Not shooting accurately

[Geezer with an AR]

Took my M&P 2.0 to range for the first time, I was all over the target from the first shot, shooting at 7 yds the first shot barely clipped the left side of the target, judging from the reports i've read on the 2.0 and it's accuracy it's definitely not the pistol.Pretty obvious I need lessons.Ckd at the range where I shoot and they charge $75 per hour.Is this in line with what you guys have seen or paid,suggestions?Thanks.

 

[Hunter8282]

Yes. A few years back I paid $70 for an hour with one of the instructors at our LGS to watch me shoot and give pointers to improve fundamentals, accuracy, speed, etc.

 

[Geezer with an AR]

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how much did it improve your accuracy

 

[bigggbbruce]

I'd spend $75 on more ammo first and give it some more range time.

 

[OKFC05]

Find an NRA instructor and take Basic Pistol. NRA Explore | Firearm Training

MUCH cheaper and just right for learning the basics.

 

[CB3]

Reinforcing bad habits through continuing to shoot without someone pointing out flaws is expensive, frustrating and usually unproductive.

If the $75 seems too steep, hang out at the range and observe other shooters. Find the best one. Ask him or her to give you some pointers in exchange for a couple of boxes of ammo, when he has time.

There are usually three or four tips that can significantly improve your accuracy. After that, dry fire practice at home. When you can point into the target with aligned sights and fire without disturbing your front sight aligned on target, go to the range to check your new skills. Shouldn't take much ammo.

If you are satisfied, keep dry firing at home to ingrain good habits, checking your progress at the range. Don't waste ammo if you are not satisfied with your results.

 

[Pisgah]

Save your money for a bit and do some dedicated dry-fire practice. Gun unloaded, pick a small target, line up your sights, then stroke the trigger through smoothly and quickly, paying particular attention to where the front sight goes. Keep it up, always watching the front sight and bit-by-bit training your grip and trigger technique to eliminate the sight movement. Next time you go to live fire, you will be amazed.

 

[Raisin]

Look for handgun shooting on YouTube. There are many, many videos on how to shoot.

 

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

$75 an hour is probably not unreasonable for really competent instruction, except that there are so many other ways you can get it for less, including much less. Gil Hebard's Pistol Shooter's Treasury, which used to be included in his free catalog gratis, is probably the best collection of printed material. There are others. Sight picture. Trigger control. Recognizing a flinch (dummies?). Recognizing that a flinch is usually a reaction to an event that is not actually an adverse event (if it is, stop doing it).

Get the book, and read up on it. If that doesn't work, figure out which local will help you for free. If you can't find one, pay the $75/hr, which will be worth it if it works (no guarantees here, either).

 

[Raisin]

Keep in mind that now all shooters were meant to be experts. Some are naturals and some never will be. Just ask any military sniper. Practice makes perfect is a lie. PERFECT practice makes perfect.

 

[kenny brooks]

10 all day at range here..

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[markmiela]

Get some snap caps and put a dime on the front sight. Practice pulling the trigger till the dime doesn't fall off. Helped me with trigger control.


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[CGhelofxr]

I had the same thing happen when I took my 2.0 compact out the first, second trip I changed the grip insert and my groupings improved. Try that and have someone who you trust watch you, may just need a little tweeking.

 

[BE Mike]

I've taught a lot of people how to shoot over the years. Most were good listeners and could translate what they heard to being able to do it. Good shooting boils down to two basic functions. Sight alignment and manipulating the trigger without disturbing the sight alignment. If you do it right, you'll do both at the same time. It is simple, but very difficult. Having someone to coach you can save you a lot of grief, so yes I think paying someone to teach you is worthwhile, if the person doing the coaching (instructing) is competent. The problem of trying to fly solo is that you may not have a clue as to what you are supposed to do and/or you can pick up bad habits that take a long time for you to pick up on, where a good instructor can spot them sooner. Once bad habits get ingrained, it is hard to break them and learn the proper technique instead of building on good fundamentals at the outset.

 

[stansdds]

I learned accurate handgun shooting by dry firing. Make sure the pistol is unloaded, point it at a target and concentrate on the front sight. Practice until the front sight no longer dips as you press the trigger. Yes, press, not pull, the trigger.

 

[CBStuard]

$65/hr here so yours is not out of line. I'd go for it.

 

[Hunter8282]

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how much did it improve your accuracy

I found it to be money well spent.

 

[Ribwizzard]

Tape one of those cheap laser pointers to your handgun and then do the dry fire exercises mentioned above. The laser will help show you exactly what is happening when you pull the trigger. This is a good exercise, as the more centered you can keep the laser, the more centered your shots will be.

 

[BE Mike]

I learned accurate handgun shooting by dry firing. Make sure the pistol is unloaded, point it at a target and concentrate on the front sight. Practice until the front sight no longer dips as you press the trigger. Yes, press, not pull, the trigger.

Of course, ultimately one has to shoot live ammo to learn not to anticipate recoil and follow through. Anticipating recoil will ruin good sight alignment and trigger control. Having said that, dry fire is a good technique to have as a part of an entire training program.

 

[Rastoff]

Good shooting boils down to two basic functions. Sight alignment and manipulating the trigger without disturbing the sight alignment.

This is what it's really all about. It's also harder than a lot of people think.

There are 6 fundamentals of shooting:

1. Stance
2. Grip
3. Sight Alignment
4. Sight Picture
5. Trigger Control
6. Follow Through

Of these the most overlooked and misunderstood is Follow Through. That may be a topic for another thread though.

In the end, operating the trigger without disturbing the sights is really all that matters.