Hitting the Mark There is no great secret to hitting the killzone. The greatest hurdle is unlearning what you have learned if it isn't bringing the results you desire. Step 1. Don't Flinch Choose a rifle you are comfortable with. Don't buy a bone crusher. Get an effective weapon that won't scare you every time you pull the trigger. If you've ever noticed someone pulling the trigger on a rifle that had no round in the chamber (only they didn't know it) more often than not you will notice them tense up, lean forward and shudder as the rifle goes "click". Trying to hold the rifle steady this way is part of the unlearning process I spoke about and by far the most difficult to shake. I've been slammed pretty hard by recoil, and for a while it took over my shooting. It got to the point that I stayed subconsciously nervous all the time with that cannon. So I sold it. The gun? 460 Whetherby Mag, I was 17. Step 2. Loosen up When shooting a rifle, remember this: you are a shock absorber, not a wall. When the round goes off you must let the rifle do it's job. Never hold the rifle too tightly. Snug it up to your shoulder but not tight enough to restrict your movement or the natural fluid action of the recoil. One thing is for certain, the gun will kick you, recoil pad, muzzle break or not, you will get kicked. So you have a choice. Fight it or roll with it. There is a stigma around this fact. Movie snipers and cops, cowboys etc. wrap up in the strap, white knuckle and slam the rifle into them. This is a MISTAKE. Just Relax Step 3. Eyes open I've taught a number of people how to put it in the killzone, including some bull headed women and some mousey men. Everyone has the ability to shoot well, as long as you keep those peepers open. You can't hit what you can't see. Get a good pair of muffs. A 20 dollar set will save you 50 on the range and you won't be yelling "HUH" when you get home. Baffling the muzzle report on a rifle is part of the fight, you can't relax and keep your eyes open when you know that a loud "CRACK" is coming as soon as you squeeze the trigger. Yes, earmuffs help you see. Step 4. Quiet practice Perfect practice makes perfect. This exercise will increase your targeting dramatically in a short period of time without firing a shot. Get a sheet of type paper and draw a 4 inch target on it centered on the upper half of the paper. On the lower half draw a 2 inch target on the left side of the paper and a 1 inch target on the right, or vice versa. tack or tape it on any surface about shoulder height at least 20 feet away. whether you have a scope or not is of no significant importance here, yet the rifle should be set up the same as when you take it into the field. Stand facing the target with the rifle (unloaded) held in both hands near your waist. Looking at the large target with both eyes open, step forward with the opposite leg as your weapon shoulder (i.e. right handed, step forward with left foot) a little wider than your shoulder width, what ever distance feels most comfortable to a 60 or 70 degree angle from your original stance at the same time raising the rifle to your shoulder. Remember to relax and don't pull into yourself too hard. Keep both eyes open staring straight at the target. As the rifle comes to bear on your shoulder, crane your neck so the butt is just under your cheekbone as if you were going to fire. By the time all of this simultaneous motion stops, the rifle will almost be laying across your chest, perhaps 8" between the trigger guard and your forward shoulder depending on your size, the crosshairs (or sights) should be directly on target and you should be staring right dead center down the sightplane comfortable and relaxed, all that would be left is to squeeze the trigger if it were proper to do so. Make sure the rifle butt is on the muscle of your shoulder, not your collar bone. When you lift your arm as if you were shouldering a weapon, you'll notice the front of your shoulder creates a large ball of muscle, the rifle butt goes there, not your arm, and not your collar bone. Do not bear down on the weapon, you will miss. Try this a few times to get the feel, then move to the smaller targets. Keep practicing until all these steps become one habitual fluid motion. After you have a reasonable feel for this, make sure the gun is unloaded and uncocked. Sweep the rifle up as I've instructed here and squeeze the trigger (do not load or cock the weapon). Did you quiver? Did the target move? Were both eyes still open? There should be virtually no movement. 1/4 inch of movement at the tip of the barrel can mean as much as 1 foot down range depending on distance. Set to memory how the rifle feels as you acquire a target, make it second nature. I prefer keeping both eyes open, especially on moving targets, that way I never lose sight of my prey in case (god forbid) I do miss. Learning how to keep both eyes open is not as difficult as some may think. Normally your shooting eye is your dominant eye. When looking at an image from two different perspectives, for example a scoped eye and a non scoped eye, the scoped eye (normally the dominant eye) takes the lead making it unnecessary to close the non scoped ( or submissive) eye. When your really into the shot, your submissive eye often goes dead for a fraction of a second as the trigger is pulled. It's a psychological term that I've forgotten. I'm not a psychologist anyway so who cares. I hope this helps you with your off hand shooting. Keep practicing and I promise you'll see a marked improvement in a short period of time.