Thank you @George98 and it’s very clear now. 
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I would have to say that after you have a solid stance, good grip with forward/backward isotonic pressure and have locked in on the front sight as your only focus when on target, the most important part is trigger squeeze and follow through. If you practice “squeeze 1-2-3-4 FIRE, release 1-2-3-4” and then pause at reset point and fire again. SLOW at first, you will find your shots are dead on each time. When we slap the trigger or jerk our finger away from trigger it throws the muzzle off by a miniscule bit that translates to a HUGE change in accuracy down range.
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low left is typically for a right hand shooter a function also of gripping with your strong hand versus treating it like a clamp. Try picking something up with trigger finger out and only using rest of hand, trigger finger moves too. Try “clamping” rest of hand on object instead and trigger finger remains independent.
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I had that when I started; it was trigger pull. I would mentally note that I was dipping to the lower left holding the pistol with my right hand as the main hand grip. Practicing with an empty weapon it became obvious there was slight movement to the left when I pulled the trigger with my right forefinger. If your finger isn’t pushing or pulling straight back on the trigger the barrel can move slightly. A millimeter off in your hand can be inches off at the target.
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Use a master grip device to strengthen your hands, especially your off hand.
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This fella reminds us of hold, grip, and steadiness. First time I heard one say, it’s ok “not” to relax during the follow thru:
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I’m cross eye dominant, and found I actually shoot better groups and more accurately with my “weak” hand. Strongly considering buying a new holster now.
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That is good advice. The shooter may not be where he or she want to be with accuracy so focus on the basics and practice. Once you get there then try other drills. I used to use the Dot Torture drill everyday and compare it to previous days. My accuracy was Okay but I should have spent more time on the basics first. Today my accuracy is pretty good but I still start each day focused on basics first.
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Start by going to a professional with a good reputation for 1:1 training and learn right before you screw it up with ongoing “self teaching” and poor execution and bad habits. I can set up a newbie in one hour for a lifetime of good shooting. It’ll take me days to unravel a lifetime of shooting poorly and there’s no guarantees it’ll work. Videos and online training help, but no one has ever learned to become a great shot from watching John Wick movies.
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Today was at home dry fire training for me.
I set-up a Laserhit target, 1:4, 1:8 & 1:16 specs. Made sure EDC was clear and safe, all ammunition locked away.
Installed Laserhit Laser Bullet and magazine plastic retainer round.
Using my EDC with optic, my training was to aquire dot on target proficiently. Laserhit bullet fires approximately 1/3 second and if your movement of the barrel is not steady enough your shot will not register.
Started off with 1:4 equaling 10 yds, 50 shots. 1:8 equaling 18 yds, 50 shots. Final the 1:16 equaling 35 yds, 50 shots. (Missed one shot on 1:16 set).
My acquiring proficiency was between 1.4 seconds to 2.2 seconds from high chest ready position.
Again, getting use to red dot optic on a semi auto with 3" barrel was the main course, plus being on target was the training not the speed.
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Good morning. New gun owner and have been practice with S&W 40. Getting better, but jerking the weapon a lot. Working on firmer grip.
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Thanks.
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Accuracy can vary by each individual firearm. Size of the firearm- I don’t trust one that I can’t get a full grip on. Trigger creep ( how long before it hits the metaphorical wall before firing and the return reset) can affect aim. If a firearm’s trigger has a long pull it can make some shooters pull low left or low right. You’d burn through so much ammo trying to figure out why you can find that sweet center yet your shot groups are low but consistent. Get the trigger worked on or switch it out. Accuracy can also be affected by ammo grain. For instance a 115 gr (grain ) 9 mm round is “snappier” than a 124gr that seems to flow more smoothly. In .40 cal it’s a 165gr that is snappier and the 185gr more smooth. It does depend on the shooter and a good way to develop accuracy discipline would be to mix a variable that looks the same into one magazine not knowing which is lessor or greater grain. Breathing is another factor. Breathe out and the firearm lowers, breath in it raises up. On the way up at about half breath and on the way up pull slowly on the creep I talked about and at half breath finish the squeeze ( pulling the trigger). Lastly is direct focus. The one issue a lot of inexperienced shooters have is the ability to really focus on the front sight as intended. A lot of shooters say, but I am focusing on the front sight. Ok maybe so, but you’re not. You’re only looking at it. If truly focused there will be almost a tunnel vision effect and some patterns around you will work similar to a 3D effect after pulling your eyes off target. These are all true factors. Don’t use a firearm that just does not feel compatible to you. Once a round leaves you can’t recall it and the responsibility is owned by the shooter. An innocent gets hit and it’s gone from a defensive shoot to collateral liability. That can cost time in prison or a lawsuit at the very least. Lastly. Range ammo has a flat pointed bullet or a complete cone nosed shaped top. That is for targets and battlefield shooting. You do not want your round to go through an aggressor and accidentally hit an innocent. That’s called “Over Pen”, that’s a liability issue. Defensive ammo comes in Frangible type rounds that go in and shard all through a live target. There are mixed reviews out there in depth penetration and effectiveness. Defensive ammo has a hole like bowl at the end of the bullet nose. Be careful there too. Sometimes that bowl will fill up with material / clothing etc that an aggressor may be wearing and the bullet won’t expand “flower” out like it should and could become like a range round. How does this apply to accuracy? It matters because of shot placement not displacement and the effective difference of these types of ammo classifications. Newer , inexperienced members need to understand that ownership is not just carrying , but the obligations to study and comprehend all of the variables (what if’s) that can occur. Some ammo will directly affect shot placement accuracy and staying where it should be as opposed to there being liability concerns and potential legal nightmares. This info is for our newer members. Hope it helps some.
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Amen to that!!! I was initially taught handgun operation/manipulation and safety rules when I started shooting. I was not taught anything about stance, grip, or marksmanship. Fast forward 20 years when I finally took a class with good instructors and I quickly realized how many bad habits I had developed. I was safe and I wasn’t doing anything stupid in that regard. I was basically a decent target shooter, but my accuracy sucked when it came to defensive handgun. And repeating those bad habits for so many years took a LOT of effort to retrain my brain and start doing things the right way. Bad muscle memory takes a lot of repetitions to rewire. I wish I had started out with a good instructor.
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Welcome Michael. Hope you enjoy the community.
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What do you think about using the Mantis X10 system for training?
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