What makes a person a good shot?

[Tote 9]

I have had my CHL for 2 years. I have never owned nor shot a pistol
untill I decided to get my CHL. Since then I have shot about 500 rounds
total --9mm & 45. this is the question I have for you experiensed shooters.

What makes a person a good shot ? Is it shooting a certain group at a
certain distance ? Is it moving and point shooting? At what point must I
reach ( if I want to brag to my wife I'm a good shot) to become what some
would say is a good shot. I'm still learning. I need to know if I'm practici
ng enought.

[carlson1]

WOW, what a question. I can't wait to read the answers. Personally I have not been able to shoot in the last 11 months like I like to. I would say 500 rounds in two years is not much. It does take a lot of practice. Back in the late 80's I had a sergeant that required each of us to shoot 200 rounds a month. That was not department policy that was his. I seen a lot of men get quick transfers to West Texas who did not follow his wishes. I am going to wait with you for the experts answers on this subject.

[cyphur]

Hitting your target consistently, regardless the situation. Thats a good shot IMHO.

I am not yet a "good" shot. Not like I want to be.

And yea, 500 rounds in two years is not much. I've only owned my .45ACP for 3 months but already have over 700 rounds through it.

[Pickpocket]

If we're talking defensive/combat shooting, not missing the target makes you a good shot in my opinion.
Another way of looking at it is that you're never really a "good enough" shot - there will always be someone better. We just keep striving to improve.

I believe that nice dime-sized groups are pretty worthless in a truly reactive close-in situation, and I'm not the only person that would suggest that expecting to keep such groups in those situations is quite unreasonable.

Point shooting is a technique, not a measure of our abilities in and of itself. I believe that good shooters are guaged not only by their ability to hit the target, but by their ability to think and act maturely.

As for your question about your practicing habits -
It is my opinion that a person will get more out of going to the range every other day and shooting only four rounds cold, from the draw, then packing up and leaving than they will going once a month and shooting 200 rounds in a single sitting. Why? In a truly reactive situation, you're not going to have 50 rounds to warm up - it is those first few rounds out of the weapon when you're COLD that are going to tell you the most about whether or not you're practicing effectively.

[The Marshal]

Tote 45,

Excellent question!!
I would hardly qualify as a good shot, but I have been known to be consistent. So let me throw out a few things to consider, and hopefully improve your ability as well.

1) Grip
2) Sight
3) Trigger
4) Stance
5) Perfect Practice
6) Dry-fire drills

Honestly, I wasn't hitting much of anything good until I got past 1K rounds fired. So, like your weapons, "You ain't broke in, yet."

Forget consistency if you have a crummy grip on your gun. That is first.
Learning to properly focus on your FRONT SIGHT is key to hitting consistently. Watch this Todd Jarrett video to get an understanding of this. Click Here

Check out his thumb placement on the .45
Once I switched to this grip, 2 things happened.
a) it very natural for me to get this grip
b) my accuracy went up 50%

Trigger: learn to squeeze, not slap or push.

Stance: still working on this myself! Find a comfortable position to allow you to perfect steps 1-3!

Perfect Practice: "Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast" Focus on accuracy, and proper technique, before going for speed. In fact, it will find you!

Dryfire (CLEAR YOUR WEAPON!) This will help you with sloppy trigger, 'sympathetic movement', and watching your front sight. As well as getting a feel for your gun.
I have read that many pros dryfire 50 times prior to using actual ammo.

I started on the 3yd target. When I got good enough to punch out the center, I moved to the 7yd. I am now working to punch out the center of the 15yd...

Most importantly, stay humble.
Ha! Cocky means you think you have learned it. Uh-uh. It is a fat precursor to sloppy shooting.

AND I recommend that you take a friend!
They can observe your shooting, and hopefully help you correct your errors. Cyphur loves it when I load the mag with SnapCaps!
Note: Yeah, we laugh, but his shooting has become almost rock solid whether a live round or a snapcap!!

~Bill

[jbirds1210]

I am far from a "good shot", but dry practice has made me better. I have a plan before I pick up the gun. I like to think of all of my dry practice as dress rehearsal. I already know what is going to happen...no surprises.

Like anything else, I think some people learn more quickly than others. I would bet my money against any "natural" that did not dedicate a great part of their time practicing. I belive that pure determination and plenty of time with a gun in your hand will make you a great shot!

[HighVelocity]

If the bullet goes where you intended then you're a good shot.

[308nato]

when i decided it was time to get a CHL I bought a 9mm semi auto
and before I took my classes I practised once a week 100 to 150 rds
a session on silhouettes.
during my firing test the instructor didnt think much of my gun untill near the end when he went to get the target and found a nice fist size hole in the center mass.
I thought I did real good until I saw 2 out of the silhouette on plan paper.
My thinking now is a good shot is someone who can keep their rds in the center mass.
So its practise , practise , practise.

[Roger Howard]

Ask Elgato

[Roger Howard]

Lots and lots of rounds down range. I have been hunting and shooting all my life. I bought my 9mm in May of this year and have already put 3 to 4 thousand rounds down range. That includes 3 IDPA matches. I am defitnately NOT a good shot. I still pull/push shots. I do feel that if I have to defend my family/self that I can do so, but i go to the range every chance I get.

To me a good shot is some one who can hit the center mass of a target several times in a row during a massive adrenaline dump.

[age_ranger]

practice.........

[MrDrummy]

I'm still learning to be a good shot as well. Dry-firing drills will make a world of difference in your shooting.

Marshal-- AWESOME video link.

I can't wait til I get a chance to go train with some quality folks like that.

[Piney]

Greetings--

A good shot eh ? Hummmmm.....

I feel I'm a decent shot so I"ll expound on that. When practicing on the range, I consider a good shot day when all of my rounds hit close to each other COM on an IDPA-style silhouette target. This includes fairly rapid fire, using both hands, strong, and weak hand shooting. In this type of shooting-- that's my goal.

With bullseye target shooting, slow fire, I consider it a good shooting day if I punch a 3" hole (ok ok....more or less ) after a box of 50.

I'd have to agree with other comments-- hitting what you intended is a good shot. I'd also add *confidence* to that definition. Confidence in handling your gun. This includes drawing, aiming, firing , reloading and re holstering. It can also include confidence in your abilities- your ability to define a situation and take appropriate action.

The gun handling comes with practice. The ability portion comes along with the handling parts, but more so from a preformed mindset of action.

[RPBrown]

By no means am I a good shot. I do practice at least once a month, more when time allows. I usually send 100-200 rounds down range per session. I now feel that my muscles are trained enough to shoot IDPA (again when time allows).
IMO 500 rounds in 2 tears is not enough to train your muscles to react naturally.

[Diode]

Try to hang around and go shooting with guys who are good shots. I have learned so much in the last few months and I owe it all to the 5 or 6 guys I shoot with.