Thanks Tir, I understand where you are coming from and I do realize I went over-board with my own expectations, particularly about the time-frame I set to achieve all this.tirpassion wrote: I will be straight forward with you this time with an example...
I have done some deep thinking on what you have advised. I have come to realize that achievement to 100% is not a goal one can achieve in one go, and then assume it will stay with you. I now realize that it is a "process" and one needs to continuously work at maintaining a good level while keep correcting flaws & deviations. I will work on this.I am shooting since November 2006 and I am doing a serious effort to erase the accumulated errors recorded in my subconscious mind since last one and a half years now. So I wish that no one trains incorrectly and keep on recording errors.
In the absence of a good physical coach here, I think I will post my flaws to get advise from you, Dev & HVJ so that I can correct them.- I am still working on my gripping. I have not achieved 100% as yet
- I am still working on my stance. I have not achieved 100% as yet. I am discovering the importance of the actions of the muscles to hold the skeletal structure in place during the position
- I am discovering the importance of the position of the head while in shooting stance and i HAVE UNDERSTOOD THAT IT HAS TO BE VERIFIED REGULARLY by a competent person.
Point taken.I will humbly request you to please simplify things...I am afraid that you are going towards an excess...
I have already started the Box Drill exercises and am recording them in my diary. I have now revised my next 1-month plan / targets, based on your advise, as follows -I would suggest/request you to erase all the points of goals / objectives you have enumerated in your post...
I have given you a 6 weeks macro plan which is simple. I would rather love to read that you have already started the exercises and that you have fixed your natural alignment and that you have got your head position and your stance verified by a knowledgeable person etc.
What I have already fixed / corrected to quite an extent:-
1. The AP Grip - Based on the advise given by HVJ, I worked on my wrist-lock on the AP. I soon realized that when I do the wrist-lock correctly and raise the pistol with my eyes closed, my AP barrel was pointing about 10-15 degrees higher than required. As a result, (in the past), I used to bend down my wrist to adjust the angle of the barrel, which was obviously unnatural & incorrect. I have now shaved off the plastic support of my Steyr LP10 (where the barrel rests on the wood), so the angle of the barrel is now more or less correct (maybe 2-3 degrees variation). I will fix that too when I get more accurate with my assessments. I also adjusted the grip base, so that the base support does not squeeze my little finger and palm rest like it used to. They are now comfortable and my palm no longer cups.
2. Wrist Lock - I am now able to make it a habit of locking my wrist when my pistol is touching the bench (45-degrees position) before I start to raise the pistol. It is working fairly well. With more practice, I will be able to improve this.
3. Trigger finger position - After reading the advise on this forum, I noticed that the trigger shoe used to touch the line dividing my last digit of trigger finger. My trigger finger also used to touch the grip of the AP - this resulted in jerks or snatches during trigger operation. Based on the advise by HVJ, I have now been able to shave a bit of the wooden grip and adjust my trigger finger position such that the trigger finger does not touch the grip and the center pad (flesh) of the last digit touches the center groove of the trigger shoe - very gently. I have done lot of self-talk, telling myself that the trigger shoe is actually my own eye-ball. I need to place my finger on it very gently and squeeze it slowly as if I'm squeezing my own eye-ball. The self-talk seems to have worked. My trigger squeeze operation is improving. The correct placement of my trigger finger on the shoe has now more or less become involuntary.
4. Arm & Pistol Alignment - I have practiced aligning my pistol barrel directly in the same line as my arm so that the recoil is passed directly to my shoulders to minimize any shake. I now practice this as a focus item, while raising the pistol to the target. Hopefully, with a lot of practice, I can improve it and also make it involuntary.
5. Front Sight Focus - Reading the advise on this forum, I realized how important it is to focus on the front sight of the pistol. I checked the lens of my blinder and it was set to focus on the target instead (my eyes are far-sighted). As a result, even if I tried to focus on the front sight, it used to appear blurred and involuntarily, my focus moved to the target. I had someone measure the distance between my eyes and the front sight when I'm holding the AP (36.5 inches) and then went to a good optician and had him make me a lens with the exact focus to my front sight. It is working much better now.
6. Sight Alignment Vs. pistol shot on the target - I felt that it is very important to set the SA of the AP accurately, such that when they are perfectly aligned, the shot should land in the exact center of the 10-ring. Otherwise, we keep adjusting the sights and end up aligning the shots with our gripping errors, SA errors, aiming area errors and other shooting errors, further casting our errors in our muscle memory. To correct this, I setup a vice on a stand in the shooting range at my house - at the height of my shooting position. I gripped the AP in it and then adjusted the shot in the center of the 10-ring. I then adjusted the SA of the pistol as it should be in the sub-6 position. I now know, that if the shot misses the center of 10 ring, the error is with my shooting and not the sight alignment of the pistol so I need to work on my shooting, not adjusting the sights.
What I need to work on in the next 1-month:
1. Sight Alignment (SA) practice - Box Drills
2. Figure "8" exercises - Box Drills
3. Front sight focus practice - Box Drills - Blank target practice
4. Aiming area hold - Box drills
5. Slow trigger squeeze operation - with eyes closed / eyes open - I'm doing 100 times per day already
6. Follow through - for 5 seconds each dry-fire - Box Drills
Please continue advising me and let me know if I'm on the right track.
Thanks
Atul