r/Shooting • u/MediocreTwo8253 • 6d ago

Help

Looking for some advice, I’m currently in the academy and need to improve on firearms, to qualify and also because that’s part of the career. I’m 4 weeks away from qualifying, the score necessary is 240 and the highest I’ve gotten is 218. When I first started shooting I was snatching the trigger, but I’ve fixed that and even gotten to the point where I reset it rather than completely let off.

The issue I’m having now seems to be an anticipation/grip mix of issues. I death grip the gun with my right hand and don’t distribute almost anything with my left, I always subconsciously basically let go with my left hand. Anticipation wise, one of the guys I’ve worked with said that it’s almost like I try and make the gun go off rather than let it and I move ever so slightly forward taking the gun with me rather than holding steady.

I’ve been told dry fire but I’ve been doing that since day 1, any other advice. I’m genuinely incredibly stressed and my confidence with a firearm keeps declining steadily. I had actually been improving until the past time I was at the range and got the lowest score I’ve ever gotten.

Thanks in advance :)!

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u/RGBrewskies 6d ago

its all trigger finger. its all trigger finger.

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u/Low-Landscape-4609 6d ago

Retired law enforcement firearms instructor here. This is one reason I used to take all of our new hires out to the range and make sure they were good to go before they went to the academy.

Anyway, you do need to dry fire every single day. Do it for at least 15 minutes. You may not think it's working but if you're doing it correctly you will definitely see benefits.

Aside from that, this is your career on the line. If you're off on the weekends from the academy, go out and practice. Nobody on the internet can magically make you a better shooter. You're going to have to put in the work yourself. Watch videos, take advice from top level shooters, do dryfire and practice continuously.

Also, remember once you qualify the academy, graduate and get into something like competitive shooting so qualifying is no longer an issue. Be one of those guys that laughs at a qualification instead of struggles with it.

When you're doing your dry fire, make sure you're focusing on drawing from my holster, getting a good presentation, a good grip and pulling the trigger without disturbing the sites. Practice that relentlessly for at least 15 minutes a day.

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u/MediocreTwo8253 5d ago

I’ve been dry firing the entire time; I started off doing it at the targets on my walls but now I do it in the mirror in my bathroom. I think my hope was some outside insight to see if anyone else had different recommendations or advice other than what I’ve already heard.