Shooting Trap - Got any pointers?

[10thmountain]

I am going to shoot trap and 5 stand at Governors Club next month. I have been shooting skeet all summer / fall over at Creekside and have had a blast doing so. I like to bust clays. It's a challenge to be a rookie in another shooting sport but we all have to start somewhere. ( Ask me about my first highpower match - My yoga mat was so sexy and comfy) But that's neither here nor there. I have the equipment just wanted to reach out for some collective knowledge.

What kind of leads?

What's your fav Ammo?

Footwork? Shoulders?

I have a Beretta A300 with a Brileys Trap choke so I should be ok Shotgun wise.

What say you...

 

[ADAduckhuntr]

Open your eyes,
Both of them.

Point, don’t aim.

Ammo schammo.

 

[10thmountain]

Oh Lord I have learned NOT TO AIM at anything, Just swing through...and fire...

 

[Plinker66]

Git em quick before they git too far away.

 

[Laxguy59]

I shoot a lot of trap. Most beginners are like you and think way to hard about it, it only messes you up.

Buy the fastest birdshot you can, slow stuff makes it tougher.

Don’t worry about lead your brain isn’t going to really have time to measure it out, it’ll just screw you up.

Don’t overly rely on the sight bead, it’s more like point shooting IMO.

Get a nice belt shell holder that you can just drop a 25 she’ll box into if your doing a lot of shooting. We normally shoot about 400 shells each when we go so it’s nice to just rip the top off a box and drop it into a side pouch belt.

Your muscle memory and reactions will surprise you. Usually by the end of the day the guys I shoot with are hitting clays then hitting the larger pieces that flew off the first hit.

 

[ADAduckhuntr]

I like this guy’s vids....

 

[10thmountain]

I shoot a lot of trap. Most beginners are like you and think way to hard about it, it only messes you up.

Buy the fastest birdshot you can, slow stuff makes it tougher.

Don’t worry about lead your brain isn’t going to really have time to measure it out, it’ll just screw you up.

Don’t overly rely on the sight bead, it’s more like point shooting IMO.

Get a nice belt shell holder that you can just drop a 25 she’ll box into if your doing a lot of shooting. We normally shoot about 400 shells each when we go so it’s nice to just rip the top off a box and drop it into a side pouch belt.

Your muscle memory and reactions will surprise you. Usually by the end of the day the guys I shoot with are hitting clays then hitting the larger pieces that flew off the first hit.

Great Advice.

 

[gh1950]

Get a shell catcher, otherwise your squadmates will run you off. Seriously.

Learn where to hold the gun. You want to allow for the hardest angle on your side of the field, i.e. if you are on station 1 and 2 your hardest shot is the hard left, if your are on station 4 and 5 your hardest shot is the hard right.

So on station 1 most people hold the gun just off the corner of the trap house, station 2, just inside the corner of the trap house, station 3, just a little right of straight away so you can see the target (if you are a right handed shooter), and the same on 4 and 5, just to the right.

Elevation, most people hold the gun on the front edge of the trap house. If you are really quick you can hold higher and "trap" the bird.

If you are shooting from the 16 yard line (and you probably will) you don't need a "trap" choke. An improved modified is all you need, the people in your picture are on the 16 yard line.

Read again what laxguy said. The cardinal sin in trap is trying to aim the gun because your mind tells you that most of the birds are going straight away. Just like skeet, you have to keep the gun moving. But not only do you have to move through the target, in trap you have to shoot over the target. It is worth your while to try to figure out where the center of your pattern is. Dedicated trap guns are set up to shot about 60% of the pattern over the center point, some folks go as high as 80%. No one expects you to modify your gun for a casual round, but you should know how it patterns.

If someone asks you if you want to shoot Scrap (or Chinese Trap), that's the equivalent of walking into a pool hall and having the guy with the custom cue in the monogrammed hard case ask you if you know how to play 9 ball. If you do shoot a round of this game, you will definitely want to break out the trap choke.

As to loads, a lot depends on your style. Personally I prefer a really hot load of 1 oz. no. 8. My personal belief is that trap benefits from using premium loads for the hardness of the shot, and the better wads they tend to have.

Also learn the etiquette. Your squad wants to develop a rhythm. You need to be ready when it's your turn to shoot. As soon as you shoot, remove the empty shell from the shell catcher you just bought, put a shell in the carrier, don't close the bolt, close the bolt when the shooter to your left shoots. Shoot, don't dither around,

Especially when you get to station 5 and it's time for you to move to station 1 walk BEHIND the squad. Everyone is supposed to have their gun unloaded, but it's just considered bad form to walk in front of the squad.

 

[Lionheart]

Git’em on the way up.

 

[DADI03]

Have fun.

I pretty sure they make you buy their ammo. It has to be steel so they can clean it up.

I have found that most of the time on a miss that l need to lead more. 5 stand is typically faster but shorter shots than the typicall 100 round skeet.