How do I break my flinching problem??

[Tex601]

I am looking for some drills or tips to correct a problem... I have been shooting for a about a year and a half now and I cant seem to break my flinching problem. Using a 25 yard pistol target and shooting at 15 - 20 yards my shots are well grouped at 7:00 to 8:30 but man do I flinch.

To work on this I started with different dry fire drills at home which has made me rock steady in my family room but has not transferred to live fire. At the range I have started randomly loading 1 - 2 snap caps in my mags and also doing dry firing in between mag changes but just cant put the bad habit to rest. One more thing that may or may not help illustrate my problem is I do not seem to have this problem when I do quick holster draws and point and shoot training. Ironically, I am usually more accurate doing double taps from the draw from 5 to 18 yards than I am concentrating at 15 to 20 yards.

Obviously some small group or one on one training with an instructor would be best but I cant arrange that for a while and I would like to try and work it out myself. any tips from the more experienced shooters would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

[Scrapperz]

Get a friend to load your gun for you leaving a round missing and see if you flinch. I was trained this way by my father and his friend when I was 7 yrs old. I'm not saying it will work for you but it's worth a try.

They would have me positioned in front of them and I could not see them loading it, I would just hear the action of it being loaded. Then they would hand it to me and I was to assume it was loaded. I flinched of course, but after about 15 minutes I was cured. Thanks DAD!

[rattletrap1970]

I was told a long time ago to either have a friend randomly load a six shooter. And shoot single action. Not knowing where the rounds were will telegraph if you are flinching. Also, sometimes starting with a smaller caliber and working your way up helps. Sometime you get it in your head that if you don't death grip the gun you will lose control of it, this causes heeling and anticipating recoil. You can also, forget about your target and pay attention only to your trigger control, slowly applying pressure, gradually, till the gun "just goes off". With practice you will be able to tell how your shot will look on the target before you actually inspect it.

[winter5470]

What caliber gun are you shooting? If shooting a .45 maybe try a 22 or 9mm. Rattletrap has it right. You are flinching because you are telling the gun when to go off. Concentrate on slowly pulling the trigger. When the gun goes off - it should be a surprise to you. Do not anticipate the gun going off - that is when you flinch.

[Hog Hunter]

I had that problem when i first started shooting handguns, I bet i have ran at least 1000 rounds through in the first month of owning each one. Now i just go shoot a clip full or a couple cylinders a month to keep me on my toes. PRACTICE, you gotta make yourself squeeze the trigger. Like said befor start with a smaller caliber or man up and just squeeze it!! shoot a further distance if you have to, that helped me a lil bit, knowing that you got to be more precise with more grass between you and the target. Good luck!

[kodiakbeer]

Buy a .22. Shoot a couple of hundred .22 rounds before picking up your carry gun. Not only will your flinch go away, but your general shooting will improve dramatically.

This is good advice....

[Stevie-Ray]

If you reload, it's easy, if not, try to get somebody to load some dummy rounds for you with the same bullet you normally use. Put 2 or more in a handful of the normal rounds, mix them up and put them in your mags. You definitely will know when you are flinching. It will generally get better with time. The .22 advice is good also, as shooting a gun with practically no recoil is all about fun.

[Ronbert]

Earplugs plus earmuffs.

Sometimes the reason you've learned to flinch is the noise rather than the recoil.


+1 on getting a .22.

[Tex601]

I have been shooting 9mm up until this weekend, this weekend 1/4 of my shooting was with my new 1911 in 45. Part of the reason I bought the 1911 was so I could get a .22 conversion kit for ammo economy and to work on my trigger pull but I will not have the conversion for a little while.

I wasn't that clear about my snap cap drill at the range but what I have been doing is having a friend randomly load 1 - 2 snap caps in a full mag so that the dummy round is a surprise and yes, the majority of the time I flinch. Sometimes the flinch is so big its comical! I guess I will keep the 45 in the safe for a while and keep with the surprise snap cap drill while thinking about the input given here. I also like the idea of forgetting about the target and working on the trigger pull.

Thanks for the input and keep it coming. As a new shooter you experienced guys and knowledge is much appreciated!

[kodiakbeer]

That's a great idea to get a conversion unit! I have one and it's one of the best buys I ever made.

In addition to the suggestions above, which are all sound. You might want to consider switching to 165 grain loads for a while. There is considerably less recoil and it will help you sort out your flinch.

You might also just back off the .45 for a while - as you are thinking about. It's much, much harder to get rid of a flinch once it's become ingrained into habit/muscle memory.

[Old Grump]

Lock up your 9 MM and your 45 ACP ammo for the next 6 months. Continue with the dryfire and shoot 22 on the range and keep shooting it till you are consistently shooting decent groups at 25 yards with slow and/or rapid fire. Do the first half of your shooting at 50 yards and really learn to fall in love with your frontsight.

Imagine the frontsight is attached to your trigger, when you pull the trigger back you are pulling the frontsight back through the notch of your rear sight. You will be looking at the frontsight so hard you won't have the presence of mind to worry about when that shot is going to go off. When it does it will be a surprise, the bullet is going to go where its supposed to and your flinching will eventually go away. It is one of the hardest habits to break and even experienced shooters develop it and have to go back to basics to get rid of it. Don't try to rush it, a couple of good days on the range isn't going to cure you. It takes time.

Big plus on your protection equipment. The best shooting glasses and the best ear muffs you can afford and if you shoot inside a set of ear plugs will help.

[Come and take it.]

consider also shooting with a 22 rifle as well as a 22 pistol.

I shoot big guns and am good at not flinching but that is because for every big cartridge I fire, I shoot 2 in a rimfire on average if not more.

If all I did was fire big calibers all the time I would have a harder time preventing myself from developing a flinch.

[mas12990]

Shoot.Shoot.Shoot, and Shoot some-more

[Uncle Ben]

Not sure if someone mentioned this already, but try slowing down for each shot. Squeeze the trigger slowly until it breaks so that is surprises you. That way you never have a change to flinch before it goes off. Do this for a few magazines and then try speeding up, but still work on squeezing the trigger in such a way that it surprises you each time.

[Hewhois]

+1 on all the advice about .22, dryfire and being surprised when the gun goes off.

Mentally, don't think about squeezing the trigger to fire the gun, just think about squeezing the trigger as smoothly as possible. Completely forget about the fact that the gun is going to fire, just concentrate on keeping the front site on the target and doing a slow steady smooth pull on the trigger.

Another way to look at it is to try and squeeze the trigger till just before you think it will go off, then squeeze it a tiny bit more without firing the gun, then a little further, and so on. If you do this, it will always be a surprise when the gun goes off, cause you are trying to squeeze the trigger as far as possible and NOT fire the gun. Your whole mental goal is to keep the gun from firing while still squeezing the trigger as far as possible.

[BGutzman]

Once upon a time when I aspired to be a Olympic class shooter the recommendation was to shoot small caliber guns and if possible use pellet guns for practice. Ear muffs were also a part of the plan.

Cant speak for now but way back in the dark ages big bore shooters often shot small bore rifles for practice specifically to avoid jerking.

[todd10]

Take a deep breath in through your nose, then exhale through your mouth. Pausing at the end of the exhale then slowly squeeze the trigger.

[Buzzcook]

Dry fire, snap caps, .22. All the stuff above.

Since you have a .45 acp 1911, you might consider getting low recoil rounds. The gun should still cycle with 700fps ammo.
I've found that light loads in a 1911 are very easy on the hands, ears, and mind. They push more than kick and in a full sized 1911 they don't have much more felt recoil than a 22.
Give it a try.

[coldpointcrossing]

Get a .22 revolver. Any as long as it functions.

Assume it is loaded at all times. Using safe gun handling practices.

Load spent casings in 5 chambers. Save the last for a live round. After loading, spin and lock. Don't look! Start shooting and see if it works for you.

[Kmar40]

What stance are you using? May I suggest isosceles with thumbs forward. Left (or weak hand) wrist locked and elbows locked. (Or near locked.) Nose over toes (meaning weight slightly forward). Slight flex at the knees. Feet shoulder width. The shooting hand should be as high on the grip as possible.

There are other stances (and good arguments for them) but start with this. It allows you to absorb the recoil with your upper body more than your arms. It's also the stance which uses the most gross motor skills and the least fine motor. It's what the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center uses for new shooters. (As you progress and overcome the recoil, you can try others.)

Recoil is between your ears. I've taught 95 lb small framed folks to handle 40 and 45. You can too. Get the stance correct. 22 is good but you can cheat a lot with 22, get by with poor mechanics.

Find an instructor if you don't have one now.

[FM12]

stop shooting. My only hope!!

[Dwight55]

Tex, . . . this may not work for you, . . . it did for me, . . . and continues to work.

Flinching is nothing more than wanting to be in control. I WILL MAKE THIS WORK WHEN I WANT IT TO, . . . I AM IN CONTROL, . . . I WILL NOT BE SURPRIZED, . . . I AM IN CONTROL, . . . I AM THE CONTROLLER. It is a sort of natural response by "Alpha" folks to a situation that they deem (subconsiously) as something that interferes with their control of their life.

Realizing this first, . . . then just looking at yourself in the mirror and saying, . . . "Nahh, . . . this is no big thing, . . . it can't hurt me, . . . and I'll be better off when I whup this flinch, . . . today is the day!!!!!"

You then go shooting, . . . start with a .22 if you have one, . . . and all the time you are loading your mags, . . . putting up the targets, . . . doing all the "get ready" things, . . . just keep repeating to yourself "I will not flinch, I will not flinch, I will not flinch". Don't worry about the score that day, . . . let your mind become the overlord of your trigger finger, . . . treat it as an intrusion in your otherwise placid life, . . . as you shoot, . . . keep telling yourself, . . . "I will not flinch, I will not flinch, I will not flinch".

What happend to me, . . . I focused on the bad guy "Mr. Flinch" to the point that it became muscle memory, . . . I have not had anywhere near the problem I had years ago.

Best wishes.

May God bless,
Dwight

[zxcvbob]

• Dry firing practice helps.
• Having someone else load the magazine with an undetermined number of rounds and/or snap caps helps because you can see the flinch that way.
• Squeeze the trigger **slowly** (you're probably either jerking it, or you're pushing the gun with the heel of your hand just when you think it's going to fire.)
• Lots of practice with a .22 and good hearing protection.

[Terry A]

When I watch Larry Vickers, Jason Falla, Kyke DeFoor, Aaron Rogers or Patrick Sweeney shoot, they never even BLINK, let alone flinch. On the other hand, the host of The American Rifleman seemingly has a bad flich, as do some from Guns & Ammo TV, Shooting USA, etc. I've pointed this out to my friends and some had already caught what I had seen. We see it whenever a group of guys get together to shoot. Some blink, some don't.

How is it that the first group can shoot everything from a .45 ACP to a full auto .50 cal and never blink, let alone flinch, and yet others who love guns just as much, have a bad flinch?

One thing the 1st group has in common with each other is they were all in the U.S. Military and had extensive shooting training. They are "battle hardened" so to speak. I have an idea that some of the ones who blink bad or even flinch have had guns as a HOBBY rather than a profession.

"mas12990" said in an earlier post in this thread..."Shoot.....shoot.....shoot & shoot some more" I agree with him 100%. The more rounds you fire, the more comfortable or 'used to it" you should become. Practice shooting while concentrating on keeping your eyes OPEN. After a while, they'll be no more flinch. When you don't even blink when firing, there'll be no more flinch either!

This isn't like sneezing, where it's impossible to keep your eyes open. This is another learned aspect of shooting, just as viable and important as trigger control, sight alignment and proper breathing. After a while, it's second nature.

Good luck in your training! I know you can over come the dreaded flinch!

[Edward429451]

The little voice in your head what says it might hurt needs to be told to shut up. Similar to what Dwight describes, only order the voice around instead of yourself is what I do. (More control that way!)

But telling the voice to shut up only works for awhile when you are shooting loads that rattle windows and affect you to your CNS core! That's when I switch back and forth with a 22
You switch back and forth so much and then you'll drop the hammer on a live monster load and your brain was expecting a 22 so it is a perfect shot...and you learn control, you learn what it takes to not flinch and develop followthrough.

Your focus should be on your sights and trigger pull and not on the impending blast. You can train it out of you. Pay attention to your shooting and note that you don't get hurt, it's just loud. Bring that info to the little voice's attention...