Off hand position

Anyone out there able to provide advice on where/how they position their off hand while shooting a mid-handled 60" gun?

Quote from Don Paul

It would help if you mention which mid handle, the power bands and shaft or the wt of the barrel in it is a DTY.

Cheers, Don

Thank you for your response.

It is a midhandle with a pull of 14 inches. It has three bands and propels a 5/16" shaft. I am not familiar with the acronym DTY. Could you clarify?

Quote from Jareyberrysplash

I like to use my left hand to cup the but of my gun so that it doesn't smack me in the face

Thank you for your response. Aside from holding the butt with your off hand, do you hold the gun on a centerline between sholders, directly over the arm of the trigger hand, or ???????

Quote from Don Paul

That is the standard, but some heavy mass barrels shooting a 9/32 or 5/16 can be shot my a little kid
with very little felt recoil.

others are so long in the back and light that if you hold the butt your hand will smack you in the teeth.

They all shoot different.

Cheers, Don

Display More

I truly appreciate the time taken to respond and would have anticipated that the butt would gripped by the off hand. But more specifically, do you try to align the gun/shaft in parallel with the trigger pulling arm or mid body? For example one spero told me that he filled his off hand with the butt while pointing his off hand thumb downward and gripping the top of his trigger pulling arm and sighting along his trigger pulling arm. Any thoughts re. this technique?

Quote from Jareyberrysplash

I'm not sure exactly what you mean. when I shoot my 63" midhandle I try to keep my elbow and wrist locked so I guess I hold the gun directly over my right arm so that my wrist doesn't bend.

Pardon my inability to communicate effectively, but I believe you have answered my question. Thank you.

Quote from bajabound

(I think I understand what you're asking. Ideally, and I say ideally, you want to hbe in line with the gun, that is your gun is an extension of how you have your body lined up. This is especially important if you're using a big log tuna gun, you steer the gun with your body.
A midhandle of 60+ inches will fall into this catagory as well. You extend the gun forward and take your off hand and come up behind the butt as the gun comes up.

Take a look at Don Paul's photo, his off hand is more than likely cupping the gun butt and levering it much like a rudder. When the handle hand raises the un, the butt hand is in position to provide the fine aiming.

On the other hand, a snap shot you're just going to have to be sure to have gun lined up on the target and not just sighting over the tip while the gun butt is still coming up, and I know all about this one. :rolleyes1:

Excellent response with the level of detail I was looking for. Thank you. This advice is appreciated.

Quote from Don Paul

Take a look at Don Paul's photo, his off hand is more than likely cupping the gun butt and levering it much like a rudder. When the handle hand raises the gun, the butt hand is in position to provide the fine aiming and the handle arm is locked.

On the other hand, a snap shot you're just going to have to be sure to have gun lined up on the target and not just sighting over the tip while the gun butt is still coming up, and I know all about this one. :rolleyes1:

XP;100

The image in my avatar is just a picture for a magazine as I cruise the kelp line. I will post a shoot with me lining up on a shot later to night after work.

Your spot on about the ''rudder'' action, I shoot a heavy mass gun and only have to keep it off my face
when I'm pushing a 6' 3/8 shaft with 500 lb's of hot rubber. With the 9/32 a little girl could shoot it.

Cheers, Don[/QUOTE]

Don, Thank you for the rudder discription. I look forward to viewing the photos.

Quote from ladvr

You should consider building a target to practice on. Develop a shooting style that works for you.

Mike

Mike,
Yours is sage advice. I had planned to submerge an old swimming pool life preserving ring and take shots from increasing distances.
My intention for asking my intial question was to avoid the hazards associated with shooting a high recoil gun. I have witnessed too many rifle shooters proudly display their Winchester 458 Magnum and then seek immediate medical attention after taking their first shot while holding their eye 1.5" from the rifle scope.

Quote from Don Paul

It was one of my many typos... DIY.. Do it yourself.:D

A low mass mid handle a can have a stance like a drunken sailor if the but end is not fully supported
as the barrel uses your grip hand as a fulcrum. The gun sea sawing and allowing the tip to describe an ark or circle as one acquires the target.

I only ever shoot 3 guns in my hunts so my brain only has 3 mental profiles to review before the soft squeeze of my trigger. I only aim with my guns on pool tests and just point and shoot looking down the side of my gun at the target fish. Some guys shoot off the tip of the shaft but I do not even though I break the spines on 80 % of my fish. I feel the center of mass along the lateral line offers me a longer and more stable target. If one looks at a swimming game fish from above you will see the head and tail sweep in and out of a straight line. The horizontal line at the center of mass provides a much larger kill zone on a fast moving pelagic fish. Reef fish like grouper and Pargo I shoot as close to the eye or just above the gill plate as possible. More later...

Cheers, Don

Display More

I appreciate your perspective regarding sight picture. I believe good speros have a natural eye/hand coordination gift to triangulate the plane of the shaft, their eye, and the preferred POI. I suspect the shooter needs to dope for the muzzle flip as the tail end of the shaft should receive upward pressure as it exits the shaft channel.

Quote from Don Paul

Can you so a image of the gun ? Is it a commercially made one ?

I have taught non speros to start with one band and a 10 ' target the move to two and so on
until the shooters arm, face and hand come to know the dance.

A lot of builders talk about about mass and muzzel flip and recoil, but I believe a guy like Brock Lesnar
could control even a poorly ballasted and over powered speargun with his death grip and physical hand/arm
mass. I use to have a 460 Wetherby that shot like a car accident unless I really muscled it tight.

Cheers, Don

Display More

No photos yet. The gun is in the production process now (I believe the wood laminant is curing for another three weeks). I concur with your strategy. Start off with low charge at close range and work up from there. I wanted to gain as much knowledge as I could from other shooters as it pertains to their preferred shooting positions before I began my relationship with this gun. Thank you for the feedback.