TargetTalk

Please help me understand the purpose of a shooting jacket for 10m air rifle...

I'd been under the impression that it was simply to make you into a more rigid shooting platform, but someone just advised me that if I wasn't going to get one, that I should at least get a back belt from a hardware store "to protect" my back. He said it wasn't legal for competition but that other than that, I should be using one.

There's really no heavy lifting involved in 10m AR, especially if you're using a rifle stand as well.

What protection is needed (and protection from what) for your back? Is it something to do with the "twist" your back is in when in the proper position?

Thank you.

In my humble opinion the protection from injury is probably the official reason. In reality it provides some protection and a deal of stability particularly rotational (left and right) even with correctly tightened buttons. A well anchored elbow will provide vertical stability but not left/right. 5kg+ is quite a weight for some.

Thank you Peter and Chia.

I checked the thread you pointed me to, Chia, and didn't see it mentioned that a jacket is to protect the back. Just about all the posts were talking about the performance benefits, and especially so for 3P and when a sling is used.

That leads me to believe that there's no point of my getting a back belt to protect my back when shooting (not in competition) 10m AP. There's not much lifting involved and my current rifle is a lot lighter also than my last one (FWB 602).

If I EVER start getting high enough scores to consider serious competition, well then I'll probably add a jacket. But until then, little benefit for me.

Cheers!

Yes, a shooting jacket offers support to the lower back in the standing position. Some shooters will twist and lean back quite a bit to place the rifle over the centre of the body to improve the balance. Google images of German former World Champion Sonja Pfeilschifter. Over time this can put a lot of strain on the back. For a beginner or casual shooter a weight lifting belt will mimic the lumbar support of the jacket (and trousers).

The jacket will also absorb and deaden some of the pulse, so the rifle is steadier on the aim.

In the sling positions the jacket supports the sling, transferring the weight of the rifle from the arm to the back, so your arm hurts less. It also means the sling does not need to be tourniquet-tight around the upper arm, which decreases pulse transferral to the rifle, and improves comfort. The elbows are lightly padded for comfort; in Prone your upper body weight is on the left, not just the rifle.

Regarding Sling Positions this would be in 3P and I cannot find any AIR Rifle 3P in USA or UK which allow the use of shooting jackets. They all seem to be junior competitions, sometimes "sporter" events where such clothing is not allowed. I expect there will be some 3P air rifle somewhere but I can't locate any other links to check the rules apart from the US National Standard and the UK NSRA both of which are as I described - Junior events where jackets (and back supports) are forbidden.

Peter,

Yes 3-P and Prone small bore, although I think the Precision Air rifle class in the US permits jackets. It was a slight digression, but still I felt a necessary one to explain what a jacket does. It evloved for 50m and 300m shooting, not just 10m air.

Do remember that 3-P air is meant to be a feeder route into 10m AR and small bore, so naturally it's as kit light as possible. The rifles themselves are much much lighter than the typical 5kg rifle.

yes my Air Arms MPR was designed for the UK sporter/precision youth comps which are attracting some good young teens to the sport and they are just over 3kg. I added about 600g to mine to get it more stable in 10m standing but manageable for an arthritic pensioner without a jacket. The rules vary between countries, UK NSRA 3p air rifle allows sight raisers US National Standard doesn't for example. We have 15 air rifle shooters in my club of 30, all but two over 65, some over 75 and only two of them use jackets . When you get older it can be more of a struggle getting a jacket on!

Off topic post script - the US NS specifically allows modifications to the El Gamo sights to reduce movement in the mechanism - anyone owning one of those sights on an Avanti will understand. They are overpriced here at £30. Any more and they are a rip-off.

An air rifle weighs 10 lbs . 60 shots + sighters say 20 total of 80 shots x 10 lbs.

thats 800 lbs your back is lifting . Try that 5- 6 days a week and tell me its not heavy lifting. Or if thats too easy do it with a free rifle at 15 lbs.

Many a shooter has had to quit, including Olympic Champion Jamie Gray, because of back problems.