TargetTalk

While i'm in prone position my neck starts to hurt and get tense. Would moving handstop help to get my head down further and reduce fatigue and tension on my neck? Thanks for any help!

It might, but then it might not. Sorry to be so ambivalent, but diagnosing positional issues is tough unseen.

If you currently find the sightline is too high, and feel you are straining your neck to hook your cheek over the stock, then yes lowering your position (handstop to muzzle + longer sling) may work. If you are shooting to ISSF or NSRA rules, remember that yout forearm must be at least 30° from horizontal; US NRA may do to. If you have a hook butt that fits the shoulder well, the height of that can also affect neck tension. If it's too high/low your head won't reach the rifle comfortably.

However, raising your position (handstop towards trigger + shorter sling) might help, if your position was too low, and your head was tilted too far back to aim.

Regardless of position/rifle height, the cheekpiece must fully support your head, with no effort from your neck. This normally means adjusting the height to suit you; in my experience the cheekpiece is usually a little low. Most German rifles have featured an adjustable cheekpiece as standard since the '70s or' 80s, but older rifles need to be built up with tape/epoxy (or shaved down). I find that if you have to push down actively to aim, rather than just letting your head press under it's own weight, the cheekpiece is too high. Laterally, I think the cheekpiece should be snug, with enough contact for consistent stress-free alignment, but not pushing against the cheekpiece. The shape of the edge is also important; most new rifles have a fairly square edge, with a slight radius, to hook under the cheekbone.

It won't hurt to know your current rifle, and an idea of your built (tall/short) and position (low/high). Do you currently have any raisers under the sights? Adding or removing these can help fine tune head position; for older US rifles, read higher/lower mounting blocks/brackets. Butt length too plays a part, as does eye relief. Are you straining to get near the sights, or hunching back? Is the sling tension good; too much tension can force the right shoulder back, tensing the muscles.

A last thought is to check that your jacket collar isn't biting into your neck. Stiff double canvas jackets made for 3-P shooting often ride up high. If the neck is canvas too, not soft leather, it can bite. This is often an issue with cheaper ready made jackets.

Is it because you can’t get your head alingned without tilting your head far enough to get a good sight alignment?

Chad

Tim. You mention to the OP about jacket "issues". One "thing" I have found is that my CMP/NRA XTC jacket is rather...."bulky" in the area of the top of the shoulder.

Thus....when in the prone position the "bulkiness" of the jacket causes the rifle to "push away" from me. This causes me to attempt to pull the buttstop in closer to me OR "roll" my head/eye over the cheek contact surface of the stock (no adjustable cheekpiece....yet).

My thought is to ditch the "bulky" CMP/NRA XTC jacket and use a lighter weight/thinner material jacket.

Your thoughts?

Pm sent to avoid thread drift.