Dry Fire practices...

[TedtheChilehead]

I've registereds for a 25M Appleseed event.  I have a Tippmann Arms M4-22 rifle and 22LR dummy rounds.

How can I safely practice dry fire with my M4-22?  Does anyone have a set cadence or practice regimine? 

I keep getting adds that I think are false, and do not respond to that claim I can use the advertised "system" to do live fire drills. 

I can't trust those "spam" advertisements, I want expert opinions.  How can I perform dry fire with any rifle or firearm and do so safely without damanage to my equipment?

[Leadslinger66]

Most modern firearms are safe to dry fire without causing damage. Check your owners manual; it should say yes or no. Short of that, contact Tippmann. Their customer service has been good in my case. They should get back to you.

Dry fire practice should be done in a separate room with NO ammo, magazines, pets, or other people present. Still, always keep the muzzle in a safe direction even if it's dry fire.

Happy dry fire!

[Roswell]

To add on to what Leadslinger66 said, Dryfire can be done at home with no need for any technology. BUT if you want a "system" that gives you feedback for live and dryfire then look at the Mantis X2 and the X10 Elite.

https://mantisx.com/pages/mantisx-model-comparison

[Bundt Pan]

Building on what was already shared,

One of the risks of dry fire practice before attending a course is building on what are potentially bad habits.

I see you posted about signing up for a course. If you haven't attended an Appleseed before it will likely be a challenge to practice skills you haven't received instruction on. I would recommend spending time getting comfortable with the general function of your rifle: how the controls work, manipulating them without breaking a position, etc. You can also get a feel for the trigger, practicing good trigger control, learning the reset.

I think after attending an event you will have much more to work with.

After attending an event, good things to practice are getting into position quickly, finding your natural point of aim (NPOA), practicing the 6 steps.

Above All BE SAFE emphasizingLeadslinger66 NO AMMO in the room and a safe direction. 

[Paladin223]

Before ordering my Appleseed Commemorative rifle, I called Tippmann.  They assured me that the rifle was designed to allow safe dry fire as well as no chance of out-of-battery firing, two things that are especially important in Appleseed.

[Maine.Dist.Rifleman]

I'm not sure if a Tipman will take a regular AR magazine. If they will fit an AR magazine, the WOA Dry Fire device is the bees knees.

[Mrs. Smith]

I'm not sure if a Tipman will take a regular AR magazine. If they will fit an AR magazine, the WOA Dry Fire device is the bees knees.

It doesn't. They make their own.

[Fulcrum]

To add on to what Leadslinger66 said, Dryfire can be done at home with no need for any technology. BUT if you want a "system" that gives you feedback for live and dryfire then look at the Mantis X2 and the X10 Elite.

https://mantisx.com/pages/mantisx-model-comparison

This looks interesting, and I've never heard of it. Have you used the system? What kind of feedback does it give, and how does it do it?

[Bundt Pan]

I received a mantis X for Christmas, but have yet to actually get it on a rifle only pistol so far. Paired with a phone app, it has drills and such. It tracks movement before and after the trigger break, and can also show live movement on the screen.

I imagine on a rifle barrel, you would be able to see respiratory pause, signs of dragging wood, etc. As i type this, it is sounding in my head like it would essentially give you talking target type information, but from dryfire.

Without pairing with a laser/target I don't think you will get any information towards accuracy, but it should give you feedback on the 6 steps and steady hold factors as you dry fire.

[Fulcrum]

I received a mantis X for Christmas, but have yet to actually get it on a rifle only pistol so far. Paired with a phone app, it has drills and such. It tracks movement before and after the trigger break, and can also show live movement on the screen.

I imagine on a rifle barrel, you would be able to see respiratory pause, signs of dragging wood, etc. As i type this, it is sounding in my head like it would essentially give you talking target type information, but from dryfire.

Without pairing with a laser/target I don't think you will get any information towards accuracy, but it should give you feedback on the 6 steps and steady hold factors as you dry fire.

Thanks. It sounds like an interesting tool.

[Bundt Pan]

Well, I decided that today would be the day I figure out getting the Mantis on the 10/22 to see what it could do.

The barrel mounting bracket worked with some of the provided rubber spacers. Probably if I found the directions it would have gone quicker.


I did a quick run-through standing, seated, and prone on the "open training" option. One potential downside, you have to break the position to rack the bolt between dry fires. Not as big a deal when using the Mantis with a handgun. The plus is extra practice finding NPOA.

I linked one screen capture of the "live" motion replay of a shot in prone. This shows the squeeze of the trigger a but better then the still image summary.





Standing:





I can certainly see the increased motion in standing before and after the trigger breaks .

Seated:









Prone





"Live" of the shot tracking: https://imgur.com/zyFdaq4



Since the mantis is live fire safe as well, it will be interesting to see what the data looks like when I can get it to the range. Not sure about the rubber on the barrel. Might have to find the directions to confirm heat safe.

[Fulcrum]

Thanks for posting the info about the Mantis! That looks like a fun and useful tool.