# Finally received my first pistol!



## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

New shooter here and I’m now the owner of a Ruger SR 22. I was thinking this pistol was a good place to start and so far, I’m really liking it. 

I’ve shot it one time at the range and I seem to be consistent with this 22 as I am with my friends 9mm. My groups are good however they always seem to be low and left of the target. It’s hard to imagine that both pistols have sights that are off in the same direction but rather that my arm grip is moving every time I pull the trigger?

Just out of curiosity, how would one know if their sights are off from the factory? My rear sight is adjustable and obviously I’m not going to mess with it considering the little bit I know about shooting. 

Otherwise, I’m loving the pistol and it’s fun to shoot!


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## AirForceShooter (May 6, 2006)

Try shooting it off a rest.
Thart will reduce your hand movement and give a pretty good indication if it's you or the sights

AFS


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

Good point, they do have chairs at the range but guess it must be my movement which I will need to work on. I’m guessing the gun manufacturers have a way of getting the sights pretty well set before they leave the factory.


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## pblanc (Mar 3, 2015)

Are you a right-handed shooter? It is very common for right handers to pull shots low and left, especially if they are new to pistol shooting. Before messing with your sights, try shooting from a rest, as was suggested or, better yet, have someone you know to be a good pistol shooter try shooting your gun.


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

pblanc said:


> Are you a right-handed shooter? It is very common for right handers to pull shots low and left, especially if they are new to pistol shooting. Before messing with your sights, try shooting from a rest, as was suggested or, better yet, have someone you know to be a good pistol shooter try shooting your gun.


Definitely a right handed shooter as well as a newbie so it's most likely my grip giving way. 
I do go to the range with an experienced shooter, however as strange as it is, I'm a much better shot.


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## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

Have someone else give it a shot. Pun intended. 

See how they do with it.


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

Worked out well today at the range. I asked the range guard about the sights on my pistol, he shot it and agreed the sights were slightly off. 
He made an adjustment and then his shooting was just about perfect.

He also detected that I was pulling the trigger abruptly and not slowly squeezing it. After his verbal and mechanical adjustments, both my buddy and myself were shooting much better!


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

Another interesting comment the range guard made was that he does not align the white dot sights when he shoots. He said he aligns the very top of the front front and rear sights. I was surprised to hear that but can’t imagine he’s mistaken after watching him shoot.


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

He's doing it correctly.
The white dot might be useful in self-defense shooting: Place the dot on the, um, target where you want the bullet to land (if the sights are properly regulated, of course).
But accurate target shooting requires a better aiming system than using the white (or colored, or fluorescent) dot.



Rickcin said:


> ...He also detected that I was pulling the trigger abruptly and not slowly squeezing it. After his verbal and mechanical adjustments, both my buddy and myself were shooting much better!


Don't "squeeze." _Press_. Straight back. Using "less finger."
The more you wrap your finger around the trigger, the more you will be pulling your shots downward and to the left (assuming that you're right-handed, that is).

Also, there are two very different grip techniques, depending upon whether or not you are learning bullseye target shooting, or quick and effective self-defense shooting.


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

Here’s the thing with my shooting that I believe I’ve just learned but need to verify. 
When closing one eye I can clearing see the front white dot but can’t make out the two rear dots?
I was thinking of placing a tiny piece of yellow electrical tape on top of the rear sight housing, what are your thoughts on that?


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

Another question since I had one in-chambered round yesterday. When I slip in a new mag, I slightly pull back the slide and let it go forward.

Is this enough pressure to chamber the round? We’re talking with the 22. When doing this with my buddy’s 9mm I never had an un-chambered round. ( My buddy is saying I’m too gentle with the slide)


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

Rickcin said:


> ...When closing one eye I can clearing see the front white dot but can't make out the two rear dots?
> I was thinking of placing a tiny piece of yellow electrical tape on top of the rear sight housing...


Your focus should be on your front sight.
Both the target and the rear sight should be out-of-focus (perhaps only slightly).
It's OK that you can't clearly see your rear sight.

Sight alignment, and focus, are two of the important reasons for dry-fire practice at home, the "target" being a blank wall.
Your body has to learn to line up the sights without a clear focus on the rear sight...or the wall.



Rickcin said:


> ...When I slip in a new mag, I slightly pull back the slide and let it go forward...


That's usually a good technique.
I use the slide stop lever (if there is one), just because it's just a little bit faster, and also it's right near my thumb.
Both ways work well.

In competition, I had to learn to (somewhat subconsciously) count my shots, so that there was one shot remaining in the chamber when I did a reload.
That way, I never had to either rack the slide or press the slide release.


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

Interesting, never thought of leaving one in the chamber before reloading.

Perhaps I’m not doing this correctly but if I just try to release the slide with my thumb, I usually have a problem releasing it. That’s why I’ve found it easier to push with my thumb while moving the slide slightly back at the same time!

I shot at the range today and did much better than yesterday and was shooting at 10 yards or there abouts.
I follow your explanation regarding focusing on the front sight since the eye can’t focus on both sights clearly. Great comment. I also purchased and installed the Tandemkross Wingman extension which adds to my mag capacity but more importantly it extends the grip which helps my big hands. 
Thanks for your comments, there’re very helpful!


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## pblanc (Mar 3, 2015)

Not all auto-loading pistols have an external slide release feature. On those that do (the majority), you can usually release the locked-back slide by pushing down on the lever, but not always. With a few pistols (the M&P Shield immediately jumps to mind) releasing the slide with the lever is quite difficult. On that pistol, the lever acts as a slide catch, but not a slide release.

If the slide release lever on your pistol is "sticky" just pull the slide back and release it cleanly. You shouldn't have to push down on the lever, although it doesn't hurt anything to do so. Just don't ride the slide forward if you have a loaded magazine in the pistol. I will usually pull the slide back to the full extent of its rearward travel and release it. If you try to partially break the forward momentum of the slide, it may not fully chamber the next round. The slide goes forward with full momentum every time you fire a shot, so you don't have to worry about damaging the pistol.

Changing to a fully loaded magazine with a round still chambered is often called a "tactical reload". It is sort of like topping off your gas tank well before it is empty. In a gunfight, it can be done when there is a slight break in the action, but a potential threat still exists. Running the magazine dry and reloading after the slide locks back (or not) is sometimes called an "emergency reload". It is something you hope not to have to do in a gunfight because doing so requires a bit more time to release or rack the slide to get the pistol back in the fight.

You will probably find that there is a big debate on the "proper" way to release the slide on a loaded magazine. Some will say that the slide release lever should not be used, even if there is one, because in a self-defense scenario when your fine motor control has probably gone out the window, finding that little lever may take more time than it is worth. Proponents of that school of thought insist that racking the slide, usually with an overhand C grip, is the only "right" method.

I say both methods should be practiced. At the range it makes no difference, of course. In a gunfight, you may not have the use of one hand. It is possible to reload the magazine in a pistol one-handed after securing the gun in your waistband or the crook of your knee, for example. It is also possible to rack the slide one-handed but the usual methods that are recommended to not allow you to easily do so with the muzzle pointed at the threat. In that scenario, using the slide release with the pistol on target makes much more sense to me.


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

Great information but just to clarify, when loading a full mag after the slide has locked back, I can (should) just pull the slide back without depressing the slide lock?


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## pblanc (Mar 3, 2015)

Yes. You don't need to push down on the slide release lever.

The way that the slide catch works is the follower in the magazine pushes up on the internal portion of the slide catch lever after the last round in the magazine has been fired. This causes the slide catch to engage the notch in the slide that allows it to hold the slide back.

The follower is the thing in the magazine, usually polymer, that the cartridges ride on top of. The magazine spring pushes the follower up and the follower pushes the cartridges up. The magazine spring force pushing up on the follower is what allows it to push the slide catch lever up, but only when the follower is at the upmost point in its travel, i.e, when the magazine is empty. Without an empty magazine in the pistol, a small spring holds the slide catch lever down. So as soon as you insert a loaded, or partially loaded magazine in the pistol and the magazine spring is no longer pushing up on the slide catch, the slide catch lever is being pushed back down by this spring. This spring is not strong enough to force the slide catch lever down and release the slide when it has already locked back the slide, however. The friction of the slide catch lever against the notch in the slide that it engages created by the force of the recoil spring is too great to allow that. But as soon as you pull the slide back a little, the internal part of the slide catch will get pushed back down out of its little notch, and the slide catch lever spring will hold it in the down position.

You can experiment with this at home. After making sure that the chamber of your pistol is empty and the magazine is empty (obviously) insert the empty magazine into the pistol with the slide in battery (all the way forward). Now pull the slide back. The follower on the empty magazine will cause the slide catch lever to catch the slide as soon as you have pulled it back sufficiently for the catch to capture the slide. It will continue to hold the slide back even if you drop the empty magazine. But if you pull back the slide just a little, the slide catch lever will drop down releasing the slide.

Now return the slide to battery and try the same thing without a magazine in the pistol. The slide catch will remain down and will not trap the slide.

When you clear an auto-loading pistol, you must always first drop the magazine. Then lock back the slide and check to make sure that the chamber is empty. But to lock the slide back without a magazine in the pistol, you will need to manually push up the external part of the slide catch lever, and hold it up as you ease the slide forward so that the catch can capture the slide. You have now "showed clear". At many ranges, you will also be asked to insert an empty chamber indicator (ECI), otherwise known as a chamber flag, into the chamber of the barrel through the ejection port. This is typically a brightly-colored piece of plastic with a thin, cylindrical portion that goes into the chamber. It provides a quick and easy visual confirmation that the chamber of your pistol is clear.

This is a common requirement for all shooters on the line to show clear before anyone goes downrange to check targets or hang new targets.


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

Thank you for the detailed explanation and I think I finally have more of an understanding as to how the slide lock works. I did understand the follower since I had a problem with one of my magazines and had to take it apart and when I reassembled it, I never realized the push tab was slightly offset and I had it upside down. The result was that the magazine would not push up far enough to chamber the last round. The range guard saw me struggling and came over to assist and said it was just a bad magazine not realizing I messed with it and messed it up. 

So I will no longer be struggling with my thumb to release the slide and as you mentioned, I will go through the motions, at home after checking the chamber. My shooting buddy did mention that I’m too gentle with the slide and it meant to be yanked back and let go of. 

I need to get more familiar with this operation other than my 30 minutes at the range once a week. I do have a chamber flag that came with the pistol and think it’s a good thing to use, especially for someone who is using a pistol as a newbie. I made a rookie mistake at the range a few weeks ago. I finished shooting, checked the chamber, locked the slide back and then walked out of the shooting lane with the pistol to place it in my range bag. 
As soon as I turned and started walking out, the range guard grabbed me and took the pistol out of my hand and placed on the lane shelf and said, your bag goes to the gun and the gun stays in the shooting area.
I obviously felt like an idiot and won’t be doing again!

I have a lot to learn and hope to purchase a 9 mm as my next pistol however, safety is my biggest concern.


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## pblanc (Mar 3, 2015)

You may find that different ranges have different rules. I have been to ranges that only allow one firearm per person to be on the line at any time so that any additional firearms need to be kept in bags or cases back from the line. Switching weapons requires a short walk but it is best to do so with the magazine out, slide locked back, and chamber flag inserted with the ejection port clearly visible and muzzle pointed in a safe direction, generally downward. 

Always best to familiarize yourself with the prescribed procedures at your particular range(s).


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

pblanc said:


> You may find that different ranges have different rules. I have been to ranges that only allow one firearm per person to be on the line at any time so that any additional firearms need to be kept in bags or cases back from the line. Switching weapons requires a short walk but it is best to do so with the magazine out, slide locked back, and chamber flag inserted with the ejection port clearly visible and muzzle pointed in a safe direction, generally downward.
> 
> Always best to familiarize yourself with the prescribed procedures at your particular range(s).


Well I guess I learned by trying to walk out of the lane with a pistol. He wanted me to bag it in the lane. 
They do allow us both to shoot in the one lane and we place both pistols, his and mine, on the shelf in front of us and the range is fine with that. 
I'm glad they watch our every move, especially mine since I'm a newbie!


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## berettatoter (Sep 1, 2011)

Rickcin said:


> New shooter here and I'm now the owner of a Ruger SR 22. I was thinking this pistol was a good place to start and so far, I'm really liking it.
> 
> I've shot it one time at the range and I seem to be consistent with this 22 as I am with my friends 9mm. My groups are good however they always seem to be low and left of the target. It's hard to imagine that both pistols have sights that are off in the same direction but rather that my arm grip is moving every time I pull the trigger?
> 
> ...


Congratulations! Welcome to the club.


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## Rickcin (May 6, 2019)

berettatoter said:


> Congratulations! Welcome to the club.


Thank you❗


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