When I got my Remington 870 Express recently I took it to the skeet range and was just awful. I picked up the card of a certified instructor and decided to let him help me out.
I really think I made a LOT of progress! Some things, big things, I was doing really prevented me from being able to see the target in time. And I also think I tended to severely over-lead. But it was a really productive lesson and didn't cost that much. I anticipate I'll have more fun next time out breaking more birds.
I also learned that my gun doesn't fit me very well, and am going to add a pad to the butt to get more clearance between my thumb and my face. He had one and not only does the gun fit better with it, but when I brought it up to my face it much more easily had me set up looking straight down the rib.
One interesting ammo note, he had a few different types, and there was one kind, made in Spain I think he said, that would not let the 870 lock. I'd load it, push the pump forward and then I could bring it back and the full shell would eject. He said the rim was a touch thicker and was not a problem with the gun. It only happened on that ammo and happened every time on that ammo.
Oh, I also switched from a modified choke to a skeet choke, so I look forward to measuring my progress with all these mechanical and skill improvements in place!
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I really think I made a LOT of progress! Some things, big things, I was doing really prevented me from being able to see the target in time. And I also think I tended to severely over-lead. But it was a really productive lesson and didn't cost that much. I anticipate I'll have more fun next time out breaking more birds.
I also learned that my gun doesn't fit me very well, and am going to add a pad to the butt to get more clearance between my thumb and my face. He had one and not only does the gun fit better with it, but when I brought it up to my face it much more easily had me set up looking straight down the rib.
One interesting ammo note, he had a few different types, and there was one kind, made in Spain I think he said, that would not let the 870 lock. I'd load it, push the pump forward and then I could bring it back and the full shell would eject. He said the rim was a touch thicker and was not a problem with the gun. It only happened on that ammo and happened every time on that ammo.
Oh, I also switched from a modified choke to a skeet choke, so I look forward to measuring my progress with all these mechanical and skill improvements in place!
