Competitive shooter question

[jos51700]

I've never been to a competitive shoot. I see pictures, and some people have the butt of the rifle up against their bicep, instead of pulled down into their shoulder.
Why is this? It seems to me that any movement of the bicep would cause your aim to wander? I was always taught to pull it into the crook of your shoulder.

Thanks for filling in a newbie.

Image of what I'm talking about. Can't embed for some reason.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/NCs1AJAa6Vs/maxresdefault.jpg

[Roadkingtrax]

Its a good question. Are you referring to shooting rifles in offhand?

[jos51700]

Yes, it is always in an offhand shooting position that I've really noticed it.

[bpm32]

Some of that is dependent on body type. Also, some pictures might just make it appear that the shooter is resting the butt on his bicep, but he really isn’t. Or the shooter is using a sling that’s too tight and the butt is being pulled outwards.

Finally, specifically for offhand Service Rifle, the low recoil of the 5.56mm allows people to get away with pretty funky positions. In that case, you’ll see shooters that rest the butt of an AR almost on top of their shoulders. You’ll often see poorly built shooting positions with an AR (compared to what you could get away with using a .308 or 30-06), but the shooter will still be shooting well.

[Gewehr43]

FWIW:
So I shoot alot of Service Rifle and this is, IMHO, why you dont necessarily see the Butt locked into the shoulder:

- a general idea is to bring the rifle up to your eye and NOT "bend over" to bring the eye down to the rifle (if it's locked into the shoulder "pit")....... As that induces more swaying since your neck/head are not square on your shoulders.

- the AR15 is the Service Rifle King and recoil is low, so you don't have to have it locked into your shoulder.

- Since in standing you don't use a sling for example, you DONT want to use your arms to force it into your shoulder (you'll get tired and muscle shake) and instead simply bring it up to your shoulder with your eye behind it.

And what bpm said.......

[Roadkingtrax]

Originally Posted by jos51700

Yes, it is always in an offhand shooting position that I've really noticed it.

You'll see a lot of variations of position, and as previously stated, it is all a matter of ergonomics. The CMP has a lot of good pictures of service rifle competitions and games matches. Here is a link to the AMU Flikr album for the 2021 Interservice Championships, several good pictures of offhand styles.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/usamu/...68493087/page6

I personally place the butt stock on my upper arm, between the bicep and deltoid muscle. It does not rest on muscle, but in the open spot on the arm. I have tried shooting it from my collar bone, and most common areas on the coat, I keep going back to what feels natural. I also cant the rifle inboard towards my face, which allows me to keep my ears level and eyes parallel to the ground.

[canes7]

You’ve received some good advice. Time to search out a club in your area to participate. It really is a lot of fun and the people you will meet will be the best you’ll meet in any sport.

[jos51700]

Thank you all for your replies! I'm looking forward to having both time and money for shoots in my area (Kansas City).

[rubicon762]

I recommend Small Arms Firing School, also a travelling version of it called Rifle 101:

https://thecmp.org/training-tech/sma...iring-schools/

Here's a video:

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...tail&FORM=VIRE

Best regards.

[Whitpusmc]

For your enjoyment and your fund of military knowledge, how the “bicep” was used a couple of hundred years ago. (Not exactly but very close):

https://youtu.be/VdwwrlHt9I0