Dry Fire training - questions/observation

Some questions and observation.
90% of my dry firing is done on white wall, 10% with a SCATT.

When you dry fire to you go through your shot process with each shot?
Is the pace between "shots" the same as in a match?
Do you dry fire with range commands?
How long is a typical dry fire session?
How many "shots"?

In the past I would rack the slide bring the gun up and dry fire, one after another, with no thought about process, my only focus was on my grip and the trigger press.  I could only do this for about 5 - 10 minutes (20-40 "shots") without losing concentration.  Trigger release was smooth and dot stayed steady, but I didn't feel is was getting me what I needed.  I went to my full shot process, I don't get in as many reps but somehow things feel more satisfying.

Thoughts?

- Dave

Dryfire is practice to shoot tens.  So do it just like a match.

Dryfire also can be training to build on or discover a certain point or goal.  Drill on one point at a time.  But be flexible.

I practice about 40 min a day firing roughly 90 shots. 

20 minutes of "holding drills" where I set a timer for 20 seconds on 20 seconds off. I fire at a reduced 25 ft target (tq6). I start my process a couple seconds before the timers starts so by the time the 20 second timer starts I am lowering the dot onto the bull. From there I apply steady trigger to break the shot in 4-6 seconds. I will hold the follow through for the rest of the 20 second timer then rest for roughly 15 seconds and repeat 30 times. 

10 minutes of blank target training. I set a timer for 20 seconds. When the timer starts I raise the gun, lower to the target, and apply steady trigger to break the shot in 4-6 seconds. I have a 2-3 second follow through then rest for whatever is left of the 20 seconds then repeat that 30 times. 

10 minutes of reduced target training. The same as above except I aim at a reduced target. 

My goal is to pass stage 3 of the marines workbook so everything I practice revolves around slow fire.  I like using timers because they keep me on track. 

I have been looking at a SCATT to help quantify how my dry firing is going. Why do you only use you SCATT 10% of the time?

Corey

Telewreck wrote:I have been looking at a SCATT to help quantify how my dry firing is going. Why do you only use you SCATT 10% of the time?

Corey

I only use the SCATT when shooting with a target (10%of my dry fire), but I do use it 100% of the time when shooting with a target.  The other 90% is on a white wall.  When using the SCATT after I get it set up I turn the screen away from me and only look at it after every 5-10 shots.  What I look for is group size and the trace.  Over time the groups have tightened and the trace has shortened plus the amount of time in the X & 10 ring has increased (hold).  The SCATT can be very distracting so I use it only a couple of times a week and look for improvement over time.

I guess said another way the SCATT results only verify what you are seeing when you dry fire on a blank wall.

- Dave

I often use a blank white target for open sights. I always use a bull for dot sights or, rarely, a black line ~1/2 the width of the bull. I can't see subtle jumps in the dot without having a point of reference.

Ideally I would go through the whole process, and sometimes I do. I consider that "practice" to prepare for a match if I don't have time to get to the range.

Usually when I am dry firing, I am working on something specific, so I won't go through the whole process. This is "training" to solve a problem, evaluate different techniques or ingrain changes. My shots will be at about my match slow fire pace, sometimes a little faster, but I don't stop at 5 or 10 shots. Dry fire is slow fire training so I don't use commands.

My usual dry fire session is 10-20 minutes. Any longer and I get bored and stop paying attention.

As mentioned, it depends on what you're working on, whether to follow your shot plan or an abbreviated one.  I also use a blank target training exercise with my Rika, that I have put a page up about.  It is basically dry firing against a blank wall with evaluation based on the concentricity of all the traces.  If intereted:

Trigger Training with the Rika

There should be similar settings with the Scatt.

I also do sustained dry fire with my Rika, but it is much harder to set up.  I use a string tied to the slide to cycle the gun, but I find that I have to take the gun off target much further than live firing does to get it to register separate shots.  It does take a bit of "tweaking," but I think the sustained dry fire does help.  I also use the string/slide technique for other dry fire training, too.

I use a revolver and the "Bullseye Timer" app for sustained fire practice, but not as often as I should.