Bent Sight
36 Cal.
Some good advice has been posted so far.
From the look of the targets, I would try to address two aspects of shooting.
1) Horizontal stringing can often be attributed to "dragging wood". Dragging wood means the trigger finger is applying pressure to the side of the stock while pressing the trigger. Try rolling your hand around the stock, so that there is very little or no contact between your trigger finger and the side of the stock.
2) Not focusing on NPA or Natural Point of Aim can push your shots off to one side or the other. The technique you use to shoot off the bench sometimes won't yield the same POI. Think of your rifle as a long coil spring pointed toward the target. If after you build your shooting position you have to push the rifle to the left to index the sights on target you are bending the spring and the shots will go right during the recoil sequence after you fire the rifle. This is due to the spring trying to come to rest during the recoil sequence. Try presenting the rifle toward the target, closing your eyes, relaxing, then opening your eyes and seeing where the sights are in relationship to the target. If the sights are not on target, shuffle your feet until they are and repeat the process.
A couple of other points:
Sight wobble is a fact of life. As you age and accumulate wear and tear on the body, sight wobble tends to increase. My sight wobble area has it's own zip code. So long as the target is in the middle of the sight wobble area and you follow through after your shot, you should get your share of good center hits on target.
Follow through is important. Think one shot = two sight pictures, two shots = three sight pictures, etc. After you press the trigger, hold it to the rear and stay focused on the front sight. Wait until the sights settle down on the target again, then count one thousand one, one thousand two, one thousand three, before relaxing. After one thousand three, slowly move the trigger finger outside the trigger guard and lower the rifle. Move about as fast as molasses moves down a frozen fence post until you get the hang of things, then you can speed up to molasses moving on a hot summer day.
I've had the opportunity to train hundreds of shooters over the years. This stuff has worked for me and 99.9% of the shooters I trained.
Shooting is hard work, but don't forget to have fun. Relax and enjoy the day.
From the look of the targets, I would try to address two aspects of shooting.
1) Horizontal stringing can often be attributed to "dragging wood". Dragging wood means the trigger finger is applying pressure to the side of the stock while pressing the trigger. Try rolling your hand around the stock, so that there is very little or no contact between your trigger finger and the side of the stock.
2) Not focusing on NPA or Natural Point of Aim can push your shots off to one side or the other. The technique you use to shoot off the bench sometimes won't yield the same POI. Think of your rifle as a long coil spring pointed toward the target. If after you build your shooting position you have to push the rifle to the left to index the sights on target you are bending the spring and the shots will go right during the recoil sequence after you fire the rifle. This is due to the spring trying to come to rest during the recoil sequence. Try presenting the rifle toward the target, closing your eyes, relaxing, then opening your eyes and seeing where the sights are in relationship to the target. If the sights are not on target, shuffle your feet until they are and repeat the process.
A couple of other points:
Sight wobble is a fact of life. As you age and accumulate wear and tear on the body, sight wobble tends to increase. My sight wobble area has it's own zip code. So long as the target is in the middle of the sight wobble area and you follow through after your shot, you should get your share of good center hits on target.
Follow through is important. Think one shot = two sight pictures, two shots = three sight pictures, etc. After you press the trigger, hold it to the rear and stay focused on the front sight. Wait until the sights settle down on the target again, then count one thousand one, one thousand two, one thousand three, before relaxing. After one thousand three, slowly move the trigger finger outside the trigger guard and lower the rifle. Move about as fast as molasses moves down a frozen fence post until you get the hang of things, then you can speed up to molasses moving on a hot summer day.
I've had the opportunity to train hundreds of shooters over the years. This stuff has worked for me and 99.9% of the shooters I trained.
Shooting is hard work, but don't forget to have fun. Relax and enjoy the day.