1. 1 2 STANDING Steps in Building the Position:
1. Orient the Body--Turn 90 degrees from target
2. Shoulder the Rifle--Keep wrist straight--drop left arm on side 1 2
7B.3 Standing, Steps 1 and 2
After you are instructed to handle your air rifles on the firing line, the first step in getting into the standing position is to establish the position foundation by properly orienting your body in relation to the target, then you can bring the rifle up to your shoulder as you start to build the position. How you do these two steps is critical.
Step 1--Turn Your Body 90 Degrees Away from the Target. To properly orient your body turn it 90 degrees away from the target so that your left side (right-handed shooter) is pointed at the target and you are faced 90 degrees away from it.
Step 2--Shoulder the Rifle With Your Wrist Straight and Your Left Arm Resting on Your Side. When you grasp the rifle with your left hand to place it on your shoulder, sit it in the fork of your hand (between the thumb and hand) with the wrist straight. Next let your left arm rest on your side with your elbow directly under the rifle. For a majority of shooters, keeping the wrist straight is necessary to give the rifle sufficient height to align it with the target. The most important key in this step is letting your arm rest on your side (or hip).

2. 3 4 STANDING Steps in Building the Position:
3. Position the Left Elbow on the side or hip directly under rifle
4. Position the Butt-Plate and Head--Rifle Butt Up-Head Up! 3 4
7B.4 Standing, Steps 3 and 4
With the rifle in position on your shoulder, there are two critical steps to be followed to get the position right.
Step 3--Locate Your Left Elbow Directly Under the Rifle. To build the standing position correctly, the left elbow must be under the rifle, not off to the side. If you are having difficulty getting your left elbow under the rifle, work hard to do this. This is because in standing, the most stable position is one where there is a straight column of support for the rifle going down through the left forearm and hip. If the elbow is not on this line, stability is lost.
Step 4--Locate the Butt-Plate Up in the Shoulder so the Head is Reasonably Erect. Having a good, nearly erect head position is a key to stability in every position. This is achieved by keeping the butt-plate up in the shoulder so that the head is tipped forward only slightly.

3. STANDING Steps in Building the Position:
5. Select a left hand-wrist configuration that raises the sights to target level
Lowest
7B.5 Standing, Step 5
With the feet, left elbow and head in proper locations, the final step in building the standing position is to select a left hand and wrist configuration that raises the rifle’s sights to target level. The challenge here is to select a hand-wrist configuration that is just long enough to fill the distance between where the elbow rests on your left side and the bottom of the rifle so that a solid brace or support is established for the rifle (see illustration on upper right). The key to this step is to understand that there is no one right answer for everyone. Shooters with proportionately longer arms and shorter bodies will need a lower hand-wrist position (hand positions on left). Shooters with proportionately shorter arms and longer bodies will need a higher hand-wrist position (hand positions on right).
Step 5--Select the Hand-Wrist Configuration that is Best for You. While holding the rifle in position on your shoulder, try to relax your left arm onto your side and see whether the sights point comfortably at the target, below the target or above the target. Try the different hand-wrist configurations until you find the one that most comfortably holds your rifle sights at target level. In the most comfortable standing position, you will probably be leaning slightly back and to the right to counter-balance the weight of the rifle.
Highest

4. 6a 6b STANDING Steps in Building the Position:
6. Relax and Balance the Position--straight line support from feet thru hip & elbow to rifle 6a 6b
7B.6 Standing, Step 6
After you select the hand-wrist configuration that is right for you, go ahead and do some holding exercises while aiming at the target.
Step 6a--Relax the Support Arm and Shoulder. Each time you lift the rifle up into position, try to let your left arm and shoulder relax down onto your side so that you are using bone support in your left arm to hold up the rifle and are not using any muscle effort in your arm or shoulder to hold up the rifle.
Step 6b--Balance Your Position Over Your Feet. Balance is a key to stability in any position. If you built your position correctly, there should be a solid, straight-line column of support from the rifle down through your forearm, elbow and hip. All you have to do now is balance that column of support over your feet so that the weight of the body-rifle system is balanced over the feet.

5. Shot Technique in Standing
Start above bulls-eye, Exhale & stop breathing, take up trigger slack
Center the front sight movement over the bulls-eye
7B.7 Shot Technique in Standing
After trying to relax and balance your position, you are ready to do some dry firing in standing. As a new shooter, you will quickly see that the ring in your front sight is moving quite a bit in relation to the bulls-eye. If you were to put a laser pointer on your barrel that is aligned with where the barrel is pointing, these movements would trace an area of movement on the target. Target shooters call this area of movement their “hold.” For new shooters, this area of movement or hold will be quite large. For highly trained shooters, this area of movement or hold will be much smaller, but even the greatest shooters in the world will not hold the first sight ring perfectly still. The question then is what do you do with this front sight movement.
Center the Movement--Squeeze the Trigger! The best method for dealing with these hold movements is to center them over the target and to squeeze the trigger while the hold movements are centered. The worst way to deal with front sight movements is to try to snatch or grab the trigger as the front sight ring goes flying by the target. Instead, just relax and balance your position, center your front sight movements over the bulls-eye and squeeze the trigger as long as your hold movements are centered.
Bring the Rifle Down onto the Target From Above. The best way to settle the standing position onto the target is to bring the sights down onto the target from above. Be sure to approach the target from the same direction for every shot.
Holds Improve with Practice. As a new shooter, you should know that your hold or area of movement will gradually become smaller as you practice and improve your standing position.
Squeeze the trigger while the front sight movement is centered

6. Trigger Control in Standing
7B.8 Trigger Control in Standing
This chart is another way to emphasize the principle that was just covered, that to get the best scores in standing you must center the movements of your front sight over the bulls-eye and squeeze or press the trigger while those hold movements are centered.
This chart stresses how this should be done in a three-phase system.
Start Up Actions: Bring the rifles and sights down onto the target from above. As you settle onto the bulls-eye, exhale and stop breathing, place your index finger on the trigger, take up the trigger slack and apply some initial pressure on the trigger.
Center the Hold Movements. In the second phase, focus on your front sight and sight picture as you try to center the hold movements over the bulls-eye.
Trigger Release. With the hold movements centered, add pressure to the trigger until the rifle fires. Keep focused on the sight picture until after the shot is out of the barrel--this is follow through, a part of shot technique that is essential to accurate firing.
Center the front sight ring movements over the bull’s-eye

7. Steps in Proper Use of the Sling
1. Hold sling with length adjustment down, arm loop buckle up
2. Insert arm in loop
Steps in Proper Use of the Sling
7C.3 How to Put the Sling On
The first thing that you must do when getting into the prone position is to put the sling on. The photos show the proper steps for doing that.
When using the Daisy sling that is issued with JROTC air rifles, hold the sling so that the arm loop buckle is up and the buckle for adjusting sling length is on the bottom of the sling. Lengthen the sling so that is it as long as possible.
Insert your left arm (right handed shooter) in the arm loop.
Place the arm loop as high as possible on your arm and tighten the arm loop so that it will stay in position on your arm.
Extend the sling, turn the sling swivel one-half turn to the right. Again, before getting into position, make sure the sling is extended to its longest possible length.
3. Place arm loop high on arm, tighten
4. Attach sling with 1/2 turn to right

8. PRONE
Step 1:
Orient the Body--Lay the mat at a degree angle to the line of fire, attach sling to rifle and lay on the mat
7C.4 Prone, Step 1, Orient the Body
Step 1--Orient the Body so It Lies at an Angle to the Target. The first step in getting into the prone position is to prepare the position foundation by orienting the body in relation to the target. To do this lay the shooting mat down at an angle of about degrees to the target. Then kneel on the mat, and with the sling already attached to your arm, attach the sling the the rifle. Remember to twist it one-half turn to the right before attaching the sling to the rifle fore-end. Next, lay down on the mat with your elbows extended.
Firing Line

9. PRONE
Step 2: Fix the location of the left elbow (elbow that supports the rifle)
Form an imaginary line from the left hand to the left foot
Place the elbow directly under that line
7C.5 Prone, Step 2, Locate the Elbow
Step 2--Place the Left Elbow under an Imaginary Line Going from the Left Hand to the Left Foot. After orienting the body in relation to the target, the next step in building a shooting position is to place the left elbow in the correct location in relation to the body. As you lie on the mat with your left arm extended out to the rifle fore-arm, try to visualize an imaginary line extending from your left hand through your left shoulder and side, down to your left food. The correct location for your left elbow is directly under this imaginary line.
If the elbow is located correctly, you can also think of an imaginary plane cutting though the bent left arm. If the elbow is located correctly, this imaginary plane will be vertical. If the elbow is located so that this plane tips either in or out, the position will be less stable.

10. PRONE
Step 3: Position the butt-plate UP in the shoulder so the head is erect
Step 4: Shift the left hand forward and backward until the sights are pointing at target level
Step 4--After finding correct left hand location, adjust hand stop back to hand
7C.6 Prone, Steps 3 and 4
The next steps involve adjusting the height of the rifle in relation to the shoulder, head and target.
Step 3--Locate the Butt-Plate Up in the Shoulder so the Head is Reasonably Erect. In the prone position, keeping the head up will enhance visual performance and allow the position to be more relaxed and less strained. In prone, the butt-plate can remain in solid contact with the shoulder, but keep it high enough to allow the head and eyes to look straight forward through the sights. With the butt of the rifle in a fixed position, you must next adjust the rifle height so that the sights are raised to the level of the targets.
Step 4--Adjust the Rifle Sights Up to Target Level by Shifting the Left Hand Forward or Rearward. The height of the rifle must be adjusted by moving the left hand on the fore-end, not by moving the butt-plate up and down. In this step, adjust the rifle height so that the sights are at target level. At this point, be concerned only with having your rifle sights at target level, not with whether the sights point at your particular target. When you find a left hand location on the fore-arm that raises the sights to target level, adjust the hand-stop on the fore-end so that it rests in the fork of the hand. Mark that location so that you can return the hand-stop to that position each time you fire that rifle.

11. PRONE
Step 5: Tighten the sling until it fully supports the weight of the rifle
Step 6: Using the left elbow as a pivot point, rotate the entire position until the sights point at your target
7C.7 Prone, Steps 5 and 6
Step 5--Tighten the Sling. With the left and and hand stop in the location on the fore-end that keeps your sights at target level, you can now tighten the sling. Tighten the sling in stages until it is tight enough to support the weight of the rifle and your upper body without any assistance from your arm muscles. All of the weight of the rifle and upper body should rest on the sling. By keeping the sling loose until this point, you were able to develop a prone position where your shoulders were in their natural position.
Step 6--Rotate Your Position Until the Sights Point at Your Target. If you built your position correctly, you should have a solid position where the sling does the work of holding up the rifle, with the rifle sights aligned at target level and pointing at somebody’s target, not necessarily your own. Your position should already be exhibiting a quality that we call “natural point of aim” or NPA. This is the point where the position points naturally when everything is relaxed. All you have to do now is rotate the entire position over your elbow until it points naturally at your target. Do this by using your feet to slightly lift your entire body and move it to the right or left while rotating over your left elbow. The left elbow is the pivot point for aligning your position on your target. When your rifle’s sights point naturally at your target, you are ready to start shooting in the prone position.

12. Shot Technique in Prone
Approach from same direction for each shot, exhale & stop breathing, take up trigger slack
Relax left arm, center the front sight movements over the bulls-eye
7C.8 Shot Technique in Prone
Since the movements of your front sight are smaller in prone, the shot technique is also simpler. If you built your position correctly and are using the sling to support the rifle and upper body properly, you should be able to hold the bull’s-eye within the front sight ring. Proper shot technique here is the same as in standing except that your hold movements will be much smaller. Center your front sight movements over the bull’s-eye as perfectly as you can and smoothly press or squeeze the trigger. Center the movement--squeeze the trigger.
Squeeze the trigger while the front sight movements are centered

13. Loading Pneumatic Rifles in Prone
Take arm out of sling
Grasp charging handle with left hand--grasp pistol grip with right hand
Pull rifle to rear with right hand while extending charging lever forward with left hand to fully open charging lever
Steps 1-2-3
Steps 4-5-6
7C.9 Loading Pneumatic Air Rifles in Prone
If you shoot with a pneumatic air rifle like the Daisy M853, one additional detail to attend to before starting live firing in prone is to learn how to properly charge the air chamber while remaining in position. The slides above show the preferred method for doing this.
To charge the air chamber using this method, it is necessary to take the left arm out of the sling and use it to grasp the charging lever handle. The two hands must then extend away from each other to open the charging level to its fully open position. Pause there for a second to allow a full charge of air to enter the air cylinder and then use the two hands to close the charging handle. Once closed, replace the left hand around the sling and onto the fore-end, load the pellet, close the action and fire.
This method of charging the M853 requires some upper body strength and not every Cadet will be able to use this method when they first start air rifle firing in the prone position.
4. After pausing, push rifle forward with right hand--push charging handle to rear with left hand
5. Wrap arm back around sling and return left hand to its position on the fore-end
6. Load pellet and fire

14. Prone Position:
The final step in establishing a good position is to practice live and dry firing in the new position
Stability comes from relaxing your arms and letting the sling support your position
7C.11 Firing Exercises in Prone
As soon as you have worked out a prone position where the sling fully supports your rifle and upper body and with the sights naturally aligned on your target, you are ready to start firing in prone. Be sure to precede each live fire series with dry firing or aiming exercises. It is not necessary to charge air for dry firing so this allows you to get many extra repetitions of correct shot technique in prone.
Getting the highest possible scores comes from doing a good job of stabilizing the rifle so that the hold movements seen in the front sight are small. In your first prone firing, pay attention to relaxing your left arm and upper body as much as possible while you let the sling support your position.

15. Build the Position Foundation
KNEELING
Step 1:
Build the Position Foundation
Place kneeling roll on firing point, turn degrees from the line of fire
Kneel over the roll, rest ankle on roll, keep right foot vertical
Sit on right heel, keep weight back on heel
Locate left foot so lower leg is vertical
7D.3 Kneeling, Step 1, Build the Position Foundation
Step 1--Build the Position Foundation by Sitting on the Heel and Kneeling Roll with Lower Left Leg Vertical. There are four distinct stages to this first step in building a foundation for a stable kneeling position:
Place the kneeling roll on the firing point. It is best to place the kneeling roll directly on the floor and not on a shooting mat. Turn the roll 40 to 60 degrees away from the line of fire to give an initial orientation to your body.
Kneel over the roll with the ankle resting on the roll. The right knee should point the same direction as the kneeling roll. Be sure to keep the right fool vertical as you prepare to sit on this foot.
Sit down on the right heel. Try to place the heel in the center of the buttocks. Sit with your body weight resting on the heel just like you would sit on a chair.
Bend the left leg so that the knee is up and the lower leg is vertical. There are two position check-points here: 1) the right foot must be vertical as you sit on it and 2) your lower left leg should also be in a vertical position.

16. KNEELING
Steps 2 and 3
7D.4 Kneeling, Steps 2 and 3
Now that the kneeling roll, legs and lower body are in place to give you a position foundation, your are ready to add the rifle to the position.
Step 2--Put the Sling On and Attach It to the Rifle. Put the sling on just as you do in prone. Place the loop high on the arm and tighten it. Extend the sling as long as possible so that the sling will hang loose when you shoulder the rifle.
Step 3--Shoulder the Rifle and Put Your Left Elbow in Place. After attaching the sling, lift the rifle up into position on your shoulder as you grasp the fore-arm with your left hand. To find the right location for your left elbow, sit with your body weight resting back on your right heel. Without reaching forward with your left elbow, simply drop your left arm down to your left knee. The elbow will normally fall onto the knee or slightly behind the knee; the red dashed oval in the illustration (above right) shows the area where most elbow locations will be. Wherever your elbow falls on your knee or upper leg, use that as a starting point for building the rest of your kneeling position.
Left Elbow Location
Step 2: Put the sling on and attach it to the rifle
Step 3: Shoulder the rifle and place the left elbow on the left knee or just behind the knee

17. KNEELING, Step 4
Locate the butt-plate high enough in the shoulder to establish a good head position
KNEELING, Step 5
Adjust the rifle height by moving the left hand forward or rearward on the fore-end until the sights are aligned at target level
7D.5 Kneeling, Steps 4 and 5
Just as you did in prone, the next steps involve adjusting the height of the rifle in relation to the shoulder and head and in relation to the target.
Step 4--Place the Butt-Plate Up in the Shoulder so the Head is Reasonably Erect. In the kneeling position, keeping the head up aids vision and balance. The butt-plate should remain in solid contact with the shoulder and be located a little higher than it is in prone. With the butt of the rifle and your head in a fixed position, you must next adjust the rifle height so that the sights come up to target level.
Step 5--Adjust the Rifle Height by Shifting the Left Hand Forward or Rearward. The height of the rifle is always adjusted by moving the left hand on the fore-end, not by moving the butt-plate up and down. Adjust the rifle height so that the sights on your rifle come up to target level. At this stage, be concerned only with having the sights at target level, not with whether the sights point at your particular target. You will fix that problem in Step 7.

18. KNEELING, Step 6
Loosen the hand stop and move it back to the fork of the left hand--tighten
Tighten the sling until it takes over the work of hold up the rifle
7D.6 Kneeling, Step 6, Tighten the Hand-Stop and Sling
Step 6--Move the Hand-Stop to the Hand and Tighten the Sling. When you find a left hand location on the fore-arm that aligns the sights to target level, adjust the hand-stop on the fore-end so that it rests in the fork of the hand (between the thumb and fingers). Then tighten the sling until it takes over the work of holding up the rifle.
Once you have found a hand-stop location and sling length adjustment that gives you a comfortable, steady kneeling position, you can mark those adjustments on your rifle and sling so that you can return to that same adjustment each time you fire that particular rifle.

19. KNEELING
Step 7
Rotate the position to align the sights with your target
Pivot over the kneeling roll while moving the left foot and right knee
7D.7 Kneeling, Step 7, Rotate to Your Target
Step 7--Rotate the Position to Your Target. If you built your position correctly, your sling should be doing the work of holding up the rifle and your rifle sights should be aligned at target level, pointing at somebody’s target, not necessarily your own. Your position should now have a “natural point of aim” or location where the sights point naturally when your body is relaxed. This natural point of aim must be aligned with your target. Do this by rotating your entire position by pivoting over your right heel as it rests on the kneeling roll. Rotate by shifting your left foot and right knee to the left or right to align your sights and position with your target. When your rifle sights point naturally at your target, you are ready to start shooting in the kneeling position.

20. Shot Technique in Kneeling
Approach bull’s-eye from same direction, Exhale & stop breathing, take up trigger slack
Center the front sight movement over the bull’s-eye
7D.8 Shot Technique in Kneeling
With your position built, you can begin to do aiming exercises, dry fire and shoot groups in kneeling as you work out a technique for you to use to fire accurate shots in kneeling:
Start by approaching the bull’s-eye from the same direction each time. After shouldering the rifle and starting to set up your position, let the front sight settle down onto the bull. As you center the bull’s-eye, take one more breath, exhale and stop breathing. Simultaneously take up the trigger slack and add initial pressure to the trigger. As you prepare to fire the shot make sure your left arm is relaxed and you body feels balanced (not leaning to either side).
Next focus your attention on your front sight and sight picture. Center the front sight movements over the bull’s-eye.
With the front sight movements centered, add gradual pressure to the trigger until the shot fires. This basic technique is the same as in the other positions: Center the movement--squeeze the trigger.
Squeeze the trigger while the front sight movement is centered

21. Balance point
Kneeling Position:
The final step in establishing a good position is to practice live and dry firing in the new position
Balance point
To have a stable kneeling position:
a. Keep your body weight back on your right heel
b. Keep your right foot and left lower leg vertical
c. Balance your position over the left and right heels
7D.9 Firing Exercises in Kneeling
As soon as you work out a kneeling position where your upper body and rifle are comfortably balanced above your left foot and right heel on the kneeling roll, you are ready to start firing exercises in the kneeling position. Be sure to precede each live fire series with dry firing or aiming exercises.
To attain the best stability and highest results in kneeling, pay attention to these things:
Keep your body weight resting back on your right heel. The weight of your body should balance directly above that heel.
Keep your right foot and left lower leg both vertical. If these two support elements tip or lean to the side, the position will change for each shot and lose its stability. Keep the right foot vertical so your body weight pushes straight down. Keep your left lower leg vertical or pushed slightly forward so that your body weight remains back on your heel, not on your left foot.
Try to balance your position so that the weight of your body and rifle balance directly above your right heel on the kneeling roll and your left foot. Little or no weight should press down on your right knee. In kneeling, a balanced position is a steady position.