One Eye or Two

[Mick]

Anatidae, tried your advice to check gun fit and it appears to fit fine. I'm glad cause I shoot a benelli nova and I don't think adjustments can be made. Gossebruce, you are probably right about not mounting the gun properly. Thanks guys.

[GulfCoast]

You can adjust ANY FREAKING GUN by shimming the stock. Where you think Beretta came up with the idea??? PM either me or Anat. and we run you through it. All you need is a few all plastic playing cards.

[goosebruce]

Wouldnt a trip to the chiropractor be better than shimming yur gun?

Personally, I aint gonna clean a working gun, let alone shim it. When mine quits working, a quick trip to quater car wash, some break cleaner, and some rem oil usually do the trick. I shudder to think any peice of equipment so fragile I gotta shim it, probably shouldnt be cleaned at car wash.

If your freakishly large, arms of different lenght, or a lil tiny feller, you're gun probably doesnt fit you. Otherwise, Id say your shim time might be better spent mounting your gun. Trap, as boring as it is, is perfect for praticing your mount and swing. If you mount and swing, you ought to break 20-22 outta 25 from the goal line. If you're not breaking them, your not mounting correctly, or swinging. travis

[Anatidae]

O.K. then, Mick......just practice mounting your gun at home on stationary objects and get use to the 2-eyed thing. Your right eye should take-over. The main thing is never look back at the bead with your primary focus and never take your eye off the target. As long as your eyes are focused on the target, THAT visual stimulus will send the signal to your brain that, in turn, tells your hands where to move the gun in order to intercept the target.

After you get confident in your gun mount, load an empty hull into the chamber and dry-fire at songbirds that fly through your yard. (I use to practice on cars that had extra-loud 24" woofers that souded like a friggin' marchin' band comin' down the road. ) That'll tell you if your swing is smooth or if you're jerking the trigger. Follow the target even after you pull the trigger to make sure you have a follow-thru. If you quit on the target (stop your eyes) your hands stop, too.

I had a gun that slapped my trigger finger so hard it was painful. That's because I jerked the trigger instead of squeezing it. I got to slapping the trigger and that made it worse. I developed a hell of a flinch to where I started flinching from the muzzle blast, too. It took several boxes o' shells to work it out, but I finally regained confidence in the gun and myself.

I'm going through a slight slump, myself. Sometimes you get too anxious and just get excited. With as few ducks as I've had to shoot-at recently I wouldn't be at all surprised if this was part of MY problem. I'm looking for the mallard that drops-in and all I've gotten lately are woodies at mach-8 through the trees at 20 feet. Gotta get yo head in the game and switch gears sometimes. I'm still in the mallard mode, I guess.

Hope this works for you.

(oops.....I guess Travis and I were writing at the same time)

[goosebruce]

I tried that standing in front of the mirror with my gun thingy... I just keep finding myself with the gun at my hip, and screaming "say hello to my little friend'. Wife doesnt appreicate the humor, but then again, she didnt appreicate the movie. travis

[Anatidae]

You musta been naked, huh?

[Strayshot]

Mick, Try this trick. Use glasses or very light sun glasses. Lightly place a half inch piece of transparent tape (scotch) on the upper left hand corner of the left lens. Shoulder your gun. Look down the barrel as you always do. Now close your right eye. If you can see the bead on the end of your barrel, adjust the tape on the lens until it is no longer visible. You are now forced into right eye dominence. This will not affect your peripheral vision. Hope this get's you back on target.

Kirk

[goosebruce]

Id been disapointed if someone didnt hit me wif dat.

Went goosey hunting one time, shot all my bullets on sat. Stole some from a buddy on sat night, and shot all of them on sunday. Bout 10 am sunday, I noticed the bead to my gun was gone. Since I had thrown my gun at a crippled goose that weekend javlin style, I figgerred I broke it off then. Came home, and found my bead on my front porch. Apprently, I had shot several boxs of shells, and a bunch of nasty booty geese, and never noticed the bead gone. I took this as a sign. Never did figure out whut the sign meant, but it was definelty a sign. Funny thing was, ONCE I noticed the bead gone, I couldnt hep but look for it. I spent, reluctanlty, like 6 bucks for a new bead.

If yur looking at the bead, you'll miss. If yur looking for a distance in front of a bird, you'll miss. If yur looking for a bird to fall, or whut bird to shoot next, you'll miss. Mount yur gun, and use the force, and swing. Make sure you shoot all your bullets too, thats an important part of wingshooting as well. Even if you hit a bird, if you got bullets left, hit him again on the way down, espeically if they are someone elses bullets.

Im left handed, but shoot (and fish) right handed. Never knew their was left handed guns till I was legal to drive. Shooting left handed looks goofy to me. When I played basball, I could switch hit, with the same awful results either way, so Im purnt near amidexterous. I could line up on left of plate, or right of plate, and step into my 3rd strike with conviction either way. Finally, they got to throwing so hard, I had to quit. travis

[Anatidae]

Man......I'd 'bout give my left arm to be ambidextrous.

[GulfCoast]

Duh. All shimming does is move the stock. It has nothing to do with the gun being "fragile."

[goosebruce]

bwhahahahahahah. Left arm, dats classic.

Yeah, I know whut it does gc... But id be surpirsed if 25% of the people who do it, really need it. Be like someone wrapping the grip of their hammer so its fits their hand better. Unless your deformed, really big, or really small, your gun fits better than your mount is Id betcha. travis

[Delta Duck]

I only read the first post. If you did shoot well with one eye closed and can't shoot with both eyes open then you are not right eyed dominant or you are thinking about your eye being open to much.

Heck just keep your left eye closed!

[GulfCoast]

Get ready to be surprised.....

Unless your deformed, really big, or really small, your gun fits better than your mount is Id betcha.

Only if you are 5'10", with about a 16" neck and 30" sleeve length. That is the "hypothetical" person for whose dimensions in drop, pitch, cast and LOP factory gunstocks are created. Everyone else has to "make do" with guns that don't fit them optimally. Most guns that pattern fine off a rest pattern like chit if you make a guy mount and shoot a "called spot" on a pattern board like if was a quail flying away. That is because the gun does not fit, and the stock needs to be shimmed, or the pitch changed.

You are correct that if you DO NOT have a consistent gun mount, shimming or other stock changing options will not help. Neither will buck rogers choke tubes, or depleted uranium shot, or spending the night before at the nudie bar for motivation. However, I have seen countless guys get fittings or do it themselves. Every one of them has picked up AT LEAST 4 birds out of a hundred, if not more. Most more like 10/100. If hitting 10% more ducks ain't import to ya, then chit, just don't worry about it.

[goosebruce]

Your right dude (Only if you are 5'10", with about a 16" neck and 30" sleeve length. That is the "hypothetical" person for whose dimensions in drop, pitch, cast and LOP factory gunstocks are created. Everyone else has to "make do" with guns that don't fit them optimally. ). Im 5 10 and a half... Dude, 75% of the people are those measurements, or dang close to it, thats why I said, I bet only 25% of the people fooling with that need too, unless freakishly large, small, or gimped up. 75% of the people I know can wear a shirt of mine, so Im guessing they can use my gun too. Splitting hairs for a person of average build, cause more folks would be helped by mounting their gun corrrectly than using the crutch of gun fit. If your gun doesnt fit, it doesnt fit... but more often than not, it fits better than the shooters abilites make any difference.

How many average shooters wouldnt pick up 10 outta 100 targets if they shot a 100, then an hour later shot another? Not contest shooters like you, I mean duck shooters than maybe shoot clays once or twice before hunting season, if at all. They picked up a lot of those targets out of the fact they just got some rusty pratice, plus the confidence boost of someone just FIT their gun to their mesaurements. If they go another 7 months without shooting it, bet their averages go back down. Im not talking peoples whos guns dont truely fit, Im talking about average build people playing with their gun fit to the miniscual amount. Heck, the clothes your wearing will change lenght of pull significantly, but for MOST people it doesnt effect their shooting 10% by taking on or putting off a jacket. But for someones who gun doesnt truely fit, or just barely, it can make a big difference. Those people, are much rarer than gun nuts lead you to belive, in my know it all opinion.

Most people whos guns dont fit them, the gun hurts them when they shoot. Best indicator in the field I know.

There are other places Im a whole lot more worried bout half an inch on gc! BWHAHAHAHHA. travis

[Wildfowler]

(I use to practice on cars that had extra-loud 24" woofers that souded like a friggin' marchin' band comin' down the road. )

Man, what kind of neighborhood do you live in????