Hi. I’m fairly new to Trap. Been shooting about 2 years. I am frustrated and about ready to give up. I shoot singles usually in the 18-20s and then the next round will shoot a 12-15. My problem is station 5 and 1 in that order. I can shoot 15 straight at 2,3,4 and then shoot 0 at 5. I’ve tried changing my holds, feet, etc and seem to only get worse. I’m about to give up the game. Any advice out there. I’ve take a couple of private lessons.
Frustrated Trap Shooter
peggyhouchin
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Hi. I’m fairly new to Trap. Been shooting about 2 years. I am frustrated and about ready to give up. I shoot singles usually in the 18-20s and then the next round will shoot a 12-15. My problem is station 5 and 1 in that order. I can shoot 15 straight at 2,3,4 and then shoot 0 at 5. I’ve tried changing my holds, feet, etc and seem to only get worse. I’m about to give up the game. Any advice out there. I’ve take a couple of private lessons.
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800 Posts
When I coached collage age shooters where there were many that had little experience. On practice nights we would set up a trap throwing all hard lefts and another throwing all hard rights. Those struggling with one or the other would shoot the troublesome presentation on post one (lefts) & post 5 (rights). Visa versa if lefthanded. If the practice was 50 rounds, all shells were fired on the troubling presentation station or until the shooter developed confidence in the target presentation. Over the season, we would also practice straight aways, high targets, low targets full field.
You do not need a coach for this, you need a club willing to set the trap for you. Also helps to have someone knowledgeable enough to watch you shoot and advise on your errors. My guess it will be lead and follow. Could be POI with an average under 22 in singles. 88% is what I called average.
Maltz
You do not need a coach for this, you need a club willing to set the trap for you. Also helps to have someone knowledgeable enough to watch you shoot and advise on your errors. My guess it will be lead and follow. Could be POI with an average under 22 in singles. 88% is what I called average.
Maltz
My experience (55+ years) with what you are experiencing is because you are probably aiming. When aiming you stop your swing to line up the bead with the target and shoot behind it. Aiming can work ok on the more straight away targets which you have experienced from posts 2-4, but not when the angles become more extreme. My grandson had the issue that you are experiencing. Once I got him to quit aiming his scores immediately improved from 13-15 to 20+. You may need to seek out help to cure this problem.
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Private lessons from whom???
Angles are hard to hit in the beginning but once your mind figures out what the sight picture looks like they are not so intimidating. There are too many possible solutions involved to resolve your problem on a website. The suggestion of locking the trap on an angle is a good one, but unless your 1. stance, 2. mount, 3. point of impact, etc are addressed you will just be throwing lead in the air.
In your private lessons, did you pattern your gun? What is the point of impact at what distance? Are you keeping your head on the stock through the shot? What is your hold point on posts 1&5? Bottom line is, your fundamentals need to be reviewed and corrected before you start worrying about the "why" of missing.
Scott Hanes
Angles are hard to hit in the beginning but once your mind figures out what the sight picture looks like they are not so intimidating. There are too many possible solutions involved to resolve your problem on a website. The suggestion of locking the trap on an angle is a good one, but unless your 1. stance, 2. mount, 3. point of impact, etc are addressed you will just be throwing lead in the air.
In your private lessons, did you pattern your gun? What is the point of impact at what distance? Are you keeping your head on the stock through the shot? What is your hold point on posts 1&5? Bottom line is, your fundamentals need to be reviewed and corrected before you start worrying about the "why" of missing.
Scott Hanes
Frustration is the killer. I know I’m my worse own enemy. Coach Maltz had great advise. If you are right handed you might just be pushing the gun off your face with the hard rights. Easy to do and not notice it. Swing your body more and not all arm movement. On one keep your body open more for the hard left. Swing will be less restrictive.
Don’t quit. Don’t let it in your head. You’ll get it. I’ll have things that get in my head but I’m not gonna quit. I rather shoot my way through it. Good luck it will work out.
Don’t quit. Don’t let it in your head. You’ll get it. I’ll have things that get in my head but I’m not gonna quit. I rather shoot my way through it. Good luck it will work out.
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8,526 Posts
I was struggling with 5,
So I taught myself a crutch move set up.
That is I set my feet so that when I mounted my gun it was pointing slightly past where I expected to brake the hardest right target.
I held just off the right corner of the house.
And was looking to see the bird.
Shortly after starting using this crutch, I ended up in a shoot off. Shorter yardage handicap so I was by myself.
When I walked from post 4 to 5 I was silently saying, "please no hard rights!".
The first was a hard right and I smoked it.
The next for where hard rights and they smoked.
Walking from post 5 to 1, i was thinking, "breathe, see the target clearly and then go get it!"
My name is in a book from that day.
But that is me, your milage will very!
I have been blessed with the the ability to see and know what I have done wrong on every shot I have ever taken (will there was ONE gun that disproved this, but I got an offer of much more that I had in it).
My corrections response is to tell my self what the corrections are and then go right to my preshot, routine.
I cannot argue with setting a field for the hard right and practicing to confidence.
Because the game of trap is 110% mental and the rest physical.
Al
So I taught myself a crutch move set up.
That is I set my feet so that when I mounted my gun it was pointing slightly past where I expected to brake the hardest right target.
I held just off the right corner of the house.
And was looking to see the bird.
Shortly after starting using this crutch, I ended up in a shoot off. Shorter yardage handicap so I was by myself.
When I walked from post 4 to 5 I was silently saying, "please no hard rights!".
The first was a hard right and I smoked it.
The next for where hard rights and they smoked.
Walking from post 5 to 1, i was thinking, "breathe, see the target clearly and then go get it!"
My name is in a book from that day.
But that is me, your milage will very!
I have been blessed with the the ability to see and know what I have done wrong on every shot I have ever taken (will there was ONE gun that disproved this, but I got an offer of much more that I had in it).
My corrections response is to tell my self what the corrections are and then go right to my preshot, routine.
I cannot argue with setting a field for the hard right and practicing to confidence.
Because the game of trap is 110% mental and the rest physical.
Al
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One major issue is when you shoot a post you have trouble with is going back to the beads and checking yourself. Be sure to focus only on the target. Years ago i had a problem on 5 and was a AA shooter. My friend the late great Pete Mccall stood behind me and said he could see my gun stop in the middle of the swing checking the beads. Fixed it. Also had a problem moving left on the call on post one, Pete fixed that also, as simple as tricking your brain and my small brain is easy to trick. He said before you call think about getting a right angle , works ! But sometimes I still head left and the target goes right .LOL
Stick with it , find a clinic with a proven coach . Good Luck
Stick with it , find a clinic with a proven coach . Good Luck
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Older I got the further of the corners I had to hold.
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Good advice from several above. If you know someone who is a good shooter see if they can help. Gun fit and point of impact are important. Take your gun to a pattern board and If you can find a good gun fitter try letting them help you. If you can go someplace they can set the trap only for straight aways. then to only left or right angles. Hang in there .Don't give up.
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I am also a new shooter and have struggled. There is a lot to learn shooting a shotgun compared to a rifle. Ask for advice and keep trying. I tried shutting my eyes and mounting the gun. Then open your eyes and is the gun and your line of sight lined up? A good gun mount is important. After four months i shot my first 25 straight from 16 yards last night.
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I would go to the range when it was not crowded, and shoot an entire round from post 5 if I had to. Once I broke 10 in a row, I would move to post one. If I broke 10 in a row there, I would move back to post 5. It got to the point that I would shoot 80% of my practice from post 5 and one. But you know what? After doing that, near straight aways from post 3 became my new nemesis. LOL.
Also, you can get on short squads so you can shoot post 1 and 5 more than once.
Also, you can get on short squads so you can shoot post 1 and 5 more than once.
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Thank you. Great advice. I’ll try to get the club to let me come practice that.
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Thank you! I’m a one eyed shooter. I should camp on 5 and 1.
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All great advice, Scott. I'm a little surprised, though, that you left out this resource which you are familiar with:
It shows what leads look like at all the posts, and should get the OP consistently past that 20. Just remember that past that, it's 90% mental, and the remaining 10% is all in your head. 😉
The hard lefts and hard rights are places where you can inadvertently pull your face off the stock, or push the stock away from your face, resulting reliably in a miss. Mount your empty gun at home and perform those left and right swings as though you're looking at and moving to a bird, and see whether or not you're still looking down the rib once the gun is stopped.
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Everyone is different but my nemesis was stopping the gun on 5 and 1 hard lefts and rights. I was told I was doing it, but it felt to me as I was swinging through.. so I shot those targets faster in my mind and smoke from there on out. Keeps the gun moving
That's what has worked for me.. give it a try
That's what has worked for me.. give it a try
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1,332 Posts
First, make sure your fundamental skills are correct and solid: foot placement, stance (weight distribution), hold point, focus point, gun mount. A big part of the game is visual. Are you a one or two eyed shooter? Eye dominance. Cross dominance. Cross firing. Are you truly focused on the target? How well are you seeing the target.
Gun fit: is the gun shooting where you are looking? Patterning. POI v. POA. What choke are you using?
Lessons with a quality instructor should ensure all of the above are addressed. A clinic with one of the top instructors would also be very helpful.
DON'T GIVE UP! This is a great sport, and there will be many folks willing to help you.
Good luck...scott
Gun fit: is the gun shooting where you are looking? Patterning. POI v. POA. What choke are you using?
Lessons with a quality instructor should ensure all of the above are addressed. A clinic with one of the top instructors would also be very helpful.
DON'T GIVE UP! This is a great sport, and there will be many folks willing to help you.
Good luck...scott
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Thank you!!
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32 Posts
Thank you! I have had my gun fit done. I
Appreciate your feedback very much.
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