[Greebo]

Just been reading the article below on a drill to help shooters stop flinching while firing to improve overall marksmanship

What do you guys think of it and it's merits?

The Flinch Inoculation Drill allows the shooter to focus on gun noise and gun movement. Step one of the drill is to have the shooter point the gun into a suitable back stop with no target and fire the gun with their eyes closed. The initial point of attention is the sound of the gun. The shooter is allowed to listen to each individual shot until they are comfortable with the sound of the gun.

Step two is to feel the push of the gun in the hands as the muzzle lifts and settles with each discharge. The eyes are still closed in step two and the shooter is allowed to shoot until they are comfortable with the feel of the gun during discharge. In each of the two steps, 5 to 6 rounds is the average that the shooters need to accomplish the task.

Step three is to allow the shooter to watch the gun movement from each side and then the rear while only focusing on how the gun actually moved in their hands, again allowing the number of shots needed to satisfy the shooter.

These three steps allow the shooter to assure the subconscious mind through the cognitive download of practical experience that the sound of the gun and the movement of the gun is of no consequence to the safety and integrity of the shooter.

At this point there is no fear of the gun and little reason to flinch when firing the gun in the future.

Source:
https://www.usconcealedcarry.com/ccm-columns/dont-jerk-the-trigger/

 

[Sniper03]

Greebo,

I will start out by saying I know George Harris personally. Been at Sig many times. There is no better trainer in this country than he a Phil Singleton of Singleton International. George is not only a fantastic instructor he is an excellent shot also. As was reflected, he worked for Sig for years as the Range Master and Senior Instructor. I would like to add on another thing to this article. I also like to use the live ammo and dummy drill. Where the weapon magazine is loaded by someone else with live and dummy rounds. I begin by talking the student into the proper procedures each and every shot in detail, grip, sight picture, trigger press and controlled movement. You need to work with this technique some until you see how it works. It is best to start with a few more dummy rounds in the magazine for example than live. The student will soon see exactly what they are doing to loose control of the weapon or the shot. They will see the flinch, the jerk of the trigger and other movement. It is almost self correcting in their mind as you continue to walk them through every trigger press. As George referred to snapping the trigger. Or ducking the gun down forward at the ground while flinching. Accompanied with other techniques this works also. Of course for some the caliber itself chosen for the training can be important as the type of ammunition used. In the case of civilians women and children just starting out a good 22 cal pistol or revolver is a great place to start. Development can usually be achieved quickly and advancement to larger weapons can come easier and sooner. Once a flinch gets embedded in the mind it can sometimes be no easy task to eliminate it. Kind of reminds me of breaking the young bird dog that is afraid when they first here a shotgun. Sometimes when they are young it is best to walk them into it easy with firing a 22 around them. But if George says it will work it will work and he also advised that is what they use at the Sig Academy. They have some great schools there. Another important factor never shoot or let a new shooter ever shoot of be *close without good ear protection. Basically Muffs are recommended for them with problems since the bones around you ears transmits sound also. Even with plugs in the ears. That is how our SWAT Mics worked with the pads of the small speakers on the bones in front of our ear. And we could hear a guy whisper!

03

 

[danf_fl]

I have found that noise usually causes the flinch.

And something inside is saying "Isn't one of the rules of gun handling is to know your target and what is behind it". I'm not saying that the technique is incorrect, but shooting with eyes closed.....I don't feel comfortable having someone spot my sights for me. That is my responsibility. The spotter next to me has enough to do when I am shooting.

I have found that if a student uses ear plugs and ear muffs, the noise does not bother them to begin with. I do not advocate shooting without ear protection or eye protection.

Ear and eye protection should be one of the most quality items in your bag.

I would rather pay $100 for ear and eye protection now, than pay for hearing or eye loss later.

 

[Garadex]

I only flinch with double action or double action-y triggers (Glock, mosins, the ruger lcp) i have zero flinch issue with single action. I don't know why; any advice? Sorry not trying to hi jack this thread.

 

[JonM]

Very similar to how i train friends to cure da flinch.

I use a target thats been shot so much they cant tell where the bullet hit. Then i load mags with live and dummy snap caps. Let them shoot and the feedback they get from the gun going click instead of boom usually cures it in short order. It also gives em a tool to retrain on their own.

 

[Garadex]

Very similar to how i train friends to cure da flinch.

I use a target thats been shot so much they cant tell where the bullet hit. Then i load mags with live and dummy snap caps. Let them shoot and the feedback they get from the gun going click instead of boom usually cures it in short order. It also gives em a tool to retrain on their own.

Looks like I need some snap caps now.

 

[Greebo]

Aye I use a similar drill called a 10 shot drill (out here anyway) - involves 1 in the chamber and a mag someone else loads containing 6 + 1 mystery dummy round and a second mag with 3 rds...object is to get off the line while drawing (usually vocalizing "do not move!" Or similar, stopping once ready and firing until misfeed, off the line again while tap & rack to clear malfunction, stop fire until empty, off the line while reloading, stop and fire till empty again...follow the target down, 360 scan n holster once safe.

It's a great drill that covers vocalizing, getting off the line, failure to feed and reloading, and scanning...all while only using 10rds

When I'm teaching this tho I find it works best to have students do each stage individually a couple of times until I feel comfortable with there performance of each stage before bundling all of that movement into one drill.

 

[Chainfire]

I have found that noise usually causes the flinch.

And something inside is saying "Isn't one of the rules of gun handling is to know your target and what is behind it". I'm not saying that the technique is incorrect, but shooting with eyes closed.....I don't feel comfortable having someone spot my sights for me. That is my responsibility. The spotter next to me has enough to do when I am shooting.

I have found that if a student uses ear plugs and ear muffs, the noise does not bother them to begin with. I do not advocate shooting without ear protection or eye protection.

Ear and eye protection should be one of the most quality items in your bag.

I would rather pay $100 for ear and eye protection now, than pay for hearing or eye loss later.

I disagree with the notion that the noise causes the flinch. It is the anticipation of the noise. Hell, it is natural to flinch when an explosion is happening in front of your face. The dummy drill will show when you student is trying to help the bullet along. Getting them to stop is a bit more difficult.