Ted's Shooting Course

OK, so you have joined a gun club and you are going to learn to shoot. This first lesson is mostly about safety at a gun club, i.e. not shooting in the back garden, hunting etc. although all of the principles here apply there too and some more.

One of my clubs insists that you follow a novice training programme through each class of weapon in turn, and must be proved safe and competent with each one. Another of my clubs lets you choose the type of guns you want to shoot and the order in which you learn to shoot them. You are only allowed to shoot unsupervised the guns with which you have demonstrated proficiency. Both are right within the law. Find out what your club allows and go with the flow. (It's a bit like driving in UK and then crossing to drive on the continent, local rules apply, just accept it.)

Let's follow a novice through my first lesson from start to finish at my club, (remember elsewhere may be slightly different, not wrong.) If I can get the range to myself I like to start novices off at 10m from a PL7. Each successful target we go back 5m until we get to 25m.

1. Getting the gun, ammunition, targets and safety equipment.

At my club the first time novice is not allowed to carry the gun or ammunition. The supervisor carries those. As a novice you learn what will be expected when it is your turn to carry them, so pay attention to the detail. You will carry them when you are signed off as safe to shoot unattended.

Let's assume you are going to shoot a muzzle loading pistol, a revolver.

You will need 2 proper targets, ISSF 25/50m precision target called a PL7 in UK, 24 Powder phials, 36 caps, 24 ball and 24 greased wads or a jar of grease. (You will also need pegs or a staple gun and some clean rag or paper kitchen towel.)

The armourer/duty officer will get the gun from the safe. You should be shown that the gun is PROVED CLEAR, shown to be empty of ammunition, or unloaded, and therefore safe to handle. An unloaded pistol should be placed in a case or box and given to you to carry to the range. It stays in the box!

You will also need ear and eye protection.

2. The equipment is carried to the range.

You wait outside until the shooting is finished and the Range Officer has checked all the guns are clear.  At that point the range should be unlocked for people to enter and leave. If no one leaves, you wait at the back and queue. DO NOT TAKE THE GUN FROM THE BOX!

Let's assume someone has just left. The Range Officer allocates you the bay. Wait to be told to take the gun from the box. Some Range Officers will hold the line while your gun is taken out and proved clear, others will ask you to leave the gun in the box. The line goes forward to change targets and you go with them to put your first target up.

Whilst the line is forward NO ONE TOUCHES A GUN!!!!

When everybody is back behind the line of guns the Range Officer will tell everyone to put on their ear muffs and then tell them they may load and fire. If your gun isn't out, then now is the time to get it out. Put it on the bench muzzle pointing towards the target.

3. Loading the revolver.

If you do not have a firearms certificate and explosives licence then you will not be allowed to load the gun with black powder. Someone with an explosives licence will have to load it for you. However you are allowed to load with a black powder substitute, either Pyrodex, or Triple Seven. My club does not issue black powder. It only issues Pyrodex.

Put all your loading equipment out on the bench and put a percussion cap on each nipple. Fire the caps to clear the nipple and the chamber of any grease. This is the reason for six of the extra caps more than ball and powder. This is called capping off. Remove the broken, fired cap fragments. The remaining extra caps are in case of misfires.

Load the revolver. How to load a revolver.

4. Take up the shooting position.

When you pick up the gun make sure your index finger is off the trigger and out of the trigger guard. It only goes on to the trigger just before you shoot.

Never point the pistol in any direction except at the target, certainly NEVER at a person. The only exception is during loading a muzzleloader. There is a safety zone around the target. The pistol must never point outside this.

We will come back to this for more detail, but for the first time just stand at 45 degrees to the target, the gun is held in one hand. The shoulder of the shooting hand is nearest the target.

5. Aiming the gun.

We will come back to which eye to aim with, assume right handers aim with the right eye and close the left, vice versa for left handers. Shooting cross hand to eye is not best for accuracy.

You always focus on the front sight. Only look at the front sight. The target and the rear sight remain slightly out of focus all the time.

The tip of the front sight should be level with the shoulders of the rear sight. There should be an equal gap of white on either side of the front sight. Level and equal.

Aim just under the black of the target. It is easier to see black sights against white, the gun is adjusted to shoot high. This is called "six-o'-clock aim". More detail later.

6. Breathing.

Ideally you start the breathing cycle before aiming the gun. Breathe in a large breath without straining, and let it out without forcing out the last bit. Now breathe in again lifting the gun and aiming it at the same time. Let the gun rise to the top of the black and start to breathe out as you settle the gun at six-o'-clock with level sights. The breath should have gone and your chest should be relaxed. There is enough oxygen in your blood not to want to breathe again for quite a few seconds. When the sights are lined up release the shot and follow through then lower the gun.

7. Releasing the shot.

When the sights are lined up keep the focus on the front sight. Start to squeeze the trigger building up the pressure until the gun goes bang. Do not jerk, pull or yank the trigger, the shot will fly wide.

It is good to talk to yourself whilst you do this...."Front sight, squeeze, front sight, squeeze, front sight, squeeze, bang.....ah there it goes......"

8. Follow through.

Relaxing too soon can cause a shot to go off aim. You need to wait until the bullet has completely left the barrel.

This is best achieved by not changing anything you were doing.

Keep the sights aimed as they were, focused on the front sight, squeezing the trigger.

To do this continue the mental chant above........ "Front sight, squeeze, front sight, squeeze, front sight, squeeze, bang, front sight, squeeze, front sight, squeeze, let go slowly, let go slowly, finger off, gun down!"

After the bang the gun will recoil and the sights go momentarily higher, but should fall back to exactly where they were. The recoil is necessary, it is the bullet pushing off the gun to move forwards, like a swimmer pushing off the wall of the pool in a turn. Do not fight the recoil, do not add to it.

Take the finger off the trigger and out of the trigger guard before bringing the gun down.

9. Misfire.

If the gun doesn't go bang then just keep aiming at the target for 1 minute in case the shot is delayed. This is a hangfire. Put your hand up and ask the supervisor or Range Officer for help until you are experienced. Click on the following link to find out what to do. Misfires..... what to do next.

10. The shot went well.

You can see a hole on the target. It doesn't matter if it is not a 10. That comes with experience and practice. Our first goal is to see all the shots fired make holes in the paper. That means we know where the shots went and the shots were released safely.

Ok that 's good. Now go back to 5 and start over. In a future lesson we will talk about analysing the shots that are not perfect 10's.

11 All six shots fired.

Put the gun on half cock and put the gun down on the shooting bench.

In some clubs it is a discipline to remove the cylinder and leave it front end up so the Range Officer and everyone else can see it is empty and the gun is safe.

Step back from the bench and do not touch the gun again until the Range Officer tells you to load for the next detail.

In some clubs people start to load the cylinders with powder and ball but leave it uncapped. This is not accepted by the Muzzle Loaders Association of Great Britain (MLAGB). I teach not to do that. When I am R.O. I make people who do that cap and fire the cylinder. I hold the line until all guns are completely empty and proved clear.