Most new trapshooters advance to a point where they can break most of the targets but they have consistent trouble with the hard angle birds--especially the rights from Posts 4 and 5 for right-handers, the lefts from 1 and 2 for lefties--yet they also miss seemingly easy straightaways for no apparent reason.
This description, by the way, fits me perfectly. Like many new shooters, I come apart at Station 5, although I've usually managed to kill my straight with a baffling miss earlier in the round.
"One important shortcut for shooters who want to improve is to ask good shooters for help," Winchester's Manager of Technical Services Mike Jordan told me recently. Jordan, a 12-time all-American trapshooter qualifies as more than just a "good shooter" in anyone's book.
I took Jordan's advice and asked him and another all-American, Brad Dysinger of Paulding, Ohio, how to deal with those problem targets and improve my overall shooting. Shortly after talking to them and experimenting with some of the tips they offered, I broke my first 25 straight. Here's what they told me:
Angles and Straightaways
It's said of trapshooters that they "fear the angles and miss the straightaways." Both Jordan and Dysinger agree this is true. "Once you get out ahead of that angle target and swing the gun, it's easier than a straightaway," says Jordan, "A straightaway presents a small, edge-on target, it's difficult to read, and you have to cover it with the barrel to break it. It takes a small, smooth move and it's an easy target to under or overshoot."
In fact, many shooters make straightaways more difficult for themselves precisely because they're afraid of the angles. Right-handers often miss straightaways from Post 5 (and left-handers the same angle from Post 1) because they move the gun in anticipation of the hard angle before they've actually identified the target.
"Anticipation will kill you," says Jordan. "You have to make absolutely certain you don't move the gun until you see the target. Look at the target, read it, then swing. Follow with your eyes, then move the gun. Swing, pass the target, and shoot. Once you realize you can catch those angles, they're not so scary anymore."
Says Dysinger: "I look at it this way: if you're going to miss a bird from Post 5, it counts the same whether it's an angle or a straightaway. I'd as soon make sure of my straightaways and worry about the angles."
Dysinger suggests holding near the center of the house for the straightaway at Post 5 rather than cheating out beyond the corner.
"One reason shooters miss the straightaways," he says, "is that they're holding off to the side of the house to get ahead of that hard angle target. When they get a straightaway, they have to swing the gun back to the middle, then stop it and shoot a virtually stationary target. In my clinics, I'll take a pop can and set it on the ground 40 yards away, then have a shooter pretend he's holding for a right and try to swing back and hit the can quickly. Almost always, he'll swing past it and overshoot to the left because it's so difficult to stop the gun in time."
"If you hold for the straightaway, all you have to do is move the gun straight up to break that target and there's no danger of overswinging to the side," says Dysinger. "You still have to swing after that angle no matter whether you hold in the middle of the house or out on the corner."
Dysinger recommends shooting trap doubles (where the angles are known) as excellent practice for learning how to handle angled and straightaway targets. Like most doubles shooters, he takes the straightaway first. "In doubles, you learn to hold for the straightaway and whiff it fast, then swing and shoot the angle."
Top shooters average around 99 percent in doubles, notes Dysinger, proof that those hard angles can be caught and broken consistently even if you have take time to shoot another target first.
How much lead does a hard angle target require from Post 1 or 5? You'll often see charts in trapshooting books suggesting a certain number of feet and inches, usually in the neighborhood of two and a half to three feet, which translates into two or three barrel widths ahead of the target.
Dysinger, however, cautions against measuring an exact lead. "Some days the targets move faster or slower due to wind conditions or the way the trap is set," he says, "Some traps reach the 48-yard minimum by throwing low and hard, some do it by lofting the target like a Frisbee. You may swing faster or slower than another shooter. How can anyone tell you the exact lead you need?"
Dysinger, a rarity among top shooters in that he's a left-eye dominant, right-handed shooter, keeps both eyes open and professes not even to see the barrel when he shoots and has no idea of any bird/bead relationship as he leads a target. "I just look where I want the gun to shoot," he says, "and shoot to the left of the left-angle targets and to the right of the rights."
Timing and Seeing
Any target--angle or straightaway--is easier to break if you can learn to shoot it quickly. One of the marks of the top shots is the dazzling speed with which they shoot, taking their targets seemingly a few feet out of the house and, more often than not, leave only a hanging ball of smoke behind.
The experts aren't just showing off. A target is easier to break when it's closer to you for a couple of reasons, according to Brad Dysinger. When a target is coming out of the house, spinning fast, it's less affected by wind and won't dip unpredictably. It's spinning hard, too, and that centrifugal force will make it come apart when it's hit.
"When you see targets "dusted" (hit but not broken) at long range, it's because they've stopped spinning as fast. If you set a clay target on a fence post 40 yards away where it's not turning at all and shoot it, you'll just punch holes in it," says Dysinger.
How, then, to speed up your timing? To a relatively new shooter, the bird is a blur as it comes out of the house.
First, advises Jordan, don't go out and try to start smoking targets the way the all-Americans do.
"In the beginning," he says, "you need to experience some success, and I think new shooters are better off taking their targets a little farther out. Start slowly and build confidence in your speed and target acquisition. It's very important to see the bird emerge from the house. Two-eyed shooters should hold the gun level or just below level and look through the gun to the lip of the house. One-eyed shooters will have to hold on the lip of the house or even slightly below because the gun blots out their view of the lip."
Obviously, the best way to learn to see targets is to look at a lot of them. For that reason, Jordan suggests shooting with at least one partner and, better yet, a full squad of five whenever possible. "Relax when it's not your turn to shoot," he says, "but always watch the target of the shooter in front of you. Read it, track it with your eyes, and see how it breaks."
As your target acquisition skills improve, you can start shooting faster. "One reason new shooters are slow is because they want to aim their shotgun," says Dysinger, "Don't be too careful. Shoot as fast as you can without being reckless."
One very helpful tip he offers is to mount the gun and call for the target quickly. "If I don't call for the target within a second or so of mounting the gun, I get too careful and want to aim the shot. If you spend too much time lining up the beads you'll focus on the rib, not the target. Mount and call. If you mount the gun and don't like the way the beads are lined up don't move your head around trying to stack them. Lower the gun and mount it again."
Another way to gain speed is to swing the gun faster. Both shooters use slightly different techniques to speed or slow their swings as they experiment with different ways to break targets. Jordan holds slightly lower, or closer to the middle of the house. "A tighter hold forces you to swing faster to catch the target," he says, "just don't overdo it. A little change in your hold requires a big adjustment in your swing."
Dysinger moves his left hand up and down the forearm of his gun. "If I hold back near the receiver, I'll swing faster," he says, "moving my hand farther out along towards the end of the forearm slows my swing."
Don't be afraid to experiment with different holds and swing speeds until you find the style that works best for you. The real secret to improving your trapshooting, according to these experts, is simple: shoot as much as possible.
"If I had $5,000 to spend on trap," says Dysinger, "I wouldn't buy a $4,000 gun and $1,000 worth of ammo. I'd buy a $1,000 gun and shoot it four times as much."
Field Guns for Trap
Suppose you want to start trapshooting and can't buy a new gun right away, or you'd rather shoot trap with a hunting gun as practice for the field. With a few simple changes, your modified or full choke gun should see you through your first 25 straight. Most important is to raise the comb an eighth to a quarter inch to make the gun shoot higher because trap targets appear to be hanging in the air but are actually rising steeply.
Adding a quarter inch to the comb of my hunting gun raised my own scores from the mid-teens to over 20 immediately. I've used sheets of KickEez sorbothane and a Cabela's leather lace-on Monte Carlo pad with good results. Meadow Industries Convert-a-Comb kit is another popular way to change the height of your stock. All three are easily removable so you can use the same gun for trap one day, hunting the next.
Anything you can do to relieve recoil will improve your scores. Extra-absorbent recoil pads like the KickEez or the Pachmayr Decelerator will make the gun much easier on your shoulder. Barrel porting cuts muzzle jump dramatically, which translates into less pounding on your cheekbone and fewer "shooter's headaches". If you have a spare barrel for a pump or auto, have it ProPorted for target shooting or, if the gun has interchangeable chokes, try a ported Briley comp tube. I've used both lately, and they work.
One last inexpensive addition is a middle bead, which a gunsmith can install for a few dollars. Have him replace your brass front bead with a Bradley-style target bead, too.
Addresses:
Brownell's Inc. (KickEez and Pachmayr Pads, Briley tubes, etc.) 200 S. Front St., Montezuma IA 50171; phone 515-623-5401
Meadow Industries (Convert-A-Stock Pad) P.O.B. 754, Locust Grove VA 22508; phone 703-972-2175
ProPort Ltd. (Barrel Porting) 41302 Executive Dr., Harrison Township, MI 48045-3448; phone 313-469-7323
Briley (Comp Tubes) 1230 Lumpkin, Houston TX 77043; phone 800-331-5718
Cabela's (Leather Monte Carlo Pad) 812 13th Ave, Sidney NE 69160-0001; phone 800-237-4444
Copyright (c) 1996 Philip Bourjaily. All rights reserved.
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