Pulling shots high and right is killing my scores!

[stlshooter]

I've just recently been getting serious about shooting air pistol again and shoot in the 520s-530s, which I am satisfied with for now. However, I pull shots high and to the right, usually into the 7 or 6 ring. I am a right handed shooter so is this simply trigger squeeze? It's turning my 93s into 87s!

Thanks,
HB

[2650 Plus]

Your problem may not really be a jerk on the trigger. You don't mention where you are centering your hold so I am going to guess that it is the six o'clock or center hold. Next, I would guess that you are trying to get the pistol to fire when the hold is perfect. Try dryfiring on a blank target backing with no target to distract you from a steadily increasing pressure on the trigger and force yourself to intensify your attention on perfecting sight allignment until well after the pistol fires. I am willing to bet that the high right error patern will disapear and you will shoot a very round group that is smaller than you are shooting now. Good Shooting Bill Horton

[NCST8]

If your NPOA is good, the blank target drill will help you.

If the blank target drill does give you a round group, move to a low sub-six hold.

[not Bob]

If your trigger can be moved forward try that. It will bring your finger into your pistol. Follow Bills advice putting together #1 trigger pull #2 sight alinement #3 follow thru. DONT FORGET #3. Put alittle dot on the wall and go through your entire shot process (loading , target changing, breathing, nose picking , what ever you do during a match) Do this for as long as you can handle it. I remember my first time I did it for 48 minutes. My coach told me an hour , but when I finished he laugh and said " I didnt expect you to last ahalf hour". When you put together the whole package not only will your bad shots disapper but your entire match will get better. If this works please post your results. P.S. you could see results in less than a week. NB.

[deadeyedick]

Also, if your grip tension increases around the time of shot release it can cause "heeling" where the fleshy heel of the palm places more pressure on the lower grip/palm shelf, and there is an up/right POI as a result.
Just one more of the many possibilities.

[RobStubbs]

I had a tendancy to do this, and in my case it was bad triggering. You should however be able to work out the cause by watching where the sights go. Train keeping the sights in the target area and when the shot breaks make sure your follow through is at least a couple of seconds and note where the sights point.

As others suggested, dry firing training and firing at a totally blank card should also help.

Rob.

[Gwhite]

I have a similar problem, but it's caused by muscle twitches & spasms in the large muscle on the upper right of my forearm, just in front of the elbow. I've been doing exercises to strengthen it, and that seems to be helping. It varies from an oscillation back & forth between the center and the 6/7 ring, to occasional twitches that can completely miss the scoring rings. Always at ~ 1:00. The longer I hold, the worse it gets.

Between strengthening the arm and trying to accelerate my trigger squeeze, my scores are slowly creeping back up to where they once were. I've switched from a Benelli MP90S to a Pardini SP New, and the weight distribution & grip angle of the Pardini really seemed to aggravate the problem. I've tweaked the pistol a good bit, and now I'm working on the rest of the equation.

[orionshooter]

As Rob has pointed out, you must watch the front/rear sight alignment right through the shot and well into follow thru.

If you do this faithfully, you will know exactly where your sights were and what your sights were doing when you fire those flyers. Knowing when your sights became unaligned is the key to knowing the cause.

My money is on the lack of smooth triggering,

Good luck

[stlshooter]

Thanks for all the quick replies. I didn't get a chance to shoot today, but I'll do some dry firing leading up to my match on sunday and post the results here. Sounds like it could be a combination of things but trigger and follow through seem likely.

Thanks
HB

[joker]

I have a similar problem, but it's caused by muscle twitches & spasms in the large muscle on the upper right of my forearm, just in front of the elbow. I've been doing exercises to strengthen it, and that seems to be helping. It varies from an oscillation back & forth between the center and the 6/7 ring, to occasional twitches that can completely miss the scoring rings. Always at ~ 1:00. The longer I hold, the worse it gets.

Between strengthening the arm and trying to accelerate my trigger squeeze, my scores are slowly creeping back up to where they once were. I've switched from a Benelli MP90S to a Pardini SP New, and the weight distribution & grip angle of the Pardini really seemed to aggravate the problem. I've tweaked the pistol a good bit, and now I'm working on the rest of the equation.

This is exactly what I experience - I call them 'twitchers'. I am 69 years of age and also have epycondilitis in the right arm - I put the twitchers down to my age - could I be wrong about this (age)?

[Gwhite]

I'm 58, but have been slowly less & less physically active due to job demands. I'm cutting back to working 4 days a week, and trying hard to get more exercise. The thing that really seems to work that muscle is a "PowerBall". Weight lifting & lots of dry firing and air pistol are good too.

It's really aggravating, because I'll regularly shoot targets with everything in the 9 or 10 ring, except for one twitch out at 1:00 in the 6 ring (or worse). I've learned in slow fire when to put the pistol down, and my scores are about where they once were, although it's a lot more work than it once was. The problem is in sustained fire. I'll either flip one out, or the oscillation will start and I rush my trigger squeeze and start jerking shots down at 7:00.

The good news is that I think it's a battle that can be won. I've already noticed less wobble, fewer twitches, and less soreness in that muscle at the end of a match. However, it certainly isn't going to happen overnight.

[joker]

I have been trying a Powerball for a few weeks - problem is that it does not help my 'tennis elbow' epycondilitis. Also use a spring Grip Master. The thing to learn is to lower the pistol and start the shot again when you start to dither etc etc.

I pay £5 for each of the silver pellets I fire - if they don't get into the 9's or better then they are lost forever - If I get them in I can reuse them.

That is the story I have told myself ;0|

IanR

[stlshooter]

Well I shot my match today... 535! I only had one shot high and right, and it was a 5. Focusing on the font sight helped me the most, probably because it distracted me from twitching. All I need to do now is bring those 7's in and i'll be happy.

Thanks for the insight,
HB

[joker]

Well I shot my match today... 535! I only had one shot high and right, and it was a 5. Focusing on the font sight helped me the most, probably because it distracted me from twitching. All I need to do now is bring those 7's in and i'll be happy.

Thanks for the insight,
HB

It's a great buzz when you start to keep them in the black, then 8 then 9. Plenty of dry fire practice to enable trigger release with the foresight staying rock steady in the picture will tighten your groups. Once these become reasonably consistent then move the sights to centre the group - takes a LOT of practice.

[Spencer]

I've just recently been getting serious about shooting air pistol again and shoot in the 520s-530s, which I am satisfied with for now. However, I pull shots high and to the right, usually into the 7 or 6 ring. I am a right handed shooter so is this simply trigger squeeze? It's turning my 93s into 87s!

Thanks,
HB

What type (make/model) of pistol?

[stlshooter]

It's a IZH-46. Not much done to the grips or anything. Shooting RWS Miesterkruglens (spelling lol?)


HB

[Manny]

I'm new here guys so I'm not sure how much weight my words carry but my wife - of all ppl - found this neat little app and its helped me out a lot. Mostly with my weak hand shooting.

Dry Fire Trainer
http://www.youtube.com/user/DryFireTrainer

[Spencer]

It's a IZH-46. Not much done to the grips or anything. Shooting RWS Miesterkruglens (spelling lol?)


HB

reason for asking - if you are accustomed to the more upright grip angle ( most USA 'target' pistols mimic the 1911 angle) then the grip angle of the IZH-46 might be strange at first, and giving the high shots - solution, get used to the Izzy

[peterz]

I'm pretty new to serious target shooting; still trying to break 480/600 and using an old FWB C20 CO2 pistol. I've two related questions:

1) Pellets and gas are pretty cheap. Why is dry firing considered important to do instead of live firing, indeed as a replacement for some live firing?

2) The C-20's "dry firing" switch gives the trigger a somewhat different feel than it has when firing live shots. Should I ignore the difference and use the switch, or can I safely (for the pistol) try unscrewing the CO2 tank a bit and firing with the live/dry firing switch set to "live"? Or as a compromise just expend gas but with no pellet?

It always seemed to me that the full sequence with a bang and a bit of recoil was better training than just a click, but I'm perfectly ready to be convinced by those of you who shoot an order of magnitude better than I.

Thanks,

pete zimmerman

[RobStubbs]

Pete,
Dry firing is an addition to live firing. In dry firing you really learn to feel the trigger and really watch the sights. Dry fire against a blank wall (white or light coloured). It shows you if you are making clean trigger releases and that you are not disturbing the sights. You can also add in an aiming mark for some additional exercises, but I prefer a blank wall most of the time.

Rob.