Help me.......find a slowfire and rapid process

I think this is killing me!  I don’t have a shot process.  I raise the gun and shoot without much thought on how I’m doing it shot to shot.  At times during slow fire I find myself holding my breath..and sometimes it’s awhile.

I really caught myself doing it last night during slowfire and tried not to but then all my focus was on that damn dot bouncing around on the target!

I need to get out that USMC manual and start from the beginning but for some reason when I start reading it I kind of draw a blank on that blank target drill.  Would you not end up with bullet holes all over the blank target? I think after the first shot I’d find myself aiming at the last hole that went on it.

The purpose of the blank target drill is to develop the habit of centering on the whole target, but the real focus is to develop trigger control,  this is done by not having an aiming point.  Just keep the sights aligned and release the trigger without disturbing the alignment while looking at the front sight/dot.

lablover wrote:I need to get out that USMC manual and start from the beginning

QED

Might also trying some visualization.  First, get ready to complete the shot before the gun ever leaves the bench.  (I see a lost of people still fiddling with grip, stance, etc. after getting the gun up in the air.)  

Get your stance, grip, setup, breathing, etc. completed and assume your position with the gun extended and on the bench, just like starting a SF, TF / RF shot.  Finger is off the trigger.  

Now, visualize raising the gun through the center of your aiming area, coming back down into your aiming area and seeing the sight / dot, feeling the consistent grip, feeling the trigger pressure increase, seeing the sights approach your minimum wobble, and then seeing the muzzle flash and the sight / dot start to rise, seeing the dot / sight coming back down on the target, (then either returning the bench or 4 more times for sustained fire) and then call your (imaginary) shot.  (And it better be a 10.) 

Now do the same thing for your shot.

You might just wind up visualizing your way to your own specific shot process. 

CR

lablover wrote:I think this is killing me!  I don’t have a shot process.  I raise the gun and shoot without much thought on how I’m doing it shot to shot.  At times during slow fire I find myself holding my breath..and sometimes it’s awhile.

I really caught myself doing it last night during slowfire and tried not to but then all my focus was on that damn dot bouncing around on the target!

I need to get out that USMC manual and start from the beginning but for some reason when I start reading it I kind of draw a blank on that blank target drill.  Would you not end up with bullet holes all over the blank target? I think after the first shot I’d find myself aiming at the last hole that went on it.

What CR said ^^^

The blank targets I use have the black with no rings. Shoot for the center of the black. Those darn rings just mess with your head
Caveat - I am not an expert.
I am just getting back to bullseye after a few decades away from it and, as then, a well disciplined shot process is the root of decent shooting. It has been my main focus.
Distinguished Precision,( look in the header on the main page), has a book/manual that you may find helpful.

Focus on the target?  Focus on the dot?  If you focus on the dot you may end up chasing it all over the target. Chasing the dot is never good.

+1 on what CR said.  Visualization is a very powerful tool that many of us don't do enough of, myself included.  Your subconscious will add a visualization to it's memory of what you want to have happen, do this enough and you make Master.  The most effective dry firing is when you go through your shot process with each dry fire and visualize shooting that 10.  Verses just racking the slide, putting the gun up and pulling the trigger.

Focusing on the target or the dot.  Some days I really struggle with this but when I am able to keep my focus on the the target my groups shrink, they shrink even more when I keep my focus on the center of the black - quite a bit actually.
- Dave

This is one of the examples that really shows how visualization and rehearsal contributes to performance consistency. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZNnaXj9SvY

CR10X wrote:This is one of the examples that really shows how visualization and rehearsal contributes to performance consistency. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZNnaXj9SvY

Ok

That video really nailed it!  I think what I might do is try to put together a routine.write it down, and read that sucker till it’s gospel!  

Cr10x..thank you for that link...made it click!

Not only read it and recite it, but do it.  Don’t be afraid to modify it, condense it, expand it, as your experience with it dictates.  You’re goal here is to have a reference for your process, but ultimately the vast majority of it should not require conscious thought.  It should become ingrained.

What I got from this years ago was that the visualization was / is done as close as possible to "real time" and it should be about the complete process (not just some static picture like sight alignment / picture, etc.).  Notice the subtle hand movements, breath timing, orientation of the aerial photos to mimic what the position will look like, etc.  

It really helped me to play better golf as well because I started "painting the shot" in close to real time and was able to better visualize how the shot, especially putts, were going track. 

CR

several of the better shooters here and even the non high masters have mentioned having a few key words that focus the process. Several others have mentioned only having one shot process for all three stages, this means you cannot have a list of steps an arm length long but you can have a few words that condense several steps into one word and after you train these steps into a few words then you have a repeatable process for all three stages.

The first big step to train is making your slow fire process faster, not really faster but just more committed to the shot from the instant you lift the pistol,  and then your rapid fire process will not need to be faster.

Just my take on it after reading the postings of Zins, John B., Cecil, Jon and others.