One survey found that 30% of respondents personally own a gun. Such a high percentage makes proper gun training and gun safety essential. A lack of shooting accuracy can result in a higher chance of injuring yourself or those around you.
In this article, we discuss gun practice and the best accuracy drills. Continue reading to improve your gun safety and shooting accuracy at the gun range.
Prepare Your Gun Training Gear
Understanding gun safety is an essential part of effective gun training, whether on private property or at a gun range. This includes bringing the right equipment with you when practicing shooting accuracy.
Unless you’re planning to rent all of your equipment, you should also plan to bring ear and eye protection. Choose safety glasses that meet OSHA standards over other kinds of eyewear. You can bring earmuffs or earplugs to protect your hearing.
Gun Safety Tips
Equipment isn’t the only important part of gun safety. How you treat your gun during gun practice is how you’ll treat it in real life. For this reason, working good gun safety habits into your gun range practice is essential.
Check Your Gun Is Clean and Clear Before and After Use
A thorough check of your gun before and after gun training can help avoid accidents, such as jams and misfires. First, be sure the gun is unloaded and there are no rounds in the chamber.
Next, check the entire gun for any signs of damage that might affect the gun’s performance. Finally, check for any obstructions in the barrel or elsewhere. However, you should NEVER look directly down the barrel from the firing end.
Always Treat the Gun As If It Were Loaded
One of the most important gun safety tips you can know is to always treat your gun as if it were loaded. This applies even if you are completely sure the gun is unloaded. It also means you shouldn’t solely rely on the gun’s safety switch.
Whenever you handle a firearm, point it in a safe direction, which means pointing it away from anyone and anything you wouldn’t want to shoot.
Keep Finger Off the Trigger Until Shooting
Another important gun safety tip is to keep your finger off the trigger until you’re prepared to shoot. You can keep your finger along the side of the gun instead.
Keeping your finger against the trigger can easily result in a misfire. All it takes is tripping or a strong sneeze for your finger to flinch and set off the firearm. Even if your safety switch is on, keep your finger off the trigger.
Gun Range Safety
While practicing good safety with how you handle a firearm is important, you also want to be sure to follow gun range safety while running your accuracy drills. This involves learning the gun range terminology to respect the Range Master.
Watch the Firing Line
The firing line is a line perpendicular to your lane. When you cross the line, you are in the firing zone. This is where you’re allowed to discharge your weapon as long as the Range Master allows it.
If you’re not behind the line, your gun should be unloaded and the safety switch turned on. Socializing or switching out parts should be done on the other side of the line.
Gun Range Terminology
Before starting your accuracy drills, take the time to familiarize yourself with common gun range terminology. This includes terms such as downrange, hot and cold, backstop, lanes, bench, and ceasefire.
The most important of which is a ceasefire, which means to stop firing and unload your firearm. Whenever the Range Master or any other person yells this phrase or tells you to stop shooting, you must do so immediately.
Respect the Range Master
The Range Master is also called the Range Safety Officer. They are responsible for enforcing the gun range rules and keeping everyone safe. You should follow the commands of the Range Master immediately to avoid injury or injuring others.
Pay attention to what’s going on around you during gun training, so you know when the Range Master is giving a command. If they’ve called a ceasefire, they’ll let you know when you can resume shooting.
Clean Up After Yourself
An important part of gun range etiquette is to leave your lane cleaner than how you found it. Clean up any spent shells, casings, targets, and other trash. It’s part of being respectful of the gun range, the Range Master, and other shooters.
Accuracy Drills For Gun Practice
Once you’ve collected all of your gear and reviewed the necessary gun safety standards, you’re ready to start your shooting accuracy drills. Gun training is an important part of developing your shooting muscle memory.
The more your practice, the better your muscle memory, and the more fine-tuned your skills will become. Plus, the better your practice, the better you’ll be in real-life situations.
1. Dry Fire Drills
The first part of a dry fire shooting accuracy drill is to unload your gun. This includes removing all ammunition and ensuring there are no rounds in the chamber. Double-check the gun is unloaded by using a cleaning brush or a finger to check the barrel.
The term ‘dry fire’ refers to shooting without ammunition. The goal of the drill is to focus on visualization and movement, instead of pulling the trigger. You’ll work on your shooting position and react quickly and effectively.
Goals of the Dry Fire Accuracy Drills
Some techniques of these types of drills include finding your target and getting it lined up in your scope as quickly and accurately as possible before squeezing the trigger. Try keeping your eyes open when pulling the trigger, so you can see where your shot lands.
2. One-Shot Drills
One-shot accuracy drills involve taking a single shot at the target between holstering. For this drill, you need a firearm holster. The ideal holster is a side holster for quick and easy access.
Load your gun with a single round before placing it securely in its holster. Take your shooting position and then quickly unholster your gun to take your aim. Finally, fire a single round at your target and return the firearm to the holster.
Goals of the One-Shot Accuracy Drills
Shooting accuracy drills such as one-shot drills are meant to create fluidity in your movements. Starting with your gun in its holster is one of the most important accuracy drills where self-defense is concerned.
3. Trigger Control Drills
Trigger control refers to the amount of movement you cause when pulling the trigger. This movement is ideally kept to a minimum.
There are several different trigger control drills you can practice to improve your shooting accuracy. One popular drill for gun practice is the Brass on The Front Sight drill.
After completely unloading your weapon, take your shooting stance and have a partner place a piece of spent brass on the sight so it doesn’t fall off. Then, you’ll take your shot while trying to keep the brass from falling off.
Goals of Trigger Control Drills
The more your gun moves before and during firing affects your shooting accuracy. During gun practice, trigger control drills aim to minimize this movement.
Gun Training at the Gun Range
Incorporating shooting accuracy drills in your gun training is an important part of developing good shooting habits. The better you practice shooting accuracy, the better your aim will be in real life.
Sign up for your Texas Gun Club membership today to start your accuracy training.
