Just purchased my first gun and also first time trap shooting this week and got off 50 rounds. Hit about 5 out of 50 LOL. Very nice shotgun (afaik) and I love it. That yellow Mossberg nameplate (loosely attached to barrel) is now ALREADY gone
. It is presumably lost somewhere in the trap range, they will call me if they find it, but still fun anyways. Any tips on how to improve my 5/50 hit rate for next time? Any tips on where to get a replacement for that yellow Mossberg nameplate LOL?
The plastic name plate is really only meant for use in store, or in storage I suppose? As the gun is racked, the barrel leans into a hold...without the plastic guard, every new gun you bought would have a tell tale rub at this lean area on every barrel. I just throw them in the garbage when I get new guns home.
5 out of 50...I'm certain that's better than my first time out. Congratulations. The only way I've found to improve is practice, practice, practice. I'm assuming you're sighting off a bead? When I first started, I had to learn the lead space ahead of the bird. I now generally will use my thumb or fingers (depending on which side the bird is flying) to assist my lead. The moment I pull the trigger (a shotgun's trigger is indeed pulled, rather than "pressed"...that's a whole different conversation.), if the bird is traveling to my left (I'm RH), my thumb is between the bead and the bird {approximately. one has to also judge the speed). If the bird is traveling the other way, my fingers mark off the lead.
If you try to track the bird with your muzzle, and point shoot, by the time your shot pellets reach that area of the sky, the bird is no longer there, it's moved on. Your shot will be behind the bird, 45 times out of 50
.
When shooting trap, think WW2 flack gun. Shoot in front of the targets trajectory, and let it fly into the shot pellets, as a flack gun was used in anti-air defence. They didn't shoot down planes as much as they placed shrapnel in front of the planes to fly into. Shotguns loaded with birdshot, are sort of the same. I say "sort of", because they aren't of course the same, and the reality of trap/skeet/fowling, is the bird and your shot are occupying the same sky at the same time...but what I'm saying is that in order for a beginner to achieve that, they must lead the bird, not follow it.
, got so much information overload it stopped being fun until I stepped back and started with one thing at a time.
