Since I have no money and I have no range, I dry-fire... I dry-fire a lot....

How much do you dry-fire, and do you have any strategies for relieving the boredom of dry-firing?

I use empties like snap caps and shoot a live once in a while about 25 to 1 ratio...I can shoot in my back yard...Since you cant maybe I would hang pictures of anything that fancies you and pick a spot and hold on it...then pick another spot...might try reading the morning paper trough your scope....while in position

How long do you generally dry fire at a go? I get so bored that I usually end up doing much less of it than I plan to.
If its daytime I aim at my neighbors house. He has a 0 in his address and it is 40 meters from my bedroom.
If its night I put a flashlight on my window sill pointing at the window lock. That lights it up well (and its white) then I aim at that from my bedroom.
Sometimes I don't fire at all, I just practice holding on a small dot I tape to the window.

I usually just get in position and fire at least 5 shots, then set it down and go do some housework, then come back and do 5 more.
Sometimes I just keep rapid firing for as long as I can stand it before my arms start shaking or my hold degrades too much.

In any case I much prefer real firing. I still like plinking so sometimes I don't fire at regulation anything, I just shoot at rocks and twigs for fun.

I use Troy Lawton's holding drill (link here http://www.zediker.com/articles/zcomlawt.pdf). Usually try and DF at least 40x, but do so in 10x increments, taking a couple minutes break (sitting in the rocking chair on the back porch) in between. I use dots at 50 feet and just try and keep decreasing the size of the dots. I agree with you though, it's very boring, but I try to stay focused by taking the breaks and mulling over those good/better shots in the last 10. Dan

Thoes little yellow drywall anchors make great snap caps.

I use a RIKA Trainer. It will give you more information about your hold than you want to know. It will show you how you came into the shot, where the shot hit, if you jerked the trigger, and your follow-through. All you need is your rifle or pistol, some snap caps, and time. It shows my trigger jerk even when I know I didn't.

Jerry G wrote:Thoes little yellow drywall anchors make great snap caps.

I use a RIKA Trainer. It will give you more information about your hold than you want to know. It will show you how you came into the shot, where the shot hit, if you jerked the trigger, and your follow-through. All you need is your rifle or pistol, some snap caps, and time. It shows my trigger jerk even when I know I didn't.

Jerry, what target do you use with the RIKA? Can you shoot a scaled picture of a silhouette target?

Dustin

I usually just get in position and fire at least 5 shots, then set it down and go do some housework, then come back and do 5 more.

Old Ranger, about how much house work would you estimate you get done per 5rds? Just wondering. I'm one of the very fortunate ones that can shoot at my house. I have some of the animals (From Quality Targets, (plug) scaled to shoot at 40m out back and some ammo. About what time can I expect you?
Dry fire, dry fire, dry fire. I save all of my brass and use it to dry fire with. Snap, work bolt, catch brass rotate, good for about 5 or 6 shots. I'm certainly not the expert, but if you find yourself getting bored, set it down, or you won't want to pick it up again. Don't know where you stays, air gun may be an option. I have got the bug with it. Even though I can shoot where I live, I shoot my air guns more than I do my small-bore. Same game, and pellets are cheap compared to 22 ammo right now. More bang for your buck. For how long who knows. As soon as I figure out what pellets my guns like, I plan to get all I can, while I can. I saw on one sight where they are limiting certain pellets, with gun purchase only. Gimmick, maybe, but who knows.
Stay Safe All,
Mark

I have a fairly unorthodox home-grown method, but since I am essentially self taught and watching/learning here, I thought I'd share it for feedback anyway...

I stand back from a window and aim at targets outside, one target is at 50ish yards, my neighbor's Toyota Corollary; the other are lights/houses across the valley from me.

For the Toyota, I focus my scope's AO and practice my hold inside the trunk logo. To change things up, I move to a tail light or reverse light.

When I practice on lights across the valley, I de focus the AO so the lights are blobs and I use them as circles to hold inside.

When practicing my hold, I don't try to eliminate all movement. I pick one (vertical or horizontal) and work on that, allowing some movement the other way. I typically work on holding vertically still since that's elevation and the weight of the rifle (one is 9lb 4oz, the other 8lb 2oz) and I figure I am sweeping from target to target anyway, so I can work on smoothing out the side to side motion (while not wavering vertically). I try to work on fine tuning balance (rifle and my own) so that I'm not fighting weight, or there is just a little bit of bias to counteract. Sometimes I just practice my eye-trigger thing, and try to pull as I'm entering the target, vs centered or moving out. I don't even have the bolt in for that. I just pull or don't pull, but both are conscious decisions.

Like I said, this is my home grown idea. Who knows if it works or has bearing in this sport, but I think it works for me. So far in match 1, it got me an 18/40 and in last month's match, my second, I got 26/40, so something is working (considering I also just started shooting late last year when I finally bought a rifle). Or I was just lucky and it'll all go to pot from here on. Who knows... At the end of the day, I'm having a blast, keeping it fun. If all else fails, I can just plink away.

PS: I also feel the need to practice because both my rifles are Savages (Mark II), so I definitely don't have the advantage of a "better" make, and my scope is a $99 6-18x40 Barska, again, no real advantage or disadvantage, however, knowing well the quirks of what one has is an advantage in itself, maybe.

High Speed wrote:Old Ranger, about how much house work would you estimate you get done per 5rds?

Not nearly enough if you ask my wife!

Thanks for the replies..... I guess I'm pretty much doing what everyone else's doing...... I have animals to scale cut out of white plastic glued to my mailbox across the street. I just added some "diminishing circles" ala Troy Lawton. I knew about his holding drill, but I don't do it much. It's even more boring than dry-firing on the animals! So regarding this drill, do you actually dry-fire on the circles, or just try and hold the reticle in them?

Jerry I have thought about buying a RIKA or a SCATT trainer. I would be interested in discussing the RIKA with you sometime. As far as the Lawton drill, I actually dry fire at the circles. Dan

I have scaled down all 4 animals and I have put a small dot on them for the down range target. The dot is so I have an aim point for when I sight it in before each practice session. The target holder accepts any target that you want. Just print it on a piece of paper and clip it to the holder.

I have the outline of the same 4 animals on clear plastic that I put on my computer screen. I had to play with the scale quite a bit on the plastic and I think I have it close.

Dry fire routine? Whats that? (maybe why I'm stuck shooting random AAA scores.....)