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Marksmanship Basics For New AR15 Shooters
The Basics:
There are a many variables which will affect a bullet and your rifle’s accuracy. Wind, ammo, the quality of the rifle, ect. will all play a part in limiting how accurate your rifle can be but there is one thing that limits a rifle’s capabilities more than any other… You and I are by far the worst variable in the marksmanship equation. The ultimate goal of a rifleman is to be a rock steady platform from which the rifle is supported and the shot placed. The shooter must manipulate the rifle in the same way with each shot so as to achieve the same results with each shot:
- The sights must be aligned the same way for each shot.
- The trigger must be pulled without moving the sights.
- The rifle must be held in a consistent way for each shot.
Using The Sights:
The AR15 peeps are the pinnacle of iron sight technology. Peep sights give the shooter some amazing advantages vs. other iron sight methods. Your iron sights likely have a small aperture, and a large aperture. The large aperture is for low light and fast shooting up close. The small peep is for precise shooting and this is what we will be working with when sighting in and shooting for accuracy. The small peep does two amazing things:
- It suppresses parallax error
- It increases our depth of field
When we use the small peep, we want to focus on the front sight when shooting. The small peep allows you to focus on the front sight while letting your still keep a decent focus on the target. That’s because it increases our depth of field. If you raise your head over the rear peep and then focus on the front sight, everything in the distance is fuzzy. Lower your head back into the sights and focus on the front sight and things further away clear up. Wow! Such a innocuous thing hides so many secrets! So not only does it increase our depth of field, it also reduces parallax error. This means that with the eye behind the small peep, you can shift your head subtly while looking through the peep and the front sight will remain in a fixed position on the target. Reducing parallax error reduces alignment issues with the shooters eye and makes the rifle more forgiving to shoot easily. Those two “features” play out like this: The shooter can focus on the front sight and concentrate on its alignment with the target. The shooter can *ignore* focusing his / her time and energy on centering the front sight in the middle of the peep sight. Just put that crystal clear front sight post in alignment with the target, and ignore everything else. The small peep reduces parallax error and increases your depth of field which allows you to focus on the front sight and still allows your target to remain relatively clear. The key to using the small peep is to focus on the front sight, not your target. Ignore the rear sight. Focus on the front sight. For all practical purposes, if you can see the front sight post in the rough center of your visual field then you are good to go. Once proper sight picture has been obtained it is time to work on the trigger squeeze:
Squeezing The Trigger:
Mastering the trigger is a essential component to good shooting. When our sights are perfectly lined up with the target, a smooth trigger squeeze ensures they remain that way until the gun fires. A jerky or poor squeeze can disrupt that perfect alignment and push you off target. At close range this jerk might mean a slight change in your point of impact… but at extended ranges any slight change equates to large shift in impact. Proper trigger pull requires applying consistent pressure to the trigger without disrupting the sight picture until the shot lets off. I have been told that you want the rifle to surprise you when it fires… I find it much more repeatable if the shooter knows exactly when a trigger is going to release and fire the weapon… thus I promote dry firing. Dry firing can help you “learn the trigger” so to speak and is a great way to engage in rifle training at home. Ensure your rifle is CLEAR and SAFE and practice shooting at a small pin pushed into the wall. The more you do this, the faster you can learn the trigger and learn how to pull it smoothly without disrupting your sight picture. Dry firing is a great way to practice your sight picture and trigger control at home. Your accuracy at the range will improve greatly with dry fire practice.
If you find your trigger to be gritty or it feels simply un-smooth… keep practicing. If all your fundamentals are good a gritty trigger shouldn’t stop you from shooting well but it will be a minor speed-bump along the way. You don’t need a Geissele right off the bat. So we covered proper sight alignment, and proper trigger squeeze, next would be breathing:
Controling Your Breathing:
Another step we need to take is to eliminate unnecessary bodily movement before taking the shot. Breathing will naturally cause your sights to rise and fall as your lungs expand and contract. To stop this sight picture disruption we have to hold our breath. Simply breath normally and shoot at a natural respiratory pause. If you are holding your breath like you are going to jump in a pool you are doing it wrong. Simply breath in normally and let it out. Right there is a natural respiratory pause. Shoot at that natural respiratory pause, and if you can’t take the shot within a few seconds take another breath and start over. Holding your breath for an excessive amount of time preparing for the shot (or shots thereafter) will ultimately be detrimental as certain functions of the eye quickly deteriorate with lack of oxygen. To recap:
- Sight aligmennt: Focus on the front sight and align it with the slightly fuzzy target. Ignore the rear sight.
- Trigger: Squeeze the trigger smoothly to discharge the weapon without disturbing the sights.
- Breath Control: Shoot at natural respiratory pauses.
So those are the fundamentals of an accurate shot. The basics. What we need to discuss next is body mechanics and a stable shooting position for new shooters to master.
Body Mechanics:
First, let’s examine body mechanics as they pertain to the prone shooting position. Prone shooting is the most stable shooting position available to the marksman when there are no other platforms from which to fire. In this position the shooter has greatly reduced human variables that might affect the shot. Muscle fatigue is reduced greatly by the prone position as most of the rifle’s weight (and your own body-weight) are transferred straight to the ground through your bones. If you don’t have a bench, then this is the position you will be sighting in a rifle from simply because it is stable and repeatable. Prone is the basic of basic shooting forms to master and an invaluable position for solid shooting.
One of the finest tools available for prone shooting is a USGI web sling. These slings are affordible, and add passive rifle support… meaning that the sling tension supports your rifle so that the muscles, which tire and twitch, don’t have to affect the shot. If you don’t have a USGI web sling, obtaining one should be on your shopping list. In the prone position, spread the legs out comfortably. Rest the rifle’s forearm in the open palm of your hand. The rifle’s butt-stock should be firmly tucked into the shoulder pocket. Nose touching the charging handle ensures a repeatable place for your face and eye to look through the small peep. Your face should push firmly into the stock and your cheek should create a “chipmunk cheek” with the pressure. Both elbows are laying on the ground, hand on the grip and finger resting lightly on the trigger. Before we shoot, let’s modify our prone position to ensure our rifle naturally points at the target.
A Natural Point of Aim:
A natural point of aim (NPOA for my finger’s sake) is a point that you and your rifle naturally aim at when in firing position. Prone shooting allows you to use this powerful tool very easily. Peer down your sights and look at your target. Close your eyes, relax your body, and let the rifle drift and settle into the position it wants. Open your eyes and peer through your sights. Is your rifle pointing at the target? No? Then adjust your body position to allow the rifle to naturally point at the target. This is an important tool because aiming naturally at the target takes out human error in trying to contort the body and muscles to stay on target. If you can stay on target without exerting any effort then you are on the right track to consistent, accurate shooting. Once you have positioned yourself to take advantage of NPOA, you are ready to take your shot. Focus on the font sight, front sight is crystal clear… target slightly fuzzy, squeeze the trigger while maintaining perfect sight and target alignment. BOOM! Great shot! If the rifle recoils and falls back into the exact same position where it naturally points at the target… then you are doing things RIGHT.
Red Dot Sights:
Red dot sights are the next point of interest for new shooters. Some people start here. Marksmanship fundamentals still apply to the red dot save for a few differences. No longer is there a need to focus on the front sight. Instead focus on the target and superimpose the dot on the target. When using a red dot, it is important to understand that you are using a modern tool that has been shortchanged for years… red dots are just as accurate as iron sights, and far less fatiguing to the eye. 2 MOA dots are far sharper of a aiming point than a front sight post, in addition they do not obscure as much of the target as much as iron sights. Reduce the bloom by dialing the intensity down until you have balanced the sharpness of the dot with its brightness. Here is the best setting to practice your marksmanship. At this point, there is not much more to say other than the fundamentals of breath control, trigger pull, and body mechanics are all the same. Since you are working with ONE zero, make it a good zero such as the maximum point blank range method.
Putting It All Together:
Applying the fundamentals is simply disciplining yourself to repeat a simple process the same way over and over again. The fundamentals will *always* carry their weight if applied properly. Get in a stable shooting position which naturally aligns you and your gun with the target, acquire a proper sight picture and focus on the front sight, control your breathing, squeeze the trigger smoothly and consistently. That’s it! Becoming a marksman or a rifleman is something anyone can do. All it takes is practice and patience.
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