Nice day, little wind . . . what to do, what to do.
I decided to
repeat my last range trip with my Ruger Predator shooting STRYKER 5.56 62gr
rounds. One thing I did different was to
allow a full 5 minutes between 5-round groups.
This allowed for a bit of barrel cooling. In the end it made absolutely no difference
from the last trip.
It should
probably be a whole separate post but let me throw out a few words about the “why”
of my shooting parameters. At 100 yards
my target is a 3-inch circle. That comes
from the size of the ocular cavity being right at 3.5inches. I use this rifle in a Designated Marksman
course for small police departments.
Most LEO engagements are less than 75 yards. So worst case, a 100-yard shot to the ocular cavity
should cover things well. My expectation
is that in the course they have a 80% success rate which is typical for scored
courses. For myself, I expect a 90%
success rate just because that is typical for instructor course work. Any round within the 3-inch circle will enough
to end the threat.
That said, I do
want the group size to be 2MOA or less – regardless of the distance. So, on the 50 yard range and the 2-inch
targets, I want 1-inch group average while at the 100 yard range and 3-inch
targets, I want a 2-inch group average.
The word “average” accounts for larger groups that are still within the
target’s boundaries.
The ammunition manufacturer
is new to me, but the quality and cost are excellent. I purchased it from “The American Marksman”
and it is 5.56 M855 factory “seconds” – meaning there are small blemishes on
the brass – 62gr. Here’s a link . . . Factory
2nds: Stryker 5.56 M855 Steel Core 62 gr FMJ - 400 ct. . . . The price is
exceptional and as you will see, the performance is well within my
expectations.
So, these are
my expectations of myself and the ammunition.
The reason for the trip is to maintain “proficiency”. I have a very strong belief that to maintain
minimum proficiency a shooter needs to send 1,000 rounds downrange for each
platform they want to remain proficient on.
My only “give” on this is that it need not be “duty” ammunition because
that could run the shooter many thousands of dollars each year. And “training platforms” can be used to bring
the range time with your duty rifle down to a 20 round box per month while
maintaining the fundamentals of shooting.
Still pricey, but much more economical. And really, the biggest hurdle is typically
just the “TIME” required to hit the range.
I have no answer for that, simply the expectation that a disciplined and
focused shooter will get the job done.
The day went
well, I’ll post the targets and the scored targets. I dropped one round out of 50 meaning that it
was not within its designated target leaving me with a score of 98%. And my average group size was 1.69MOA. For my last trip with this ammo and weapon my
average group size was 1.68MOA. I’m good
with that as well. It is the type of consistency
I expect myself to have.
Bottom line to
all this, if you’ve taken over the responsibility for a particular position whether
a DM or an Instructor . . . do the work.
There are no short cuts and no excuses.
Just do the work until you’ve reached the level of performance you have
demanded of yourself. And then do the
work to stay there.
Easy – Peasy .
. .
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