How to Overcome Pulling low and Left

[WackyDaffy]

I have shot pistols, rifles, and shotguns for over 50 years. I am also an NRA Training Counselor. Due to health issues (Back), I have not shot anything in about 5 years. In the last couple of months, we have moved to Eugene, (from Roseburg), and I have a lot more opportunities to shoot. However, I have developed a problem that I do not remember having. With pistols, I am pulling everything low and left. As an experienced instructor, I know what I am doing wrong. But I am dang nab it, I have not been able to stop it. I can see myself doing it, but even in slow motion I am still pulling low and left

I do not want to mess with the sights, because I know it is a "procedural" error.

Any suggestions

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[FATAL125]

Right or left handed?

The diagram is for correct handed people...

Reverse if you've been cursed the other way...



EDIT - If you know what your doing wrong, then don't do that...

 

[Alexx1401]

I have used a few different methods for this problem. 1 is putting a laser on something. Then having them work on both dry fire then live fire with it where they can see the dot moving during the trigger pull. Another is an air pistol with the same that they can practice with at home to also help get over the problem. Another was using a .22 for the same reason. Found for many using something light like that would get them back in the center soon. Then when they went back to the heavy hitter they could get back to shooing center again. See if any of these get you back on target. Anything you can do at home is normally great as you can do a hell of a lot more practice if you don't have to go to the range to do so.

 

[kmk1012]

I have shot pistols, rifles, and shotguns for over 50 years. I am also an NRA Training Counselor. Due to health issues (Back), I have not shot anything in about 5 years. In the last couple of months, we have moved to Eugene, (from Roseburg), and I have a lot more opportunities to shoot. However, I have developed a problem that I do not remember having. With pistols, I am pulling everything low and left. As an experienced instructor, I know what I am doing wrong. But I am dang nab it, I have not been able to stop it. I can see myself doing it, but even in slow motion I am still pulling low and left

I do not want to mess with the sights, because I know it is a "procedural" error.

Any suggestions

First, welcome to the forum! But, study the chart @FATAL125 posted. That helped me a long time ago! Also, try a laser training aid. Those are a lot of fun. The whole family uses our laser trainer and we have "matches" inside when the weather doesn't let us shoot in our backyard.

 

[TTSX]

Right or left handed?

The diagram is for normal handed people...

Reverse if you've been blessed as god's chosen the other way...

View attachment 1932082

EDIT - If you know what your doing wrong, then don't do that...

FIFY

 

[Nosferatu]

put a coin on the front of the muzzle and do a lot of dry fire practice. When you get smooth, the coin won't fall off.

 

[Joe13]

Lotta good suggestions here.

I shoot a lot of .22 even when I'm shooting centerfire calibers to break things up and it shows up real quick if I am doing something wrong while shooting a low recoil round.



Something I did not see posted but will get you the fastest results with the least amount of effort is to change nothing and aim high and right

 

[Deavis]

I dont like the above chart.

I like the one with the center ring that says "Good job!" The entire outer ring says, "You moved the gun!"

To conquer low left do the following:

Let the sights "float" in the middle.

Another way to say this is: accept the wobble zone.

The wobble will NEVER get smaller over time so you might as well press the trigger.

When you press the trigger STRAIGHT back at ONE speed the rounds will impact in the wobble zone. Period.

If you are trying to capture the text book diagram sight picture and make it fire NOW low left results. The longer you admire the sights the more chance you have to fumble the trigger press.

If you are "prepping" the trigger or pulling it at the speed of smell (and not life) low left results.

If you are not isolating the trigger finger as the only moving muscle, low left results.

All of this to say: discharge the gun without moving the gun.

Have you seen the dowel exercise? Put the gun on target and have someone put a dowel through the trigger guard and karate chop the dowel violently? Weird… dead center hit…. Even with that violent jerk. There are safe ways to do this, but you will need to buy my $4.99 DVD! Ha!

 

[kmk1012]

Dowel trick? Does anyone have $5 I could borrow to get this super secret hack?

 

[rambler]

Finger is dominating the eyes. Reprioritizing eyes/sight picture bestowing trigger squeeze way down

I had this prob but overcame by being forced by an instructor to go so slow I was to be "surprised" by the gun going off.

What one does is keep sights on target and remain focused on that. Pull trigger so slowly, but keeping focus of front sight on target, that while focused on front sight the gun will literally startle you. Repeat and repeat.

I was low left for thousands of rounds of training until given good counsel to do this. Keep doing it....it teaches the finger finer movement skills, and submits the finger to the wishes of the eyes

 

[Mono1]

@Flopsweat did you find this yet?

Just seems ripe for another thread....

 

[P7M13]

I practice throttling the chicken, alternating between right and left hands, and sometimes both.

 

[Flopsweat]

@Flopsweat did you find this yet?

Just seems ripe for another thread....

I haven't spent much time here lately. Checking out a few less restrictive forums. Or is that fora? Probably not.

 

[ivan_drago]

My progression has been like this - grip like you are hanging for dear life, especially with smaller guns. Press the trigger very carefully and deliberately. if you rush, it will go low left. So I got a little better and would now shoot mostly left, not low left.
A red dot helps a lot, it is basically the same as moving your rear sight (purists will disagree, but it works for me).
For shooting iron sights, increased pressure with my support thumb until it's white and turning my head way way to the right (I am right handed). That helps me land shots in the center.
Some good guns like my Canik SFT actually like more relaxed grip.
When all fails, CZ75B!

 

[Mono1]

I haven't spent much time here lately. Checking out a few less restrictive forums. Or is that fora? Probably not.

PM me bro so I can keep up with where you're at...

 

[gmerkt]

admire the sights

I like how this was put.

In my own case, never mind arthritis and peripheral neuropathy in later years, I had the printing left issue. In my case, it was finger position on the trigger. I tended to use my finger tip. When I moved my finger position to about halfway between tip and first joint, my performance improved.

 

[L84Cabo]

As an experienced instructor, I know what I am doing wrong.

Any suggestions

Um...this is kinda important information.

Without it, I'm just spitballing solutions to the more common causes of shooting low and left...which may not be relevant to your particular issue.

Is this a sight alignment issue?
Are you flinching?
Is it a weak grip...or are you tightening your grip just prior to or during the trigger press in anticipation of the coming recoil? (this is one of my favorite things to do )
Something else?

 

[Deavis]

I guess some of this may depend on what type of shooting you are doing. Bullseye or ISHMA might need one technique, I don't know much about those. I do know something about practical accuracy.

Grip? For fun, take a magazine and put it in your dominant hand, crush it with your grip as tight as you possibly can and start moving your trigger finger quickly back and forth.

You will find that sucks. Slowly release the pressure in your dominant hand until that finger runs freely.

Your non-dominant hand does the heavy lifting in grip. Grip is mission critical.

You can pound that trigger at the speed of life if you dont move the gun whilst doing so.

If you want to be slow practice slow. The adage slow is smooth and smooth is fast should be replaced with be efficient.

SLOW IS SLOW.

Be careful what you practice, you just might learn it.

I wouldn't believe me on this stuff either but this guy knows some stuff about it, check him out:

View: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=li0rGtXh23I

 

[Heyjoe]

too little trigger finger, move closer to the first joint.

This worked for me. Pat McNamara has a video about this on youtube

 

[Deavis]

Pat has great stuff for sure. But Leatham is TGO.