Interesting 100 yard Off-hand Shooting This Morning

CoryTheCowboy

CoryTheCowboy

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Location
A decrepit duck blind in Atikokan, ON
This morning I headed out to the local shooting spot and brought along my increasingly shot up gong. Once my rifles are sighted in, they don't see a sandbag or bench again unless they have an issue.

I had put a new Brownells Latigo sling on my 375-338 and wanted to see if anything would change impact-wise under a tight sling. I set the gong at 110 yards, slung up and fired two quick shots (the top and bottom on the picture) that landed about 5.5" apart. I had felt the sling was looser than it should've been, so I adjusted it 1 hole tighter and noticed a big difference. Shot 2 more times and plunked them into a 4" group.

pswsc3t.jpg


This isn't particularly impressive shooting, and I've shot with these slings for years, but I did find it interesting how much steadier I felt and how much more accurate my shooting was with a proper shooting sling.

Cory
 
It was more than 60 years ago, but well do I remember being taught by the instructors in Army Cadets about proper use of a sling. There was no need to even try to outshoot those guys offhand without a sling. With a sling we could come close. This using issue the No4 Mk1* Long Branch rifle. :rockOn:

Not only did they teach us, but they explained in very simple terms why it was so much easier to hold aim using the sling properly.

Good post, Cory!
Ted
 
Now you need to do that all again, several times, to confirm the results. Then shoot a group of four using only the tight sling.

Wondering how many guys on here can put four rounds inside five inches at 100 meters, let alone four, offhand?

Ted
 
No not overly impressive to some but looks good to me. And probably supper impressive to those who can’t do that on off a bench, even on a good day.
 
I agree, not impressive to some but most should be impressed! I know myself I don’t do enough offhand shooting and I don’t do enough 200m 300m shooting either! I need to do more real life scenarios, you know shooting sitting, prone, standing, off of sticks etc etc!
Good work on the gong!!
 
DGY said:
I agree, not impressive to some but most should be impressed! I know myself I don’t do enough offhand shooting and I don’t do enough 200m 300m shooting either! I need to do more real life scenarios, you know shooting sitting, prone, standing, off of sticks etc etc!
Good work on the gong!!
Click to expand...

The first time I shot more than 100 yards was with Ted at the Whitehorse range and it quickly humbled me. Then out fishing the next day and we were shooting at stumps and I quickly realized benches don't exist out in nature. Since then, it's been zero it off the bench to ensure the rifle is on, and after that, it's offhand and off sticks like out hunting.

Cory
 
That was a good day, Cory. :d

And, that’s how we become/became competent marksmen instead of bench shooters. Nothing wrong with the bench, but there are not many available when that bull gets up out of the willows or a bear comes around the corner.

I remember the first time I met two Dall’s at less than fifty feet on a mountain. Both were big rams that I had spotted from at least a mile. By the time I got there they had moved, and I walked right into them. It was embarrassing to say the least. Never even got my 270 on them, let alone fired it.

That was fifty years ago, and I made up my mind that would never happen again. However, I missed a big black bear one Spring about twenty years ago. I had forgotten to turn the scope on The Ugly 9.3 down to 2 power and when I shouldered the rifle I couldn’t find the bear at twenty feet. Another good lesson.

Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Before you know it, you’re able to shoot offhand quite well.

Ted
 
Missed a moose one year, came around a corner on a river in my canoe(soloing) saw the moose shouldered the rifle but scope was at full power lol, we manage to get that moose and I’m the one who made the shot in the end but I learned a lesson for sur(it was my heaviest moose too)!

Shot I shot 3 or 4 moose from a canoe from 60m to a 180m and that something we don’t practice lot or at all, shooting from a boat in the wind and waves…. Distances are also harder to estimate on the water!
Anyway need more practice at all of that stuff!
 
I very seldom use a benchrest pedestal anymore. I generally shoot off my elbows at the bench or prone. I can call my shots fairly well and feel I can get a decent zero this way. My offhand practice consists mostly of shooting a BB gun every day. Grasshoppers make a fine target.
 
Just wanted to add my congrats on that shooting !! Excellent practice for hunting. As said, once you know the rifle is 'ON' from a bench, one should keep up the Offhand skill-set for 'Real-world' shooting. As well, I've heard Zombies avoid rifle ranges. I keep slings for most of my firearms, and need to practice offhand more.
 
I practice offhand a lot, although I don't really seem to improve at it. I doubt the utility of slings, I have never seen or heard of anyone using one while hunting, and they probably take away from the real practice of offhand that you should be doing
 
I use a sling a lot when hunting and, if a shot is imminent, I have my support arm wrapped in the sling and the rifle ready. So, now, you haven't seen it but you have heard of it. I carry the rifle slung on the shoulder of my support arm, muzzle down, with my arm in the sling.
 
H

porpoise said:
I practice offhand a lot, although I don't really seem to improve at it. I doubt the utility of slings, I have never seen or heard of anyone using one while hunting, and they probably take away from the real practice of offhand that you should be doing
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It is good to hear that you practice a lot, porpoise. Sounds like you may have reached your offhand plateau. That is very good because you know your limitations while hunting. Most have no idea, and many try shots offhand anyway.

Two suggestions: 1)Try practicing with a sling and see if you get better? 2)If you do, then try practicing while bringing the rifle into shooting position from being slung on your shoulder. I expect you will be pleased with your improvement.

Like Leeper, who has posted twice above, I carry my rifle in a sling most of the time while hunting. Most of us who do are old fudds, who grew old with others who did as well. However, unlike me, Leeper is an exceptionally fine rifle shot. The difference? Practice, Practice, Practice! Even if it’s with a BB gun ”every day.”:)

Times change, but it doesn’t have to be boring. I have personally watched guys consistently hit coins in the air, and seen video of one guy doing the same with aspirin tablets using BB guns.

Best,
Ted
 
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DGY said:
I agree, not impressive to some but most should be impressed! I know myself I don’t do enough offhand shooting and I don’t do enough 200m 300m shooting either! I need to do more real life scenarios, you know shooting sitting, prone, standing, off of sticks etc etc!
Good work on the gong!!
Click to expand...

exercise when i was in the army: 4 turn rounds around the range running with of course the rifle on the shoulder then stop and try to shoot off hand ... i learnt a lot in those days not as sharp as i was ...
 
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porpoise said:
I practice offhand a lot, although I don't really seem to improve at it. I doubt the utility of slings, I have never seen or heard of anyone using one while hunting, and they probably take away from the real practice of offhand that you should be doing
Click to expand...

I use a sling for shooting on a regular basis on my hunting rifles , and have since the 60's.
Cat
 
porpoise said:
I practice offhand a lot, although I don't really seem to improve at it. I doubt the utility of slings, I have never seen or heard of anyone using one while hunting, and they probably take away from the real practice of offhand that you should be doing
Click to expand...

I wonder if you haven't seen anyone use one while hunting because they have the wrong type of sling for use as a shooting aid? I know the padded comfy slings I've owned and used are next to useless as a shooting aid, however, they do make a gun more comfortable to carry. Like Ted and Mr. Leeper, I've used it as a shooting aid while hunting no matter if I'm offhand or sitting. You can get quick with a bit of practice.

All I know is I shrunk my group by about 1.5" for a $60 sling. I know a lot of people who have spent a lot more than that for a lot less gains.

Cory
 
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