Flinching - Part II - Rifleman

Guns Magazine, March, 2002

Flinching and blinking are the biggest obstacles to overcome when shooting accurately. Last issue, we talked about diagnosing the presence and severity of these reactions by using downrange video cameras and the "ball and dummy" exercise. If you are one of the rare individuals who never flinches or blinks, good for you. Keep doing what you're doing. If you discovered a problem, let's work on a cure.

Flinching and blinking are habits developed from reacting to the blast and recoil of the shot. The way to replace bad habits with good ones is to establish proper shooting techniques (hold, indexing, trigger release, follow through) while eliminating the negative effects of blast and recoil. And the best way to do this is by dry-firing.

Many believe that the only reason for dry-fire practice is to save money on ammunition, or save the inconvenience of driving to a range. Certainly these are worthwhile benefits. But even if you live next door to a range and have unlimited access to free ammunition, dry-firing should be a regular part of your practice. Military shooting teams, which have those resources available, still spend considerable time dry-firing. The reason: Dry-fire builds positive habits. This has been well-documented by the best shooting coaches.

Bill Pullum (Lt. Col., Ret., U.S. Army), who coached Olympic and International U.S. shooters to unparalleled success, wrote: "Shoulder jerks, eye blinks, flinches of all types, delayed reactions and false starts can all appear in the trigger-pull sequence... when they do, trigger-pull techniques usually must be relearned from the beginning. This conditioning practice is best accomplished by dry-firing, which is probably fifty to a hundred times faster than any other method" (Position Rifle Shooting, Bill Pullum/Frank Hanenkrat, Stoeger Publishing Co. 1973).

A. A. Yur'Yev, competitive shooter and coach for the former Soviet Union, wrote: "Dry-firing has its favorable aspects which cannot be replaced by live firing.., the shooter is able to detect a number of errors in the technique of firing a shot, including defects in the trigger release. If jerking the trigger is detected... the shooter should stop live firing and begin dry-firing to enable the nervous system to rest somewhat from recoil and the sound of the shot... by doing this, some of the acquired conditioned reflexes detrimental to shooting such as flinching.., excess straining of the muscles.., blinking at the sound of the shot... will begin to decrease and then completely disappear" (Competitive shooting, A. A. Yur'Yev, NRA Publications, 1985).

When dry-firing, safety must be the first consideration. Only dry-fire when aiming at a backstop that will absolutely contain a bullet. Finding a safe backstop isn't that easy. When I lived in a city, I used to dry-fire in my basement at a target taped to a concrete foundation wall. Frankly, I can't think of a satisfactory alternative. Alternatively, carry out your dry-fire practice at a range where live-firing would be possible. There should be no live ammunition anywhere in the practice area. Check, double check, and check yet again to be certain the firearm is unloaded -- and then treat it as though it is loaded.

It seems hard to believe now, but one writer, now long gone, wrote that he used to dry fire in his back yard using a light-colored brick in a neighbor's chimney as a target. Another author made the suggestion to practice running shots from your living room, using the wheels of passing cars as aiming points. Try that today, and you may end up with a jail term, a criminal record, or a prohibition against owing firearms.

Dry-fire every shot with all the focus and attention you can manage. Sloppy, careless practice sessions do more harm than good. Index the rifle on target and concentrate on a smooth trigger release. Maintain a sharp focus on sights or reticle throughout the trigger press. Ideally, the trigger press should impart no movement to the sight picture.

Concentrate particularly on evaluating the sight picture at the exact instant the trigger breaks. The ability to "call" the shot (to see and evaluate the sight picture as the shot is being fired) is critical. Blinking just as the shot fires is such a common habit that 'I'm convinced many shooters are completely incapable of calling the shot. Until you can keep your eyes open and see the exact position of sights or reticle before and during recoil, there isn't much you can do to Improve.

Dry-firing should not completely replace live-fire. Regular live-fire sessions should be scheduled to keep familiar with the effects of recoil and report. It's best to keep individual sessions short to keep bad habits from reoccurring.

Accuracy testing from the bench does little to improve practical shooting skills. Make a point of practicing from practical positions. If you detect any signs of blinking, go to intensive dry-fire sessions until proper habits are re-established.

I love the convenience of shooting air rifles, and I shoot one year-round. A couple of months before hunting season, I go to scheduled practice sessions with whatever rifle I expect to be using. A schedule that works for me is 30 dry-fire rounds daily (10 each offhand, kneeling, and sitting) plus 10 live-fire rounds weekly (five offhand, five sitting). Every shot is fired with all the attention I can command. (Shots fired sighting in or testing equipment don't count.)