The Plattsburg Manual Part 41

3. Squeeze the trigger properly.

4. Call the shot.

5. Make the proper sight adjustment.

They will be briefly and separately discussed:

1. Holding. Unless the rifle is held steadily the bullet will not hit the desired mark. The firer must be able to hold the rifle steadily in the three positions, kneeling, sitting. lying down. Holding is a question of the proper body position, use of the sling, and practice.

Body Position. The position of the firer must be comfortable. You may, at first, feel constrained or cramped in the different positions but by continued practice the muscles and joints will become so supple and pliable that you can easily a.s.sume the correct position. Each man who is trying for a high score should utilize all available time to this end.

The following photographs ill.u.s.trate the correct and incorrect positions:

[Ill.u.s.tration: No. 1

CORRECT SITTING POSITION]

No. 1. Notice the position of the elbows. They are advanced past the knees so that the flat muscles on the back of the arms, above the elbows, rest against the legs. Notice the position of the right thumb and aiming eye; also sling. To a.s.sume this position correctly, it is necessary that you lean well forward. Avoid the tendency of getting the feet too far apart.

[Ill.u.s.tration: No. 2.

CORRECT SITTING POSITION]

No. 2. Notice The proper manner of working the bolt during rapid fire.

Keep your gun at the shoulder while loading. Turn the gun to right and down a little. Don't make any unnecessary motions'

[Ill.u.s.tration: INCORRECT SITTING POSITION]

No. 1. Left elbow is resting on knee cap. No support to steady right arm. Eye too far from rear sight. Lip is against stock. (This causes sore lips.) Thumb around stock. Sling on outside of arm.

No. 2. This shows the common error of lowering the gun from the shoulder to load it during rapid fire.

[Ill.u.s.tration: CORRECT KNEELING POSITION]

No. 1. Correct kneeling position. Notice that the back of the left arm (not elbow) is resting on knee.

Notice that the firer is sitting well down on the right leg. This is essential.

[Ill.u.s.tration: INCORRECT KNEELING POSITION]

No. 1. Thumb is around small of stock. Eye too far from rear sight. The gun is turned (canted) to the right. The sharp point of the elbow is resting on the knee which has a tendency to make the position an unsteady one.

No. 2. The improper manner of loading the gun during rapid fire. He has lowered the gun from his shoulder to load it, which is "a time-killing"

proposition.

[Ill.u.s.tration: CORRECT p.r.o.nE POSITION]

No. 1. Notice the right eye. Notice that the left arm is well under the gun. Notice where the gun is pressed against the shoulder. Notice position of right thumb.

No. 2 Notice position of left arm. Notice the pressure of the sling against the left arm.

No. 3 Notice the correct position of the legs and feet. Notice that the toes are turned out.

[Ill.u.s.tration: INCORRECT p.r.o.nE POSITION]

No. 1. Gun is canted to the right. Sling is on the outside of the arm.

Right thumb is across small of stock which is the cause of bruises and sore lips. Left elbow not well under. Eye too far from rear sight piece.

No. 2. Legs not straight. Gun canted to right. Left elbow not well under gun.

No. 3. Legs are in an improper position. Body is twisted to the left.

Sling. Your ability to hold the rifle steadily in any required position will be greatly increased by the proper adjustment and use of the sling. Indeed, you cannot hope to hold the rifle steadily unless the sling is properly used. The following photographs ill.u.s.trate the correct way to get into the sling.

[Ill.u.s.tration: No. 1.]

No. 1. Notice that the left arm is slipped in between the sling and the gun from the left side. It is then run through the sling from the right side of same. Notice how gun is held against leg. Notice that the muzzle of the gun is pointing up, not down. The bolt should be drawn back while you get into the sling. This is to avoid accidents. Notice that the sight leaf is down.

[Ill.u.s.tration: No. 2]

No. 2. Notice that the sling has been slipped up and over the large muscles of the upper arm. Also the left hand after being run through the sling is grasping the gun to that the sling is to the right.

By turning back now to the photographs ill.u.s.trating the correct body positions you will see how the sling is used.

2. Aiming. An error of one one-hundredth of an inch in the amount of front sight seen, at the instant the gun is fired, will cause you to completely miss a man 500 yards away. Hence, the eye must be trained unless the firer has at all times a mental picture of how the sights and the bull's-eye look when properly aligned. You should acquire this mental picture during your aiming exercises and by the time you go on the range you should have the eye so trained that you will focus it properly on your sights and target without mental effort.

3. Trigger Squeeze. If you convulsively jerk the trigger to discharge the rifle, you disturb your hold and aim and the mark is missed; this is the recruit's most common error. To properly squeeze trigger observe the following suggestions:

(a) As you place your rifle to the shoulder, take up the loose play in the trigger (called the creep).

(b) When the gun is properly aimed, don't endeavor at that particular moment to fire it but be content to apply additional pressure to the trigger and then hold this pressure until the gun is again steady and properly aimed when a little more pressure is added and so on until the gun is discharged. By using this system, the firer does not know the exact instant the gun is to go off and the common faults, namely, flinching and jerking the trigger are unconsciously avoided.

(c) Fill lungs full, that is take a deep breath, let a little out, and then stop breathing to fire.

4. Calling the Shot. If the aiming eye is open when the gun is discharged, the firer should know at what part of the target the gun was aimed at that instant, and he should announce this fact to his coach or in the absence of a coach make a mental note of it. If the bullet struck the target at the point where the gun was aimed the instant of discharge, no sight correction is necessary; on the other hand, if the bullet did not strike the target at the point where the gun was aimed the instant of discharge, the sights are probably improperly adjusted and should be changed as indicated in the following paragraph on sight adjustment.

5. Sight Adjustment. If, after firing two or more shots, you find that, in each case, there is a constant error between where the bullet hits the target and the place where you called the shot, your sights should be readjusted in accordance with your preliminary elevation and deflection drills. When you decide to change your sight adjustment don't be timid and deal in half measures but apply a sufficient correction so that the rifle will hit where the shot is called. The inexperienced man has a tendency to change his sights after each shot. Avoid this tendency.

RAPID FIRE

In rapid fire the battle sight is always used; the firing is against time and at a field target (Target D), and from ranges 200, 300, and sometimes 500 yards.

The battle sight corresponds to an elevation of 547 yards, which makes it necessary for the firer at the 200 and 300 yard ranges to aim at a point about 2-1/2 feet below the part of the target that it is desired to hit. Prior to record firing each man should determine these aiming points by slow fire, at ranges 200 and 300 yards, using the battle sight.

There is one golden rule that must be followed if you are to get a good score at rapid fire: You must use the minimum time possible in loading and the maximum time possible for aiming and squeezing the trigger. To be more specific, this means work your bolt quickly but aim and squeeze your trigger slowly.