How can I learn how to shoot?

[Destroyer]

My dad shot expert in the Army, but he's too busy to teach me how. Didn't do it when I was young either... As a result I'm a really crappy shot. How can I learn this modern martial art?

[Necron99]

Practice, practice, practice....get a .22lr in bolt action and plink with that alot, they are cheap to shoot. Then move up to a centerfire, bolt action or semiauto, preferably with iron sights. The reason I say bolt action is because you will make each shot count that way and not be prone to ripping through the entire mag. You might also consider getting a Garand. You can join the Civilian Marksmanship Program, you can purchase surplus Garands from them (I think 2 a year). The one really nice thing about US military rifles the M1Garand, M14 and M16A2, is that they have superb adjustable sights. With a spotter directly behind you he/she can tell you where your shot hit and then you can easily adjust with the sights on these rifles. This kind of iron sight "sniping" was done in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. Do not try to become a marksman with an AK. It is not that kind of rifle, sight radius is too short and front post is too large for match type shooting, sure is good at putting holes on people though! Plus the large mag capacity once again gives you the temptation to burn rounds instead of concentrate. One important part of distance shooting is breathing technique. There are many ways to steady the rifle with breathing, different techniques work better for different people but the basic idea is you do not want your lung cavity moving when the shot is taken. Some people hold their breath before the shot, I prefer to slowly exhale until my lungs are empty and then take my shot. Whatever you do, find a technique that works for you and then stick with it. Remember the buttstock should always be up tight against the shoulder. Get good with iron sight shooting from ranges 100yards to at least 300yards, preferably out to 500yards, or in the case of a .22lr 25, 50 and 100 yards, once you've got a handle on that then you can move up to a scope at even further distances. Varminting (gopher hunting) with iron sights is probably the best rifle practice one can get, it brings in a semi-randomly moving target, unknown ranges, different lighting conditions, elevation factors, etc...when I was younger I used to go out with some friends and stalk gophers with a Ruger 10/22 and a winchester 12gauge defender. My snap shooting skills were superb then. This is much better practice then those BS practical shooting clubs, most of them don't know squat about "practical" marksmanship. A good book on the subject of marksmanship ballistics and sniping is The Ultimate Sniper by John Plaster. It is available from Paladin Press.

[jack torrance]

focus on the front sight post ,breath control ,and slowwwly squeeeeze. the report should frighten u. i would practice with my fighting weapon in all manners of its intended use. so u learn all "in the feild" ways of good marksmanship.not just one position.learn to gauge distance ,and know the range of your weapon . the 22 is definately the way for volume of practice and the skill will tranz to your ak,i used to fire off 500 rounds a weekend with my 22 ,hitting paper plates at 125 yards. i could see the bullets travle in the right light . just shoot with a consistant form and you will see what works.

[Destroyer]

I don't know, I've *been* using a .22. I, quite frankly, find them boring now... I do, however, think I've found the major problem. The dumbhole stock that came with the gun will not allow me to get a proper cheek weld on the rifle. So, my head has probably been moving with every shot and giving me a different site picture with every shot. Will put a Choate stock on and see if my groups improve!

[Blackjack]

Mount a Kobra sight on your ak, I shoot a tighter group at 100m with it than with a scope plus the Kobra allows one to keep both eyes open while shooting.

[jeffer]

Over the years I have found that one to three seconds is enough time to sight in a target. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean putting the gun to your shoulder and pulling the trigger as fast as you can. What i'm getting at is don't take anywhere from ten to thirty seconds to sight your target. The longer you (or I) take to sight the more wobble you get just holding the gun. Make sure its empty then try putting the rifle on your shoulder with the sights already lined up. When you get better at this try it out at the range. BTW try this sighting thing by yourself or people will wonder if you've flipped.