Air Rifles and Pistols and Marksmanship

[Jonathan Randall]

For those who shoot both regular firearms and air guns, have you noticed much of a carry over in skills? Does practice with one, in your experience, decrease, increase or make no difference in your skill with the other?

[Lisa]

Hey Jonathan,

Shooting a pistol compared to a rifle is different obviously because of stance, grip, etc.

Now my husband shoots both air rifle, .22 3 prone and full bore long range rifle. I showed him this thread and his belief is if you can learn to shoot well standing up then shooting in a prone position with a sling (you do this in full bore long range and .22 prone) should come relatively easy. The recoil is different, obviously.

I personally know shooters that are fantastic in both air rifle, .22 and full bore. Seems if you are a good shot, then you can easily be in both ;)

[Grenadier]

Air rifle / pistol training does help with firearms training, especially when it comes to trigger control.

It's generally a good idea to constantly work on trigger control, so that one can build up the right "muscle memory" when it comes to getting a smooth, consistent pull. If you're in an area where you can't shoot firearms without having to make a trip somewhere, then practicing with an airgun can really help show you whether or not something is wrong with your trigger mechanics, or whether bad accuracy is due to flinching.