Training with a rimfire

Renico

Well-Known Member
Do you think its wrong or right to train different shooting positions with a rimfire? It makes no noise and I can do it on my land. I cant do that with my 270w AND the bullets are expensive. Atleast here in Denmark. I often hear people praise about how important it is to train with your rifle.

So do you think its ok to train with a 22lr rimfire when your hunting rifle is a 270w?
 
Its something a number of different training firms recommend. Its the position being practiced not the firing of the rifle and a 22LR is still effectively a full sized and weighted rifle. What you're aiming to do is to get the muscle groups to recognise and support the most stable positions in kneeling, sitting and standing - lots of good tips on other threads here. Once you are practiced and confident with the rimmie, you can then see how you're doing with a couple of shots with the full bore, perhaps at more traditionally recognised hunting distances to check your progress.
 
+1 to all practice is good - but you must practice "good" habits or you will gain nothing and end up with ingrained "bad" habits.
 
I would say practice with a rimfire or an air rifle in all shooting positions. Even shooting off the opposite shoulder than what you normally shoot from. However I would say before you intend to use your 270w have a few dry fires practices to get the feel of that particular weapon.
 
Okay thank you. I have zeored my 270w and shot 5 shots with it and its nice. Just wondered if its common to train with a cheap 22lr.
 
I do a bit of hunter field target, which is form of competetive air rifle shooting, its great for practice as it has the knockdown targets set up in various positions out to 45 yards (sometimes further for extreme comps) and some of the course builders get pretty inventive with they positioning of them which means you have to get into all sorts of shooting positions (within reason) I find it very good practice even though its obviously not centre fire ranges it definantly helps with position training.
 
I always struggled with a .22 judging distance especially in an open field at night with coloured light at small rabbits. 5 yards out and you have missed. If you have reference features such as fence posts or target shooting, you know the distances or have a good idea anyway, great! I personally shoot a .17 HMR. Sensible ranges out to 150 max and you have a good idea that hitting a target is not to tricky. However if the wind is more that 10 mph you will find that windage is a major issue. Either way rimefire is best practice, centrefire once you have the rimfire sussed!
 
I seldom get to shoot from any kind of a rest beyond, perhaps, leaning against a fence post, so practice with a rimfire, standing, is almost a daily event with me. Sight alignment and trigger control makes the marksman and a rimfire allows me to maximize both.~Muir
 
Do you think its wrong or right to train different shooting positions with a rimfire? It makes no noise and I can do it on my land. I cant do that with my 270w AND the bullets are expensive. Atleast here in Denmark. I often hear people praise about how important it is to train with your rifle.

So do you think its ok to train with a 22lr rimfire when your hunting rifle is a 270w?

I go to visit a friend up near Aalborg every spring for a rook shoot.it happily coincides with the start of your buck season. I found using a 22 for offhand shot at the rooks invaluable practice. Previously I had never dared shoot a deer offhand. now I am confident enough to shoot the odd one when conditions are right.
 
Your trigger control will benfit in leaps and bounds as a .22 will still be in the barrel as the recoil hits, so you will learn good after shot control.
 
i shoot lots of bunnies off sticks
means I am much more confident and more importantly ..accurate when it comes to shooting deer off sticks

alternating rimfire centrefire at a stint at the range is a tried and tested way to train out a flinch as well
 
i shoot lots of bunnies off sticks
means I am much more confident and more importantly ..accurate when it comes to shooting deer off sticks

alternating rimfire centrefire at a stint at the range is a tried and tested way to train out a flinch as well

+1 for cheap practice.

My off-hand shooting has improved quite nicely, thanks to training first with the rimfire and then with a hornet... Crowning glory being an offhand sow at 60 yards, running at full tilt before the dogs, and me using open sights, two weeks ago... planted one right in the boiler house...

ps. Burgundy was fun Ed :D
 
Practice with a 22rf is never wasted. You can shoot 10 or 20 rounds for the cost of each 270 cartridge and it lets you learn good shooting technique. If you can adjust the trigger pull weight and feel to mimic that of the centre fire. Only thing a rim fire doesn't teach is control of recoil. You can get away with holding a rimfire lightly and not properly pulled into the shoulder - shoot any centre fire like that and you won't get good results.
 
Thank you for all the information. Just got a lot of free Lapua bullets to the 22LR, so tomorrow its training with the triggerstick and shooting positions :)
 
Hello, I have not. Usally shoots at 50M which is fun and competitive. Only issues with ricocheting is in winter time where you can hear the bullet hit the ground and then move on. In that time you need a solid backstop.
 
Sight alignment and trigger control are the key elements of shooting. You can master that with a .22 rifle. Shoot standing all the time and the other positions will come easily.~Muir
 
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