How To Read A Target

So you go to the range and put holes in paper, but are you investigating the WHY behind those holes to improve your shooting skills?  We’re going to spend some time on what you should know when reading your targets because learning to read a target helps you diagnose the “why” shots land where they are so you can understand and correct your technique, ultimately improving your shooting skills.

Groups vs Single Shots

If you are a newer shooter, most likely you are not going to know what causes a single shot to miss the point of aim on a target.  That being said, the goal IS to get to the point where you know exactly what happened with the single errant shot.  In the meantime, you can learn how to read your target.  The best method to evaluate your shooting fundamentals is to shoot multiple shots or “groups” instead of assessing what happened with each single shot.

To form a shot group, shoot at least three shots onto a target using the same point of aim while doing your best to use the same grip, stance and trigger press. There’s a balance to how many shots are needed to evaluate, too many shots can muddy the waters, and less than three it is hard to get any realistic pattern that is repeatable.  

There are things to consider when shooting groups.  You must have consistent posture or stance, grip and trigger press with each shot of a group.  Don’t adjust or make changes with each shot as that inconsistency can lead to confusion when trying to apply your target to specific fundamentals.

If you can’t seem to achieve a group, then your technique may be inconsistent from shot to shot.  Work on having the same grip, stance, trigger pressure and sight alignment/picture each shot to build consistency to form a group, then focus on changing one thing at a time to make the grouping smaller. 

Also, keep in mind fatigue while you are shooting your group.  If any part of you (hands, arms, eyes or even your mind) gets tired after five or six shots, then limit your group count to where fatigue does not creep in as fatigue may cause shots to go places different than showing fundamental flaws.

Do you re-adjust your grip after a string of shots?  This happens to many shooters without them realizing that they are re-adjusting.  Using video is a great way to determine if that is happening and ideally you want to shoot a group without adjusting your grip after shots.  Find the number of shots that work for you without any adjustments for your group to be most consistent for analyzing your targets.

Distance

It’s also important to decide at what distance you want to shoot your groups at.  It’s really a personal decision to what distance you use.  First I would consider at what distance you want to get better at.  What is your mission or goal?  If it’s to have precise shots at 25 yards, but you cannot shoot a grouping of shots within a 2 or 3 inch circle at that goal distance, then it’s best to start closer and work towards that goal.  I find that with most shooters, good groupings and patterns can be seen between 5 and 7 yards.  It’s close enough that sighting to a specific spot on the target is easy to obtain, yet gives shooters enough distance to reflect point of impact differences from the point of aim.

Not sure what distance will be good for you?  Start from a distance that you can land the shots where you want and push out the target a yard or two and shoot a new grouping and see if there is a trend or general direction the group is moving on the targets with further distances.  Push out the target to where you have a clear pattern of deviation from the point of aim.

Speed

What role does speed play in reading targets?  It’s a matter of what you are wanting to validate.  Many people can shoot tight groups with no time constraint or no stress, but adding speed or a specific time to complete the shots with a timer will generally bring out bad habits thus affecting your groups.  It’s important to know when you read your target, that you read your target under the context of how speed and distance could affect the group.  

Having A Good Sample

Are the majority of your group shots close together, regardless of where they are located on the target?  If so, then you have a consistent group sample to begin to analyze your target for movement that might be added from a fundamental that needs to be adjusted.  If they are scattered then the task at hand is a bit tougher because patterns are what give indications to what might be happening when the trigger is being pressed.  If this is the case consider shooting groups at a closer distance to see if your group tightens up to where you can notice a distinct trend of deviation.

If you are not seeing any distinct groups, then the focus may be on patterns that you are seeing with the shots on the target.  Do you have a stringing of shots either up and down (vertically) or left and right (horizontally), where your shots are in more or less a line?  Patterns will give you information just as groups will.

Accuracy vs Precision

We’ve discussed accuracy versus precision in a previous blog post on target practice.  When analyzing a target it is important to decide which concept you are focusing on.  Is it possible to be accurate AND precise?  Ideally yes, but it is also important to realize that we may not be able to get to that outcome immediately so it’s best to consider if your groups are showing accuracy or precision and matching that to your goals as a shooter.

Many times if a group is nice and tightly placed (again, regardless of where it’s at on the target), that group shows precision.  This tells us a couple of possibilities.  First of all, the issue of shots being “off the point of aim” may be a sighting issue, either physically with how you are sighting the firearm or it could be that the firearm’s sights or optic is not zeroed to that distance.  The best options are to have someone verify your sights or red dot optic by shooting your handgun, or visit a range with a gunsmith to have them assess if the iron sights have moved.

If the sights or optic is verified to be sighted in by another person, there might be some issue with how you are sighting the gun.  Some questions to ask and investigate could be - What is my focus when sighting in the firearm?  Do I know my dominant eye and place the sights in front of that eye?  Do I shoot with both eyes open or just one?  There’s not one right or wrong answer, but these are things to be curious about and investigate on your own or maybe even with a firearms instructor.

If you have verified that it is not a sighting issue, you must do some investigation with the direction the group is located from the point of aim.  If you have used your MantisX in live fire for the groups, the Mantis Pistol/Rifle app provides insight into what is likely causing the shots to move in that direction and possible solutions on the Segment Chart screen. 

If you don’t have a Mantis, it is still possible, but will require you to do a little work to figure out what might be the causes of the movement and what possible solutions you might try to see if it corrects the issue.  Many times it's not just one issue, but it could be multiple issues and that is where things can be a bit tricky.  Pick one change to try and validate instead of switching everything up at once.

Searching for the Goldilocks Answer

The fact is that we are all different physiologically.  We have different shapes and sizes of hands, we have different grip pressures, and some of us may have physical ailments that cause the firearm to move in a direction not consistent with what the chart says.  Just as in sighting the firearm, it’s going to take some investigation and digging to see the true cause of the issue. 

This is where the MantisX units, specifically the X3 or the X10 Elite, become very useful because the unit will track your shots and give you the trends right at your fingertips in live fire when you are doing this exercise.  Mantis plots the exact movement of the firearm for each shot and gives you an overall picture on the Segment Chart screen, showing the direction and magnitude of deviation of the shot in that direction.  It also provides what likely may have occurred and possible corrective actions for those shots.  You can see the exact trace of the shot’s aiming and trigger press movement within the Trace View screen which can be very helpful in understanding what is likely to be happening.

Using MantisX with a target gives a holistic view of both knowledge of the process as well as the knowledge of the results.  More data means more accurate insights which increases the advancements that can be made in proficiency.

There is not a one size fits all answer.  The important thing is to be curious and try different adjustments to your grip, posture or trigger press based on what is shown, but also don’t be afraid to go outside the box and try things that you think might be the cause of your movement.

Ammo Differences

One bullet is just like another, right?  Not necessarily….  Ammo can play a factor in why shots don’t go where you want them to.  This is especially noticeable when using a red dot optic giving you a finer sight picture.  It’s really important to consider if your groups or patterns do better or worse with one brand of ammo over another.  Different brands, bullet weights, and even manufacturing lots can perform differently in the same firearm due to variations in powder, case, primer, and bullet design.  While you are working on reading targets and investigating fundamental changes, you might try groups with different ammo to see if there is any improvement.  Once you have determined it’s not ammo related or if you have found the ammo that seems to pattern the best, we recommend that you use the same ammo brand and weight so that any movement on the target is not introduced by different ammunition.

Putting It All Together

So how do I do this?  Start at 3 yards and shoot a group, then push the target to 5 yards and at the same cadence or speed, shoot another group.  Note the changes to your group with just increasing distance.  Most people will experience larger or more spread out groups at further distances.  Is there a distinct pattern or direction the shots took at 5 yards that wasn’t visible at 3 yards?

Another option if you are working on speed is to shoot a group at 3 yards with a cadence of 2 second per shot.  Then while at the same distance of 3 yards, shoot a group with a cadence of 1 second per shot and observe how the group changes with more speed.  The Cadence 2.0s/1.0s/.50 Second drills are great for setting your shooting pace.  Observe how much your groups spread out and then investigate and correct to tighten your group until it closely matches your slower cadence.  You can use your Mantis to work in the Shot Timer drill to see what your split times are to have a tight group versus the split times when the group starts to disperse.

Speed and distance will generally exacerbate issues.  If you have a good, tight group that is right on the bullseye, consider pushing your target out or speeding up your cadence to begin to see a pattern of what you need to address.  Don’t introduce speed and distance at the same time, work on one or another.

Consider Private Instruction

You have a large investment into a firearm, ammo and time at the range, consider private instruction as a small price to pay to reduce the time spent in investigating how to improve your shooting skills.  Ask around and interview instructors to find one who you feel comfortable working with and spend an hour or two with them in a private lesson.  I have yet to hear a person regretting spending the money and coming out without learning something to change to make them a better shooter.

Conclusion

Only you can make the decision to begin working to become a better shooter, and reading targets - looking at groups and patterns helps identify that low hanging fruit that can help push you to the next level.