How much pressure do you use to hold the rifle butt into your shoulder notch while shooting from a rest or bag or any position for that matter?
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scattergun13
Wow. Tough question, not knowing what make of rifle you are speaking of. Some of my rifles are heavy benchrest, and just what I call "peek and pinch". No holding to speak of. Free recoil. Other rifles I can wrap my loving arms around them and do very well. Then there are those lighter rifles that like firm grips with a little downward pressure. I'm just a rookie at benchrest, but I'm sure some of the old pros will come along and give you some real help. Sometimes I just have to experiment with different "holds" and see what the best results/score is. ...... AH
With my heavy guns, 10.5 and 13.5 there is no holding. Nothing touches the rifle except the trigger finger... free recoil.
The sporter gun is a little different. I was holding it with a firm (not clenching) grip, but I've been backing off on that also. With my new Fulgham rest, I've also been shooting the sporter free recoil.
As mentioned by ammohog and ultramag44, it all depends on the equipment you are using. Try different methods and see what your gun and setup like.
The problem with holding the gun is being able to repeat it for every shot.
Where consistency is a major factor in the .22 rf benchrest sports, I try to eliminate as many factors as possible so that I can concentrate on the flags.
Best,
Michael
The sporter gun is a little different. I was holding it with a firm (not clenching) grip, but I've been backing off on that also. With my new Fulgham rest, I've also been shooting the sporter free recoil.
As mentioned by ammohog and ultramag44, it all depends on the equipment you are using. Try different methods and see what your gun and setup like.
The problem with holding the gun is being able to repeat it for every shot.
Where consistency is a major factor in the .22 rf benchrest sports, I try to eliminate as many factors as possible so that I can concentrate on the flags.
Best,
Michael
This would apply to just a 10-22. I'm trying to learn the right techniques with something small and then your ready to go big or go home. Don't plan on competition shooting yet just a casual plinker and varmint chaser and a total newb with firearms. thnx:bthumb:
10/22? I wasn't expecting that. wow. Well, I've got two 10/22s tricked out with GM Bulls and Kidd bolts/buffers with polished VQ trigger kits. (well, one trigger I did myself) They do very well with target ammo, but nothing like the "73 Rem 540X or the Kimber 82G, which cost about the same amount, after the smoke settled and the dust cleared. 
Keep shooting! Fun, isn't it! Welcome to the madness. Nurse Rached will be here shortly, with ammo and medication, usually sacramental gin. :t
Keep shooting! Fun, isn't it! Welcome to the madness. Nurse Rached will be here shortly, with ammo and medication, usually sacramental gin. :t 
While generalizations are dangerous, I grip sporter stocked rifles tightly and with heavy stocked and barreled guns, I start with a very light hold.
It is funny that you should ask. My buddy Bob and I each have total Kidd 10/22s. We have been trying to figure out the same thing. Bob holds his tighter than me with good results. I tried holding it firmly and the groups were so so. Then I tried everything from a light grip to no grip. I am not sure if there is a difference or not. A lot is in your trigger pull, etc. You know, the basics. As far as your gun grip, it is ongoing trial and error. I will let you know.
I had this question as well and decided to determine the optimal technique through testing. I settled on six approaches from totally free recoil all the way to heavy hold.
I shot two targets (50 scorers) with each technique under calm wind conditions. For my rifle the best technique ended up being a VERY light hold with both hands. This was slightly more consistently accurate than totally free recoil for my particular rifle. I would suggest a similar approach to anyone trying to determine the best shooting technique for their own rifle.
Lesley
I shot two targets (50 scorers) with each technique under calm wind conditions. For my rifle the best technique ended up being a VERY light hold with both hands. This was slightly more consistently accurate than totally free recoil for my particular rifle. I would suggest a similar approach to anyone trying to determine the best shooting technique for their own rifle.
Lesley
Shootinmg stock weight sporter 10/22s "free recoil" will get you more "patterns" than "groups". The lighter the rifle the firmer the hold. Semi needs a firmer hold than a bolt.
I had a 4.7 pound 17M2 that never shot well. It was a Nylon 11 Remington meaning a Rem 511 bolt action in a nylon stock like a Nylon 66 and the rifle was a huge disappointment for accuracy. 1t had a 22 or 24 inch skinny barrel and being so light it was like trying to shoot a buggy whip
One day I decided to try holding it harder. Instant improvement. Then I held it with a death grip like my life depended on it.......under 1 MOA groups.
A very light semi auto is much the same. Think about all the stuff that goes on in a semi. Lots of monkey motion.
A few years back I got serious about shooting our sporter weight 10/22 SuperStocks at 100 yards. I adjusted the fore arm stop on my Cowan rest all the way out and actually leaned into the rifle with my shoulder. 3 of these rifles all average right at 3/4" groups at 100 yards since changing to this technique. These are about 6 lb semi autos. They jump around a lot compared to a 12 pound bolt rifle.
With a 22 semi auto the other thing you are fighting is "barrel residence time" or how long the bullet is in the barrel and what is happening to the rifle while that is going on. For instance the hammer hits the firing pin and the pin hit the rim. This creates more vibrations with in a rifle than a sear releasing the rifling pin in a bolt rifle. About twice as much very roughly. Then as the powder burns and the bullet heads down the barrel the bolt of the semi auto it already starting to move backwards. As it is moving backwards it is compressing the recoil spring and even more important it has hit the hammer and is trying to push the hammer out of the way by compressing the hammer spring. Now let's be clear here that the bolt is only moving a little way before the bullet clears the barrel but it is moving. All these things set up varying vibrations within the rifle while the bullet is still in the barrel. The slower the load the longer the bullet is in the barrel and match ammo is sssllllloooowwww.
In a bolt action when the firing pin is released it more or less STOPS when it hits the rim and crushes the priming compound. There is recoil but that is true in both designs. When the bullet starts down the barrel it is not being influenced by as many things moving and vibrating.
So in general:
When talking about the 22lr a light weight is going to need heavier hold than heavy gun.
A semi is going to need a firmer hold than a bolt or single shot.
A light semi is going to need the firmest hold and a heavy bolt may not need any hold at all!!
I had a 4.7 pound 17M2 that never shot well. It was a Nylon 11 Remington meaning a Rem 511 bolt action in a nylon stock like a Nylon 66 and the rifle was a huge disappointment for accuracy. 1t had a 22 or 24 inch skinny barrel and being so light it was like trying to shoot a buggy whip
One day I decided to try holding it harder. Instant improvement. Then I held it with a death grip like my life depended on it.......under 1 MOA groups.
A very light semi auto is much the same. Think about all the stuff that goes on in a semi. Lots of monkey motion.
A few years back I got serious about shooting our sporter weight 10/22 SuperStocks at 100 yards. I adjusted the fore arm stop on my Cowan rest all the way out and actually leaned into the rifle with my shoulder. 3 of these rifles all average right at 3/4" groups at 100 yards since changing to this technique. These are about 6 lb semi autos. They jump around a lot compared to a 12 pound bolt rifle.
With a 22 semi auto the other thing you are fighting is "barrel residence time" or how long the bullet is in the barrel and what is happening to the rifle while that is going on. For instance the hammer hits the firing pin and the pin hit the rim. This creates more vibrations with in a rifle than a sear releasing the rifling pin in a bolt rifle. About twice as much very roughly. Then as the powder burns and the bullet heads down the barrel the bolt of the semi auto it already starting to move backwards. As it is moving backwards it is compressing the recoil spring and even more important it has hit the hammer and is trying to push the hammer out of the way by compressing the hammer spring. Now let's be clear here that the bolt is only moving a little way before the bullet clears the barrel but it is moving. All these things set up varying vibrations within the rifle while the bullet is still in the barrel. The slower the load the longer the bullet is in the barrel and match ammo is sssllllloooowwww.
In a bolt action when the firing pin is released it more or less STOPS when it hits the rim and crushes the priming compound. There is recoil but that is true in both designs. When the bullet starts down the barrel it is not being influenced by as many things moving and vibrating.
So in general:
When talking about the 22lr a light weight is going to need heavier hold than heavy gun.
A semi is going to need a firmer hold than a bolt or single shot.
A light semi is going to need the firmest hold and a heavy bolt may not need any hold at all!!
This is an interesting thread. I have a light 10/22 and a heavy benchrest. The benchrest weighs #12.5 lbs and don't like to be held. The sporter on the other hand has to be held. Both of these guns are tricked out and shoot exceptionally. If you spend the time to get these autos to shoot well, they can be the most fun of any gun to shoot!
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