Pretty good with handguns and rifles, but suck at sporting clays. Any suggestions other than quit?

First get with someone who knows how to shoot and take some real
coaching..and practice practice..ect.burn bullets..No one is born
great they all worked at it..but you need someone who is competent to start you off and maybe correct some errors that will costs you targets and money..Don

I shot in college for our school's team and I shot ATA, NSSA, NSCA. In my opinion the first thing you need to do is make sure your gun fits you. Poor gun fits will cause you miss more often. Find somebody who knows how to check gun fit and address any problems you may have. Second, like don said get somebody who knows what theyre doing to coach you and shoot flat after flat of shells. Also if it something you want to start doing a lot, I would invest in a reloader. I shoot AA's and would keep all my shells and any I could scrounge. It saved me more than half the cost of what I pay at the store.

$1 to a donut, your gun doesn't fit. It isn't pointing where you are looking.

Lessons, a mentor, practice/range time and a fitting are in order.

X2

Thanks! Any suggestions for fitting and instruction in the Denton area?

One thing no one mentioned to you is shotgunning is point and shoot..and shoot where the targets going not where it's been..The
biggest problem I've seen over the yrs. when trying to coach someone who shoots handguns and rifles is they try to aim..every
one of them do it...Shooting a shotgun is pointing your finger.
If when you mount your weapon tightly on your shoulder w/your cheek firmly against the stock, you should be looking down the bbl and seeing the target..not the bbl..or canting the weapon..
If you practice and point the index finger on your forearm at the
front of the targets flight path and hold just under as you swing, your scores should improve..If you weapon is beating on you, are hitting you in the face,,you have a fit problem..Don

This. Do not aim. I can teach it in 15 minutes with a BB gun. Shoot the BB into the air with both eyes open and watch the BB. Next put target at the distance of where you saw the BB. Shoot at that target with both eyes open. Google quick kill, with Lucky Mcdaniels. I took lessons from him. He made me forget the sights. It is more important than fit.

I'm watching football at this time. I'll add more tomorrow.

You would profit from contacting Leon Measures. He teaches the same method Bill mentions above, and calls it "shoot where you look" thru both books and seminars. His book, along with a cheap shell equiped with a laser in it have helped my shooting immeasurably. Be forewarned, the old fellow loves to talk, but he can help you if he is still around! He has a website. Look up "Shoot Where You Look"

Gary

Thanks. I'll check it out.

Bill
I will be calling you in about an hour after i miss the first 30 birsds

You can learn it on your own, but it really helps for someone to walk you through it. I've helped a couple dozen people. Leon Measures once taught it to groups here in houston. Here's the link;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucky_McDaniel

I made my previous post before I read this. Leon came out to one of our NSTRA trials. I'm not sure he's still in the business. He could shoot a BB with a BB.

Bill Oxner, Thanks for the link.

Thanks a bunch for your kind words. It's much easier to show than it is to tell. One of the first things I learned was to forget head down. You need to have your head up looking at the target. You have more mobility that way. You completely have to forget about looking down the barrel. Forget your gun sights. Concentrate on the target. Lucky started out throwing a washer in the air, after he ask us to find the BB in the air. The tendency is to shoot high. We looked the BB all the way into the washer, until we were constant. Next he put a piece of white paper in the hole in the washer, and told us to forget the washer. We were knocking the paper out of the hole in the washer before we finished. He was really good at throwing things, but you can do the same thing with stationary targets. We switched to clay targets, and I hit 25 with a box of shells.

He told us to forget lead, and go with the flow. Move your gun as if it's a baseball bat, or the tip of your finger. He admitted that gun fit was somewhat important, but not necessary. He proved the point when my boss brought a scoped rifle out of his car. That's when silver dollars were going around. He took a silver dollar, tossed it into the air, turned the rifle upside down and made a perfect washer out of the silver dollar.

He really helped me a bunch, but I still do not consider myself a shooter. I got up to a pretty consistent 23 in skeet, and my wild quail shooting really improved. I seldom miss on pen raised quail in NSTRA. The best shooters are the best athletes.

Bill
Does this method work equally if you switch shotguns without having to practice

I'm not sure. I havent switched shotguns in 30 years. You might be using instinct shooting, but just never put a name to your method. Have you ever turned and shot a bird, without seeing your barrel or your sights, knowing that it will fall? That's one of the first questions Lucky asked us.

To answer your question I am always sub consciously looking at my barrel. I went ahead and bought Leon's video as a result of this thread. I am waiting for my broken trigger finger to heal before I practice it but what bothers me about the video...... The BB gun he uses is no longer being made and no replacement.

I use a Crosman Pumpmaster 760. It's important that you remove the sights, but I didn't do that. I taped a dowel on top of mine, which eliminated the sights, and made it look more like an O/U. The 760 will pump all the way up to killing velocity, but don't do that. Pump it only twice so the BB will be slow enough that you can see it at about 15 feet when held at 45 degrees and fired. Here you go;

Hard to imagine all this comes together when you switch over to your shotgun

I'll come together. Forget the pumpkin on the post. Forget your gun. Pretend it a baseball bat or tennis racket. Concentrate on the target. The best athlete will be the best shot. Age will take it's toll, but you'll still be a better shotgunner.

Being a NSCA Instructor the first thing I check is eye dominancy and gun fit.If everything checks ok I would suggest to practice dry firing at imaginary targets to start. Shotgunning is not an art it's a skill which you can learn.Try to shoot as soon as or right after you mount your gun and don't chase targets.
Good Luck

I coach lessons!