Random Question about .22 pistol accuracy

[pakman916]

Hello all, this is my first post.

The other day, I took my buddy to the range. He's only been to the range once before. Anyway, I was surprised at how well he shot considering it was only his second time out. He started with my Glock 19 Gen4 and landed all but 1 shot on an 8 inch target at 5 yards on his first magazine. Then we shot my Ruger 22/45 4.5 TB. On his 2nd or 3rd magazine, he was able to get 9/10 rounds inside a 2 inch group. Maybe because I just got into shooting myself, but I was impressed he picked it up with little exposure to shooting.

So then another buddy of mine said he should have hit all 10 rounds inside a 1 inch group from 5 yards. So after a lengthy back and forth, we made a bet. I bet he couldn't get 5 rounds inside a 1 inch group standing at 5 yards, using the same gun (iron sights) with bulk ammo. Granted, my other friend has gone shooting a lot more than myself, I still think he's all talk.

Did I just shoot myself in the foot? Could most of you hit a 1 inch target 5 times from 5 yards standing/iron sights/.22 bulk ammo on your 1st or 2nd attempt? I just don't think it's that easy for the average joe.

 

[Zombie_013]

I absolutely could not and I shoot at least once per week...my hands shake too much.

 

[Kman]

I'm not sure if I could do that on a regular basis, and I have been shooting the same Ruger MkII for more than 20 years.

 

[fivepointstar]

sure its possible!!! the RUger is an excellent pistols with a long sight radius making it a great target pistol. At 5 yards (15 ft) and with good breathing and sight technique I its easily done

 

[pakman916]

sure its possible!!! the RUger is an excellent pistols with a long sight radius making it a great target pistol. At 5 yards (15 ft) and with good breathing and sight technique I its easily done

I don't doubt that it's possible. But I'm talking more...average shooter...picking up a ruger 22/45 for the first time, and putting 5 rounds in a 1 inch target. This friend of mine said he could put all 10 inside 1 inch. It's one thing to familiarize yourself with a firearm and then shoot accurately. It's another to just pick up a firearm and be accurate right off the bat.

I've put a few rounds in a 1 inch grouping, but that was after I shot several rounds and it's my gun...so I know what to expect.

 

[fivepointstar]

I don't doubt that it's possible. But I'm talking more...average shooter...picking up a ruger 22/45 for the first time, and putting 5 rounds in a 1 inch target. This friend of mine said he could put all 10 inside 1 inch. It's one thing to familiarize yourself with a firearm and then shoot accurately. It's another to just pick up a firearm and be accurate right off the bat.

I've put a few rounds in a 1 inch grouping, but that was after I shot several rounds and it's my gun...so I know what to expect.

Yes....with this firearm. with a small snubnose or 2" bbl its more difficult

 

[justsand]

Did this friend also teach you to call your magazine a clip?

 

[pakman916]

Did this friend also teach you to call your magazine a clip?

Haha...nice catch. I've been trying to break that habit. Actually, a different friend corrected me on that one. Notice how I used both in my OP. Irregardless.

Fixed my OP, thanks.

 

[Semper Noctem]

Did this friend also teach you to call your magazine a clip?

Ouch, put the claws away man. Be nice to the OP, he's brand new.

 

[boatbod]

Hello all, this is my first post.

Welcome aboard!

So then another buddy of mine said he should have hit all 10 rounds inside a 1 inch group from 5 yards. So after a lengthy back and forth, we made a bet. I bet he couldn't get 5 rounds inside a 1 inch group standing at 5 yards, using the same gun (iron sights) with bulk ammo. Granted, my other friend has gone shooting a lot more than myself, I still think he's all talk.

So make it easy on yourself and call his bluff. Hand him the gun with a loaded mag and see if he can get the job done.

Presumably he made this comment when you were conveniently back at your home/office/local bar/...?

Sounds like another excuse for a range trip coming up!

 

[Mason-Dixon Baseball]

Hello all, this is my first post.

The other day, I took my buddy to the range. He's only been to the range once before. Anyway, I was surprised at how well he shot considering it was only his second time out. He started with my Glock 19 Gen4 and landed all but 1 shot on an 8 inch target at 5 yards on his first magazine. Then we shot my Ruger 22/45 4.5 TB. On his 2nd or 3rd magazine, he was able to get 9/10 rounds inside a 2 inch group. Maybe because I just got into shooting myself, but I was impressed he picked it up with little exposure to shooting.

So then another buddy of mine said he should have hit all 10 rounds inside a 1 inch group from 5 yards. So after a lengthy back and forth, we made a bet. I bet he couldn't get 5 rounds inside a 1 inch group standing at 5 yards, using the same gun (iron sights) with bulk ammo. Granted, my other friend has gone shooting a lot more than myself, I still think he's all talk.

Did I just shoot myself in the foot? Could most of you hit a 1 inch target 5 times from 5 yards standing/iron sights/.22 bulk ammo on your 1st or 2nd attempt? I just don't think it's that easy for the average joe.

I watched a brand new female shooter (never shot before) put her first 10 shots inside a 3 " circle at seven yards the other day, so yes- it is very "doable"... The Ruger Mark II, III and 45/22's are know for being extremely accurate...

 

[ColonelHurtz]

I can do that all day with my Medalist and Fed. bulk pack.
I regularly shoot at 1/2" diamonds @ 7 yards.

1", 5 yards?
That's a little more like G17L territory.

 

[hvymax]

If someone has good form and trigger control it would be easy with most decent platforms. The only things that would make it difficult would be a crappy trigger,really crappy ammo or a horribly out of sync gun.

 

[GNLaFrance]

A young woman I was coaching at a Women On Target clinic took my Ruger Single Six, shooting CCI hollowpoints, and put 4 out of 6 rounds into a space about the size of a business card at 25 yards (75 feet). We walked over to see it and she asked me if that was good. I said I couldn't do that, and it's my gun. I doubt I could do that with a rifle with iron sights. Youth really is wasted on the young.

 

[pakman916]

Welcome aboard!


So make it easy on yourself and call his bluff. Hand him the gun with a loaded mag and see if he can get the job done.

Presumably he made this comment when you were conveniently back at your home/office/local bar/...?

Sounds like another excuse for a range trip coming up!

This all transpired over Facebook. My buddy posted a pic of his target. Then the other friend made those comments and I called him out saying he couldn't do better.

He's trying to make a high stakes bet out of it. I'm not that hard pressed to prove him wrong. Even though I feel VERY confident he can't do it, I can't risk that kind of money. And he won't do it for less. Go figure. Probably because he knows I can't cover the bet, thus, he won't have to prove it. I guess I'll never know.

And thanks for the welcome all. I just got out of one hobby (sports card collecting) and started a new one (shooting and firearms). It's been a lot of fun so far. I hope to be able to contribute to these forums as I learn more about firearms...but right now, I'm still very green.

On a separate note, is it possible for your dominant eye to change? For a while, I wasn't shooting well using my right eye, so I started to shoot with my left eye. The other day at the range, I couldn't hit my targets, so I decided to switch back to my right eye and I was nailing it. (And when I say switch, what I do right now is start aiming with the dominant eye and then open both eyes before I shoot...not sure if this is a good method, but I can't hit anything unless I do this drill)

 

[DoctorBob]

To address your topic of "22 accuracy", most any 22 pistol could/should have the
inherent accuracy to group 1" at 5 yards. High end, purpose built, match pistols will
shoot 1/2" - 1" groups at 50 yards, with matched ammo. A S&W 41, Hammerli 208
Pardini , Walther , and perhaps a few others would be expected to perform at this
level. A High Standard Victor or Browning Medalist would be just behind this.
A quality pistol makes it easier to shoot small, consistently round groups - at any
reasonable range. Learning to do this comes under the heading of marksmanship.
Doing it under pressure (for money or medals) comes under the heading of training.

Anyone wishing to improve their skills may want to see me at Free State Gun Range
for Marksmanship Training Classes. Four levels are offered to suit your aspirations.
Call me to increase your ability and to have questions answered.

Doctor Bob / Old Skool

 

[punchBIGholes]

I shoot .22 a lot (because i'm poor and they are still fun) and i can shoot a 5 shot 1" group. but not every day. for me it depends on the day, some days i can shoot 3" .45acp group at 25 ft and others i cant keep a 4" .22 group at 25ft. basically if you bet a lot of money (for me $5) make sure he has a bad day

 

[tball]

A friend at the AGC had his .22 ruger pistol with a scope dialed in so well that he could hit a 3 " steel clanger at 100 yds with it on a steady rest. I was amazed watching him. I was even more amazed when he let me try and I was able to hit it too. It wasn't that hard with his scope is dialed in as well as it was.

He and his buddy are fun to watch. I often see these two guys shooting 1/2 inch wooden beads at 100 yds with their rifles. They shoot something different every time they come out. Really nice guys and incredible shots!

 

[pakman916]

I went to the range yesterday with my friend that got me into firearms. I wanted to see how difficult it is to pull off what I described in the OP.

I setup some targets I had printed out. The targets were roughly 2 inches wide, with 5 targets on one sheet. My friend and I took turns shooting at each target. Granted it was crazy cold (outdoor range), he was only able to get 3 shots inside the 2 inch target, although his grouping was pretty tight. I shot next and was able to get 5 shots in the 2 inch target, but my grouping was a little all over the place. Then my friend dialed in and was able to get around 5 shots inside the target. My next round, I had a tighter grouping and a majority of shots inside the target. After we ran out of targets, I pick a white part of the sheet that had not been shot at and was able to get a extremely tight group with maybe 7 shots.

I don't have very good aim nor shooting mechanics since I just started getting into shooting, so with that said, I answered my own question. It's not that hard to get a tight grouping from 5 yards out with a .22 pistol. But I still think it's hard to hit a 1 inch bullseye and get all of the other bullets in that tight of a grouping with only a few attempts of getting acclimated with a firearm you've never shot before. And take into consideration the shooter is not a marksman or avid shooter and PRIDE is on the line. It's much harder to shoot under pressure...especially with money riding on each shot.

Once again...not impossible...but highly difficult for a casual shooter to master on 2-3 tries. If I had money to throw away, I'd take the bet my friend is trying to make with me...but I guess we'll never know.

 

[Dogabutila]

It's very possible with good mechanics and as much time as you want. I can do it on a good day, but those are few and far between. I'm not usually slow firing though.