doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Churchill's Instinctive Shooting Method

Works for me!
Karl

It sounds good, and for much of these same reasons, I shoot all of my clay birds from low gun. But I do find that the two eyes open issue is not as easy or as productive as it used to be. Eye dominance is nothing like it used to be when I was younger, and I find myself often times aligning with my left eye. Now, I do some kind of squint thing as I acquire the bird, and then I think both eyes become open just before the shot. But one of the things I have certainly learned is not spend a lot of time worrying about one's eyes, just see the bird, shoot the bird.

Churchill's method is okay for close stuff, not so good for longer shots. I once took a shooting lesson from Bill Kempfer who owned (owns?) Deep River, where the Southern Spring Classic is held each April.

He taught something similar. Shoot right at it, he said. He asked me, after a few stations, what I thought about it. I replied that I didn't think it would work on a long crosser. We got to one and he admitted "Cheat a bit on this one and lead it." I knew right then that, as he taught, the lead was built into the mount.

You cannot revise physics. You can cheat on it, but you can't change it.

https://www.trapshooters.com/threads/robert-churchill-eyesight-and-the-master-eye.910472/

Churchill clearly affirms "cross-firing", both transient ("dominance shifting") and "complete" (what we now call "cross dominance").
His cure is a properly fitting gun, focusing totally on the bird/target, and allowing "the eye" to determine forward allowance.
He does say "Provided that the gun fits...you will shoot exactly where you are looking and should kill every time. Misses occur from one cause-and one cause only-not looking at the proper place.

There is a confusing statement in Chapter V
"Your barrel must always be aligned precisely where your eye is looking. Apparently you are shooting straight at the bird but unconsciously your will be making all necessary allowances."
He is NOT saying to shoot directly at the bird/target but rather that "the eye" will determine where to look = the forward allowance.

This is all fine if you are right eyed dominant and a right-handed shooter. But, it won't work (at least for me) if you are left-eyed dominant. If you're shooting trap with both eyes open you pretty much have to wear a patch. If you're shooting Sporting Clays or skeet you're going to have to close one eye. A patch doesn't work. Or as BrentD says- to squint one eye to keep the target blurry with the left eye and keep the right eye dominant if you are a right handed shooter. If I were right eyed-dominant then it would be great.
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Works well for me most of the time, I struggle with sustained lead myself, on long crossers I swing through the target and pull the trigger when the lead is correct.

Depending on what I am shooting will depend on what style I shoot. On decoying birds I pick the spot where I think the bird will be aim at that spot and pull the trigger. With skeet I pick a spot on the supposed trajectory point at it and wait till the clay reaches it and then pull the trigger. On this method there needs to be some calculation for lead meaning shooting before the clay reaches the point of aim. With trap I shoot the traditional way. Swing through and pull the trigger. I have a cross eye dominance and can not shoot with both eyes open. I think like Brent I have developed a squint method of shooting. I keep both eyes open till I reach the target then squint my left eye (right hand shooter) to fine tune and pull the trigger. Or I think that is what happens. I shoot so fast that I can not really determine exactly what is happening and would need a video camera to see what is going on.

Churchill shot a lot. I doubt he ever shot at a curling 50 yard clay.
He was tiny.
Proportionally, he probably handled a 25” shot gun like others handled a 28 or 30.

For upland field efforts move mount shoot works fine.
I think there are better ways to shoot waterfowl.
Or competition clays for that matter.

I think the shooting sports level of difficulty evolved past Churchill techniques maximum effectiveness. I think that’s a good thing. It’s nice to see the progress.