Tenrings Coaching For Precision Air Pistol Shooting. - Tips And Tricks

We will, from time to time, be providing some basic coaching tips to help you improve your enjoyment of precision pistol target shooting.  

Air Pistol Basic Tuition And Range Safety:

This is an enjoyable and mostly indoor sport to partake in, which requires the minimum amount of physical exertion, however, it does require high levels of concentration and well developed mental control of your muscles.

This makes the sport suitable for both male and female shooters of all ages and all physical abilities, who are able to compete equally at all levels of competition pistol target shooting.  

Range Safety.

Air pistols, despite their relatively small size, can still be potentially dangerous and for this reason, should never be pointed at anyone.

SAFETY has to be the number one priority whenever handling the pistol.

The pistol MUST ONLY be loaded with a pellet when on the range, with the pistol pointing down the range and when ready to commence shooting.

Any pistol, when being handled on the firing point, should always be pointing down the range.  

The Basics In More Detail:

The basic principle of shooting with an air pistol is fairly simple, in that you need to hold the pistol in one hand, align the sights just below the aiming mark on the target and then when ready, hold the same aim and gently increase the pressure on the trigger to release the shot. With any reasonable amount of luck, you will hit the target. The art of successful air pistol shooting relies not on physical strength, but on the combination of precise hand/eye coordination, that is the hand to hold the pistol fairly steady, but never completely still and for the eye to align the sights, which will require very good and fine muscular control along with a high level of mental concentration. There is however, one basic physical bodily position that is most essential to master, that is STANCE.  

Stance:

This describes the method by which you hold the pistol and align your body naturally with the target. The pistol is held in one hand, with the arm outstretched.

If this is tried with your feet too close together, you will find that you tend to overbalance. To overcome this undesirable effect, it is necessary to spread your legs apart, about as wide as your shoulders. You now need to find a comfortable position facing the target and then gradually move the position of your feet to gain a stable position.  

Sighting:

To 'sight in', you need to align the blade foresight in the notch rearsight so that the obtained 'sight picture' resembles that of an epsilon or an E on it's back.