We all like our hardware to be as accurate as possible, and obviously the best results will be achieved under optimum conditions (no breeze, good rests, good ammo etc). Lets say we're generally shooting OFFHAND to a max of 200 yards. What MOA, roughly, do you reckon most "average" people are capable of assuming no breeze and what would be your longest, CONFIDENT shot offhand at mule deer size game.
Accuracy in the field.
- Thread starter John57
- Start date
The answer to your question is obviously dependent on the amount of practice and familiarity with the gun. I would think a person should practice enough to be able to put a 3 shoot group into a 6" circle @ 200 yards. Not too many shots taken @ 200 are "offhand" though. At that range, most folks use some kind of makeshift rest, even if it's leaning up against a tree. I'm a terrible "offhand" shooter. Give me something to steady the gun a bit and I can hold my own.
Blaine
Blaine
longwinters
Handloader
- Oct 10, 2004
- 1,476
- 1
I know that there are people who can consistently shoot well off hand but I have never seen one to see how it is done. Granted there are the guys/gals that go to the big shoots etc... with their specialized gear that are very good, but I am talking about the basic hunter type person. I would be hard pressed to shoot off hand. My whole life I have shot off of a rest of one type or another and I really see no reason to change. For me better to not get a shot than take a chance, with my very limited off hand abilities, wounding an animal.
Long
Long
- Nov 4, 2004
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john57,
Blaine gives a good answer and practice, practice, practice.
I have shot high power competition and 200 yd offhand is fairly easy once you get used to it. I have also shot metallic silouette, the rams at 500 meters which is 547 yds.
I agree with Long, take a rest if possible. My longest offhand shot is well under 100yds.
Regards,
JD338
Blaine gives a good answer and practice, practice, practice.
I have shot high power competition and 200 yd offhand is fairly easy once you get used to it. I have also shot metallic silouette, the rams at 500 meters which is 547 yds.
I agree with Long, take a rest if possible. My longest offhand shot is well under 100yds.
Regards,
JD338
roysclockgun
Handloader
- Dec 17, 2005
- 736
- 1
John57 wrote: "... generally shooting OFFHAND to a max of 200 yards. What MOA, roughly, do you reckon most "average" people are capable of ..."
The question includes that booga-boo word, "average", so is hard to answer. In Hi-Power matches, I see shooters printing tight groups, off hand, using no sling, at 200 yds, but who is average? I dunno. On a good day, I could put a high degree of my rounds inside 10" at 200 yds with a US M1 Rifle, using battle sights and standard issue ammo. Plenty of shooters beat me, for sure. Having had that experience and if I was using my scoped hunting rifle, I would take the shot at a deer at 200 yds. if forced to. Mark, "if forced to" means nothing near on which to rest and being in grass high enough that I could not sit. For me, trying that 200 yard shot on deer, off hand, standing, approaches the line of being unethical, as a quick clean kill on game is very important to me.
The question includes that booga-boo word, "average", so is hard to answer. In Hi-Power matches, I see shooters printing tight groups, off hand, using no sling, at 200 yds, but who is average? I dunno. On a good day, I could put a high degree of my rounds inside 10" at 200 yds with a US M1 Rifle, using battle sights and standard issue ammo. Plenty of shooters beat me, for sure. Having had that experience and if I was using my scoped hunting rifle, I would take the shot at a deer at 200 yds. if forced to. Mark, "if forced to" means nothing near on which to rest and being in grass high enough that I could not sit. For me, trying that 200 yard shot on deer, off hand, standing, approaches the line of being unethical, as a quick clean kill on game is very important to me.
texas_shooter
Beginner
- Feb 22, 2006
- 10
- 0
A question for you guys that have done a fair amount of off-hand shooting... I haven't been doing this shooting/hunting thing very long (relatively speaking). Most of my shooting is done from a bench with a rest. Even hunting I am shooting from a stand that has a window that I can rest the rifle on..... Most of the local rifle ranges that I shoot at do not allow off hand shooting. Unless, it's small bore silhoutte. I am considering taking this discipline up as a sport... even compete in some of the matches. I am not worried about coming in dead last... that's how I learn. So after all of that.. my question is, will shooting small bore silhouette make me a better off hand shooter with larger calibers? Not necessarily the "big bore" calibers like 375 and larger. I realize there is the "flinch factor" with those calibers. I am talking about the standard "North American" hunting calibers where recoil isn't that much of a concern.
I would say the answer to your question is: "Most certainly!!!" You always benefit from practice, because of both your familiarity with your gun, and learning the art of releasing when you are ready. As I mentioned above, I'm not what you could consider a "off hand long distance" shooter. But on the other hand, I've been shooting the same gun(s) for over 20 years. I know when the trigger breaks, and I know instinctively where the gun goes on my shoulder and where my eye needs to be for the best sight picture, etc. With the confidence I have in my gun and with how I can shoot it, I would not hesitate to take an off-hand shot at a deer in the 100-150 yd range. Mind you, if there is any kind of rest I can improvise, I will use it, but if that deer is standing there looking like he is about to break, I would not pass up the shot.
Blaine
Blaine
texas_shooter
Beginner
- Feb 22, 2006
- 10
- 0
Blaine, thanks for your response.. and I completely agree. Small bore silhouette is a discipline using a 22lr caliber. Obviously I would never try and use s 22lr on anything larger than small varmints inside 100dys. So my question is... if you become proficient/confident in shooting off-hand with a caliber as small as a 22lr... will that help you become a better shot off hand with calibers such as 7mm-08 or .260? I do a ton of shoting with these calibers/rifles mentioned above. So I am extremely familiar with these rifles, triggers, even the balistics. But obviously they will "shoulder" differently than a smaller, lighter 22LR. My problem is that I don't have a facility that will allow me to shoot those rifles off hand.... so my only choice is 22lr at distances out to 100yds..but they sure are small targets!!!
- Nov 4, 2004
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t_s,
Blaine is right on the mark. Any trigger time you get is time well spent.
"Dry Firing" is also excellent practice with your big game rifle.
With time and practice, you will be able to call your shot when the hammer falls.
Learn to shoot your scoped rifle with BOTH eyes open. Again, in a hunting situation, you will be amazed at what you will see, how the game reacts to the hit, etc. when both eyes are open.
Shooting from a bench is great for sighting in and testing new loads.
After that, shoot from field positions. Prone would be the best place to start. Work on your sight picture, breathing, and heart rate.
Try this simple exercise. Once you are set up in position, close your eyes for a few seconds. This will relax your muscles and calm down the heart rate. Open your eyes and note where your cross hairs are. That is where your shot would have gone! Reposition yourself and repeat this exercise.
By doing this, you will focus on your shooting form.
Do the same thing from sitting position and finally offhand. With practice, you will become a better shooter without even firing a shot.
Hope this helps you out.
Regards,
JD338
Blaine is right on the mark. Any trigger time you get is time well spent.
"Dry Firing" is also excellent practice with your big game rifle.
With time and practice, you will be able to call your shot when the hammer falls.
Learn to shoot your scoped rifle with BOTH eyes open. Again, in a hunting situation, you will be amazed at what you will see, how the game reacts to the hit, etc. when both eyes are open.
Shooting from a bench is great for sighting in and testing new loads.
After that, shoot from field positions. Prone would be the best place to start. Work on your sight picture, breathing, and heart rate.
Try this simple exercise. Once you are set up in position, close your eyes for a few seconds. This will relax your muscles and calm down the heart rate. Open your eyes and note where your cross hairs are. That is where your shot would have gone! Reposition yourself and repeat this exercise.
By doing this, you will focus on your shooting form.
Do the same thing from sitting position and finally offhand. With practice, you will become a better shooter without even firing a shot.
Hope this helps you out.
Regards,
JD338
texas_shooter
Beginner
- Feb 22, 2006
- 10
- 0
JD, fortunately I have learned to shoot with both eyes open. This helps keep the eye strain to a minimum. Additionally, I use that exact same breathing exercise while participating in F-class matches as well as bench rest matches. Since F-class is all shot from a prone position,I have done quite a bit of that and I am very comfortable shooting from that position. Really the only thing I haven't had a lot of experience at is the standing off hand position. I am very confident at most other positions. Sounds like I just need to find a place where I am allowed to shoot standing off-hand and practice, practice, practice.....
- Nov 4, 2004
- 25,162
- 8,419
t_s,
Sounds like you are well on your way.
Regards,
JD338
Sounds like you are well on your way.
Regards,
JD338
remingtonman_25_06
Handloader
- Nov 17, 2005
- 2,807
- 402
I have been fortunate enough to learn to shoot with both eyes open as well. I can do either way, but still prefer to close 1 eye. Sometimes I do it with both eyes open though. Ive tried to get my dad to learn how, but he just cant. I never practice offhand. Dont really need to. All the terrain I hunt is flat. It either offers me a prone position, or sitting. I practice most laying prone with a harris bipod. THis is the steadiest position and one I feel comfortable with most. The next is sitting with the harris bipod. I think out of all the animals I have shot since I was 13, I have only not been able to use my bipod on 1 deer. All the rest, I had plenty of time to flip the bipod out, range the animal, and make a good shot.
Guy Miner
Master Loader
- Apr 6, 2006
- 17,746
- 5,817
Even if you mostly practice offhand with a .22 rimfire, you will gain tremendous skill at that position, if you practice regularly.
I do a lot of offhand shooting. Why? Because it's hard. Difficult to be truly accurate.
Easy to shoot from a bipod or other supported prone position, but tough to make that shot when the chips are down w/o practice. I made a good shot on a running mule deer at about 125 yards this year.
A good .22 will allow a fellow to practice his offhand, kneeling and sitting without breaking the bank due to ammo costs.
Regards, Guy
I do a lot of offhand shooting. Why? Because it's hard. Difficult to be truly accurate.
Easy to shoot from a bipod or other supported prone position, but tough to make that shot when the chips are down w/o practice. I made a good shot on a running mule deer at about 125 yards this year.
A good .22 will allow a fellow to practice his offhand, kneeling and sitting without breaking the bank due to ammo costs.
Regards, Guy
roysclockgun
Handloader
- Dec 17, 2005
- 736
- 1
Annie Oakley did not acquire her immortality by shooting off a bi-pod. Shooting off-hand is a basic skill needed by riflemen in the field. The only way for most of us to build up that skill is with practice. Certainly any sort of practice helps, to include using air rifles and/or BB guns. In over 50 years of practice with a rifle, I have only met two men who seemed to possess great natural ability from the moment that they picked up a firearm. After receiving basic training in the workings of the rifle, they were able to hit just about anything they took under fire, from any position. That said, practice remains the key to being able to hit off-hand.
Greg Nolan
Handloader
- Nov 25, 2004
- 2,143
- 18
I second Roy's Clock and Gun.
Most of us grew up shooting Daisy BB guns with tens of thousands of BBs almost exclusively from offhand and it became instinctive like skeet shooting. I believe almost anyone could shoot into the kill zone of a deer at 100 yds with this kind of practice and moving on to thier deer rifle to get the timing of the let off down. We unfortunately don't have the time, patience or whatever to do these things anymore so we get our practice at a bench. I find the instinct kicks in still today on hurried shots which surprises me because I couldn't make that shot on a deliberate carefull offhand shot. I still to this day practice off season with my BB gun and it gives me co-ordinaton and excercise of the shooting involved muscles. 200 yards isn't that hard if we just put in the practice time.
Good Hunting
Most of us grew up shooting Daisy BB guns with tens of thousands of BBs almost exclusively from offhand and it became instinctive like skeet shooting. I believe almost anyone could shoot into the kill zone of a deer at 100 yds with this kind of practice and moving on to thier deer rifle to get the timing of the let off down. We unfortunately don't have the time, patience or whatever to do these things anymore so we get our practice at a bench. I find the instinct kicks in still today on hurried shots which surprises me because I couldn't make that shot on a deliberate carefull offhand shot. I still to this day practice off season with my BB gun and it gives me co-ordinaton and excercise of the shooting involved muscles. 200 yards isn't that hard if we just put in the practice time.
Good Hunting
- Oct 30, 2004
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Blaine":21o5961b said:
Ditto! I never shoot offhand less than 50 yards. I suk!
