The Correct Way To Use Your Wall Chart

This is a follow up to the post" How Do You Learn To Float A Target". Since my hand surgery, I haven't been able to shoot. So I get the wall chart out (Terry Jordan) and start practicing. Which I should do anyways. But am I doing it correctly? When I look at the targets that are marked and shown above the trap house, I notice the perceived leads. I agree with the leads, but should a shooter keep the gun moving especially when the targets get out past the 1/4 angles. I read through the instruction by Terry and tried to follow the movement of the gun to the target. Larry keeps telling me be "smooth" to the target. But I have found that targets that are over the house, you can sort of shoot at there 4 or 8 o'clock legs. If you do the same thing out past the 1/4 mark, it causes the start of a bad habit of stopping the gun. So my question is, am I just not following the directions correctly or should a person stay in the gun and keep it moving out past the "movement of truth". Help me out here, I going crazy not being able to shoot.
Flinch King

 

You've discovered one of the main reasons my chart is rolled up in the closet in the attic: you don't become skillful at hitting moving targets by practicing on stationary pictures of them!

 

Terry had a booklet that explained how to use the chart. It was on his web site @ one time.

 

One of the most feared gun fighters of all time use to practice in slow motion for muscle memory and allowing his "third eye" to see the shot picture . As a one shooter, I see the "moment of truth" as just a target and not lead, or even the bead-barrel relationship. John Shima described us as "viscual" shooters. Where a two eyed shooter is a "visual" shooter, he sees the actual lead of the bird and barrel. If you were to ask me where my gun was when I pull the trigger, I couldn't tell you. My subconscious takes over and conducts a skilled muscle-motor function, or I shoot where my eyes are looking. It like someone throwing a set of car keys and you reach out without even looking and catch them without even looking at your hand. The wall chart comes in with teaching me the visual picture of the shot/target function. If I practice in slow motion the process of the shot and train myself to keep the gun below the target. This allows my subconscious to see the correct picture, then when the "moment of truth" happens, the target will break if I stay concentrated on the bird. By the way, it was Wyatt Erp that practiced in slow motion.
Wishbone, I have down loaded the complete file and have it in a note book. I have also call and talked to Terry personally. I have to believe that system works per Terry's history of wins at the several Grands he has shot in. I think that as the closer the bird is over the house, the less movement the gun will swing during the practice. Terry talks about shooting the dots which show you the proper lead. The gaps increase as the targets get moving toward the harder angles. My question was about stopping the gun to shoot the lead dots and starting a bad habit of stopping the gun. I can tell you this, if you have a flinch problem like me, it will break you of that problem real quick. Until I had my gun converted over to release, I would almost throw or stab the gun during practice.

 

I would suggest you contact Terry again. I just was with him yesterday at the Silver Dollar in Florida. He loves working with his customers. I know he has not been able to do any shooting in Canada. I know he has been working his chart. By the way, he broke 100 straight in the singles event and a 97 from the back fence yesterday. Something works?

 

Great comments. Terry bends over backwards to help everyone. He's also a superb example of the effectiveness of his own product.

-Gary

 

Brian, I saw and talked with Terry this morning at the Silver Dollar. He told to tell you to call him (205-294-7600) and he will try to help you with any questions you may have. He also mentioned that any past customer or any potential new customer should never hesitate to call him with questions.

 

Hey Terry,

Looking forward to coming over to see you, Nancy, Two Dogs (The Crown Man) and Sheila very soon !!!

D & J

 

Had some jaw surgery 8 weeks ago and the Doctor finally gave me permission to go shoot again.

While waiting the OK I mounted the gun many days using the Terry Chart.

Yesterday I went over to the Robinson Ranch for some Handicap shooting. Posted a 99 and was very happy. I still say using this product has made me a better shooter...

See you Friday Terry !

Dave in Sunny Florida

 

That is an awesome score.

Nice shooting

 

Saw Terry, Nancy, Sheila and Two Dogs..Had a great time at The Dollar with them.

Have been on the CHART again this past weekend, and won the Gold medal for the 65-69 age group in The Villages Senior Games (also high score of the day with a 98)

I still say if you use the CHART, it works....

Crap, now I gave away my secret

Dave in FL

 

As skeptical as they come . . . I was . . . even though Terry looked me straight in the eyes and told me it would make me a better shooter by gaining better control and confidence. Some years ago during a slump, I finally ordered a chart.

Dry-firing at stationary targets absolutely did help me and I am convinced I would never have made AA-27-AA without it. Absolutely the best investment I ever made. Sure made a believer our of me.

Oh, and I too seemed to be stopping my gun but it didn't seem to hurt me. Terry told me he would like to see me follow through a few inches so I started following through which is a better form. Some days you seem to be smooth and other days you wonder what's wrong with your body. The routine practice still gave me more positive results so I didn't really worry about my stopping the gun much. And my doubles average increased and I only practice doubles twice. Simply amazing to me.

The skeptical one, (but no longer)
Kenny Ray

 

I've always promoted Terry's wall chart for off season practice even though I don't have one. For years I've used the corners of wall hangings, nails and any other off the wall spot that I'll use. It not only keeps one gun fit with gun handling but it also helps training ones peripheral vision skills also. It's surprising what a comfortable 500 reps with your favorite toy will do for you once you stand on the line ready to attack clays!

HAP

 

You've discovered one of the main reasons my chart is rolled up in the closet in the attic: you don't become skillful at hitting moving targets by practicing on stationary pictures of them! (Posted by mah66) above ...

I have given some thought to a wall chart but that came to a stop when I also felt that shooting at stationary objects compared to moving targets would be more or less useless to me ... I used a method very much like Hap describes to keep the muscle memory going to some degree ... I even made a form of the chart many years before I saw them available by Terry on the inside of my garage door and practiced with a laser site on that ... I have some pictures but don't know where I would look to find them ... If those that use it say it works for them thats all that really matters, at least to them ... I have difficulty separateing the stationary from moving targets which is more like poking at the dots(targets) otherwise known as spot shooting ... I am open minded but not convinced ... WPT ... (YAC) ...

 

3410 Wall Charts in use in 17 different countries explains a lot. The chart it is used by several top ATA coaches and hundreds of youth coaches.

 

I know the wall chart has helped me. But you have to get off the couch and use it regularly

 

Not necessarily, you can use it while on the couch.

After knee replacement surgery I used it every day for weeks while on the couch. My index finger was my gun. I would call pull and then move the finger to the dot appropriate for the target. I just did it over and over burning the dot/target relationship into my head.

Visuals for learning are as old as we have been around. Take for example all of those "See Spot Run" pictures we viewed learning to read. Illustrations in books, assembly instructions, and everything else help us accomplish a task. So does the chart.

Using the chart teaches you where to kill the target based on the angle the target is thrown.

Now if someone could come up with a way to teach us how to quickly identify that angle, we could all quit our day jobs.