"Advanced Strategies for Dry Fire Practice"

[Newsletter]

The below is some wisdom  of "Advanced Strategies for Dry Fire Practice" from one of our Master Instructor's ItsanSKS that we pulled from the Archive. Enjoy!



"Advanced Strategies for Dry Fire Practice"

Getting better at being 'on target' after a transition is one of the best uses for your dry fire practice sessions.  In situations where the shooter must quickly transition from one firing position to another, such as stages 2 & 3 of the AQT, the inexperienced shooter must make considerable adjustments to their positions directly after transitioning, in order to bring their sights onto the target.  This effort unnecessarily wastes precious time; if your dry practice can reduce, or eliminate this unnecessary movement, you will find yourself in a position to engage your target(s) quicker, and thus you will be leaps and bounds ahead of your competition.

Achieving proficiency in transitioning properly is not difficult, but time consuming; it requires an ability to determine the necessary from the unnecessary, and to develop a level of consistency of motion that is unusual in our daily lives.  I will attempt to describe below the efforts that I undertook, as a method of improving my own transitions.

To begin, place your dry-fire target at a maximal distance from yourself; the smaller the target the better- IE: instead of using the electrical wall socket as your target, use the screw holding the cover plate; when practicing standing, instead of using a 'stage 2' target, use a 'stage 4', etc.

Without magazines, or ammunition, but with every article of clothing and safety gear that you would ordinarily use, achieve a proper position, and place your NPOA onto your chosen target.  Once you have established your NPOA on target, it is time to begin evaluating your position, as this is the desired result of your transition.  #1 in importance is the angle of your body to the target.  At Appleseeds, we teach that the optimal index for a seated or prone position is ~30-45*; while the actual degree is determined by your own body geometry in relation to the rifle.  Once you've achieved a proper position, with NPOA on target, you need to *know* your index, and the relation of your entire body to the target.  Not in generalities, but exactly.  Know that your body & rifle require a 36* angle to the target, if that is what you require.

Next, you need to determine where your ammunition needs to be.  This is typically done by dropping the trigger hand from the rifle, directly to the ground, while maintaining NPOA on target.  Indeed, this is a great location for your SECOND magazine, but is it the optimal location for your first?  In most cases, no.  Most people, especially when transitioning to prone, will use their trigger hand to support their bodies as they transition into their position.  Instead of wasting this initial hand placement, put your first magazine there- in this way, you will be able to grab the magazine *as your body comes into position*, rather than as an extra movement after achieving position.

Next up is inserting the magazine and chambering the round, or making a realistic approximation of same.  Far too often, I see people, students and instructors alike, fail to insert their first magazine during live fire until after the rifle has been shouldered, and NPOA checked.  Without the rifle being ready to fire, there is no useful reason to have it brought to the shoulder, and this position (rifle shouldered) makes it extremely difficult to load most rifles.  When transitioning to seated, the magazine should be inserted into the rifle directly after your bottom has hit the ground.  When transitioning to prone, this action takes place directly after your support elbow has been planted, while the rest of your body is still settling into its position.   It is only after the round has been chambered, that there is any reason to bring the rifle to the shoulder.

Fumbling with the magazine is unacceptable under any circumstance, and is made doubly important when 'on the clock'.  If you find yourself having difficulty with either the insertion or removal of your magazines while in position, this should be your primary exercise- practice those mag changes until you can do so in the dark, blindfolded, with gloves on.  (a little exaggeration here, but not much)

If your rifle does not allow the bolt to go forward on an empty magazine in the same manner as it would on a magazine with ammunition in it, do yourself a favor and procure 'snap caps' for it.  Especially with the M1 Garand, M1A, or M16 pattern rifles, you do not want to be practicing movements in your dry fire sessions that are not exactly the same as when you are on the range.

Lets take a look at the typical sequence for putting rounds down range during a transition stage:

1: Standing 'at the ready'
2: Upon receipt of the "Fire!" command, shooter begins transition
3: As trigger hand reaches ground to support the bodies' descent, it finds and grabs the first magazine
4: When either support elbow (prone) or bottom (seated) reaches the ground, trigger hand inserts magazine
5: Manipulate the bolt in the necessary fashion to chamber the first round
6: Disengage the safety
7: Shoulder the rifle and begin taking up slack on the trigger
8: Begin shooters breathing cycle, checking/verifying NPOA

When dry-firing your transitions, #8 is the moment of truth, and you must be honest with yourself.  If your front sight is not ON TARGET, start over at #1.  There is no such thing as an NPOA that is 'close enough', and a transition that does not place your NPOA on target from the outset, is a FAILED transition.  Each movement in the above process builds upon the movement before it.  Figure out where in the above sequence of events that your transition failed- is it while you were standing (initial index to target)?  When you first began your descent into position?  Or when you planted your bottom or elbow?  Somewhere in there, you mucked something up- figure it out, and try again.  Keep practicing until placing your NPOA on target through a transition becomes second nature; something that 'just happens', without conscious effort or forethought.

Once you've gotten to the point that your transition has placed your NPOA on target, NOW you squeeze the trigger, firing your first dry fire round.  Call the shot!  It doesn't matter if your transition and NPOA were great, if an errant jerk of the trigger, or inconsistent respiratory pause screwed up the shot.  After each round 'fired' in dry fire, start back at #1.

Do this practice 2-3 times a week, stopping only after 10 called good shots.  At first, your practice sessions may take 20-30 minutes, as you learn *your* position, and how to properly transition into it.  As you become better at it, you should be able to transition into 10 called good shots within 5 minutes.  Perfection is the result of perfect practice, practiced perfectly.  The above exercises will allow you to reach closer towards perfection.

-ItsanSKS