So am I just a lousy shot? :-)

[raindog]

I bought a new carry gun - a Ruger LCR in .38 +P. That's a snub .38 with a 2" barrel.

Yesterday I went down to Tri-County Gun Club. I love that club, but its only flaw is that the pistol range's shortest distance (for centerfire) is 25 yards.

I also took my Ruger GP 101 6". Firing in either SA or DA, at 25 yards I had no problem hitting centerish of target (most of the time - don't mean to sound like I'm bragging). Better shots with SA mode, but that's to be expected.

With the LCR...I had a hard time hitting the board the targets were pasted on

I realize the full-sized revolver is much better for longer shots (duh) but I'm wondering if there's something wrong with the way I was holding/shooting the LCR, or if it's really not to be expected to hit anything much at 25Y with a snub. I wouldn't expect to engage at that distance in the real world...and if they had a 10-foot or 25-foot setup, I'd definitely have shot that instead.

Just wondering.

Guy next to me was shooting a Glock 26 and had similar problems...though none with his full-sized 1911.

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[Lincoln4]

25 Yards with a LCR is quite a poke. Snubbies are for up close and personal.

 

[bruzer]

I am no expert but 25 yards for a little 2" barrel seems like A LONG DISTANCE. I've got a little .22 and I believe the barrel is no longer than 1.5". The bullets hit the target sideways at times and that is no more than 5 yards away.
Good luck and stay safe,
Mike

 

[MrNiceGuy]

Yesterday I went down to Tri-County Gun Club. I love that club, but its only flaw is that the pistol range's shortest distance (for centerfire) is 25 yards.

HA!
With a snub nose?
Talk about jumping into the deep end.

Despite how much you love that range, it's time to find somewhere else to get proficient with your snubbie.
It's best to work up to that kind of distance.

 

[Mark W.]

Four Corners has a 7 yard range and with my Charter Arms Undercover fired hand held on a sand bag I can shoot a 2-2.5" group of 5. Using 125gr HP with a very moderate load. Short barrel pistols do terrible with hot loads as the powder burning past the muzzle will push the bullet off course.

 

[teflon6string]

The shorter sight radius on any snub or subcompact makes it harder to notice and correct errors while aiming. Also, short grips on tiny guns can leave the pinky finger off the grip, reducing stability and causing an awkward feel. And most snub revolvers are made with extra stiff trigger pulls (especially in DA, but also in SA) for carry safety - yanking out of holsters, pockets, backpacks, gloveboxes, etc. It's amazing what a negative influence a heavy or gritty trigger pull will have on sighting accurately. Watch someone who's good with a smooth semi-auto switch to your little snub and you'll notice visible hand shaking.

For all these reasons, I find the snub is hardly useful as an accurate target piece. But for light weight, concealability, and the security of having an emergency weapon available in a short-range shoot and scoot survival situation, the tradeoffs are practical.

I'm no expert, but I believe different weapons have different uses. Perhaps try some rapid point and shoot drills with your snub in the woods, without looking at your sights - into a torso sized cardboard box at a shorter "self-defense gunfight" distance. In an emergency with no time to stabilize stance, breathing and sight picture (maybe in the dark), a really fast instinctive group into the center mass of a deadly threat will surely trump your ability to shoot smiley faces into paper at 25 yards with your favorite target pistol.

I'm not very good with my snub either (or tennis racquet or golf clubs)... but practice is always fun.

 

[mjbskwim]

I gunna call BS on all you guys. Or the Charter arms I shot at 100 yards was exceptional.

My friend bought a CA snubbie for the car.We were at the pit at about 100 yards away.he asked if I wanted to try it out.
Sure. I held about a foot above the berm. Nothing
(cheapo 38 loads BTW) I held at the top of the berm .Hit it at the top.
No way.
held it at the middle of the berm. Hit the middle of the berm.
It was hitting 2 foot left to right but elevation was good.

I never would have guessed that a 2 1/2 in barrel hand gun could hit anything at that distance.
Now the SP 101 I had was about a foot left at 25 yards.So I guess it's all in how good the rifling is. And the trigger.I always shoot revolvers single action when testing them for the first time

 

[fry]

I gunna call BS on all you guys. Or the Charter arms I shot at 100 yards was exceptional.

My friend bought a CA snubbie for the car.We were at the pit at about 100 yards away.he asked if I wanted to try it out.
Sure. I held about a foot above the berm. Nothing
(cheapo 38 loads BTW) I held at the top of the berm .Hit it at the top.
No way.
held it at the middle of the berm. Hit the middle of the berm.
It was hitting 2 foot left to right but elevation was good.

I never would have guessed that a 2 1/2 in barrel hand gun could hit anything at that distance.
Now the SP 101 I had was about a foot left at 25 yards.So I guess it's all in how good the rifling is. And the trigger.I always shoot revolvers single action when testing them for the first time

regular flippen Elmer Keith you are.
related?

 

[Lincoln4]

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk 2

 

[mjbskwim]

regular flippen Elmer Keith you are.
related?

It's Bob Munden that shoots the snubbies out that far.
Keith liked the long barrels

 

[MarkAd]

25 yards is fairly easy to do with a bit of practice. However shooting a new short barrel pistol shound be done at a short 10-15 feet distance to allow for instant feedback about trigger control and shot placment. DA is a hard pull and how you pull will chnage the POI. Without the immediate feedback learning to correct your trigger pull will be tough.
i have seen shooters fire a snub nose revolver accurately at 100 yards.

 

[clambo]

Snubbies aren't mechanically less accurate than anything else. Just harder to shoot accurately due to the extremely short sighting radius, compounded in my case by bad eyesight. I routinely practice and hit an 8" steel target with mine at 50 yds but I've shot handguns regularly my entire life. I've shot the snubby in question ( S&W Chief Special ) for 30 yrs. I'd say the OP was not a bad shot, just keep practicing ! That's half the fun ! There will come a time when you can nail long shots too and amaze your friends. Having said all that, I consider myself a slightly better than average pistol shot at best. There are guys who are so far ahead of me it's amazing. Finally, while I do own and sometimes carry a snubby I usually pack something physically a little bigger w/ adjustable sights whenever I can.

 

[Mutoman]

If you can hit a bucket at 15 feet you are doing just what your snubby was designed for.

 

[oknow]

spend a few more $ and put a laser then you will have a 50 yd gun with no problem with the right lighting also you can dry fire and see how your doing (good or bad) with your trigger control.
If your interested in doing a little driving north to amboy you can use my range from point blank to 50 ft.

 

[ronin223]

1. Have a Ruger LCR and have no problems grouping 50 shots into a 8 inch target at 25 yards at TCGC. BUT I have to agree the trigger is a little mushy on the LCR with a non distinct let off so kind of hard to stage. I am absolutely sure you will be able to shoot the pistol well with more practice.

2. If you want to shoot at shorter ranges join a better gun club, most are really better than TCGC. BUT if TCGC is the closest to you, get an action certification or go with someone who has one and shoot in the action pits which allow closer ranges.

3. Since you have no problems with single action. I am pretty sure the only problem is you need more practice with DAO. Try staging the trigger to the break point before firing. Try dry firing it at home with a quarter on top of the gun and see if you can pull the trigger without dropping the quarter

4. last option is to get a reloading press and reload alot of 38 special. I use to suck at pistol and thought 25 yards was too far. But after I got my reloading and shot about 1,000 rounds a week, I got alot better.

 

[netcarrier]

Hi Raindog,
I have shot PPC that is you start at shooting at 50 yards then 25 yards then 15 yards then 10 yards then 3 yards. I did this with a S&W
Model 66 2.5 inches. I would shoot 60 rounds and score was 98%.
What is your sign Pic.?
If you would like to maybe check out and stop by I can help you.
If I can help I will,
Tony Portland, Oregon Area

 

[Ironbar]

I was told in more than one concealed carry class that the vast majority of self-defense shootings occur between one and 18 feet away from the assailant, and you're shooting out to 25 yards?? What kind of self-defense shooting situation are you expecting at ¼ of a football field away???

 

[MikeE]

Here's a good article by Grant Cunningham, revolver gunsmith and all-round wheel gun wiz. I took his Revolver fundamentals this summer. Of all the issues with shooting accurately, he taught us that trigger control was #1. It's different with a double action:

<broken link removed>

 

[Sheldon]

Any shorty pistol can be tougher to shoot than a longer barrelled weapon for multiple reasons. The lightness adds to muzzleflip and felt recoil which can make it very tough to not flinch. If the weapon has a smaller grip it just exaggerates those symptoms. As mentioned already the shorter sight radius makes it more challenging to see sight alignment errors. A double action trigger can make thing tougher as well if one is not used to using it.

Best advice it to practice at a closer range when possible and with a lighter loaded cartridge if possible.

 

[Swedish K]

Hi Raindog,
I have shot PPC that is you start at shooting at 50 yards then 25 yards then 15 yards then 10 yards then 3 yards.

Odd progression. I shot PPC for 4 years down south - they set up close to far. We were on an indoor range so it was 7', 7 yards, 10 yards, 15 yards and 25 yards. The 7' was one hand, the rest were one or two.