Shoulder surgery => Weak-hand Bullseye

spacecoast · August 29, 2015, 12:50 PM

In the five years I've been shooting Bullseye (NRA Outdoor Conventional Pistol), I've gradually improved into a mid-Expert level shooter. Just to give you and idea of where I am, the last three matches have averaged a little over 830 with my Hi-Standard Supermatic Trophy using a LSP aluminum wrapped barrel and red dot, shooting CCI SV ammo.

My shoulder issues started several years ago and got much worse about 6 months ago. It got to the point where I could still shoot one-handed by turning my body, but a two-handed isosceles shooting position was quite painful if I raised the sights up to eye level. The cause of the pain was typical mid-life rotator cuff tears caused by bone spurs (a common ailment). Last week I had two tears (supra-spinnatus and labrum) repaired and the spurs removed, so hopefully in a couple of months I will be able to strengthen the atrophied muscles and get back to right handed shooting, but for now the arm is immobilized while everything heals up.

I shot today's match left-handed using my trusty 6" K-22 revolver with iron sights, since the grips on my HS are right-handed only. I was worried that I wouldn't even be able to hit the paper consistently, but my slow fire scores averaged 68, timed fire 84 and rapid fire 82 using Federal Auto-Match ammo, for an aggregate score of 702. The highlight was a timed fire 94 with 3 Xs in the first round of the timed fire match.

Shooting Bullseye or any accuracy-focused match with your weak hand really focuses you on fundamentals, and I highly recommend it even if you don't have a compelling medical reason to do so. I would say the greatest challenge for me was trigger control... there just wasn't a lot of "feel" for when the trigger would break in slow fire.

g.willikers · August 29, 2015, 01:06 PM

Wish you well and a speedy recovery.
And kudos for continuing to compete, in spite of things.
Knowing how to shoot with either hand is something we all should practice.
As you already know, there's no telling when it will be required if we want to continue to enjoy shooting.

MrBorland · August 31, 2015, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by g.willikers

Wish you well and a speedy recovery.
And kudos for continuing to compete, in spite of things.

+1.

Well done, indeed. Keep the faith!

Stephanie B · September 6, 2015, 11:56 AM

I just started shooting Bullseye with a 6" K-22. I was shooting, on average, 801 with a red-dot equipped Ruger 22/45.

The first time I tried slow-fire with the K-22 and my weak hand, I shot 30. Second time, 45.

I did shot my first match with it (strong hand) a few weeks back. 699-3x. Got some work to do.

spacecoast · September 23, 2015, 07:41 PM

I shot my second match left-handed (again with the K-22) last week and ended up with almost the same thing - 701. My slow fire started off a little better, but I wasn't able to generate anything better in timed and rapid than a rapid fire 87. Much better consistency from target to target, however.

I'm looking forward to finishing healing and getting back to my 800+ scores.

August 29, 2015, 12:50 PM	#1
spacecoast Senior Member Join Date: October 14, 2009 Location: Sunshine and Keystone States Posts: 4,461	Shoulder surgery => Weak-hand Bullseye In the five years I've been shooting Bullseye (NRA Outdoor Conventional Pistol), I've gradually improved into a mid-Expert level shooter. Just to give you and idea of where I am, the last three matches have averaged a little over 830 with my Hi-Standard Supermatic Trophy using a LSP aluminum wrapped barrel and red dot, shooting CCI SV ammo. My shoulder issues started several years ago and got much worse about 6 months ago. It got to the point where I could still shoot one-handed by turning my body, but a two-handed isosceles shooting position was quite painful if I raised the sights up to eye level. The cause of the pain was typical mid-life rotator cuff tears caused by bone spurs (a common ailment). Last week I had two tears (supra-spinnatus and labrum) repaired and the spurs removed, so hopefully in a couple of months I will be able to strengthen the atrophied muscles and get back to right handed shooting, but for now the arm is immobilized while everything heals up. I shot today's match left-handed using my trusty 6" K-22 revolver with iron sights, since the grips on my HS are right-handed only. I was worried that I wouldn't even be able to hit the paper consistently, but my slow fire scores averaged 68, timed fire 84 and rapid fire 82 using Federal Auto-Match ammo, for an aggregate score of 702. The highlight was a timed fire 94 with 3 Xs in the first round of the timed fire match. Shooting Bullseye or any accuracy-focused match with your weak hand really focuses you on fundamentals, and I highly recommend it even if you don't have a compelling medical reason to do so. I would say the greatest challenge for me was trigger control... there just wasn't a lot of "feel" for when the trigger would break in slow fire. Last edited by spacecoast; August 29, 2015 at 01:03 PM.

August 29, 2015, 01:06 PM	#2
g.willikers Senior Member Join Date: September 28, 2008 Posts: 10,442	Wish you well and a speedy recovery. And kudos for continuing to compete, in spite of things. Knowing how to shoot with either hand is something we all should practice. As you already know, there's no telling when it will be required if we want to continue to enjoy shooting. __________________ Walt Kelly, alias Pogo, sez: “Don't take life so serious, son, it ain't nohow permanent.”

September 6, 2015, 11:56 AM	#4
Stephanie B Senior Member Join Date: March 1, 2008 Location: NWern SE Missouri Posts: 339	I just started shooting Bullseye with a 6" K-22. I was shooting, on average, 801 with a red-dot equipped Ruger 22/45. The first time I tried slow-fire with the K-22 and my weak hand, I shot 30. Second time, 45. I did shot my first match with it (strong hand) a few weeks back. 699-3x. Got some work to do.

September 23, 2015, 07:41 PM	#5
spacecoast Senior Member Join Date: October 14, 2009 Location: Sunshine and Keystone States Posts: 4,461	I shot my second match left-handed (again with the K-22) last week and ended up with almost the same thing - 701. My slow fire started off a little better, but I wasn't able to generate anything better in timed and rapid than a rapid fire 87. Much better consistency from target to target, however. I'm looking forward to finishing healing and getting back to my 800+ scores.