mauser06

anyone happen to know the cause of me shooting a pistol low???

i know grouping in different areas can generally mean certain things...just trying to better myself...

im no expert but i watch my front sight and sight picture and focus on a smooth trigger squeeze until it breaks and recoils....but im pretty good at consistently shooting low...im pretty sure its me and not the guns...im probably missing something im doing while im shooting but i really try to focus on sight picture and trigger control...theres been times my jaw dropped because the shots "felt perfect" and they are a like 6 or so inches low...

my main culprit is kneeling at 15yds and anything at 25yds..25 some are good some are low..kneeling at 25 is usually always low..15 standing im fine and shooting center...anything closer than 15 and im punching holes out of hte center...

i need to know the cause so i can work on the cure....any thoughts?? thanx alot

bigcountry

You know I had a bunch of issues shooting pistols. I ended up finding the Army instruction manual on pistol shooting, and there was some great info in it for various issues like you got. Most likely you are gripping the gun right at the shot. Hard to see unless you work with a partner blank load practicing. If that tip falls, on the time there is no round in there, it tells you your problem.

If you are solid during the shot, then might want to look into the way you are using your front post.

longknife12

I agree with bigcountry, sounds like dropping of the muzzle.
Dan

country1

It is likely due to an improper grip and/or jerking.

driftrider

Sound like you're breaking your wrist when you fire. It's one of the more common problems. A good way to know for sure is to put a laser on the gun. You don't even really need a proper laser sight, just a cheap laser pointer and some tape. Attach the laser to the gun so that you can't see the laser spot when sighting across the weapon, preferably the laser should be below your line of sight. Now aim the UNLOADED pistol at a small spot on a wall and do some dry fire practice trying to hold the gun as steady as possible. Have a friend watch the laser spot as you do this an note if it moves as the "shot" breaks and which way. Ideally, it should stay steady.

Now, if you're shooting good, consistant groups that are low, you might just need to have the sights adjusted if they are fixed. A gunsmith can easily install a taller rear sight or shorter front sight (depending on the type of gun).

http://www.bullseyepistol.com/training.htm

Mike

mauser06

thanx for the info guys! driftrider, that chart is exactly what i was looking for!

to me the shots feel great...look great from watching the front sight and sight alignment...im not expert but ive shot alot of rounds through alot of guns...i can usually tell you if i hit or not...but most of these low hits have made my jaw drop....

i know when i jerk i throw them high left or sometimes high right...

but maybe im jerking during the last few motions of the trigger pull or im continuing to pull which is throwing my shot...or maybe its the follow through...i dont know...i'm going to work on it....

i also wish i cant see my hits...after i see i already got a couple low that i really didnt think were out of the center, i just get frustrated and know it dont help the matter...gotta work on that too and focus on each shot as an individual shot...

if i could bring my flyers up where they need to be, i could print some beautiful targets for my expirience level..

eldeguello

The culprit for shooting low is a lighweight bullet. The sights were set for a heavier bullet. Increasing the weight of the bullet will raise the point of impact. That is, if your shooting techniques are good-I mean, are you a good pistol shot?

IF you have adjustable sights, raise the rear sight. Otherwise, switch to a heavier bullet.

mauser06

thanx eldeguello....

it was me. went back out today and shot...same point of aim and sight picture and everything...i just took each shot as its own shot and focused and watched my trigger pull with each individual shot. funny, i was still shooting at the same rate of speed...just was focused and making putting my shots where i wanted them to go. i shot 1000% better today...

seems backwards that a lighter bullet would hit lower...? i never mess with bullet weights hardly at all...

i do have a pistol that i was going to have new sights put into...it shoots just below POA. but i only ran 1 batch of ammo through it so far and its all the same so its all been printing low consistantly.

the last 2 days was a different pistol....i was blowing the center out of the target but when it came to 15yd kneeling and 25yd standing and kneeling all those shots were low. 15yd standing and anything closer i was blowing the center out no problem at all. i knew it was me.

i can shoot a rifle and shotgun well. i wont toot my own horn, but shooting has always been a pretty natural ability. from BB guns when i was a kid to rifles, shotguns, pistols, revolvers, bows, flintlocks, doesnt matter i can usually pick it up and shoot it alright right off the bat. after i get familiar with whatever it is im usually as good as any of the best average people...with some practice and training i usually excelle pretty quickly. thats just my natural ability. dad told me he thinks its my gift and i need to pursue it. ive never had coaches or trainers or souped up any guns to get the most accuracy from them or anything...pretty much hands on self taught with everything. read what i can, watch people shoot when im around other shooters and pick them apart in my head..video myself to catch that trigger jerk or lifting the head, or whatever may throw me off etc....today i proved to myself i can shoot pistols pretty well. with more practice i should get better. i just focused and treated the pistol like my varmint rifle. at 300yds if i do anything wrong, chances are VERY good that groundhog is going to live another day...i put that same focus into my handgun shooting and it showed.

sometimes you gotta go back to the basics and pick yourself apart to find the error. i knew i was the error. i believe i was jerking the trigger right before it broke and anticipating the shots and death squeezing the grip right before the trigger broke and pulling the shots low...

stalkingbear

The reason a lighter bullet load will print lower point of aim is the higher velocity in relation to the recoil of the pistol. In other words, the pistol don't have as much time to raise the barrel during recoil before the bullet leaves the barrel. Heavier bullets produce more recoil and exit the barrel after it's raised in recoil a bit more.

driftrider

Lighter bullets tend to hit lower than heavier bullets in a handgun because of the combination of recoil and barrel lag time.

Lighter bullets kick less (so less rapid upward movement of the muzzle, aka muzzle flip), and they spend less time in the bore because they're going faster. Heavy bullets produce greater and faster muzzle flip, and the bullet spends more time in the bore, so it'll leave the muzzle later than the lighter bullet when the muzzle has already risen higher. Thus it will strike higher on the target. At pistol velocities and ranges, the difference in POI for two different loads, one being much heavier and slower than the other, will be minimal, IF the pistol is clamped down so that the muzzle cannot rise with recoil.

I still think that some flaws in your shooting form are the primary culprit, though it could be a combination of that and something else. You're going to have to retrain the bat habits out of your form. It'll probably take a little bit of time, and having a coach help you wouldn't hurt either, but you can beat it. It's all about learning the right way, and then faithfully practicing it until your little shooting glitches go away. Pistols are MUCH harder to shoot well than a rifle, mostly because any error is greatly exaggerated with pistol.

Mike