Before you invest too much time and energy in this book, you should understand (a) what the book can do for you and (b) what the book will ask of you. Here are answers to some of the questions that you may have.
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I can already hit 80% bullseyes from 7 yards out. Can this book help me?
If you can shoot bullseyes consistently from a distance of 7 yards, you are a pretty good shot already. You will need to work toward a more challenging goal than other readers – perhaps shooting 90% bullseyes.
The training program described in this book is designed to produce continuous improvement. Whatever your current skill level, you should shoot better after you complete training.
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Can I teach myself to shoot 100% bullseyes?
Your performance will be limited by the precision of your shooting equipment.
If your gun and cartridge are capable of shooting 100% bullseyes from a benchrest, then you can train yourself to shoot 100% bullseyes free standing. If not, the upper limit on your performance will be something less than 100%.
The book explains how to assess the precision of your shooting equipment. That analysis will reveal whether your gun and cartridge can shoot 100% bullseyes.
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Shooting from 7 yards out seems tame. Could I set a more impressive goal?
I understand. Shooting bullseyes under more challenging conditions – from further out, in rapid fire, with eyes closed – would be more impressive. You may get there eventually, but it’s not the right place to start.
This training program emphasizes fundamental skills – sight alignment, grip, trigger control, and stance. You will learn these skills quicker; and you will have more success if you start slowly.
The book explains how to achieve more challenging marksmanship objectives, but only after you have demonstrated proficiency from 7 yards out.
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How long will it take to complete training?
The book is (I hope) an easy read. You could read the entire book in just a few hours.
However, it will take longer to complete the exercises. Give yourself two weeks for preparation
(learning to analyze bullet-hole patterns, set up a safe location for dry fire practice,
assess the mechanical accuracy of your handgun and ammo, measure current skill level, etc.). Add another two to three weeks of dry fire practice to develop fundamental skills.
After that, I recommend one range session per week with daily dry fire practice between range sessions.
It could take two to five range sessions to achieve your initial marksmanship goal - shooting 80% to 90% bullseyes consistently.
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How many hours per week will I spend on training?
This training program is entirely self-paced, so the time you spend each week on training is really up to you.
As an example, here’s one workable schedule. You might spend 1 hour each week on administrative tasks
(printing targets, analyzing bullet-hole patterns, etc.). And you could spend 1 to 3 hours per week on practice –1 hour
at the range and the rest at dry fire practice (perhaps, 5 to 15 minutes per session).
Altogether, you might spend 2 to 4 hours per week on administrative tasks and practice sessions.
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Could I get the same results quicker by just shooting now and then at the range?
You can try, and it might work for you.
But it didn’t work for me. Here’s my sad tale. After one hour of training with a marksmanship instructor,
I went to the shooting range on my own. During the year that followed, I probably visited the range 20 to 30 times.
I read books and watched videos. I tried to get better with every range visit. The result: I plateaued at a low level of skill,
hitting bullseyes about 20% of the time from a distance of 7 yards.
There was no method to my madness – no systematic plan. I shot different kinds of targets from different distances using different cartridges.
One week, I worked on my trigger press; another week, my stance. Dry fire practice was spotty, without explicit goals. I didn’t keep records.
If I learned something in one session, it was forgotten by the next.
Then, I tried the program described in this book. It was very structured.
It required me to set goals, monitor performance against those goals, maintain written records, analyze bullet-hole patterns,
identify flaws in my shooting technique, and develop strategies to correct those flaws.
And there was a lot of purposeful, dry fire practice. Eight weeks later, I was hitting 80% bullseyes.
Here’s the bottom line. This training regimen is not a quick fix. It will take a little time and a little effort. But it’s not difficult. The book guides you every step of the way. And, in the end, you will be a marksman.