The Flinches?

[Point&Shoot]

I’m sure I’m not the only one but how do you account for twitching at the break and just being a tiny bit jumpy plinking at the range? It’s almost like you’ve powered down the Red Bulls. Sometimes it’s striking how I can shoot fine one day but can’t get my mojo on the next day. I’m not a tournament shooter so how does someone who needs to have their game face on when they shoot manage, or is it just what separates men from boys. I couldn’t hit the target yesterday but the day prior I went home thinking “not bad”. I find the psychological part of shooting is just as important as the shot itself.

 

[Masswhole]

What are you shooting?

 

[jakeroub]

More dry firing?

 

[JDL]

Dry fire drills, and practice basic shooting fundamentals shooting lots and lots of 22 rounds untill you no longer flinch.

 

[whatluck]

It's normal. You need to build good habits, so it's something you want to crush right away.

One way is to have a friend randomly load a couple of snap caps into your mag.

Focus on keeping your eyes both open, looking at the threat.

Practice with a .22. It's easier to stay chill with a big heavy 22 like a smith 617

Dry fire! This really helped me with the flinch with my scandium 357.

Meditate! Part of the psychology of the flinch is being afraid of the massive pressure wave and sound. Take time during the day to think about how you want to fight. If someone throws a punch you don't want to get all worked up, stressed out. You just want to IMMEDIATELY get to work. Same thing with a gunfight. Just get to work now, shit your pants later.

And finally get your cardio up. The more in shape you are physically the better you'll be able to handle the stress.

 

[dcmdon]

You were let down by an instructor and/or friends who got you shooting centerfire before you were ready.

Get yourself a .22 so you can actually learn how to shoot properly. As someone who does instruction, I am constantly "fixing" people who moved onto centerfire too soon.
They flinch, or push or in some way anticipate recoil and it takes far far longer to fix than it would have to just work up to "normal" recoil naturally.
We all have a threshold. I can shoot my 6" .44 mag all day and not push or flinch.

But if I shoot my .454 Cassul Ruger Super Blackhawk, not a terribly heavy gun, I am good for ONLY one shot.

After that, the second shot goes 6" low as I push in anticipation of the recoil. My third shot will typically be off the bottom of the target at 25 yards. So this problem can happen to anyone and is a NORMAL human reaction.

I tell my students that if they actually want to learn to be good shooters, they should go out and get a .22 and 2 “bricks” of .22. That’s 1000 rounds. When the 1000 rounds are used up, start bringing your 9mm to the range.

Shoot the .22 primarily. Half way through the session, put 3 rounds in the 9mm and shoot them. Did the 2nd and 3rd round go below the first? If yes, you are anticipating the recoil.

Go back to the .22 and finish out the day. Shoot 2 or 3 more rounds out of the 9mm at the end of the session.

Every time you go shooting bring the 9mm and shoot it a bit more. Always use a fresh target so you can see if your rounds begin to impact low, a sure sign of you anticipating recoil with a “Push”. Then go back to the .22 for at least 20 rounds.

When I do introductory instruction, we shoot ONLY .22s with a silencer. With no recoil and no noise, that little tick of anxiety in the back of your head that you're not even aware of, disappears. At the end of the class, we take the cans off. If any students want to shoot centerfire pistols, we do it as just something to experience AFTER all the instruction is done.

You may also want to try the ball and dummy drill. Google it. It requires a helper for a semi-auto gun but can be done on your own with a revolver.

 

[dcmdon]

I was hired by a friend of a friend to correct a new shooters push. We spoke on the phone. He was a smart guy and we agreed to meet.

I forgot to ask what kind of gun he had. When we met, I saw that he was trying to shoot about the most difficult to shoot semi-auto you can buy.
The Kahr PM40.

This is a TINY and very light .40 cal that is based on the PM9. It recoils pretty seriously and is impossible for most people to shoot well. Very few people can shoot it without having to reset their grip between shots.

Check out this video. This guy is an idiot. He's shooting a PM40 and regripping every shot. He doesn't recognize that if you can't fire a string of shots without regripping you need to get either a gun that is either larger or softer shooting or both. Watch on for 30 sec, he switches to a G27 and experiences a misfire. We get to see an ENORMOUS push. Which explains partly why he is such an embarrassingly terrible shooter. (He's bad and he doesn't know he's bad)


View: https://youtu.be/h2svnO6oO-0?si=2-0egxsqc-_4imWz&t=31


So anyway, we started this student out on a .22 for roughly 100 rounds. I was loading mags and he was shooting 8" falling steel at roughly 15 ft. His instructions were to go slowly and not miss.

We then switched to a Glock 34 and then a 365 X Macro with a PMM comp. Both are soft shooting 9mms.

He was doing great. We shot my regular small 365 and he also managed it ok. He wasn't great but when I slipped some dummy rounds into the mags we saw he wasn't pushing too bad.

We talked about the fact that he didn't carry the PM40 in his pocket and the fact that it was unnecessarily small for IWB carry. In the end we agreed that he should get rid of his PM40 and switch to either a P9, if he wanted to stay with Kahr. Or a 365.

But either way, the PM40 was (and still isn't) a good gun for 95% of shooters. Because they simply can't shoot it fast with any kind of accuracy. aaaannndddd most people who shoot one develop a push.

 

[jkelly1229]

I was hired by a friend of a friend to correct a new shooters push. We spoke on the phone. He was a smart guy and we agreed to meet.

I forgot to ask what kind of gun he had. When we met, I saw that he was trying to shoot about the most difficult to shoot semi-auto you can buy.
The Kahr PM40.

This is a TINY and very light .40 cal that is based on the PM9. It recoils pretty seriously and is impossible for most people to shoot well. Very few people can shoot it without having to reset their grip between shots.

Check out this video. This guy is an idiot. He's shooting a PM40 and regripping every shot. He doesn't recognize that if you can't fire a string of shots without regripping you need to get either a gun that is either larger or softer shooting or both. Watch on for 30 sec, he switches to a G27 and experiences a misfire. We get to see an ENORMOUS push. Which explains partly why he is such an embarrassingly terrible shooter. (He's bad and he doesn't know he's bad)


View: https://youtu.be/h2svnO6oO-0?si=2-0egxsqc-_4imWz&t=31


So anyway, we started this student out on a .22 for roughly 100 rounds. I was loading mags and he was shooting 8" falling steel at roughly 15 ft. His instructions were to go slowly and not miss.

We then switched to a Glock 34 and then a 365 X Macro with a PMM comp. Both are soft shooting 9mms.

He was doing great. We shot my regular small 365 and he also managed it ok. He wasn't great but when I slipped some dummy rounds into the mags we saw he wasn't pushing too bad.

We talked about the fact that he didn't carry the PM40 in his pocket and the fact that it was unnecessarily small for IWB carry. In the end we agreed that he should get rid of his PM40 and switch to either a P9, if he wanted to stay with Kahr. Or a 365.

But either way, the PM40 was (and still isn't) a good gun for 95% of shooters. Because they simply can't shoot it fast with any kind of accuracy. aaaannndddd most people who shoot one develop a push.

And a long trigger on kahrs makes them harder to get that flinch out.

 

[dcmdon]

And a long trigger on kahrs makes them harder to get that flinch out.

I don't agree with that. The trigger is very very smooth.

If the flinch is because of impatience (rushing the press), I agree. But that is usually the case with only very new shooters who haven't shot anything at all.

Dry firing can solve rushing things. It won't help a push developed by exposure to recoil.

 

[jkelly1229]

I don't agree with that. The trigger is very very smooth.

If the flinch is because of impatience (rushing the press), I agree. But that is usually the case with only very new shooters who haven't shot anything at all.

Dry firing can solve rushing things. It won't help a push developed by exposure to recoil.

I've had a lot of kahrs and put about 5k rounds through various models.

Idk maybe thats me but i was good for a flyer or 2 if i wasnt paying attention

 

[Dennis in MA]

I took a course at Sig School. . . . . . .20 years ago? Damn.

Anyhow, the first day of shooting (becuase day 1 was Mr. Miyagi telling us how great he was - ???) many of us discovered we were blinking like hell at the shot. By the end of that day, no more blinking. It was just being consciously aware of it.

I'm sure, 20 years and not nearly enough rounds later, I probably blink. I'm betting I could eliminate it in about 30 min.

that was a fun class. George the rifle guy. Bank (Banks?) Miller. I think I'd do much better this time despite having a LOT of range time back then and near zero now. Just because my mindset is better.

 

[Masswhole]

My guess is OP struggling with the DA pull on his new 229. That gun soaks up recoil.

 

[whatluck]

Ever watch a master carpenter drive huge framing nails? They're bored, something they've done a million times. The technique perfectly refined. Not even a thought goes into it. Just a single perfectly aimed strike at a time. So many repetitions its muscle memory. Pure confidence the technique plus equipment will give the desired result.

I call it the bored carpenter.

 

[Rick O'Shea]

Cut out caffeine on the days you go shooting. Practice the "Wall" drill a few thousand times. Balance a penny on your muzzle as a test. There's a difference between a flinch before the shot and after the shot as we naturally re-align the sights when rapid firing. As we get older our ability to hold steady diminishes. Bullseye shooters use a figure 8 technique as the sights never really stay put for anyone.