BULLSEYE SHOOTING

     Shooting Bullseye is a demanding sport. The object is to hit a spot called the bullseye that measures a little over three inches in diameter twenty times in a row. At fifty yards away the bullseye looks like the head of a pin. Not easy when holding the gun at arms length with one hand while the body swings in the breeze. The average pistol shooter would be indeed fortunate to hit the whole target five times out of twenty. Forget the bullseye.

     It takes a lot of training, practice and natural ability to just be a mediocre shooter competing at the Camp Perry matches. It takes a great deal more to be able to place in the top ten percent. Bullseye shooting tends to make the bullseye shooter fanatic about the accuracy of his gun. After all, without an accurate gun what good is natural ability and hard work? Bullseye shooting requires guns that are either top of the line and or accurized which can be an expensive process. Reloading for bullseye shooting is detailed and precise as to brand and weight of powder, crimp, bullet maker and assembly. The guns and ammo are usually tested in a machine rest such as the Ransom Rest to be certain that they meet the standards of bullseye accuracy.

     Top Bullseye shooters are also fanatic about training and understanding the mechanics of the perfect shot. They spend hours dry firing and actual practice on the range.

     So the question can be asked. Is all this necessary and is this the right approach to higher bullseye shooting scores? Most bullseye shooters would answer yes. However, this answer relies on two half truths. These two half truths are based on apparent logic and commonsense.

     The first half truth is that a bullseye score is the accuracy of the gun added to the accuracy of the shooter. This is obviously true. Therefore a more accurate gun translates into a better score. The whole truth is that with the exception of shooters in the top ten percent any gun purchased without defects and used as is out of the box will produce a score that cannot be improved with any noticeable difference using the most accurate gun available. The same holds true for any reasonable bullet and load.

     Almost any make gun will shoot 4-6 inch 50 yard groups using a Ransom Rest or 6-8 inch groups using sand bags. This level of accuracy is sufficient for most bullseye shooters. So why waste time and money on guns and ammo. Some shooters understand this using the phrase "The gun shoots better than me." But few shooters understand to what extent this is true.

     Nevertheless, even those shooters who understand the above will still insist on an accurate gun believing that during live practice an error in aiming or firing can be revealed by the location of the bullet hole on the target. There are charts and diagrams that illustrate the cause of the errors by the location of the bullet hole. Unless the gun is accurate there is no way to determine whether the error was due to the gun or shooter. Without this feedback there can be no improvement. Certainly a good argument in favor of an accurate gun. This leads to the second half truth.

     This is that every shot must be placed in or near the bullseye for a good score. This is obviously true but the whole truth is the location of 10 or 20 shots is the only piece of information that is important. This information reflects the skill of the shooter and any errors the shooter is prone to make. A single shot proves nothing. If the accuracy of the gun is known there are methods that can be used to isolate and gauge shooter skill and indicate what changes need to be made for improvement. The book presents the methods to separate gun error from shooter error.

     The shooter will tend to be less accurate than the gun but will approach the accuracy of the gun as skill improves. When shooter skill approaches gun accuracy to a point where scores can be noticeably improved with a better gun or load then changes can be considered. This rarely happens. So generally speaking a highly accurate gun is not required for practice either. Bottom line is that most Bullseye shooters should pay less attention to guns and ammo and practice, practice, practice.

     Statistics of handgun accuracy explains how and why this is all so. And what it requires to become a better shooter in a cost effective and efficient way.

     Statistics of Handgun Accuracy can be purchased directly from the publisher, from online bookstores, or ordered through your local bookstores and Amazon.

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