Alright y’all, idk what’s going on but it’s not my year for birds. I’m struggling to hit ducks and doves. Last year I was flat killing em and over the summer I was fine on the skeet range. But for some reason once hunting season showed up I’ve lost it. I don’t think I’ve pulled the trigger on a bird that was more than 35 yards away, I know the kinda gap I need to see, and neither sustained lead or swing through seem to help. Any ideas? Maybe it’s all mental at this point? Maybe I just needed to vent about missing ducks?
Unless you shoot one-eyed, feel it rather than trying to see it. The more you try to see it, the more the gun slows at the trigger pull.
In addition, if you shoot more than a little, you may want to cut your leads back. Those who shoot little most often miss behind. Those who shoot a lot, have more of a tendency to miss in front.
You may have killed the six Quail because you were running on point and shoot subconscious instinct. Ducks coming into range give you a little more time to overthink what you think you should do. If you want to try something different, look away when the Ducks are coming into range. When you think it is time, look up, pick one out and let you natural eye hand coordination take over. Much the same as those Quail.
Addition: Keep your cheek off the stock until you a ready to shoot, again the same as on the Quail. VernAk already mentioned this. The longer you ride the target, the more the barrel gets in the way, which causes us to aim more than we should. Pick out a strong visual spot on the bird, like the head, and cut it loose.
