In this issue:
Air rifle sighting program
Re: ammo accuracy / action screw torque
Pistol matches in Northeast USA
Things to ponder on perfection
Looking for eye surgeon
Need help importing firearms
Eye Dominance
Stuff For Sale list
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For a number of years I was a member of the British national squad. During
one particular training weekend we used a computer program/game which
involved two circles. One smaller circle remained stationary while the other
slightly larger circle moved in a random fashion around the smaller one ie
imitating looking down the barrel using peep sights or aperature sights. When
you felt you had attained a good or near perfect sight picture you would
click the mouse. the movement would stop as in releasing the shot There would
be a delay of about 2 seconds then any error in the sight picture would be
corrected by the two circles centralising, thereby showing the margin of
error. What I would like to know is there a similar program about that I
could use?
[Editor - interesting concept but I've never seen one. Would be fairly easy to program one though.]
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Hi Michael,
As always, an interesting newsletter.
First, a correction: gravity works as the square of time, not distance. This is what causes the non-proportional drop from say 400 to 500 yards as compared to 100 to 200 yards.
Most shooters only consider the variations in exterior ballistics in their explanations of why different ammunition shoots differently. Most do not consider the interior ballistics variations among lots. Whether the bullet exits the barrel at a node in the vibration cycle is probably much more important than any other single factor when testing only the rifle ammunition system (i.e. no changes in wind, light, etc).
It is a common mis-conception that shooters of less skill do not need top shelf equipment/accuracy. I had the opportunity of discussing this very thing in detail a number of years ago with a Ph.D. in statistical analysis. The enlightening aspect of the analysis was that inexperienced shooters will add significantly more points to their scores using a highly accurate system than will elite shooters. Essentially, a good firearm/ammo combination will help a poor shooter more than a poor firearm/ammo combination will hurt an elite shooter.
Concerning the torque question: I do not believe that a two screw action should be torqued equally on each screw. Due to variances in tools and screws, I doubt it is possible to torque exactly the same each time on each screw. if one attempts to torque equally, there is good possibility that one will be tighter one time and the other the next. An inconsistency from front to back seems to be much worse on my rifle (1913) than a slight error in torquing the screws. I have found that 42 in-lb on the front and 40 in-lb on the back gives enough variation so that the front is always tighter. This seems to give a bit better performance than when the rear is tighter. I have not noticed an difference from torquing the back first then the front. but I always do the front first, then the back. Additionally, I use a beam torque wrench, not a slip wrench. I believe the static principles involved in the beam wrench are much more consistent than the moving parts in the slip wrenches.
Anyway, all this techie stuff is neat to ponder, but we would probably all shoot a lot better if we trained better and more often. Remember, perfect practice makes perfect!
So long,
Lt. Stephen B. Flatt, USNR
U. S. Naval Reserve Shooting Team
[email protected]
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Nashua Fish and Game is pleased to announce its winter
series of international pistol matches:
Who: Contact John at [email protected]
What: PTOs for air pistol, centerfire, and rapidfire.
When: 22 Oct, 28 Jan, 25 Feb, 25 Mar, 22 Apr
Where: Nashua Fish and Game, Merrimack, NH (southern NH), USA
We also have an "Intro to Rapidfire" event scheduled for 8 Oct.
Contact John at [email protected] for more info and/or to
arrange for loaner equipment. See Nashua's website at
http://www.nfga.org/be/be.html for more info about our
events and our club.
The Nashua web site also includes a calendar of pistol
events in the Northeast US: http://www.nfga.org/be/calander.html#int
regards,
Dave Suitor - [email protected]
NFGA Pistol Committee
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Remember that fear and doubt always lurks behind perfectionism. Confronting your fears and allowing yourself the right to be human can, paradoxically, make you a far happier and more productive person.
Perfectionism can block your road to success quickly. Perfectionism in any part of your life gives you a payoff. It could be controlled, or it could be a way to affirm what we hold to be true about our selves. Perfectionism goes hand in hand with disliking or dissatisfaction with our selves, and because of this fact, we see things in a negative light. Since we know there is no real state of being perfect, we ensure we will never be satisfied with whom we are. Perfection only exists where fault does not. So then, we must constantly be in search for our faults to identify and eliminate them. Here are some thoughts to get over perfectionism!
1. Start by looking for the good in yourself versus what is not perfect.
Imagine that a leader that sent two people with different tasks. One was to seek perfection...the other to seek for goodness. What do you think each person would report? The one seeking perfection would not find it�they would see only a terrible world.....the one seeking goodness would be overwhelmed with goodness...look for the goodness in you self.
2. Shift from judging yourself and the world, to understanding.
Judgment holds criticism, hatred, and is loaded with blocks to our success and prosperity. Understanding brings us acceptance of others and the ability to love our imperfect. For goodness to come into our lives we must come from a place of acceptance and giving.
3. Start asking yourself, �Did I do the best I could? Am I doing the best I can? Am I doing the one-shot-match technique precisely? And is the receipt of the perfect bull�s-eye being receipted?�
Versus �Am I the best� or believing that you have to be the �best.� Who defines that anyway? Remember we will never make everyone happy, and we do not have to.
4. Set attainable goals such as the accomplishment of the one-shot-match that results in a Perfect bull�s-eye, reach them, and celebrate all the bumps along the way.
On the outside, it would seem that perfectionists tend to keep their goals very high. However, on the inside, perfectionists keep their expectations and hopes very low, so there will be less of a chance of being let down. In our heart of hearts, we really do not expect to succeed. Again, reinforcing our negative views about ourselves.
5. Letting go of perfectionism may require you to change your internal dialogue.
Start talking to your self differently. Instead of criticizing yourself �I am such a klutz� say, whoops, �I didn�t see that in my way.� Start with the little things. However, over all reject negative thoughts that may disrupt your affirmative mental flow.
6. Know what your personal payoff is for being a perfectionist.
The payoffs for being a perfectionist can be endless. For some it could be for the sole purpose of having a great deal of control. To be and do everything �perfect� offers one a great deal of control, but also a great deal of limitation.
Perfectionism does not serve any purpose well. It promotes misery and dissatisfaction. If you can see that it harms you, you can let go of it. In shooting, the one-shot-match to the perfect bull�s-eye only results in perfectionism, but it in itself is not perfectionism.
7. Practice extreme self-care for extreme self-esteem.
Perfectionism can justify our low self-worth and disapproval. When we are unable to fulfill our perfect goals we get to say, for example, �See�I knew no one would like me unless I got this weight off.� Alternatively, �I knew I wasn�t smart or perfect enough to get that job.� Choose to turn this around by taking extremely good care of yourself. Turn this around by taking each step of the one-shot-match one step at a time and rejecting all negative thoughts involving the shooting technique. If the thought is negative then reject it before it can enter the non-dominant mental entity.
8. Define what it would look like and how it is technically performed so you may feel truly fulfilled. In mental practice, get a virtual coach to help you create your vision through pictorial representations of the shooting technique and goal you desired accomplished. Envisioning this perfect self, shooting technique and goal also makes us lovable to ourselves, and others.
Perfectionism also offers a beautiful vision of fulfillment and goal accomplishment. Our internal dialogue goes something like this... �I could be successful if only I would.....do, be, have, etc.� What we tend to do, when coming from a perfectionist viewpoint, is feel fulfilled based on the beliefs and the visions but not fact because of doubt that we could do and be better.
9. Forgive yourself because you love yourself.
Another reason that we may have chosen to be perfectionist in the past is that it offers us a reason to forgive ourselves. Deep down we know it is impossible to be perfect, so we are not to blame ourselves for falling short. We do not have to take responsibility for incorrectly executed technical efforts but we do have to take responsibility for the correctly implemented one-shot-match that achieves the Perfect-bull�s-eye.
10. Do not let the search for the perfect athletic life be blocked with perfectionism.
Practice being ok with who you are, and where you are in your life.
Know that what seems imperfect in life is in fact really perfect.
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Dear Friends,
I am in the process of searching for the best possible Eye Surgeon available
for my son Ray Jr. He is an avid marksman (rifle/pistol) and is considering
corrective surgery to restore his eyesight to 20/10 vision. We would
appreciate any information/knowledge/names regarding our research for the
"right doctor" to correct my sons vision.
Thanks very much.
Sincerely,
Ray Hoesten Sr
[Editor - IMHO, you shouldn't go screwing around with your eyes if you want perfect sight. Unless things have improved greatly in the last few years since the various correction methods have come out, even a good doctor cannot guarantee that your vision will be 20/20 (or 20/10 in your case) when finished. Of course your eyes will continue to fade with age anyway so you will still need glasses again later. For the average person where perfect vision isn't critical, it may be great, but I'm not about to let someone mess with my eyes. You can always get a new lens for your glasses if somebody screws that up. Much cheaper, too.]
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Fellow listers,
I live in the US and would like to purchase target rimfire OR air rifles/pistols from Australia, Canada, or Europe. If anyone has done this before, I would appreciate it if you can share your experiences with me.
I'm interested in knowing what regulations and fees are involved, what transportation method should be used, etc.
Regards,
Satria R. Santoso
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Could someone please address this issue of eye dominance. I
have heard people say that it is absolutely imperative to shoot from
the dominant eye regardless of hand dominance and then I have
heard very prominent coaches, some on this list, simply dismiss it
as if it were nothing to be concerned about. As a coach of both
juniors and adults, I am confused as to what direction I should take
with them. Should I simply put a blinder on the cross dominant
folks and let them go or should I try to get them to switch to
shooting from the dominant eye? If a person can clearly focus on
the sights, isn't that good enough? Is there some big mystery
here? I mean, a sight picture is a sight picture, right? Please,
someone, give me a little insight here. Many thanks to all. Ron
[Editor - I used to be of the mind that it did matter simply because that is what the books said and everyone I heard was saying as you pointed out. For some kinds of shooting like shotgun and action pistol, I believe it would be beneficial. However, for international rifle and pistol where quite a few people where blinders anyway, I think it makes no difference IMHO. While I do shoot with my dominant eye and I can't see the target clearly with the other anyway unless I used a lens, I still use a blinder attached to the rifle.]
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Ladies, Gentlemen and Shooters:
Here is the October 2000 edition of "Stuff for Sale." If you have an item
listed for sale, please check the accuracy of the entry on the list and let
me know if there are errors. At the same time, please let me know if items
have already been sold. This list will be going up on the web site
simultaneously with this e-mail. For those of you who might not have that
web site address, look at:
http://website.mciworld.com/[email protected]/index.htm
Later,
John Crossman
Steilacoom, Washington
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End of UIT Mailing List #3
Michael Ray - Systems Engineer
Rose-Hulman Inst. of Tech. Rifle Coach
UIT Shooting Page - http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/1190/index.htm
