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Now, I normally hate making tutorials as I always feel that I never know enough to make one and would hate to misguide someone. But, shooting is what I know. My dad taught me. My dad was taught by his dad, and my dads dad is kind of a badass, being a Marine rifle instructor afew years after the Korean Conflict aswell as serving as a rifleman in the korean war. Im sure that you may have different ways of shooting, and I do not disagree with them. Im not trying to put down any other ways, this is simply how I was taught.
Now that I hope I have gained your trust in my schooling, lets look into breathing.
Breathing is pretty damn important for a sniper or DM. Whether mobile or prone, your breathing is a pretty big factor in your shooting. I was taught to breathe while looking down the sights. Not a giant breath so the enemy hears me, not so small that you have to pant, a quiet controlled breath coming in and out of the mouth. Keep your breath consistent, account for the slight, ever so slight bounce in your crosshairs. take a last breath, release it, and take your shot within the 1-4 second window between your last breath. If you don't take the shot and your prey/enemy is still there, repeat. If you don't take the shot then, your prey has heard you and your enemy has gone away. Lets move into pulling the trigger.
You DO NOT PULL THE TRIGGER. Pull implies a rough motion. In doing that you would jerk your gun up or down. No matter how excited you are, control that shit. Gently squeeze the trigger. Gently, but still swiftly. This (aswell as everything else I am typing) requires you to have some time alone with your rifle to practice. You do NOT want to test these tricks out when your in the battle. So, you take your breath, gently squeeze the trigger, and watch the chaos of the enemy squad.
Kentucky windage. A racist wind? I think not. Kentucky windage is when you see a pattern in your shots that are off target, so you compensate in your aiming. Example: Your are shooting at a person on a cliff, you notice that your bbs are hitting the rocks below him and luckily he doesn't notice. You would Kentucky windage it and aim above his head. This is absolutey NOT to be done during shooting in your rifle, as it will completely mess up your groups and make your hands slip on the climb to sanity.
Mil-Dot system. Now, in airsoft, you really really wont need this. But, if your armed with a .308 rifle and are attempting to kill a Russian general, then this would apply. Ever see your scope with all the notches below the actual hairs? Those are not for looks, those are (for lack of better terms) mil dot notches. As I barely grasp the concept of how it works, I would rather not misguide you. I would advise a quick google search.
Sight picture! This is also very important. You have zeroed in your rifle, its a tack driver, but wait... Thats not all. You need to always position your face in the same way it was last. For some, this is hard. You just need a technique, or a ways of remembering. Almost like a nursery rhyme. But not with words, with actions. When I was starting out, I used to feel the way that mmy teeth hit the cheekplate through my cheek. It could be totally different for you, you just need to find your way. THIS, IS, VITAL. You NEED to be oriented in the same way as you were last time, otherwise zeroing in your scope is useless. This is very important to your shooting.
Slings! Slings are very important if you are standing/leaning (see below). You do NOT have a sling just to carry your rifle, you have it to shoot with aswell. (NOTE: You must have a shooters sling. Its alittle longer, two pointer, the kind you find at Cabela's or dicks) You hold your rifle infront of you, slide your hand through the sling, wrap your arm around it once, and then grab the handguard of your rifle. You should feel a certain sort of tension. Tension=stability. You should also notice that you are much steadier.
Your stances are also important. There are generally 3. There is standing, crouching, and prone. Standing is quite obvious, but many people do this in the wrong way. Look at your target. Position yourself in a way that your shoulder is facing your target. Get your feet shoulders width apart. Get your toes to face the same direction your chest is. Now, look at your target, and draw your rifle (All while staying in the same position.). The rifle draw is always important. You arent in a front lines situation where somebody is about to run you through with a bayonet. Slowly put your rifle in your shoulder. You see, if you did it fast, you'd waste too much energy and then you couldnt hold your rifle up as long as you could if you used this technique. Take your time when you are aiming. You may a
while start to feel fatigue creep into your arms. It'd at this point be better to just drop your rifle, take a deep breath, and bring your rifle up again. The deep breath brings air back into your system. However, you still do what I have said previously. Breathe, Squeeze, laugh at their antics. For a crouching stance, what you want to do it get your primary leg (Your primary leg is your right leg if you are right handed, and your secondary is your left vice versa if your a lefty) down onto the floor, and raise your secondary leg and rest your elbow on it with rifle in hand. This isnt as steady as prone, but its better than standing if you do not own a sling. For prone, you want to be very deliberate in your actions. Lie belly down, and make your secondary leg straight, and bend your primary leg so it is at an acute angle >. Your legs should be like (Primary: | Secondary: >) |>. You want your primary foot right on your thigh, the ball of your foot starting behind the kneecap and your heel ending somewhere in the middle (But if you have big feet you'll almost take up your whole thigh like me >
). That just about covers stances. (Also, if you are standing, no chicken wings on your arms unless your using a sling. No excuses.)
Now, I know this'll sound cheesy PURELY because of my wording, but hear me out. You see your target, you go through the rituals, and you have to get into a certain state of mind, almost like zen. Dont be excited, dont be drab, just be calm. Take a breath, gently start your squeeze, and loose the shot.
Now, this is little miscellanious, and its getting to me. I know that some hold their ARs this way, I dont know what you may have going on, or maybe your a better shot then me and you do this, but even if you have a quadrail.. Just use the handguard. Grab the handguard. Grabbing the magwell I have found is unsteadier and if you grab your mag with your last two fingers on an air soft gun you may cause it to jam. While I'm ranting. Get some damn trigger discipline. Not rate of fire, but if your not about to cap my ass then have your finger across the trigger guard or even better on the damn handgrip.
Good suggestions from others:
Rifleman: When standing you can also use your breath to raise and lower your shot.
Generally speaking, assuming you're right handed, your left hand should be holding the rifle. You're right hand is just there for stability and to press the trigger.
When aiming you want to rely on your bones to support the rifle; your muscles will tire out and shake no matter how strong you are.There are also other things that most people wouldn't think of. My father wouldn't eat sugary food and would drink decaf coffee the day of the shoot because he said that they made him ever so slightly more shaky. Also bulky or constricting clothes can help stabalize you when shooting. Everyone shot better with heavy coats on in the winter than in T-shirts in the spring.
This isn't a definitive guide, this is how I was taught and I chose to share it. Hope you guys benefit from it!
Now that I hope I have gained your trust in my schooling, lets look into breathing.
Breathing is pretty damn important for a sniper or DM. Whether mobile or prone, your breathing is a pretty big factor in your shooting. I was taught to breathe while looking down the sights. Not a giant breath so the enemy hears me, not so small that you have to pant, a quiet controlled breath coming in and out of the mouth. Keep your breath consistent, account for the slight, ever so slight bounce in your crosshairs. take a last breath, release it, and take your shot within the 1-4 second window between your last breath. If you don't take the shot and your prey/enemy is still there, repeat. If you don't take the shot then, your prey has heard you and your enemy has gone away. Lets move into pulling the trigger.
You DO NOT PULL THE TRIGGER. Pull implies a rough motion. In doing that you would jerk your gun up or down. No matter how excited you are, control that shit. Gently squeeze the trigger. Gently, but still swiftly. This (aswell as everything else I am typing) requires you to have some time alone with your rifle to practice. You do NOT want to test these tricks out when your in the battle. So, you take your breath, gently squeeze the trigger, and watch the chaos of the enemy squad.
Kentucky windage. A racist wind? I think not. Kentucky windage is when you see a pattern in your shots that are off target, so you compensate in your aiming. Example: Your are shooting at a person on a cliff, you notice that your bbs are hitting the rocks below him and luckily he doesn't notice. You would Kentucky windage it and aim above his head. This is absolutey NOT to be done during shooting in your rifle, as it will completely mess up your groups and make your hands slip on the climb to sanity.
Mil-Dot system. Now, in airsoft, you really really wont need this. But, if your armed with a .308 rifle and are attempting to kill a Russian general, then this would apply. Ever see your scope with all the notches below the actual hairs? Those are not for looks, those are (for lack of better terms) mil dot notches. As I barely grasp the concept of how it works, I would rather not misguide you. I would advise a quick google search.
Sight picture! This is also very important. You have zeroed in your rifle, its a tack driver, but wait... Thats not all. You need to always position your face in the same way it was last. For some, this is hard. You just need a technique, or a ways of remembering. Almost like a nursery rhyme. But not with words, with actions. When I was starting out, I used to feel the way that mmy teeth hit the cheekplate through my cheek. It could be totally different for you, you just need to find your way. THIS, IS, VITAL. You NEED to be oriented in the same way as you were last time, otherwise zeroing in your scope is useless. This is very important to your shooting.
Slings! Slings are very important if you are standing/leaning (see below). You do NOT have a sling just to carry your rifle, you have it to shoot with aswell. (NOTE: You must have a shooters sling. Its alittle longer, two pointer, the kind you find at Cabela's or dicks) You hold your rifle infront of you, slide your hand through the sling, wrap your arm around it once, and then grab the handguard of your rifle. You should feel a certain sort of tension. Tension=stability. You should also notice that you are much steadier.
Your stances are also important. There are generally 3. There is standing, crouching, and prone. Standing is quite obvious, but many people do this in the wrong way. Look at your target. Position yourself in a way that your shoulder is facing your target. Get your feet shoulders width apart. Get your toes to face the same direction your chest is. Now, look at your target, and draw your rifle (All while staying in the same position.). The rifle draw is always important. You arent in a front lines situation where somebody is about to run you through with a bayonet. Slowly put your rifle in your shoulder. You see, if you did it fast, you'd waste too much energy and then you couldnt hold your rifle up as long as you could if you used this technique. Take your time when you are aiming. You may a
while start to feel fatigue creep into your arms. It'd at this point be better to just drop your rifle, take a deep breath, and bring your rifle up again. The deep breath brings air back into your system. However, you still do what I have said previously. Breathe, Squeeze, laugh at their antics. For a crouching stance, what you want to do it get your primary leg (Your primary leg is your right leg if you are right handed, and your secondary is your left vice versa if your a lefty) down onto the floor, and raise your secondary leg and rest your elbow on it with rifle in hand. This isnt as steady as prone, but its better than standing if you do not own a sling. For prone, you want to be very deliberate in your actions. Lie belly down, and make your secondary leg straight, and bend your primary leg so it is at an acute angle >. Your legs should be like (Primary: | Secondary: >) |>. You want your primary foot right on your thigh, the ball of your foot starting behind the kneecap and your heel ending somewhere in the middle (But if you have big feet you'll almost take up your whole thigh like me >
). That just about covers stances. (Also, if you are standing, no chicken wings on your arms unless your using a sling. No excuses.)Now, I know this'll sound cheesy PURELY because of my wording, but hear me out. You see your target, you go through the rituals, and you have to get into a certain state of mind, almost like zen. Dont be excited, dont be drab, just be calm. Take a breath, gently start your squeeze, and loose the shot.
Now, this is little miscellanious, and its getting to me. I know that some hold their ARs this way, I dont know what you may have going on, or maybe your a better shot then me and you do this, but even if you have a quadrail.. Just use the handguard. Grab the handguard. Grabbing the magwell I have found is unsteadier and if you grab your mag with your last two fingers on an air soft gun you may cause it to jam. While I'm ranting. Get some damn trigger discipline. Not rate of fire, but if your not about to cap my ass then have your finger across the trigger guard or even better on the damn handgrip.
Good suggestions from others:
Rifleman: When standing you can also use your breath to raise and lower your shot.
Generally speaking, assuming you're right handed, your left hand should be holding the rifle. You're right hand is just there for stability and to press the trigger.
When aiming you want to rely on your bones to support the rifle; your muscles will tire out and shake no matter how strong you are.There are also other things that most people wouldn't think of. My father wouldn't eat sugary food and would drink decaf coffee the day of the shoot because he said that they made him ever so slightly more shaky. Also bulky or constricting clothes can help stabalize you when shooting. Everyone shot better with heavy coats on in the winter than in T-shirts in the spring.
This isn't a definitive guide, this is how I was taught and I chose to share it. Hope you guys benefit from it!
