Adjust My Sight or the Gun Sight

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rowanfae22

Bearcat
Joined
Jul 21, 2017
Messages
14
Location
SW MN, USA
I'm pretty excited. Because none of you thought I was crazy, I brought home my Mark IV Talo Hunter on Thursday. Because of heat and humidity, I didn't get to shoot it until yesterday. Oh, what an awesome 22. Between me and my husband, we shot about 150 rounds. And my hands didn't get tired until the end. (remember, grandma here).
I was really pleased with my shooting. On my intruder target, I got his head with one magazine, his heart with another and his gun hand with another. But...I only got a few exactly where I was aiming. I seem to be shooting a bit to the left and high. So the question I have for all of you...Do I adjust the way I am sighting on the target, or do I adjust the gun sights. There are two factors to consider. One, I am scheduled for cataract surgery in 3 weeks (remember Old Grandma). The other factor is I have never had any gun training. I just picked up a pistol and started. I did take a gun 101 that mainly consisted of laws in Minnesota. And I took the Conceal to Carry class too. But neither taught me how to take down, clean or sight any gun. I am very nervous that I will mess up the sights if I try to move them. Any words of wisdom?
 
Joined
Dec 11, 2002
Messages
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Ohio , U.S.A.
sighting is a variable for all of us, we see things differently, and the "hold" is more important, that , the "hold" of the sight picture, as well as the hold "grip" where the gun sits in your hand,,,,alll too often the a simple reposition of the grip as well as placement of the finger on the trigger,,,,too short you can "push" off to the left ( if right handed) if too long, finger wraps over the trigger, you can "pull" back to the right..........practice, practice......I know over the years I can "read" the target, where the bullets actually hit and tell someone what they are doing wrong....same with "pushing",( anticipation of recoil?) the gun dips and you shoot low...or "pulling" and the impact raises.......have some one actually watch YOU shoot........ 8) :roll: :wink:

..." front sight, front sight, keep your eye on the front sight......"
..."deep breathe, let it out, squeeze the trigger......."


"..and so it goes....." RIP Wil Terry :wink:
 

hittman

Moderator
Staff member
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Jan 16, 2008
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16,915
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Illinois
Owners manual should provide you great instructions on how to adjust the sites. Nothing there you can screw up. Nothing you can't "change back" if you aren't happy.

Best thing you can do is shoot A LOT. Practice does make perfect. I'd say go put 500 rounds through it this week.
 
Joined
Jan 20, 2008
Messages
2,271
Location
Orange County, CA
Good luck with your surgery! I've had both eyes done and am now back to 20-20+ at 78years+!
I'm sure your shooting will improve after the surgery.

If you have to adjust Ruger semi-fixed rear sight that slides in a dovetail, be sure you use a brass punch to move the sight, not a steel one. That way, if you slip, you won't ding the gun (Please don't ask me how I learned this....).
 

Pat-inCO

Hawkeye
Joined
Oct 17, 2009
Messages
5,922
Location
In the AZ oven (Phoenix basin)
My suggestions are similar.

Set up from a sand bag rest. That will minimize movement as you slowly pull the
trigger straight back. Shoot at least three rounds before even thinking about
changing anything. Since the information that I have says the Talo edition uses
the standard adjustment screws, just read the manual on what you need to do.
As noted above, you can NOT mess anything up. If the adjustment is not what
you needed, adjust a little more.

I suggest you write down the number of clicks for each adjustment. That way if
you happen to go the wrong way, you know how many to go back (yup, I've done
that). I think you will find it is an easy process. - - - One other thing, have your
husband shoot it as well, during the sight in process. He may see the sights a
little different and you two can negotiate that. :wink:

As far as cataracts go, just do the drops, drops, drops, drops, until you finish
what the doctor recommends. Mine worked fine. :D
 

jimd441

Blackhawk
Joined
Feb 28, 2009
Messages
684
Location
NC
My advice is to wait until after the cataract surgery before making adjustments. I had cataract surgery and it did impact my sighting. In the meantime you can practice shooting and get more familiar with the gun. Just my thoughts...

Jim
 

crstrode

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jun 23, 2012
Messages
268
Location
Badger Lake, WA
Here is the best advice you are ever going to get about sight adjustment (at least from me anyway).

First: Shoot a lot before adjusting anything. A lot of shots on a lot of days at a lot of targets under a lot of different conditions.

Second: Do it again and again and again.

Unless your gun is way-way off, your internal sighting system will magically make the bullets hit the mark - or at least very close to the mark. It will make you the best possible shooter with your personal shooter.

After hundreds of shots have been shot, you will know for certain just how to make adjustments.
 

wwb

Hunter
Joined
Nov 18, 2004
Messages
2,867
Location
wisconsin
rugerguy said:
sighting is a variable for all of us, we see things differently, and the "hold" is more important, that , the "hold" of the sight picture, as well as the hold "grip" where the gun sits in your hand,,,,alll too often the a simple reposition of the grip as well as placement of the finger on the trigger,,,,too short you can "push" off to the left ( if right handed) if too long, finger wraps over the trigger, you can "pull" back to the right..........practice, practice......I know over the years I can "read" the target, where the bullets actually hit and tell someone what they are doing wrong....same with "pushing",( anticipation of recoil?) the gun dips and you shoot low...or "pulling" and the impact raises.......have some one actually watch YOU shoot........ 8) :roll: :wink:

Read and heed the above. Your trigger finger is best placed with the pad of your finger on the trigger so that you pull the trigger straight back.
 
Joined
Dec 17, 2015
Messages
2,363
Location
Reading, Pa
My wife is right handed and left eye dominant. I put a red dot on her 10/22 and set it up so I could get good groups and then she shot it a bunch. After all the adjustments were done and her groups were at POA my groups were all high and to the right…it's all very personal. Shooting from a rest will tell you how accurate the gun is with a particular ammunition and is a great way to find out if you or the gun has a problem but I always recommend to shoot the way you want to shoot and sight the gun in accordingly. Like said here many times, practice, practice, practice.
 

jimd441

Blackhawk
Joined
Feb 28, 2009
Messages
684
Location
NC
Given that the subjects of cataract surgery and eye dominance have come up, I'll mention one reason I recommended waiting until after recovery from the surgery before making any adjustments to the sights. I'm right handed and was right eye dominant. Then I had cataract surgery on my right eye. Apparently due to the surgery my brain fired my right eye from being dominant and hired my left eye, but forgot to tell me. My first time after surgery shooting clay targets I was missing every one. Then a friend who was watching saw what was happening and we did the eye dominance test. I was strongly left eye dominant. My eye dr. said this is common.

Jim
 
Joined
Dec 25, 2007
Messages
9,933
Location
missouri
When you do get around to making sight adjustments, most certainly, you should use sort sort of rest/support to reduce the variables. How you 'see' the sights can affect the point of impact and require moving those sights to achieve point of aim matching point of impact.
Eye dominance is not an issue when shooting handguns as long as you are consistent.
 

woodsy

Blackhawk
Joined
Jan 5, 2012
Messages
958
Location
Seymour, CT
Besides waiting for after you have your surgery, you may want/need to examine your stance and weapon hold. EVERYTHING has an affect on how one shoots. When I shot in competition my results varied depending on whether I had my off-hand in my pocket, or not, as an example.
 

Johnnu2

Hunter
Joined
Jun 26, 2003
Messages
2,846
Location
NYS
My humble advice is: DON'T OVERTHINK this. I've been guilty of overthinking all my life. I started a new program that I call: "Striving for mediocrity"; it's added years to my life and hours to every day....
I believe your 22 has adjustable sights.... if so, you can sight it in today, and do it again after surgery...REALLY.
As far as being nervous to play with the adjustable rear sight, you may find experienced shooters at the range where you shoot.... most of us are glad to help others. If you are intending your gun for self-defense, you don't have to be very accurate.... If you need to aim in an SD situation, you are probably far enough away to RUN; if they are close.... you just point and shoot. p.s. in MOST of these SD situations, most of us are too frightened to do anything anyway... we sweat, shake and panic. I know...all the SD folk say you need lots of practice but I don't think practice is gonna keep most from soiling their shorts.
Just go and shoot, be safety conscious, enjoy the day and forget the rest. IMHO of course.
Good luck with the surgery....I've been putting mine off for many years...may do it this year (or next:).
J.
 
Joined
Jun 19, 2006
Messages
4,247
Location
Midwest Illinois
You can also try different ammo. If your gun was rock solid in a vice, each brand and each type can shoot to different points of impact. They may not, but can. I put a red dot on my MK IV and tested about 12 brands of ammo. Two definitely outperformed the rest. These are the 2 that I use in it now, with open sights. I know that misses are my fault.
 

rowanfae22

Bearcat
Joined
Jul 21, 2017
Messages
14
Location
SW MN, USA
Thank you everyone. You have given me some great ideas to try. I will try them all at some point. The suggestion of practice, practice, practice is first on my list. The only problem right now, and I am assuming that most of you have the same problem, is ammo accessibility. Here in rural SW Minnesota, the ammo is very scarce. I did stock up on CCI HP at one point, but I am down to about 700 rounds. And CCI if impossible to find. I do have some various rounds on order, so I can try different ones in my new Mark IV, but ordering any ammo right now is hit and miss. Anyone know a good place to find 22LR?
 

diyj98

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jan 26, 2000
Messages
257
Location
WV
I say adjust those sights. They're easy to adjust whichever way is needed and not shooting to your point of aim can be a little disarming mentally. It can be annoying to keep hearing that little voice saying "I keep missing the target!". As others have said, shooting from a solid sandbagged rest can help you see where it's really shooting and you may find you'll need to adjust your sights differently with different brands of ammo.

On a lot of forums I see people posting a chart showing new shooters how they aren't using proper shooting technique because their groups are high, low, right, or left. That may be true sometimes, but often the sights are just off for that particular shooter or particular load or bullet weight.
 

Pat-inCO

Hawkeye
Joined
Oct 17, 2009
Messages
5,922
Location
In the AZ oven (Phoenix basin)
diyj98 said:
... you may find you'll need to adjust your sights differently with different brands of ammo.
I have seen that "change" myself. I was tuning in a 77/22 (with scope) at fifty yards
a while back and one of the guys came over extolling the virtues of the Federals
he liked. I was shooting Winchester Silver box, so I just listened and then ignored
him, until he came back with a magazine full for me to shoot. I did, and on that day,
with that weather/temperature, it shot one inch low from my rifle. - - - I thanked him
for the ammo, and went back to my brand. - - - Keep in mind, that was fifty yards,
from a bench rest, with a 77/22. YMMV. :wink:

Since you are shooting at MUCH shorter distances, AND with a pistol, my bet is
that you will not see anywhere near that much variation in brands of ammo. :D

In my opinion (IMO) just ease up on it (little bit at a time), and you WILL be happy! :D
 
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