Shot the Sig....

Millie

Get on with your life!!!
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Hi, my name is Millie, and I shoot low left!

Had a great lesson with Tony this morning. Learned a lot!
He explained "trigger reset" to me, showed me on his pistol and since we were in the classroom, I could hear the tiny click! Also he demonstrated "slapping" the trigger. Once I got more rounds we went to the lanes and I shot 2 kinds of jhp, which the gun seemed to like. Also a lot of fmj rounds.

The bad news: I'm still shooting low left.

The good news: My first shot is right in the middle part of the target. I'm taking this to mean I might hit a bad guy where I need to with at least one shot! (I'm going to put this positive spin on it for now, anyway. Lol.)
It seems I'm anticipating the recoil in the subsequent shots and they end up low and left. But I found the "sweet spot" on my trigger finger that produces the best hits for me. I just can't (yet) concentrate on the sights, the thumbs, the finger, at the same time....

So what I got from all this is:
1.) I love the Sig!
2.) I need to shoot a lot.
3.) There's a lot to think about all at once!
4.) My right thumb can rest on top of the safety, so that my left will settle away from the slide and I won't have to worry about where it is.
5.) I found the reset on the Sig, can't hear it in the lanes, but I'll listen for it during dry firing. But I can "feel" it when shooting, if I go slow and concentrate just on that.
6.) Wow, there's a lot to work on in the coming weeks, months, years, decades!!!

So all in all, a productive day, I think. Tony is good at explaining things so I can get what he's talking about. (He knows a lot for such a young person.) I think he thinks I'm doing ok for a newbie. At any rate, he seemed ok with my progress, so that's encouraging.
The gun I bought felt as nice as the rental one, and I'm even more certain it's the perfect gun for me.

And most of all...I had fun!!

Oh yes, I forgot about all the cases that hit me today...caught a couple on my arm, one on the chest, had more than one bounce off my head and even got one stuck behind my glasses! But I didn't stop, barely let them register, and kept on shooting till the slide locked back. Then I lifted the glasses enough for the case to drop out the bottom.
Ok, that's my report, target pics at a later date.
 
Just to add to the confusion ;)
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After 40+ years of shooting I still have low left days...especially with Glocks.

Stick with it and keep having fun!
If I had gotten serious about this 30 years ago, I'd be a decent shot by now probably! Maybe....
But it was fun, so....
 
Since you are new to the Sig and to shooting, you've come a long way already.
How many inches were your groups?
 
Good job! Keep practicing.

I am shooting a match on Sunday. When I live fire practice tomorrow, I will begin with fundamentals one per round (slowly), then work my way up to speed and timed shots.
 
Hi, my name is Millie, and I shoot low left!

The gun I bought felt as nice as the rental one, and I'm even more certain it's the perfect gun for me.

And most of all...I had fun!!
Seems to me, if all you accomplished today were these two points, you had a wonderful day. :)
 
Since you are new to the Sig and to shooting, you've come a long way already.
How many inches were your groups?
Oh dear, are you going to make me measure them?
One group might have been salad plate, but others were more of a wonky dinner plate size. The I had some shots not even anywhere near anything I was aiming at! It was a mixed bag...lol.
Ok, went and measured...some groups were within 3", a lot were within 8-9". He had me shooting pretty close up, and a magazine for each target. (Those targets that have 9 little targets on each sheet.) And I see some random ones way out...lol. Lotsa low left all over, but a lot of the shots in the second ring from the middle, some in the same hole......
 
Sounds like you had a good day all around! I alway hit what I aim for, just so happens that I like to shoot at things off my target at times ;)
 
You must mean that telling me my pics aren't showing (again) will piss me off, because you surely can't mean my shooting "skills"....
I mean I don’t wanna be on your muzzle end. ;)
 
Very nice. Just keep dry firing and practicing. Baby steps. Plus a little low and left still hurts the bad guy. you don't have to be perfect. Just safe and steady.
Low middle would be better for really hurting the bad guy!!
Let's hear it for bollocks shots!
 
I see lots of dead bad guys. The placement will improve with time.
 
Shot placement of your groups would have still put the target down with groups like that.
So you think I can (almost) defend myself ? I really don't want some lowlife to hurt/kill me after all I've been thru to stay alive!
 
So you think I can (almost) defend myself ? I really don't want some lowlife to hurt/kill me after all I've been thru to stay alive!

Yes. Very few people are going to want to continue an attack or hang around with a couple center mass shots.
 
@Millie your targets look great.

Do this. Stand in front of a mirror and hold the paper in front of you so that one target is centered in front of your chest. Then look at where the bullet holes in the target are in relation to your chest. Finally, think about where the bullets would have gone in a person ... the first bullet would have gone in the heart ... the second bullet would have gone in the left lung ... the third bullet would have been a flesh wound ... the fourth bullet would have gone in the right kidney.
 
@Millie your targets look great.

Do this. Stand in front of a mirror and hold the paper in front of you so that one target is centered in front of your chest. Then look at where the bullet holes in the target are in relation to your chest. Finally, think about where the bullets would have gone in a person ... the first bullet would have gone in the heart ... the second bullet would have gone in the left lung ... the third bullet would have been a flesh wound ... the fourth bullet would have gone in the right kidney.
That's a good way to look at it! The "bad guy" would have been hurting for sure!! Lol. So maybe my salad-plate groups aren't so bad....but I can get better....
 
We can all get better. But your groups are combat accuracy terrific.
Nice of you to say, if "combat accuracy" is good? I've never heard that expression before. I'm researching sights now, to learn more about how they work and what I can do to help my shots be more where I'm aiming...lol.
 
It's the p238...and I love it! (Except for the low left thing....lol.)
I never would have thought this would turn out to be the gun for me...
 
Keep practicing... dry fire, live fire (when you can).

Don't feel bad, I was live fire practicing today for a match tomorrow and found myself "slapping the trigger" with low left shots on target.

So... More dry fire practice tonight, good nights' sleep and slower timing of shots (better and smoother follow through) tomorrow.
 
To the low left issue, keep this in mind. It sounds like you have found your best trigger finger placement, so that's a good start.

But the wrist wants to naturally rotate counter clockwise when you squeeze something. The thumb tends to take over at the last second and rotate the wrist slightly counterclockwise. To see this in motion, unload the gun, squeeze the trigger till the hammer falls, then squeeze a little more. My guess is you see some rotation. If you don't, try squeezing the trigger again before you reset it. Between the thumb squeezing in and the trigger finger pushing out instead of coming straight back you get low left.

The solution starts with the trigger finger. Then dry fire. Get a good sight picture on an object and squeeze through until the hammer falls. You want to pull straight back with the finger and not disrupt the sight picture. Keep the front site centered in the rear site. If you start to rotate the front site will move to the left and drop low, meaning low left hits.

Most non shooters curl their trigger finger in when they make a fist, which is the equivalent of pulling the trigger. Folks that shoot a lot pull thier finger straight back and have a hard time curling the trigger finger. Muscle memory from lots of shooting and dry fire.
 
Keep practicing... dry fire, live fire (when you can).

Don't feel bad, I was live fire practicing today for a match tomorrow and found myself "slapping the trigger" with low left shots on target.

So... More dry fire practice tonight, good nights' sleep and slower timing of shots (better and smoother follow through) tomorrow.
I'll be practicing a lot between now and Tuesday, when I go back to Jim's.
 
To the low left issue, keep this in mind. It sounds like you have found your best trigger finger placement, so that's a good start.

But the wrist wants to naturally rotate counter clockwise when you squeeze something. The thumb tends to take over at the last second and rotate the wrist slightly counterclockwise. To see this in motion, unload the gun, squeeze the trigger till the hammer falls, then squeeze a little more. My guess is you see some rotation. If you don't, try squeezing the trigger again before you reset it. Between the thumb squeezing in and the trigger finger pushing out instead of coming straight back you get low left.

The solution starts with the trigger finger. Then dry fire. Get a good sight picture on an object and squeeze through until the hammer falls. You want to pull straight back with the finger and not disrupt the sight picture. Keep the front site centered in the rear site. If you start to rotate the front site will move to the left and drop low, meaning low left hits.

Most non shooters curl their trigger finger in when they make a fist, which is the equivalent of pulling the trigger. Folks that shoot a lot pull thier finger straight back and have a hard time curling the trigger finger. Muscle memory from lots of shooting and dry fire.
I'll look for the rotating wrist. There sure is a lot more to this than I thought! But I'll get a handle on a lot of it as time goes by, I hope. Thanks for the response.
 
Millie, there are two points that haven't been touched, combat accuracy and sights. Yes, my comment was meant to be very positive. Keeping the majority of your hits in center mass fairly ensures you are going to damage the bad guy. That's what is supposed to happen.
In broad terms, there are two types of handguns. There are guns specifically designed and optioned for bulls eye kind of accuracy. The other kind of gun is designed for combat and/or personal defense. Your P238 is a personal defense weapon, I also own one and carried it for a while. It was not designed for accuracy and target shooting (although mine is very accurate), it was envisioned as an up close protective tool. If you take a close look at the Sig night sights, they are fairly large and easy to see when trying to get on target. They are not target sights, but what I call combat sights. Over time I decided they are too large and with enough practice and trigger time others think so too.
Shooting a handgun, as you are discovering is not an easy task. But the best thing you can do for yourself is to continue training with a professional instructor.
 
Best proficiency will be gained with a 22lr target pistol and those skills will transfer over to a combat pistol. From what I'm reading you're beginning this journey and it's hard to go back and un-learn bad habits and muscle memory which are quickly picked up by shooting a subcompact combat pistol and little grasp of basic fundamentals. I know you want to shoot your P238 but you really should be spending more time behind a tool that will better develop your fundamentals and that's gonna be a 22lr pistol. All of the advice and feedback on fundamentals means nothing if you're training on the wrong tool....it's liking teaching a new driver how to drive with a compact car that's light on weight and high on horsepower.

You're doing the right things it sounds as far as actually getting out and shooting and getting training but at this critical time you need to train with a tool more appropriate for learning. This is the most valid reason for buying another gun that you'll find...lol.


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