Kentwood USMCJROTC Rifle Team

Classes include; Safety, Positions, Sight Alignment and Sight picture, Natural Point of Aim

(NPA), BRASS, and Terminology

Class 1

Safety

Four universal safety rules:

Treat all firearms as if they are loaded. Never point your weapon at anything that you

do not intend to shoot. Keep your finger off the trigger until you are

ready to fire. Keep your safety on until you are ready to fire.

When is a rifle considered ‘safe’?

A rifle is safe ONLY when the bolt is back, and the safety is on.

Shooting competitions will require the participant to use an Empty Chamber Indicator (ECI) to indicate that the barrel is free from all rounds.

For the safety button: Red = Fire

Black = No Fire

The button is pushed in to the right, showing black.

Range commands

The Range Safety Officer (RSO) must be obeyed at all times. In a match he will give you commands similar to these:

“Shooters, move your equipment to the line.”

- Bring all equipment to your firing point on the line and set up your mat, scope, pellets, etc.

- When you bring your rifle to the line you must have your rifle barrel sticking over the firing line.)

- ECI must remain in the barrel

Cont. from Range commands

“The five minute preparation time has begun.”

- Put your sling on and get into position

- You are now allowed to remove your ECI

- Prepare yourself by acting out the steps of a good shooter

“Shooters, with one round, load.”

- Pump your rifle, insert a pellet into the chamber, and close the bolt

Cont. from Range commands

“You may unlock.”

- You can take the safety off

- Shooting finger must remain on the trigger guard

“The line is hot; you may commence fire when ready.”

- When ready, begin shooting.

Cont. from Range commands

“Cease fire! Cease fire on the line!”- Immediately stop shooting and follow the rules of

a cease fire

“The Range is cold.”- The shooting phase and/or competition has ended

and the shooter can now leave

Cease fire

If this command is called the shooter must:

1. Stop firing immediately regardless whether a pellet is in the chamber or not

2. Put the safety ON

3. Either point the rifle up at the ceiling, or set it on the ground

Anybody can call a cease fire. The Range Safety Officer, shooting participants, spectators, all can issue this command.

When are Cease Fires called?

Someone has stepped over the shooting line A shooting trap has fallen rendering the

participant to not being able to shoot (only the RSO can issue this, as it is a ruling)

The RSO may give this command if the limited amount of time has been reached and shooters remain on the shooting line

When all participants have completed their shooting

Safety Equipment

ECI (Empty Chamber Indicator) The only safety equipment needed in this

course are safety glasses. Safety glasses must be worn at all times when

on the firing line. The shade of the glasses depend on the

shooters preference. Dark, clear, yellow, blue tints are all acceptable.

Class 2

Rifle Nomenclature

Stock

Rear Sight

Bolt Breech Barrel

Trigger

Butt

Trigger Guard

Safety Button

PumpSling Attachment

Pistol Grip

Muzzle BreakFront Sight

.177 Daisy Avanti 853CM

Key Ideas

The muzzle break on this rifle acts nothing more than a weight to balance out the rifle for the shooter

The raised edge on the stock is where you place your cheek

The sling attachment is adjustable back and forth

Miscellaneous Terminology

Empty Chamber Indicator –

Maintenance Rod –

Aperture –

Class 3

Sight Alignment and Sight Picture

Sight Alignment

Sight Alignment is the relationship between the front and rear sight.

Perfect sight alignment is when the front sight is centered with the rear sight.

Sight alignment has a greater affect on where the round hits rather than sight picture.

Sight Picture

Sight Picture is the relationship between the front sight and the target.

Perfect sight picture is when the target is center in front sight. Things to know about sight picture:

Aperture

The aperture is what you are centering on your front sight. The size of your front sight aperture can be changed.

If you can not see any white around the target you need a larger aperture.

Most people prefer to have a smaller line of white around the target. This is because the less white you have to deal with the less chance you have of off centering the target. But, it’s the shooter’s decision.

Focusing

Trying to center the front sight, rear sight, and bulls-eye of the target at the same time is quite difficult.

It is in the shooter’s best interest to focus on the front sight first.

Doing so will then allow the sight picture and sight alignment to center.

The last thing you should focus on before you take the shot is the alignment of the sights.

Eye Relief

Eye Relief is simply a term used to describe the distance from the rear sight to your eye.

Adjusting your eye relief will adjust how much of the sight alignment you see.

Class 5

(NPA) Natural Point of Aim

Natural Point of Aim (NPA)

This is the position in which your body natural points the rifle.

How to find positional NPA

Get into position. Keep your breathing normal. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths. Make sure all of your muscles are relaxed. Open your eyes and where ever you rifle is pointing that is

where your NPA is. Repeat this process 2 to 3 times in order to insure that your

NPA is correct.

How to correct you NPA

If your NPA is off, you will need to adjust it to ensure that your pellet will accurately hit the target.

When adjusting your NPA, do not move your entire body, just pivot.

How to correct NPA cont.

In prone you want to pivot your body around your elbow to adjust your NPA.

How to correct NPA cont.

In order to adjust your NPA in kneeling you must move your forward foot either left or right.

How to correct NPA cont.

To adjust your NPA in the sitting position your need to rotate your butt.

How to correct NPA cont.

In order to adjust your NPA in the offhand position your need to slide your rear foot either left or right.

Class 6

B.R.A.S.S.(Breathe, Relax, Aim, Stop, Squeeze)

Breathe

When shooting there are several breathing techniques that you can use;

When you breath your body has a natural respiratory pause in between breaths. This is an opportune time to the shot.

You can take a shot also at the top of your breathe or at the bottom of your breath.

A(n) important thing to remember with breathing is that you want to make sure that you have the same amount of air in your lungs for each shot.

Relax

You don't want to muscle the rifle. You want to make sure that your sling or your skeletal structure is taking up the weight of the rifle.

You want to turn your muscles into jell-o. In other words, don't use them.

If you are tense, your muscles will get tired and this will cause you to shake.

Aim

When aim you want to get that perfect sight alignment and sight picture.

When aiming in, it is important to bring the butt of the rifle up and place it into your shoulder between the deltoid muscle and the collarbone.

In the standing position, it is common for shooters to bring the rifle up, point it at the ceiling, and slowly bring it down.

Stop

Simply stop. Pause for a moment, go through the technique of

BRASS. Stopping allows the shooter to better judge whether he

needs to re-acquire his NPA, or simply take a few more breaths.

Squeeze

You want to squeeze the trigger ever so lightly. The shot should somewhat surprise you.

Typically it takes two or three seconds for a good shooter to correctly pull the trigger.

Errors

If a shooter does not breathe before he takes a shot, he could end up tensing up and begin to shake.

The most common shooting mistakes that come from NOT following BRASS are:

Flinching – Anticipating some sort of re-coil, cuasing the shooter to look away when squeezing the trigger. This is a pellet rifle, there is no such thing as re-coil with these.

Errors cont.

Jerking the rifle – squeezing too fast causing the shot to go off center

Muscling the rifle – gripping the rifle much too hard causing you to shake

Class 6

Positions

Positions

All of the positions are about stability and consistency.

You want the most stable position as well as one you can easily replicate every time for every shot.

Tips for consistency

Find a way to measure the length of your sling in each position. For example, maybe in prone the sling is the distance from the tip of your middle finger to your elbow. Write the information down in your data book.

Load the same every time. Load the pellet, close the bolt, and then pump the rifle. This will reduce any loading flaws. Be sure to only load ONE pellet at a time and pump the rifle only ONCE per shot.

Tips for consistency

Grab the butt of the rifle and place it in your shoulder – the same spot every time.

Place your chin on the stock, looking over the rifle 90o away from the sights. Then turn your head to look through the sights.

This will help keep the position natural and ensure the same spot weld and eye relief.

Tips for consistency

Find a breathing pattern and do it the same way for every shot.

A good shooter takes his shot consistently with each breath. For example, a shooter may take 3 deep breaths and then bring his rifle up, and bring the rifle down and shoot at the exhale of his breath.

Tips for consistency

When setting up your equipment, you want it all easily accessible.

Your scope should be in a place where you can easily move your head and look through it.

You don’t want to be moving around your body and feet, because this will cause you to lose your NPA.

Tips for consistency

Your pellets need to be somewhere within reach. In off-hand, it is a good idea to use a chair to pace your pellets on, that way you don’t have to bend down to pick them up.

Positions

The positions described below are for right handed shooters. If you are left handed, you will be opposite.

Whether you are right handed or left handed depends on your dominant eye. If you are right eye dominant, you are a right handed shooter.

Finding your dominant eye

Select an object that is a few feet away from you.

Stare at the object and then point to the object using your index finger.

When your eyes are focused on the object and not on your finger, you will see two blurry fingers in your line of sight.

Finding your dominant eye

Now, close one eye and then close the other eye. You will notice that with one of your eyes closed, your index finger will point exactly at the object, however, when the other eye is closed, your finger will point at an area slightly shifted to the side of the object.

The eye with which you see your index finger pointing exactly at the object is your dominant eye.

Prone

The most stable position. Your entire body is in contact with the ground,

so you are extremely stable. Make sure that your sling is tight and located

above the bicep - it has a tendency to loosen. You can use a shooting mat in this position.

Prone cont.

Your body should be angled approximately thirty degrees from the target.

You should be a straight line from the left shoulder to left foot. Arrange your legs into the most comfortable and stable position for you.

Prone cont.

Cocked leg – Your right leg is slightly bent, which gives your body room to breathe.

Marine style – Both legs are straight, maximizing your contact with the ground.

Prone cont.

Your feet can be pointing in any direction that is comfortable. However, the position is less stable if one or both of your feet are resting on the tip of your shoe. Try to lay your feet flat on one side or the other.

Your left arm should be directly beneath the rifle so it is supporting the weight of the rifle.

Your right hand should not be gripping the rifle stock- that creates unwanted muscle tension.

Prone cont.

Your right hand should be firmly holding the pistol grip to prevent jerking the trigger, but relaxed as much as possible

Sitting

This position may be slightly less stable than Prone.

Your sling will probably need to be shortened. Remember, the sling should be holding up the rifle, not you. This prevents muscle tension.

You can use a shooting mat in this position as well.

Sitting cont.

Once again, your body should be angled roughly thirty degrees away from the target.

There are three variations of this position:

Cross Legged – Your legs are crossed at the calves. More than likely, you will be more comfortable with your left foot over your right, but do what is natural.

Sitting cont.

Cross Ankle – Your ankles are crossed, again with whichever legs feels most natural on top. This position is most commonly used by especially tall people.

Place your elbows on the meat on the inside of your knees. Do not create bone on bone contact.

Sitting cont.

Open Legged – Your legs are not crossed, but angled so that your feet are flat on the deck. This position is only used if you are physically not able to get into the other two positions, because it is considerably less stable.

Your leg muscles will be tense, trying to stay in the same position and will become tired, causing your shots to be thrown.

Kneeling

This position is less stable than prone and sitting You are higher off the ground Your right elbow will not be supported. Your sling will need to be shorter in this position than

prone and sitting. Also, you may need a kneeling roll and you can use

a shooting mat.

Kneeling

Start by placing the kneeling roll around thirty degrees away from your target. Then place the inside of your right ankle on it and rest your butt on that foot. Your foot cannot be turned so that you are sitting on the inside of your heel. Your foot should be like a ramp, a straight line from the ground going up the bottom of your foot to your heel.

Kneeling

Your left foot should be almost directly below your knee, forming a ninety degree angle from hamstring to calf.

Your left foot should be pointing at the target, or up to thirty degrees away from it. (Turning your foot clockwise inward may provide more stability and comfort.)

Place your left elbow on the left leg either before your knee, or over it, but not on it.

Your right arm will be unsupported in this position.

Kneeling cont.

Low Kneeling: This is slightly more stable than with a kneeling roll for two reasons:

Your body is lower to the ground Your body is more compact, not being supported by

an outside piece of equipment. Some find that this position hurts the ankle and foot

too much to be able to fire ten well-aimed shots. Remember, your position needs to feel natural to

you.

Kneeling cont.

Below are the only differences between regular kneeling and low kneeling:

You will lay your right foot flat on its right side and then sit on the inside of your ankle/foot. You will be disqualified if your butt is touching the ground, so do not try to sit halfway on the deck.

Your left leg will probably not form a ninety degree angle, but place it where it feels comfortable. Your left foot must be flat on the deck.

Offhand

This is the least stable position Your body has the least amount of contact with the

ground. The sling is not used in this position and cannot be

attached to the rifle. You will not use a shooting mat. Using a glove is optional.

Offhand cont.

Your feet should be ninety degrees from the target, forming a line from the middle of your right arch, through your left foot, and straight to the target.

Your feet should be about shoulder length apart.

Offhand Cont.

Your hips should be facing forward, NOT toward the target. You will lose stability if you let your hips drift to face the target.

Your weight should be evenly distributed amongst both legs and you should be standing on the whole of your feet. Do not rest most of your weight on your heels, try to evenly distribute it.

Offhand cont.

Do not lock your knees straight and do not tense them. You want as many of your muscles to be relaxed as possible.

If you can, place your left elbow on your hip - this gives your left arm support. You may need to stick your left hip out a little in order to achieve this. If you cannot comfortably reach your hip, rest your arm on your ribcage.

Hand positions for Offhand

A glove is used in each position. Offhand is an exception.

4 types of hand positions: Knuckle Flat hand 3 fingers The ‘V’

(Coaches will show how they look)