Gun Fit.

[Robertt]

18 months ago I bought an AYA No 4, 26", which fits me like a glove.

Over time I have got better and better with it but didn't  realise how instinctive my shooting had become.

Done a bit of a variety with it, Game, pigeons etc.

Went to North Wales Shooting School last week, mainly to give my sons some coaching.

Did the bolting rabbits, low tower, high tower and skeet.

Did no less than 90% easy peasy ! ( with some second barrel shots thrown in ! )

Looking back this is the first gun that has fitted me properly  and how important gun fit is.

Hard focus on the target and it's smoked !

 

 

 

 

Edited May 6, 2018 by Robertt

[JohnfromUK]

You are quite right; when a gun fits properly, the gun 'disappears' and the shot just goes where you are looking.  You don't realise how important gun fit is until you have one that does fit ....... and it becomes instinctive then just as you say ......

8 hours ago, Robertt said:

Hard focus on the target and it's smoked !

 

[matone]

11 hours ago, Robertt said:

18 months ago I bought an AYA No 4, 26", which fits me like a glove.

Over time I have got better and better with it but didn't  realise how instinctive my shooting had become.

Done a bit of a variety with it, Game, pigeons etc.

Went to North Wales Shooting School last week, mainly to give my sons some coaching.

Did the bolting rabbits, low tower, high tower and skeet.

Did no less than 90% easy peasy ! ( with some second barrel shots thrown in ! )

Looking back this is the first gun that has fitted me properly  and how important gun fit is.

Hard focus on the target and it's smoked !

 

 

 

 

Yep,but many say it doesn`t matter ! Lol

[Guest stevo]

29 minutes ago, matone said:

Yep,but many say it doesn`t matter ! Lol

Of course it don’t matter , you just fit a red dot sight on a job done ✅ 

[Robertt]

I think 'many' people, shoot very well with guns that nearly fit them.

I have 2 others guns that are close but miss less with the No4. I never had this gun altered for me but by sheer luck it fitted me off the shelf.

As JohnfromUK says.....you dont realise how important it is till you have one that does fit.

I beleive It's a thing you have to find out for yourself.

[matone]

Agree,the first gun I bought that fitted me was an accident ! Thought it had a different feel to it but shooting it was a revelation,you just had to look at things and you hit them !!!

It was a Webley 700 with a slightly swept comb giving it a good bit of cast, and 26" barrels and shot everything I needed it to,including winning a Sporting shoot or two ! 

Imagine that .....

[JohnfromUK]

I think that everyone (me included) starts out thinking that a 'gun fits them' - after all, unless it has some very odd measurements, you can align your eye much like a rifle - and can achieve fair results that way.  Most 'good shots' can shoot reasonably with most guns.  But the small movements needed to align are hard to get right consistently and take a small time.

When a gun does fit you correctly and you don't need to make these small adjustments ........ it just comes up right every time ......... you are that bit more consistent, and that bit faster, and you get a confidence boost which also helps.  Soon you find that because you are not having to 'fit yourself to the gun', the gun magically 'disappears' and you simply see the target.  That's when you are 'there'.

[Hamster]

2 hours ago, matone said:

Yep,but many say it doesn`t matter ! Lol

I've yet to meet anyone who says it doesn't matter, I think the confusion emanates from "context", it's fairly clear from the OP's post that he's primarily a field shooter with a bit of occasional clays thrown in. I can assure you he will not be banging in 90% easy peasy with that gun on a registered sporting layout more than once in a blue moon. 

I have owned dozens of guns and feel perfectly qualified to say that what people assume to be "fit" means very little in the real world where crosses on a card actually matter. I have had many guns that "fitted like a glove" that failed to live up to expectation and one or two that did the business despite having the odd flaw here and there. 

"Fit" is what you make of it and what you want it to mean, just because a gun comes up nice and shoots where you look doesn't mean it's the right "set up" for you.

[Scully]

1 hour ago, JohnfromUK said:

I think that everyone (me included) starts out thinking that a 'gun fits them' - after all, unless it has some very odd measurements, you can align your eye much like a rifle - and can achieve fair results that way.  Most 'good shots' can shoot reasonably with most guns.  But the small movements needed to align are hard to get right consistently and take a small time.

When a gun does fit you correctly and you don't need to make these small adjustments ........ it just comes up right every time ......... you are that bit more consistent, and that bit faster, and you get a confidence boost which also helps.  Soon you find that because you are not having to 'fit yourself to the gun', the gun magically 'disappears' and you simply see the target.  That's when you are 'there'.

Yeah, I'd have to agree with this. As a dedicated Browning fan I'd read so much about the lauded 101 many years ago so decided to get one, and they were old guns even back then. I shot very well with the 325 but the 101 was a revelation to me. I even have my Perazzi set up to shoot just like my 101 Field. Either one comes up 'just right' for me each and every time ( on the understanding that I've put in the practise time beforehand ) and if I'm honest I'd have to give the edge to the Winchester, possibly because it is so much lighter and seems to take little effort on my part. I prefer to shoot the Perazzi on clays as it is soaks up the recoil, but as far as game is concerned some of my most memorable shots have been with the 101. 

[Robertt]

As a, by the way,  I adjusted just the LOP of my other 2 guns to that of the No 4 and that helped.

 

Edited May 7, 2018 by Robertt

[Gunman]

On 5/7/2018 at 09:36, stevo said:

Of course it don’t matter , you just fit a red dot sight on a job done ✅ 

????? its a shot gun you look at the bird not the sight .

[Guest stevo]

2 hours ago, Gunman said:

????? its a shot gun you look at the bird not the sight .

Don’t be daft 

[oldypigeonpopper]

hello, i think some times you can be lucky and find a gun that fits as near perfect, going back many many years and not much knowledge my first shotgun at 16 a poachers belgium 410 S/S hammer,  i like most did not think how it fitted, most the same with a very old side by side english, bruised me no end but only wanted an extra pad, LOP was not thought off back then, that said with all the guns after only 2 come to mind as near fitting perfect one being a no 3 aya in the 1970s and a lamber i used for clay pigeon shooting 1980s,  yes i know with money spent i should have paid for fitting, now thinking of Scully and his recent post reference Macca and his 800 plus million fortune i would be straight over to PURDEYS  for a PAIR of hand made finely engineered, engraved and FITTED over and unders. oh they can throw in a case   

Edited May 11, 2018 by oldypigeonpopper

[motty]

On ‎07‎/‎05‎/‎2018 at 09:36, stevo said:

Of course it don’t matter , you just fit a red dot sight on a job done ✅ 

Red dot sights are the way forward. It's true, I read it on here!

[ditchman]

gun fit is important...but not the end of it all....i can pick up most guns and shoot reasonably well...providing it is not too long in the stock...............i also have a 26" #4...i find it more important for me...is not the weight but the balance.....aaannnd............it helps if you like the gun..and choosing a cartridge that suits the gun...

each to his own..........

[getthegat]

Well here's another minefield that's for sure. I've never had a gun fitted and whether it's just me, but I have bought and changed guns quite often and to be honest I've never been much cop, but plod on ( no police pun intended here) because I love being out in the field. I've tried add on sites and they only made you concentrate on the gun rather than the target (as Bruce Lee said with his finger pointing to the moon) Anyway, my present Franchi Affinity, my single barrel Pedretti moderated 20 bore and an old SxS AYA are the ones I shoot best with, they are all pretty light. My over under moderated 20 Investerarm weighs a ton and I've had to add a cartridge holder to the butt to even out the balance and made a makeshift comb raiser to lift the front of the barrel. I want this gun to work, but it's not an easy thing to weild. So for me a lighter gun sort of means a bit better fit. I have no idea how much it costs to have a gun altered or whether a cheap gun would be entertained.

[JohnfromUK]

3 minutes ago, getthegat said:

Well here's another minefield that's for sure. I've never had a gun fitted and whether it's just me, but I have bought and changed guns quite often and to be honest I've never been much cop, but plod on ( no police pun intended here) because I love being out in the field. I've tried add on sites and they only made you concentrate on the gun rather than the target (as Bruce Lee said with his finger pointing to the moon) Anyway, my present Franchi Affinity, my single barrel Pedretti moderated 20 bore and an old SxS AYA are the ones I shoot best with, they are all pretty light. My over under moderated 20 Investerarm weighs a ton and I've had to add a cartridge holder to the butt to even out the balance and made a makeshift comb raiser to lift the front of the barrel. I want this gun to work, but it's not an easy thing to weild. So for me a lighter gun sort of means a bit better fit. I have no idea how much it costs to have a gun altered or whether a cheap gun would be entertained.

I also prefer a light gun such as an AyA s/s.  Go and see a good coach.  Fit can then be assessed, and then a gunsmith could give you a cost for any modifications required.

[islandgun]

I have a Fabarm with an adjustable comb, I have reduced the cast and slightly raised the comb, it now shoots and feels right,  Its a shame there aren't more guns out there with this option

[getthegat]

That's true. I guess a whole new adjustable stock is big money? Perhaps I need to get over the cheap gun not worth it thing and see if some gunsmith will help.

[Old farrier]

1 hour ago, getthegat said:

That's true. I guess a whole new adjustable stock is big money? Perhaps I need to get over the cheap gun not worth it thing and see if some gunsmith will help.

Would you buy a use clothes that don’t fit? 

Mass produced guns nearly fit most of the population like clothes ?

 

however a a lot of us benefit from spending a few extra pounds and having the tailor made options 

Personally think gun fitting is worth every penny 

all the best 

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