stock length!!!

[ips]

if that's your usual mount Shaun then I would say it was long if anything. I prefer as short as possible without my trigger hand thumb hitting my nose. I see no benefit of anything longer than that (for trap anyway) you are experienced enough to know what's right for you anyway so I doubt anyone can offer you a eureka moment, trust your own experience my friend.

 

[Shaun Hopkins]

if that's your usual mount Shaun then I would say it was long if anything. I prefer as short as possible without my trigger hand thumb hitting my nose. I see no benefit of anything longer than that (for trap anyway) you are experienced enough to know what's right for you anyway so I doubt anyone can offer you a eureka moment, trust your own experience my friend.

Hi Ian hope you are well and thanks totally agree, with my recent plummet in form it takes little for people to put doubt in your mind about gun fit amonst many other things related to shooting. such a mental game this clay shooting malarky.

 

[ips]

I am well thank you Shaun.

when you are experienced, as you are, it is dangerous to listen to well meening spectators much damage can be done. Imo. This is why I believe the best mentors only offer advice when asked.

 

[ips]

ps

just occured to me. If said spectator saw something we don't see in the pic and if he or she knows what there talking about then maybe it did look short at that particular moment which means only one thing . ..... Your mount is inconsistent !!!!

only a thought / possible theory.

 

[Jonny English]

It is my usual stance i would guess but very rarely do you see two shooters with the same style, being 6'2" tall i consider a stock length of just over 14 1/2  shorter then usual so always difficult to judge from a photograph. I do like a sticker if only to cover all the scratches and dents the stock is actually wrapped in electrical tape covering a home made raised comb made from cardboard. 

I'm around the 6 foot mark and a mate of mine is 6 foot 2 ish, we're not as broad across the shoulders as you but we both have our guns at 15 to 15 1\4 to get them comfy. My mates new parcours came at 14 1\2 to 14 3\4 and he couldn't get consistent with it took we lengthened it by 1\2 and inch. He's going a lot better with it now that it's over 15''

 

[ips]

stock length is not just about height its more to do with stance and mount, Shaun appears to shoot similar to me with an upright stance which Imo requires a shorter stock.

just saying.

 

[Shaun Hopkins]

ps

just occured to me. If said spectator saw something we don't see in the pic and if he or she knows what there talking about then maybe it did look short at that particular moment which means only one thing . ..... Your mount is inconsistent !!!!

only a thought / possible theory.

Took an up and coming young lad shooting sunday, he wanted to feel the weight of my gun compared to his and instantly noticed how short it felt compared to his and whilst young he out shot me with ease and said exactly what you have said about inconsistant mount Ian. It feels very mechanical at this moment in time.

 

[ips]

over thinking Shaun. The mount Imo should be natural (to you) and without conscious thought otherwise ones concentration is on the mount not the target. This can work if there is a long ish dwell time but I suspect this is not the case with a sporting shot.

just my opinion and as you know I am not a sporting shooter but that's how I understand it and as I have a mount shoot technique with little if any dwell it is comparable to my style.

 

[jwpzx9r]

Really surprised that you feel that the stock is short Shaun the photograph may just be at the wrong angle to see properly but to me it looks too long. I would want my head a lot further forward on the stock. I shoot trap though and there could be the difference. It can be a bit off putting when a well meaning person gives and opinion but are they really qualified to give it they may have and entirely different gunmount to you? I gather you are going to see Ed... he is qualified to give you advice and should have you sorted out. If he says its right then that should get the gremlins out of your head and allow you to focus on shooting.

 

[Parcours pete]

Shaun length wise it looks ok 

the only thing I can see is stock is quite low in your shoulder

pocket may need to try dry mounting a couple of sessions a day

to try to get a higher fit and see if it's comfortable and more

 consistent 

 

[Stan]

I have no clue about your mount, stock length, shoulder position, stance, little finger placement or ear lobe tension... i can just say, you're very brave to put a picture of yourself in action on here!

 

[Ashley]

Ever thought about trying a Jones adjuster thingy that will enable you to slide the pad down, therefore bringing the stock up to your face more. 

I have to say don't know much about them, but looking at some peoples guns around the shoots, you see all sorts of heights and angles of there recoil pad

Just a thought

 

[Shaun Hopkins]

I have no clue about your mount, stock length, shoulder position, stance, little finger placement or ear lobe tension... i can just say, you're very brave to put a picture of yourself in action on here!

Thanks Stan . and your right i am a brave lad although on a scale of 1 to 10 its not the hardest thing i've ever done..

 

[westley]

Shaun, you obviously are a reasonably experienced shooter. Although a lot of the information that has been given regarding stock length and comb height etc. is coming from Trap shooters. The Trap and Sporting disciplines are a world apart and what works well for one will not necessarily suit the other, but I am sure that you already know this. If you are shooting Sporting, then is it gun 'up' or gun 'down' or simply a mixture of both ? It is all relevant. One of my shooting companions recently had his Beretta EELL 'fitted' at a well known shooting ground. Shortly after buying it he had the stock raised, because he had convinced himself that he needed a high stock. After seeing him shoot the gun, both at clays and on a pattern plate, the stock fitter suggested he leave the gun to have some 'major' alterations made, in particular the comb height which was far too high. The work has been completed and he is now an average of 10 targets up on previous scores. This will improve as he re learns all the sight pictures that have altered, due to shooting a gun that was too high. The bottom line is that the gun now shoots where he is looking, without thinking about it. I think that most good Instructors can give advice regarding a reasonable gun fit,  BUT, I do believe it takes a good stock fitter, using both clays and plate (and a try gun) to get it right. I feel sure that Ed will spot any abnormalities in gun mounting and stance and until you perfect that,  the fine tuning is impossible.

 

[Shaun Hopkins]

Shaun, you obviously are a reasonably experienced shooter. Although a lot of the information that has been given regarding stock length and comb height etc. is coming from Trap shooters. The Trap and Sporting disciplines are a world apart and what works well for one will not necessarily suit the other, but I am sure that you already know this. If you are shooting Sporting, then is it gun 'up' or gun 'down' or simply a mixture of both ? It is all relevant. One of my shooting companions recently had his Beretta EELL 'fitted' at a well known shooting ground. Shortly after buying it he had the stock raised, because he had convinced himself that he needed a high stock. After seeing him shoot the gun, both at clays and on a pattern plate, the stock fitter suggested he leave the gun to have some 'major' alterations made, in particular the comb height which was far too high. The work has been completed and he is now an average of 10 targets up on previous scores. This will improve as he re learns all the sight pictures that have altered, due to shooting a gun that was too high. The bottom line is that the gun now shoots where he is looking, without thinking about it. I think that most good Instructors can give advice regarding a reasonable gun fit,  BUT, I do believe it takes a good stock fitter, using both clays and plate (and a try gun) to get it right. I feel sure that Ed will spot any abnormalities in gun mounting and stance and until you perfect that,  the fine tuning is impossible.

Interesting post westley and definately food for thought, have never had coaching but feel bad habits have been creeping in for some time now, oddly regarding Ed, he posted an artical about 2 years ago  suggesting shooting clays going straight away and coming straight towards you which helps establish if the gun is shooting where you are looking, i switched over to a Miroku a few years ago because i like a gun to shoot flat which suits me perfectly and it nails going away targets with great effect and consummat ease, problem now is i feel like i have to pull the gun back into my shoulder with to much conscious effort, Will book up with Ed soon and hopefully he can resolve the issue.

 

[Gavin]

From that photo I don't see much wrong, some of the best shooters in the world mount very similar, when we start worrying about gun fit it can open a big can of worms 

 

[westley]

The slow incoming clay that stalls some 20 yards out, almost to a point of being static, is the bread and butter clay to most Instructors with a first time shooter. From that target the Instructor should be able to see if there are any master eye problems, head lifting, balance and stance. Apart from that it is a simple matter to get the shooter breaking some clays. That said, it will also highlight any bad habits that an experienced shooter may have developed.

As regards gunfit opening up a can of worms, I used to drive several different vehicles when I was at work, the first thing that I did each time was to adjust the seat and the mirrors to suit me, BEFORE driving off !

 

[schmokinn]

no expert on this but i have beeen shooting quite a while and picked up a few bad habits,had some coaching sessions earlier this year and it has totally transformed me from a wholly pre mounted shot to almost the oposite.

in the process i learnt a lot about mount technique and the way the gun should sit and reasons it didn't,definitely worth getting some sessions with somebody who really knows.

 

[Skeet UK]

... problem now is i feel like i have to pull the gun back into my shoulder with to much conscious effort, Will book up with Ed soon and hopefully he can resolve the issue.

So what has changed?  You're a big chap...has your chest grown a bit more?  Have your arms got larger?

I should think these, particularly the chest, would move the gun out further...so you feel like you have to pull it in closer...?

Perhaps try a thinner pad, as well as going to see King Ed.

 

[Hamster]

I had a look at Shaun's gun today, it is only mm's longer than mine which at 14-3/4" is itself longer than many if not most, whether it is the cause of many misses is hard to say but experimenting with a few spacers is definitely worthwhile. He could simply fit a thicker pad if the longer length proves useful.