Tips for staying in the scope

[cody21peterson]

Hey guys I haven’t rifle hunted for about 15 years but looking to get back into it. I bought a tikka 7 mag earlier this year and put a harvester evo suppressor on it. I’m shooting precision hunter 162 grain ammo. Even with the suppressor the gun has a pretty good kick. I’ve only shot a few times recently and I’ve noticed that when I shoot the recoil knocks me out of my scope picture and I have to take a few seconds to relocate my target. I figure this could be a problem in a hunting situation if I need to make a quick follow up shot. I would love to hear your thoughts and tips for keeping track of your target right after the shot.


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[Ernie]

Describe your shooting position.
Over a pack, front rest, rear bag, off of a tri-pod???
What scope and what magnification are you shooting at?

 

[Choupique]

Really good follow through. At a certain amount of recoil or not the best rest there's nothing you can do about it. I can spot my own hits with my 338 from 600 yards with a bench rest but any closer than that no chance. It just rocks and rolls too much. It took a lot of spent rounds for me to get that comfortable with it.

If the rifle isn't coming out of the rest, the rest isn't moving under recoil, etc everything should in theory come back to where it started after the shot, including you. Coming back in way off target means either you or the rest are moving during recoil.

 

[EdP]

Some things that can help are using a lower power to increase field of view, tighter grip on the forend to limit rifle movement, and buttstock solid in the shoulder. That said, you are shooting a rifle with some recoil and staying on target like with a .223/5.56 isn't likely to happen.

 

[nobody]

Outside of going to a lighter recoiling round (no matter how manly you are, more recoil is harder to shoot. Doesn’t matter what the Fudd gun writers say), I would go with improving your ergonomics on the rifle. Something like a KRG bravo will be a huge improvement in both ergonomics for grip placement and face position, but it will also add some weight to the rig which will help soak up some recoil.

I would also recommend watching these videos about 500 times and soaking up all the info and committing it to memory and use. This guy is a great shooter and a great teacher, and his techniques work.

 

[cjcavinaw]

Outside of going to a lighter recoiling round (no matter how manly you are, more recoil is harder to shoot. Doesn’t matter what the Fudd gun writers say), I would go with improving your ergonomics on the rifle. Something like a KRG bravo will be a huge improvement in both ergonomics for grip placement and face position, but it will also add some weight to the rig which will help soak up some recoil.

I would also recommend watching these videos about 500 times and soaking up all the info and committing it to memory and use. This guy is a great shooter and a great teacher, and his techniques work.

I second this one. Phil is an amazing shooter and even better teacher. His natural point of aim teaching really helped me to get that better follow up and spot impacts. I would definitely take a gander at a few of his videos.

 

[wind gypsy]

3rd on following Phil's teachings to help learn to manage recoil. Takes practice. I wouldn't want to have to do it with factory 7RM ammo..

 

[ROKnROAL]

-don’t wrap your thumb around the grip. Should only be used for turning off safety.
- I don’t even personally wrap my pinky, ring, or middle finger around the grip. I just use the ends of these fingers to apply light pressure on the grip to direct the stock into my shoulder. Doing this also puts your trigger finger even with the trigger, so your trigger squeeze can be straight back and even, not a jerk. Essentially, your trigger hand is ‘floating’. Stability comes from the hand on the fore-end of the rifle. Trying to lock everything super tight and apply lots of pressure with both hands/arms will torque the rifle and affect your shot.
-continue to depress the trigger for a one second count after your shot. Helps with follow through