TargetTalk

There are hundreds of good books on rifle shooting, maybe more, but please humour me and tell me which is the one that will give a beginner the most and the best.

Must be in print and available, no Yur'Yev.

Maybe the "Ways of the Rifle, by Buhlman, Reinkemeyer & Eckhardt" ?

Thank you.

Greetings-

In my opinion books are for instructors seeking to improve their instructing skills. Shooters learn from shooting. I have been instructing high power rifle since 1995. Not one shooter, in that time, cared one bit about what was written in a book sitting in the BEQ or laying on their rack. They simply wanted to learn what works, and how to make it happen.

Our next highpower class is in late August, and there will be no books written by "experts." However, there will be repetitive classroom training, repetitive skill development, and 1000's of rounds fired by each shooter, all aimed at developing the innate skill needed of a rifleman.

Perhaps, not, the answer you were looking for. A valid response, none-the-less.

Kind regards,
m1963

Very insightful, thank you.

You just reminded me of my soccer coaching times when parents of high schoolers wanted me to recommend a book or a video. The answer was always to allow for more free practice and informal game time.

http://www.crowood.com/details.asp?isbn ... ical-Guide

I have not referenced any other books since getting this one.Includes exercises that teach the shooter what happens and why.

I would disagree slightly.

I found the Ways of the Rifle, to be really helpful during the phase of, after being set up with a rifle and to not knowing why can't hit the bull every time despite thinking you are doing the same thing every time.

I didn't have very much access to coaches, so having something to consult after each session was really help. But this was coupled with a lot of shooting as well.

There isn't much point in firing 1000 rounds if you are lying in a poor position.

GeraldC wrote:http://www.crowood.com/details.asp?isbn ... ical-Guide

I have not referenced any other books since getting this one.Includes exercises that teach the shooter what happens and why.

I have that, and it's largely useful. However I disagree very strongly with two specific recommendations:

1 fire on a half breath? Why, I know some do, but the conventional exhale-fire is more common for a reason. This advice isn't presented with any discussion of other ways, and goes against the idea of NPA.

2 Set the butt length (Prone) equal to the inside of the fore-arm. It's not the 1950s, why set the butt so long, you risk unbalancing the rifle? Smallbores have a fairly short bolt throw, so why have more weight in front of your hand than you need?

The exercises for new shooters are handy though.

GeraldC wrote:http://www.crowood.com/details.asp?isbn ... ical-Guide

I have not referenced any other books since getting this one.Includes exercises that teach the shooter what happens and why.

I was looking at this book and I got the impression, erroneously maybe, that it addresses primarily the prone position.

Amati wrote: I was looking at this book and I got the impression, erroneously maybe, that it addresses primarily the prone position.

You're not wrong. It's written principally for British NSRA shooting, although applicable to 50m ISSF in parts.

[quote="Rhysatkins"]
There isn't much point in firing 1000 rounds if you are lying in a poor position.[/quote]

You are quite right, about pure target shooting.

We are training combat riflemen, in semi-auto, full auto, and long distance fire. As the rifleman cannot control the postion they will be shooting from, they must learn accuracy and speed, often from the most uncomfortable postions imaginable. This is not learned from a book. However, it does translate to the target shooting environment.

Kind regards,
m1963

First of all, I concur with Tim S regarding Fenning's Book. I have the same reservations and a couple of others, but having said that it is quite easily assimilable and most beginners are able to get value from it.

When you start to look at the more heavyweight offerings then I prefer Buhlman & Reinkemeier's "Air Rifle Training and Competition" if you could only choose one. It followed "Ways of the Rifle" and I personally feel that the presentation is better. I feel that it covers technique more thoroughly and that at the end of the day is what matters.

However if I was to choose a book that all shooters should use as a starting point then it has to be this one:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Training-Shoot ... 1841263052

It's clearly laid out and and covers all the essential points. I firmly believe that at least 90% of club shooters; regardless of experience; would benefit from referring to it.

Rutty

I've learned to read, study and network with other coaches and shooters. As coaches, we owe it to our team to continuously improve our craft. I love to read, so I read tons of stuff about shooting. Some details may work. Some methods might not. Still, I have a great amount of information to reference when something I'm doing isn't getting expected results.

Rutty wrote: However if I was to choose a book that all shooters should use as a starting point then it has to be this one:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Training-Shoot ... 1841263052

Rutty

Thank you Rutty. Just ordered it and thanks to Global Delivery it will be delivered to Florida.

Read a book?

Hell, you're talking about the products of our educational system.

Not much hope there.

MEIN KAMPF
by: Adolf Hitler

That's the one book I'd recommend. One of many reasons why I shoot a gun EVERY SINGLE DAY.

https://www.amazon.com/Position-Rifle-S ... ill+pullum

Position Rifle Shooting by Bill Pullum and Frank Hanenkrat

The single greatest book about shooting ever written and I have read all I could find. I have read everything I could find on the subject of competition shooting and sports psychology; dozens of books and thousands of pages. Those who believe that shooting specifically and international rifle shooting (and this is an international shooting forum) is perfected by doing nothing more than shooting are way off base. If you blow 1,000 rounds down range and it is an 8 ring group, what have your learned? You have become the world's leading expert on how to shoot 8's. The group will not decrease in size on its own. You have to know how to make it smaller, and that is done not by more bad practice but by learning how to do it right, analyzing your performance, and taking that piece of information to the range.

Some sports training, like running perhaps are heavily physically intensive. International rifle shooting, however, is the ultimate in mind control sports. If you have not trained your mind first to be a champion it is impossible to train your body to win. I have been in and around international rifle for decades and known many champions and I don't think a single one would say that they learned to win by slinging lead down range by the ton.

gwsb wrote:https://www.amazon.com/Position-Rifle-S ... ill+pullum

Position Rifle Shooting by Bill Pullum and Frank Hanenkrat

The single greatest book about shooting ever written and I have read all I could find. I have read everything I could find on the subject of competition shooting and sports psychology; dozens of books and thousands of pages. Those who believe that shooting specifically and international rifle shooting (and this is an international shooting forum) is perfected by doing nothing more than shooting are way off base. If you blow 1,000 rounds down range and it is an 8 ring group, what have your learned? You have become the world's leading expert on how to shoot 8's. The group will not decrease in size on its own. You have to know how to make it smaller, and that is done not by more bad practice but by learning how to do it right, analyzing your performance, and taking that piece of information to the range.

Some sports training, like running perhaps are heavily physically intensive. International rifle shooting, however, is the ultimate in mind control sports. If you have not trained your mind first to be a champion it is impossible to train your body to win. I have been in and around international rifle for decades and known many champions and I don't think a single one would say that they learned to win by slinging lead down range by the ton.

I have to agree with this man in his choice of books and his reason for his choice of books.

Having been awarded a High-Master Card,
with the help of Pullum & Hannacrat, I can assure that I did things the hard way before I stumbled across this book.

And it is true, you can be an expert in 8s if you don't listen to somebody, who is at the top and do what they said from the pages of a written book from a qualified master.

Everybody wants a shortcut. There are no shortcuts.

And if you're laying in a ditch, Peeking around the tree, Peering over Rock......

The basics still apply and if you don't have a good foundation in the basics, this "running gun" mentality will not get you anything but a lot of rounds wasted down range.

But this is America. our ammunition comes in double semi tractor trailer loads.
(sarcasm)
:- )

M->

Another book is Nancy Tomkins Prone & Long Range Rifle Shooting.

bugman1955 wrote:Another book is Nancy Tomkins Prone & Long Range Rifle Shooting.

+1

M->

Amati I will trade you my Anschutz free rifle for one of your original violins.