NRL22 beginner

[cerpika]

I'm considering trying NRL22, but have the same apprehensions as the original poster. Just wanted to say thanks to all have thrown in their advice (please keep it coming!!). It's been tough to find practical advice on the internet for NRL22 newbies, but with the feedback on this thread I feel much more comfortable going to an upcoming match. Thanks!

 

[BrandonOR]

I'm considering trying NRL22, but have the same apprehensions as the original poster. Just wanted to say thanks to all have thrown in their advice (please keep it coming!!). It's been tough to find practical advice on the internet for NRL22 newbies, but with the feedback on this thread I feel much more comfortable going to an upcoming match. Thanks!

This place is the best, when I first joined I had never even shot a firearm. Now I own.....well, more than one, let's say that lol

 

[dangerranger60]

I'm considering trying NRL22, but have the same apprehensions as the original poster. Just wanted to say thanks to all have thrown in their advice (please keep it coming!!). It's been tough to find practical advice on the internet for NRL22 newbies, but with the feedback on this thread I feel much more comfortable going to an upcoming match. Thanks!

If you boil NRL22 down to its basics, it is your grandads 4Position shooting [ 4P] With the addition of longer distance, and requiring the shooter to decide what position to use. Practice those 4 positions and watch the top shooters to see which position they choose for each stage. You may also notice a person's height may make a difference between choosing sitting and kneeling when using the ladder and chair barricades. So if you are very tall watch someone closer to your size. Good Luck, DR

 

[Member 34319]

First time experience, things I've learned:

My first time I didn't have my dope truly figured out and I got very few hits on targets, minus the easy ones.

I'd say the most crucial part of NRL22 is knowing your ammo well enough to hit the targets. I never really shot at targets this small till shooting these competitions. 1/4" target at 25 yards, sounds easy on paper, in reality, it can be extremely difficult if you didn't do your homework with 1 type of ammo. If your 50 yards zero is off by the smallest fraction, you'll miss a 0.25" target with a 0.22" bullet. It's fairly easy to miss!

I didn't spend the time to ensure my dope until about my 3rd competition. I also switched guns. Then scopes. So it was a process to say the least.

I'd say the second most valuable part is stability. If your set up is not stable enough to shoot a 2" target at 50 yards, you might be in for a shaky start.

Bags are, for some unknown reason, very expensive when you start looking into precision competitions components. There are inexpensive quality options available.
https://a.co/d/8DEdLM2

I use a water proof dry bag as a pump bag for kneeling and or raised positions. Much much less expensive than the competition models. I filled it with the same stuff you'd fill a kids bean bag chair with.

https://a.co/d/aA8Iu3l

A good bag can really make a huge difference. I learned this more recently than earlier on.

A good bipod helps too. Though I use an inexpensive one and it has worked out perfectly. I recently took a $10 camera mount and added it to it so it is now ARCA capable.

https://a.co/d/dQjAuXW

Weight helps too. I'm ghetto, and cheap, so I use what I can. IE wheel weights. I've got as many as I can shoved into the forend of my chassis. I'm a few ounces away from being able to put my rifle on a pointed barrier and it will simply sit there on its own.

Breathing is crucial. You'll notice your reticle move on breaths and heartbeats. Especially when aiming at a 1" target. Nothing really helps with this other than practice and time behind the rifle.

From there it's all about the little things that can help. A dope card can really help. I'm working on a cheap version of that too. Basically a rubberized tie down looped around my scope with a piece of Velcro glued to it. That way I can Velcro on a piece of plastic card stock with my stages information on it. Having a reference helps. Especially with stages like the first prone stage where there are 6 targets at 6 different distances.

You'll definitely see all of the little tid bits at your first match. Things like barrel tuners, red dots, etc. There are so many little things one can try to do to get the slightest advantage. Some might be very crucial, some not so much.

Lastly, and likely the most important part of any form competition, is to have fun. If you aren't enjoying yourself, or getting mad at your gear or skill level, you are definitely doing it wrong.

Reno

 

[NiteQwill]

Changing my elevation for each shot is not something I've ever done. Always have done holdover.

I would like to try doing that but probably not going to try it out on Sunday. Stick with what I know and learn more before next time.

You will need to be able to adjust elevation if you want to get serious. Multiple target engagements and precise wind holds are paramount to the game.

Good luck!

 

[dangerranger60]

First time experience, things I've learned:

My first time I didn't have my dope truly figured out and I got very few hits on targets, minus the easy ones.

I'd say the most crucial part of NRL22 is knowing your ammo well enough to hit the targets. I never really shot at targets this small till shooting these competitions. 1/4" target at 25 yards, sounds easy on paper, in reality, it can be extremely difficult if you didn't do your homework with 1 type of ammo. If your 50 yards zero is off by the smallest fraction, you'll miss a 0.25" target with a 0.22" bullet. It's fairly easy to miss!

I didn't spend the time to ensure my dope until about my 3rd competition. I also switched guns. Then scopes. So it was a process to say the least.

I'd say the second most valuable part is stability. If your set up is not stable enough to shoot a 2" target at 50 yards, you might be in for a shaky start.

Bags are, for some unknown reason, very expensive when you start looking into precision competitions components. There are inexpensive quality options available.
https://a.co/d/8DEdLM2

I use a water proof dry bag as a pump bag for kneeling and or raised positions. Much much less expensive than the competition models. I filled it with the same stuff you'd fill a kids bean bag chair with.

https://a.co/d/aA8Iu3l

A good bag can really make a huge difference. I learned this more recently than earlier on.

A good bipod helps too. Though I use an inexpensive one and it has worked out perfectly. I recently took a $10 camera mount and added it to it so it is now ARCA capable.

https://a.co/d/dQjAuXW

Weight helps too. I'm ghetto, and cheap, so I use what I can. IE wheel weights. I've got as many as I can shoved into the forend of my chassis. I'm a few ounces away from being able to put my rifle on a pointed barrier and it will simply sit there on its own.

Breathing is crucial. You'll notice your reticle move on breaths and heartbeats. Especially when aiming at a 1" target. Nothing really helps with this other than practice and time behind the rifle.

From there it's all about the little things that can help. A dope card can really help. I'm working on a cheap version of that too. Basically a rubberized tie down looped around my scope with a piece of Velcro glued to it. That way I can Velcro on a piece of plastic card stock with my stages information on it. Having a reference helps. Especially with stages like the first prone stage where there are 6 targets at 6 different distances.

You'll definitely see all of the little tid bits at your first match. Things like barrel tuners, red dots, etc. There are so many little things one can try to do to get the slightest advantage. Some might be very crucial, some not so much.

Lastly, and likely the most important part of any form competition, is to have fun. If you aren't enjoying yourself, or getting mad at your gear or skill level, you are definitely doing it wrong.

Reno

Practicing and understanding the 4 positions will help with stability. They are designed to stack bone on bone instead of relying on mussel to hold steady. These are things new shooters should learn and practice at home. It's like dry fire practice.
After you get good at the positions, then the shooter needs to learn to adapt to each barricade.
One other thing on weight, I use lead shot in a bag. It fits better in the recesses of your chassis.
I'm glad to see more new shooters coming out to try this. It's a fun challenge! DR

 

[ORhutner]

@Reno @BrandonOR would enjoy hearing how the match was and any photo's you don't mind sharing.

 

[Member 34319]

It was a windy day! I placed in the top five, much better than I thought I'd do. Some of the better shooters were definitely fighting wind. I know I was. The common score for the bonus stage was 0. It was a spinner, 12 shot stage. Flip the spinner to move on. If it took you all 12 to flip the spinner, you'd at least get the 50 points for flipping it. Don't flip it with 12 shots, 0. I didn't even get the flipper to spin. Because of the wind, the prone stages proved very hard. I did best on the moving stages where the larger targets allowed for more wiggle room as far as wind drift goes.

I believe Brandon learned a lot and certainly appeared to be having fun. I asked if he was hooked, the answer was, "oh yeah." I also caught him eyeballing a CZ457 / Arken SH4 combo in the classifieds here on his phone around the 4th stage! I'll leave it to him to tell his experiences.

 

[cerpika]

Thanks for all the newbie friendly info. I intend to develop my own dope card, but I know that some people also use dope apps. Is Strelok Pro the one to go with?

 

[Hueco]

Thanks for all the newbie friendly info. I intend to develop my own dope card, but I know that some people also use dope apps. Is Strelok Pro the one to go with?

I like it. The RA4 profile has been spot on for me using wolf Target ammo.

 

[NiteQwill]

Thanks for all the newbie friendly info. I intend to develop my own dope card, but I know that some people also use dope apps. Is Strelok Pro the one to go with?

Strekok is a good place to start. I haven't played with it in a long time but if it allows Drop Scale Factor, that will help tremendously with dope.

If you're serious about getting into LR anything... Invest in a Kestrel.

 

[BrandonOR]

Weather was butt and it didn't even matter. Everyone was extremely helpful and polite. Nothing but positive criticism and advice. I'm definitely going to keep practicing and go again. Maybe with some upgrades.

Managed to hit a few shots that I was impressed by, and it definitely gets you wanting to do it more.

If I had to offer advice besides have fun, is to practice the position and eye relief in those positions.

Shooting under the back of a folding chair was something I wished I had practiced before. Make a bag out of anything, a pillow or whatever, it's a life saver of easing stuff. Did I mention everyone there was filled with great advice?

Thanks again @Reno I'm sure I'll see you next month.

 

[dangerranger60]

One other bit of advice, Next time bring a friend! Glad to hear it went well. DR

 

[mtjones12]

I'm considering trying NRL22, but have the same apprehensions as the original poster. Just wanted to say thanks to all have thrown in their advice (please keep it coming!!). It's been tough to find practical advice on the internet for NRL22 newbies, but with the feedback on this thread I feel much more comfortable going to an upcoming match. Thanks!

Best advice I can give that hasn't been posted yet, is to just go out and shoot your first match. I spent months skipping matches, trying to read more online and research how to be better prepared. I didnt want to go to my first match and underprepared, fearing that I would get in the way of the more experienced shooters. I was wrong. I learned far more in my first hour at a match than I did in 6 months of researching. (Nearly) every one at every match I have been to (spanning from Oregon to Missouri) has been over the top helpful, and more than accommodating to new shooters.

 

[mtjones12]

Weather was butt and it didn't even matter. Everyone was extremely helpfuDang,l and polite. Nothing but positive criticism and advice. I'm definitely going to keep practicing and go again. Maybe with some upgrades.

Managed to hit a few shots that I was impressed by, and it definitely gets you wanting to do it more.

If I had to offer advice besides have fun, is to practice the position and eye relief in those positions.

Shooting under the back of a folding chair was something I wished I had practiced before. Make a bag out of anything, a pillow or whatever, it's a life saver of easing stuff. Did I mention everyone there was filled with great advice?

Thanks again @Reno I'm sure I'll see you next month.

The one week I am lax on the forums, and I miss all this. I'm glad you came out Brandon, and it was great having you in our squad. Look forward to seeing you back next month.

 

[maspeer22]

I was thinking about going to the next NRL22 match at TCGC.

I have a 10/22 16" with a 2x7x32 scope

Am I underprepared? Looking at what the cof is, and what others are using.

When I first heard about this I didn't think about things like pillows or bipods, I thought it was more bare bones lol boy was I wrong after seeing some setups.

What skill level should I be at to not embarrass myself too badly? Lol

What zero is best? Any other advice is appreciated

Thanks in advance

Thinking about getting into this. Where is TCGC?

 

[Member 34319]

Thinking about getting into this. Where is TCGC?

Sherwood

 

[BrandonOR]

Thinking about getting into this. Where is TCGC?

It's a blast, no regrets at all..... Maybe the amount I want to spend now lmao