Increase to 50 pushups if you're in great shape

There is some outstanding, practical advice being posted. I really like your real-world approach gents. Keep it coming!

Use reactive targets as part of your practise. Gongs, tins etc. Not only do you know instantly if you are on target but you get a reward for getting it right.

My advice is "First we get good, and THEN we get faster."

Never shoot faster than you can shoot accurately. Practice not only hitting, but practice NOT MISSING. A fast miss does no good.

I always prove the rifle and the ammo and myself on paper first before going to a reactive target -- ALWAYS! Learn the art of a s-m-o-o-t-h trigger s-q-u-e-e-z-e and then work on improving your speed. I'm not big into positive thinking, but start thinking that IF the scope in on target, and the trigger is squeezed properly, and if the zero is on, you WILL hit the target. Shoot until you PROVE to yourself that you can and will hit what you shoot at, then go to a reactice target device. Use a steel plate that opproximates the kill zone on the animal you will be hunting -- paint it between strings so you know where you are hitting. And shoot at reasonable ranges that you can hit the target at before you move out to a further target.

Shooting is a thinking game. Think your way through every shot -- check yourself on the fundamentals each time. That's what training is -- also shoot from field positions that you expect to encounter.

Most of all == ENJOY getting better!