How Equipment Accuracy Affects the Bottom Line

For me, I’ve found that dry firing every day for the week before the match is important. Particularly in the standing position.  Dry firing in the prep stage of the match (I think it’s 3 minutes of prep time we get before firing) helps you identify if you are in proper position and watch for any movement of the front sight when the striker is released. 

But I think what made the most difference for me was I spent a concentrated effort over a period of 5 years to work at practicing the three stages of the CMP GSM match exactly as they are run, except I dispensed with the 5 sighters in prone slow fire.  I used a timer to make sure I got my 10 rounds in rapid fire stage completed with 15 seconds to spare.   I tried to get to the range once a week over this period, but that was not always possible. I shot a lot of rounds thru my M1 and No. 4 over these 5 years, shot two barrels out of my M1.  I tried to spread out my shooting across several No. 4 rifles and keep loads down to moderate pressures to minimize bore wear.  

In all that shooting I’ve not detected any increase in headspace.  I keep the bolt and action body locking lugs cleaned and use a bit of grease on these surfaces.