keeping the sights aligned?

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keeping the sights aligned?

Post by Guest_1 »

once we raise the pistol...

and lower it to the target...

finger start to pull the trigger before entering aiming area...

eye focus on sight alightment...and the shot is ready to go anytime...

...........but what happen if the sight is not perfectly aligned....

1) do you try to fix it? or you bench the gun????
2) If this happen a lot...I constantly have sight alignment with right gap between front/rear sight is smaller than left gap...

do I have to blame the grip? If I have a proper gripping technique...(confirmed by coaches)
greblleM
Posts: 14
Joined: Sat Nov 25, 2006 10:00 am
Location: Stockholm, Sweden

Post by greblleM »

If I can't fix it within a couple of seconds I will re-take it all. No point in having your concentration on fixing a problem rather than making a hole in that sweet little spot that gives you ten more points in the results list.
Guest

Post by Guest »

If you have started your trigger pull and your sights come out of alignment, I would NOT try to fix it. Put the gun down and start over.

One of the most important things to accomplish is smooth and continous movement of the trigger.

Applying trigger pressure after stopping this process will most often result in a bad shot.
Ed Hall

Post by Ed Hall »

In my NSHO you should never actually fix anything during the shot process. You should either allow it to oscillate around perfect alignment or abort and start over. If you consciously "fix" anything, it will throw off your subconscious activity and often results in the shot happening during the fix instead of after the fix. Anything that interrupts the smooth unfolding is contrary to consistency.

Now, to the alignment issue. If your grip is correct, the sights will be (and stay) aligned with the gun up in position. If, as you bring the trigger back, this alignment deteriorates, you are inducing the error with your trigger operation. It may not be your trigger finger itself. It might be the other fingers or wrist becoming involved. If it is just the trigger finger, a slight change in placement may correct the drift. My suggestion is to observe the gun from the top (instead of through the sights) while dry firing and doing some free trigger presses. While observing, shift your activity to be in line with what you want the operation to include - trigger manipulation with gun staying still. Also note that a changing head position while on target can cause the sights to close as you describe. Once you have a stable pistol through the trigger operation while observing from above, move to using the sights. With some study of what works you should be able to train yourself to perform the shot without any corrective action.

Take Care,
Ed Hall
http://www.airforceshooting.org/
http://www.starreloaders.com/edhall/
Steve Swartz

Post by Steve Swartz »

Fascinating question; but as usual, raises some additional questions/issues:

1) Your absolute top priority in shooting is Alignment. And Trigger release. O.K., I know that sounds like two things, but releasing the shot is burned deep into your subconscious so's that you will always have perfect trigger control without ever thinking- or being aware- of it. See below. So you ight as well concentrate exclusively on Alignment.

2) When you say "start to pull the trigger" what exactly do you mean? The reason why I ask is that from initiation to shot release the duration of your "trigger pull" should be smooth, continuous, and rapid (100ms or less). If you are aware of the time it takes for you to "pull" the trigger it is taking too long.

3) See above . . . you shouldn't really be consciously aware of initiating the shot release in the first place? And you shouldn't be starting/stopping the trigger "pull" during the shot?

3) Of course, if anything looks at all hinky during the shot process START OVER. if at any time you become consciously awre that your shot hasn't broken yet, START OVER. If you begin thinking about anything at all other than keeping those durned sights aligned, START OVER. When in doubt, START OVER.

Steve Swartz
Elmas
Posts: 236
Joined: Tue Jun 27, 2006 1:51 pm
Location: 11264 Egypt

Post by Elmas »

Steve Swartz wrote:
3) Of course, if anything looks at all hinky during the shot process START OVER. if at any time you become consciously awre that your shot hasn't broken yet, START OVER. If you begin thinking about anything at all other than keeping those durned sights aligned, START OVER. When in doubt, START OVER.

Steve Swartz

Nearly all my bad shots are because I tried to remedy faults 'on the fly' instead of STARTING OVER.


Elmas

.
Guest

Post by Guest »

Ed Hall wrote:In my NSHO you should never actually fix anything during the shot process. You should either allow it to oscillate around perfect alignment or abort and start over. If you consciously "fix" anything, it will throw off your subconscious activity and often results in the shot happening during the fix instead of after the fix. Anything that interrupts the smooth unfolding is contrary to consistency.
Ed, Thank you for the answer...now I know what to do if it happens "during" the trigger pulling process...but I also have problem "before" the trigger pull process...

as you can see from the picture below...

Image

this sight alignment above is what i'm referring to...

this is what I see while I'm lowering the gun to targe..."before" the trigger pull begin...

because I already "fixed" the muscle before I raise the pistol...then I have to adjust the sight alignment and "re-fix" the muscle...lower the gun to target...and begin trigger pull process...

during the trigger pull process...I have a feeling that the gun is pulled to the right...I think it's because the sight alignment I have after refixed the muscle it's not "natural"...

and I can notice from the shot group I've got...from 20 shots...approx. 17 are in 9 rings area and 3 of them are in 8...all of the 8s are located in the right side (right and low right).
Guest

Post by Guest »

Steve Swartz wrote:Fascinating question; but as usual, raises some additional questions/issues:

When you say "start to pull the trigger" what exactly do you mean? The reason why I ask is that from initiation to shot release the duration of your "trigger pull" should be smooth, continuous, and rapid (100ms or less). If you are aware of the time it takes for you to "pull" the trigger it is taking too long.
as a beginner (1 year/55x competition)...I admitted that my trigger pull process is not yet "subconsciously"...(yes, I'm working hard on it...).

I start to pull the trigger around white area above the black...positive/uninterruped......keep the sight aligned...lower to aiming area...settle in aiming area...and the shot break....

I hope to have subconsious trigger pull...in the very near future...as it seems to be the only way to go up to 56x/57x...
Guest

Post by Guest »

Anonymous wrote:because I already "fixed" the muscle before I raise the pistol...then I have to adjust the sight alignment and "re-fix" the muscle...lower the gun to target...and begin trigger pull process...
the word "fixed" I refer to should be replaced with "locked"
Ed Hall

Post by Ed Hall »

because I already "fixed" the muscle before I raise the pistol...then I have to adjust the sight alignment and "re-fix" the muscle...lower the gun to target...and begin trigger pull process...
Stop that! <smile>

Forgive me if I'm misreading this, but it sounds as though you are making an adjustment with your wrist and then locking into the new position during your settle. It is better to adjust your grip such that when you raise the gun, the sights are already in alignment. That's where your natural hold wants to be. If the alignment is as close as your illustration above, you might try moving your head slightly, but that should only be an experiment.

You might also want to take a look at two of Nygord's notes:

http://www.nygord-precision.com/grips.htm
http://www.nygord-precision.com/grips_b.html

They deal with grip adjustments to align the sights naturally.

Take Care,
Ed Hall
http://www.airforceshooting.org/
http://www.starreloaders.com/edhall/
John Ariani
Posts: 109
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2006 6:25 pm

Post by John Ariani »

I'm just a little confused.
Steve? You mention that the trigger pull is around 100ms.(milli-seconds?) Boy - have I been training wrong if that is so. But I may have mis-interpreted your sentence.
I've never timed it exactly, but once I start my initial squeeze of which I do my very best to keep it continuos and fluid, I'd say it's about 2 - 3 seconds before the shot breaks. My focus is on alighnment, that little voice in my head is telling me to stay intensley focus on the front sight and my trigger finger feels like it's moving with consistant pressure. It's far from sub concious though (I'm like others working hard on that too) becasue I know my mind is on the trigger action whispering to keep the trigger finger moving. I've been guilty on far too many occassions of stopping the squeeze to correct an alighnment drift - but the posts above have reconfirmed START OVER is the only way to go.
Could you explain the 100ms and the trigger squeeze scenario a little more in detail so I can re-grasp this concept. Has my trigger squeeze been far too long? Thanks.
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jackh
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Location: Oregon USA

Post by jackh »

I'm gonna have to part disagree with Steve here
""trigger pull" should be smooth, continuous, and rapid (100ms or less). If you are aware of the time it takes for you to "pull" the trigger it is taking too long. "

I've shot many an X with a long steady trigger pressure. When my hold is (was :) rock solid, my vision and eye discipline are on the sight and stay there throughout, and my head is clear, then I can take rather long steady trigger pull times.

These three things, hold, vision, and mind, feed off each other, giving you the opportunity to create sight alignment and trigger control.
Spencer
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back to the original question

Post by Spencer »

Particularly follow Ed Hall's references - particularly http://www.nygord-precision.com/grips_b.html

Even with "proper gripping technique...(confirmed by coaches)', if the grip sets up the pistol at the wrong angle (horizontal or vertical), get it fixed.

Spencer
Steve Swartz

Post by Steve Swartz »

I guess we have a fundamental disagreement on exactly what happens (or should happen) technique wise in delivering shots reliably and consistently.

My assumption/belief system system goes something like this:

Keep the sights aligned perfectly, accept whatever your settle for the day is going to be, and let your subconscious "flow" deliver the command to release the shot. If the trigger application is perfect (in terms of force imbalances being zero) and consistent (in terms of time lapse between subconscious command and break), your subconscious has the ability to send the command exactly the amount of ms ahead of time so that the pellet clears the muzzle when the muzzle is pointed at the right place. [alternately, your subconscious, recognizing the imminence of the break, can assist in providing the terminal guidance or "steer" of the muzzle on target at the proper moment; perhaps both happen; either way, the effect is the same and both understandings are operationally consistent]

If the above description does not form the core belief system upon which your training and technique development is built, then my comments will have no value for you.

Steve
John Ariani
Posts: 109
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2006 6:25 pm

Post by John Ariani »

Steve - your comments have great value. Thank you. As others have said before me - people like yourself and Ed Hall and many other regulars post some very pertinent and valueable information here. Judging from the lack of posts on this topic I'm concluding that most are doing it the right way - but I'm sure not. I've been practising the squeeze of the trigger so it doesn't upset the sight alighnment and trying (maybe that's a bad use of a word) to make the trigger action subconscious. But it is a 2 second out to four second squeeze (I have quite a bit of pre travel) and my results show that whilst 10's can be scored - there sure aren't enough of them and far too many eights. What a facinating sport this is. If it were javelin throwing I could study the run up, grip, arm action etc of the current champion. In this sport, watching a trigger finger is impossible (if not ludicrious) and to be able to see every word and picture someone else is thinking is purely left to the imagination. Back to the drawing board - the challenge exists and the passion is always there.
Ed Hall

Post by Ed Hall »

The neat thing about competitive shooting is that there are many paths to follow on the way to the top. I firmly believe in a basic set of fundamentals that allow for a convergence of the paths as we near the top. But I also believe that the convergence and the last steps entail leaving behind certain beliefs that hold us from reaching another level. We may be leaving them behind to let them be subconsciously applied or leaving them behind because they were nonproductive from the start, but the effect is to unclutter ourselves with things detrimental to our advancement. In order to climb higher you must let go of lower rungs.

All the above being said, let's look at a couple of specifics: The prime need for the trigger application is for the subconscious to either be in control of it, or for it to be perfectly consistent such that the subconscious can rely on it with no doubt as to its unfolding. The sight alignment needs to be controlled subconsciously or has to be consistent such that the subconscious can rely on its unfolding. My opinion of the "perfect shot" is to consciously decide to place a bullet into the center of a target and then watch as the subconscious does it.

Let's focus on the sights for a moment. We've heard that the sights should float over the aiming area and not be consciously corrected. (I hope it's been read - I've been saying it in many ways for quite some time.) But, let's examine why. First, we know we can't hold perfectly still. Why? Because to stand we must use muscle corrections which rely on input from our balance network which gets its input from sensors within our ears and visual information. All of this is taken care of, quite well, by our subconscious. Since we can't hold perfectly still, the next best thing we can achieve is to hold such that the natural corrections being carried out by our subconscious allow for the sighting system to float over the area we chose to "aim" at. Since the subconscious is controlling the fine muscle movements to "hold" center, it is best to let it continue performing that task. If we are constantly correcting it, the subconscious has to keep readjusting for our conscious meddling. If we leave it alone the subconscious can track it and add any subtle corrections as part of its natural performance.

Now that we have a consistent sight alignment floating over our chosen area of aim, we have reached what I often refer to as an environment for success. If the shot happens during this natural hold, and the trigger operation was pure enough not to disturb the hold, we are rewarded with a center hit. I also often suggest using the sighting system as a trigger purity indicator because if we have the floating image described above, with our consistent sight alignment, we should be able to see how pure our trigger manipulation is.

Now, let's discuss what I consider to be the most important fundamental - the trigger operation itself. There seems to be some confusion as to whether it should be .1 or 2 or 4 seconds, or maybe even longer. As claimed above, you can't tell by watching someone else, unless you have a trigger sensor connected to a gage you can watch. Just because you see someone holding for 6 seconds, doesn't mean they pulled on the trigger for that long. More importantly, if you are taking 6 seconds to actually pull a 550gr trigger, .050 inch, are you really increasing the pressure that smoothly? Or, are you making little abrupt increases interspersed with pauses to check what happened with the sights? If you add in the first stage and/or the free travel you can increase the distance and it might seem like all is smooth, but what are you really doing when you hit that second stage? Are you truly continuing smoothly, or are you stopping for just an instant to make sure things are "good to go" before you complete that last (and most important) part of the the trigger operation? If you stop for just that instant, you just negated any benefit from the smooth pull you had for that long first part. Another question I often ask is whether you can really apply an increasing pressure smoothly for that long? If you're really increasing the pressure steadily, won't it go off pretty quick? That's been my experience.

So, aside from all my (hopefully) thought-provoking questions, do I have any suggestions? Of course - that's why I'm typing this out. I suggest studying your hold and your trigger to learn all the intricacies of both, and more importantly allow your subconscious to study them. In addition to simply holding on a target without corrections to study the hold, perform some trigger action through dry fire to study its activity. But I'll add the thought that you should first learn what the trigger operation "feels" like without involving the sights. IOW, do some dry firing while not aiming. Be certain of holding the pistol in a safe direction and be certain it is unloaded and prepared for dry firing and then check both again before proceeding. Then see what happens if you perform a determined trigger operation from start to "click." How long did it take? I would be surprised if you took four whole seconds. With a few presses, you can find a surprisingly quick application that is still quite smooth. This is the natural trigger operation to work toward for all your shooting. This is the purest operation, free from outside influence such as sight picture evaluation. Will it be 100 milli-seconds? I don't know, but it will probably be one second or less after a few tries. Additionally, when you are sighting for your shot, refrain from conscious evaluation. Observe through the shot - evaluate after. This should lead to being able to allow the subconscious to peform uninhibited, but also allow for critique in helping your subconscious to know what you want.

I firmly believe that the more natural you can make everything, the easier it will be to fire tens. I've heard a lot of shooters relating how shooting tens always seemed easy after the fact. They fought for those wide ones...

I seem to have gotten long fingered again. I must go do some other things.

All comments are always welcome...

Take Care,
Ed Hall
http://www.airforceshooting.org/
http://www.starreloaders.com/edhall/
John Ariani
Posts: 109
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2006 6:25 pm

Post by John Ariani »

Thank you Ed. A very well worded and clear description of what I need to work on. After reading that - I'm pulling {not squeezing) the trigger and I'm doing it all consciously. My sub conscious hasn't played a part yet.
Back to dry firing and following some excellent advice. Very much appreciated.
Steve Swartz

Post by Steve Swartz »

Ed, how do you do it?

I barely have the energy anymore to say "please see thread XXX from 6 months ago" let alone re-hash the fundamentals like that every single time the question is re-asked . . .

YOU DA MAN!

Steve

(someone once suggested to me that I have a "Ctrl V" type macro assigned to a function key so that I could write down my best explanation for the questions that I really care about, store in a txt file, link to a function key, so that all I have to is select reply, hit F1 (or whatever) and send . . . whenever I get burned out [like lately] all I would have to do is Press The Magic Button! Hey, wait a minute- is that what YOU do?)
Ed Hall

Post by Ed Hall »

Shh... Steve,

Don't give away my secrets. It took me years to perfect my program for extracting pertinent info from previous sources and build semi-coherent sentences and paragraphs...

Actually, each of these long posts is labored over to an extreme (sometimes even days) as I study what I've written and try to make sure it says what I want it to. It allows me an opportunity to re-address the material myself, and is often helpful in my current training. Mostly, I try to refrain from posting something, while awaiting other answers, but after the other answers come, I usually still feel compelled to provide my opinion. Hopefully those opinions and suggestions are truly helpful to others and not just a sounding board for myself.

Take Care,
Ed Hall
http://www.airforceshooting.org/
http://www.starreloaders.com/edhall/
Fred

Post by Fred »

Ed Hall wrote:Hopefully those opinions and suggestions are truly helpful to others and not just a sounding board for myself.
Just to make sure that someone responds to this:

Ed, thank you, thank you, thank you, for taking the time and effort to post your thoughts on these fundamental topics. And each new posting seems even a little clearer and more relevant than the previous (clear and relevant) ones - a little closer to the essence of what we all are trying to do. Please keep it up.

Best wishes,
FredB
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