Doubles Trap

Maritime Storm

Maritime Storm

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Riverview, NB
What is everyone's advice for teaching a new trap shooter to shoot Doubles? Looking for advice to help out those shooting the trap league at our club, not being Doubles shooter to begin with, and I won't be much help to them. Chokes? Loads? Which bird first and why?
 
The advice I was given when I started out was I believe very good. I was told try to get yourself posted to stations four or five so that you could watch a few pairs thrown before it was your turn. This way you could watch the flight of the first target and determine a hold point to allow yourself to get that target quickly. It went like this:
Always shoot the "straightaway" target first. Find a spot on the background it crosses each time and hold there. Call for the targets and as that first one gets to your gun pull the trigger, do not watch for it to break or try to follow it as it costs you too much time getting to the second target. Use a skeet to improved cylinder choke for the first shot if you have a double barrel gun. Once you shoot at the first target ignore it and as your eyes look to find the second target move to it making a shallow dip or shallow "u" instead of swinging straight across to ensure you come up to it from underneath. Swinging straight across will generally cause you to swing through the target shooting down the side of it. As I gained more experience I went from a full choke on the second shot to an improved mod. Station 3 of course you have no "straightaway" so to speak and the advice I was given was shoot whichever you are comfortable with to shoot first. Being a right handed shooter I shoot the right bird first so as I swing to the second the gun is being pulled into my body keeping my head on the stock not being pushed off my cheek if I am slow to the second and really having to reach far out to the edge of the flight. As for ammo I shoot the same for both shots. Thats the method I learned on and as I gained experience tweeked some to my own style but I still stick to those basics and I don't shoot a whole lot of doubles but when I do I find it very enjoyable.
 
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When I shoot trap doubles it is much the same as described by the spank. If possibly #4 is my preferred starting position. Shoot the straight away target first with my gun held just under the break point so it's a short move. The first target is shot with an IC or LM and with 1 ounce of #8 for a lower recoil on the first shot.

On the second shot my eyes go to the bird first, the gun follows and I fire when my focus is locked on the leading edge. It is possible that the gun drops slightly when this happens but it is not a deliberate move. My misses on the second target can be attributed to coming off the stock so be conscious of keeping "wood to wood." Choke on the second target is IM and the shell is usually 1-1/8 ounce of #7.5 shot.

On the station #3 I shoot the right hand bird first unless I am starting there then it's the left because I will be shooting the left bird first at the next two stations. My foot position is set up to slightly favour the second target. My eye hold and gun hold are higher than on singles because the bird is following a predictable path.
 
I haven't shot a lot of doubles trap, but what really helped my scores was shooting the right target first from stations 1.2.3, and then the left target first from stations 4 and 5. I use a mod choke in the first barrel, and a full in the second barrel.
 
Claybuster said:
When I shoot trap doubles it is much the same as described by the spank. If possibly #4 is my preferred starting position. Shoot the straight away target first with my gun held just under the break point so it's a short move. The first target is shot with an IC or LM and with 1 ounce of #8 for a lower recoil on the first shot.

On the second shot my eyes go to the bird first, the gun follows and I fire when my focus is locked on the leading edge. It is possible that the gun drops slightly when this happens but it is not a deliberate move. My misses on the second target can be attributed to coming off the stock so be conscious of keeping "wood to wood." Choke on the second target is IM and the shell is usually 1-1/8 ounce of #7.5 shot.

On the station #3 I shoot the right hand bird first unless I am starting there then it's the left because I will be shooting the left bird first at the next two stations. My foot position is set up to slightly favour the second target. My eye hold and gun hold are higher than on singles because the bird is following a predictable path.
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sounds like what i do, straight a ways first, swing right for next bird.
always left bird first, swing right for second bird
 
Thanks guys I'll pass that info on. My doubles average last year in our annual league was 50.28% whereas I shot 21 & 22 on 16yrd singles Monday evening. So as you can see, I'm not one to give advice on excelling at trap.
 
The big thing to remember about doubles is that after you pull the trigger on the first one, forget about it. Its either broken or not and there's not a damn thing you can do about it. If you hang around to admire your handiwork the next one will get away. Concentrate on the second shot, which, if you hit the first one fast enough, will be just a handicap shot. Most misses are on the second shot and are behind the target. I have heard of people locking the trap to throw the first bird in singles and then practicing hitting just the first bird as fast as possible.
 
bdft said:
The big thing to remember about doubles is that after you pull the trigger on the first one, forget about it. Its either broken or not and there's not a damn thing you can do about it. If you hang around to admire your handiwork the next one will get away. Concentrate on the second shot, which, if you hit the first one fast enough, will be just a handicap shot. Most misses are on the second shot and are behind the target. I have heard of people locking the trap to throw the first bird in singles and then practicing hitting just the first bird as fast as possible.
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Admiring the first shot always gets me
 
One thing that I try to do is set my feet up for the second bird. Far easier to force yourself to turn to shoot the first bird and then allow your body to return to its natural position for the second shot.
 
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