I hadn't thought about that. I really don't think I have a problem with recoil that I've ever noticed but then again I've never shot out far enough to see a problem. When you say "pushing just a bit in anticipation of the recoil" do you mean that I am pushing my shoulder forwards towards the rifle just before the shot? I wasn't thinking about it while shooting and each time the rifle went off it was unexpectedly (Lorenzo did a great job on the trigger).
Yes that's what I mean. It's really not "flinching' it's just something a lot of people do without thinking.
I am shooting left handed and my point of aim was right on the black line going diagonal across the steel. I hit right where I was aiming and the other two were to the right. other than making sure I was squeezing the trigger and not jerking it I didn't pay attention to how I put my finger on the trigger.
Try this. See if you can bend your finger at a 90 and draw the pad of the last joint straight to the crotch of your thumb/hand joint. See if it's coming straight back or if it's angling to one side.
If it's not coming straight back this may be your problem. For some reason I've also seen a lot of shooters in the last decade or so using more than just the last pad, but in fact sticking that all the way through to the second pad of their trigger finger. Doing that can easily cause you to torque it a bit.
If you are using just the last pd try sliding your palm back just a bit farther than you normally do and draw, not squeeze but draw it back ever so slowly.
Do a bit of practicing with a snap cap and see if any of the above helps you stay steadier on your POA, but make sure the POA is at 300yds or more on a small target.
These little tweaks don't really show up much at closer ranges.
I've been shooting for over 30 years but I have never taken a shooting class. I am a good instinctive shot and I can out shoot any of my friends with their rifles. other than breath control, making sure my eye is in the same place behind the scope every time (now I know that is called cheek weld), and squeezing the trigger I don't have "mechanics".
We all have mechanics, it is how you physically mount and drive the rifle, and those mechanics really make a difference when you start stretching out the ranges.
This site has been a wealth of information and everyone has been willing to help out with everything. Your input and the input of others have saved me from making a lot of errors you all may have made in the past and helped saved days and hundreds of rounds of setting up my scope, my cheek rest, and other minor details that make a difference.
No matter how experienced we are, we can all improve with a little help.
At this range we are on an elevated platform with very solid benches. I am not shooting prone. On the bench I am using a bi-pod and sandbags for rifle support. The rear bag is not ideal and I have to stack two of them on top of each other to get the elevation I need on the back of the rifle. I am guessing getting a larger bag would be my first step to stabilize the rear of the rifle better. Without sounding too stupid what are the "mechanics of a perfect shot" and what recommendations can you or anyone else on this site give me?
As I said above it's all about how you are physically "mated" so to speak to the rifle. Shooting from the bench with the bipod you might want to consider using a rear monopod in stead of bags. They are pretty darn handy.
What I generally do is curl my off arm (right in your case) around under the rifle and use my curled up fist as a rear bag. Just flexing/relaxing it a bit gives you a very stable rear support with pinpoint elevation changes. Even if I use a rear bag I'll use both to make the minute changes necessary.
One problem we experienced shooters run into is that we may have been doing something just a bit off for decades, but since we usually hit what we're shooting at we don't notice those errors especially if we are shooting alone.
I had a good friend stay with me helping me train dogs for a few months a couple of years ago. Dave was already a hell of a shot but I picked on a few of his mechanical errors a bit here and there (break time usually included at least 20 rounds at 600-870yds HA) and his already very good shooting came up a few notches by the time he left.
He'd never shot anything at greater than 400yds before he started hanging around with me and for that next year or so after he left I was frequently getting calls "Hey you won't believe what I just did" killing coyotes and deer at ranges he would have never thought possible just a year prior.
I have some nerve damage which affects both of my hands to varying degrees and one of the results is that I often get shaky on my right hand/fingers. The little trick I mentioned above about just sliding your hand back a bit farther than you are used to is something I picked up from a friend myself. Made a big difference.
Good luck.
