Handgun sight/aiming technique/setup???

[Husqvarna]

Handgun sight/aiming technique/setup???

I am having a hard time adjusting to handgun shooting from years of rifle/shotgun, the last few years almost exclusive shotgun so my triggerering is horrible but my main problem is the difference in aiming.

Due to laws over here to get a license you need to pass both a written test and a accuracy test (you actually have to renew it each year)

the test is 25 meters, 5 shots, maximum points 50 and the passing grade is 46 with a 22lr. I am hovering at 35-40points

The club pistols are set up so you aim at the bottom black edge of the circle. as a rifle shooter (with scopes only) I can't get it out of my head to put the sight where I want to hit when I am holding the pistol.

Are there pros and cons to having it like that or having point of aim and point of impact the same?

Just suck it up and continue practising?

 

[AK103K]

Most "bullseye" type target shooters use the "6 o'clock" hold you mention. It gives a more precise and repeatable aiming point when using blade type iron sights.

If you need to adjust your thinking for the test, just assume youre aiming at the 6 o'clock point and your bullets are going to impact there.

If you have a pistol available at home, dry fire is very beneficial. If a "real" gun isnt avaialble, how about a "good" airsoft copy? I have a couple of the "gas" guns, and they work just like the real thing (minus full recoil impulse), and are capable of good accuracy at distances you might not expect. Across the room is no problem at all.

 

[JohnKSa]

It's easier to hold consistently with the bullseye "balanced" on top of the rear sight. Trying to hold the front sight in the middle of the bullseye is harder because you can't easily tell how much of the bullseye is hidden by the front sight.

With a scope, the aiming reticle is usually small enough that it doesn't hide very much of the bullseye. That makes it fairly easy to center the reticle on the bullseye.

 

[Aguila Blanca]

the test is 25 meters, 5 shots, maximum points 50 and the passing grade is 46 with a 22lr. I am hovering at 35-40points

The club pistols are set up so you aim at the bottom black edge of the circle. as a rifle shooter (with scopes only) I can't get it out of my head to put the sight where I want to hit when I am holding the pistol.

Are there pros and cons to having it like that or having point of aim and point of impact the same?

Just suck it up and continue practising?

What you are describing for the club handguns is called a "six o'clock hold," for what I hope is an obvious reason -- if the bullseye were a clock face, you would be aiming at the 6:00 o'clock point on the dial.

This is the traditional way open sights were used. It's the sight picture I was taught with rifles, and it's the sight picture used by most bullseye shooters when using open sights. The advantage is that the sights (which are black) are outlined against the white (or ivory) of the paper, so they are easier to see. You just balance the bullseye on the top of the front sight blade, and if the sights are correctly adjusted for the ammunition, distance, and bullseye size the bullets hit the center of the 'X' ring.

This article may help you. http://pistol-training.com/archives/1361

I think you are talking about Sight Image #1.

If you are using a club's gun(s), and they have the sights adjusted for 6:00 o'clock hold, I see no choice other than to suck it up and practice.

Here's another image, showing how common this sight picture is:

 

[FlyFish]

the test is 25 meters, 5 shots, maximum points 50 and the passing grade is 46 with a 22lr. I am hovering at 35-40points

Just curious - how large is the 10-ring on the target used? I can't imagine it's the same as our standard NRA 25-meter target, where scoring a 46/50 would be very fine shooting indeed.

 

[BarryJGraham]

Hi

The ten ring is five cm (two inches) across. The nine ring is 10 cm.

 

[FlyFish]

The ten ring is five cm (two inches) across. The nine ring is 10 cm.

Thanks for that information. That would, I think, make the Swedish licensing requirement pretty stringent, certainly more difficult than some of the licensing requirements I'm familiar with over here.

The standard NRA 25-yard slow fire target (B-16) has a 10-ring of 1.51" diameter and a 9-ring of 2.6". If I scale that up linearly to 25 meters (i.e., by a factor of 1.094), the equivalent 25-m sizes in NRA-land would be 1.65" and 2.8". In other words, the 10-ring on the Swedish qualifying target would be only about 20% larger than the NRA equivalent, and the 9-ring is about 40% larger.

Now, if in order to get a license in Sweden you need to shoot a 46/50, that would be the equivalent of 92/100. Without going through the math to try to quantitatively factor in the larger Swedish target, it seems that would be more or less equivalent to a score in the 80s on the somewhat smaller NRA-equivalent size target, which is pretty good shooting for someone likely using iron sights. Not something that's going to impress anyone on the local Bullseye team of course, but better in my experience than the average reasonably competent shooter over at my club, anyway.

 

[Husqvarna]

Thanks guys good article and advice

yeah our laws sucks, but you could use them in your argumentation, stricter and stricter laws but more gun crime then ever, and it is being done with illegal guns

 

[SgtLumpy]

They should simply require Swedish criminals to shoot 49/50. That would surely thin down the crime rate.


...Huh?...


Sgt Lumpy

 

[SpareMag]

Do you have access to a laser sight?

That may help you judge point of aim vs point of impact and help determine where your divergence is.

I know that I could not meet your requirements!

Oh...have you shot from a sandbag? That helps stabilize the weapon so you get a sense of what the sight picture is vs point of impact.

 

[Husqvarna]

so today I scored my first 47/50!

been hovering at 42-44 forever! often having 4 good shots and then dropping one, today it all came together!

but then I got to try a ipsc racegun with a reddot, WOW

 

[Knightsofnee]

What kind of pistols are you using? Do you have a choice of what you can qualify with? Congrats on 47/50! Oh, and what brand of .22 ammo do you use.Thanks.

 

[Husqvarna]

CCI something

I am using a Smith and Wesson 617 or a unique semi auto, like the SW the best

Yeah you can qualify with other calibres if you want, actually for like 357 and over the requirements are "only" 44points

basic law is 3 approved 46/50 series, a short weekend course, club membership for 6 months = license for a 22lr, another 6 months you can buy a 9mm or whatever

the license only run for 5 years and you need to shoot 3 approved series each year