Basic Fit   I’m at the point in my shooting that I really want to improve. What should I do first: get instruction or get a gun fitting?   Both! A good instructor should be able to check basic gun fit and start you on a path of improvement in your shooting proficiency. While there is a big difference between the gun fitting expertise of the average instructor and that of a professional gun fitter, NSCA certified instructors are taught to evaluate basic gun fit and how to make modifications to a shooter’s shotgun when practical. Visibility and comfort are the two most … [Read more...]

Self-Adjusting   Short of having a gun fitter adjust my comb, how can I be sure my adjustable comb is in the right place and adjusted properly?   Here is a tip for DIY comb adjusting: Find a mirror inside your home or in the clubhouse and stand in front of it, facing the mirror, with your unloaded shotgun. Stand just far enough away from the mirror so the muzzle is about six inches away from the mirror when you are fully mounted to the shotgun. Use a whiteboard marker to place a small dot on the mirror in front of you at the same height as your eye when you are fully mounted. … [Read more...]

Parallel Combs   Can you explain why having an angled comb makes sense? Why wouldn’t everyone want a parallel comb? 100,000 trap shooters can’t be wrong.   Historically, shotgun stocks have been angled, which means they are higher at the peak of the comb (front end, toward receiver) and lower at the heel of the comb (back end, toward the butt). The reason behind this has its origins in English-style shooting, in which shooters did not premount the shotgun, except in pigeon/box shooting. For shooters that initiate the gun mount to the cheek and shoulder after the bird becomes … [Read more...]

Changing Chokes   I am currently a C-class shooter and I see a lot of shooters around me changing chokes and shot sizes. What do you prefer and why?   I personally shoot fixed chokes (mod and mod), which might give you some insight as to my bias. I shoot 7½ shot and, when competing, I carry 8½ or 9 shot for closer targets or those that show belly or face, like a battue. Chokes are a personal choice, as is the decision to change to affect pattern size. There’s plenty of technical evidence that changing chokes and/or shot size will change pattern density at a given distance. … [Read more...]