Went out to try to sight in the Encore on Saturday. I am shooting a .30-06 using a Simmons 4X scope. I was shooting with the wind coming almost directly at me. Target was about 50 yards out. Was not using sand bags just a pad on a rather large post (had to make do with what I had). Post was about 6" in diameter. I was getting wobbles and shakes like I was using an ultra high power scope on a rifle. It was so bad I couldn't keep the cross hairs on the target.

This is my first pistol scope so I am wondering with a 4X long eye relief scope does this tend to magnify the wobbles?

When I get sighted in I am going to wait until I can get to a solid bench & use sand bags. But this has me wondering about using it under field conditions.

Should I consider moving down to a 2 - 2.5X scope?

Thank you.

Your wobble is the same regardless of the scope, more X's just make it more visible to you. With practice you will get steadier, but a red dot or 2x might make you feel better about yourself until then ;-)

Wait till you can get a solid bench rest, and see how you do and get your confidence back.
Then, practice from your most steady field shooting stances and see how you do, then work up to the more unsteady ones from there.

Welcome to scoped handgun shooting. We have all been there. Yes, more Xs makes it look a lot worse. I opted for 2Xs for a long time on my revolvers for this reason. However, have since removed all of them in favor of 4Xs.

My recommendation is to get something "soft, but solid" under your hands or wrists while the gun is on its rest. That will help a lot until you get used to using a handgun scope. And them burn a lot of powder.

In addition many "newer" shooters hold the gun too tightly. This causes more wobble.

Good Luck.

Excellent information. Thanks guys I appreciate it.

I intend for my Encore to be my main hunting weapon this fall.

Yup, you just get to see it better.

I found that The wobble is non existant when I first show up at the range, but as the day goes on The wobble eventually gets so bad that I have to go home for the lack of accuracy!!

Are you drinking coffee or lots of caffeine prior to shooting or during? Do you smoke? Not being funny, all these things have an effect on your ability to remain steady. Especially when dealing with long eye relief and higher magnification. Like Ernie and other s stated, go to the range with some good sand bags and be very consciencious about your hand position for everyshot. You'll get the nack of it. Word of advice, start with cheap ammo till you tackle the wobbles.

99% of the time I shoot my single-shot handguns one-handed.
From the 7mm Dakota on down I have a fairly light grip.

Feeding off what the others have said about shooting off the bench. When shooting off the post your elbows are not supported, on the bench they are. Even if you were using sand bags on the post you were probably going to see more movement than you would on a bench because the altered variable of your arms.

Just thinking out load. LOL

TCman I think you hit the nail on the head. Elbows not supported will definately give you the shakes!

I am far from being experienced at this..but I did shoot my 7/30 alot while learning on my own...when I first started practicing off the stick, it was very different because my elbows were not supported. I had to focus on doing the same thing each time, breathing, the way I held it etc
You will get steady!!! Practice is all it takes.
If I can do it on my own..then without a doubt, you can too

Be careful how you place your elbows on the table as some guns
will take the hide off of unpadded elbows.I use an elbow pad or a small sandbagunder the elbow. It does get better the more you shoot off field rests. Try different techniques to
find what works for you.

Ain't that the truth. I use my old hockey elbow pads on the bench.

I prefer to rest my forearm(s) or the heel of my hand(s) on the bench (or sandbags, padding, etc.) rather than my elbows. Steadier for me and not as much risk of losing hide.

When using shooting sticks, I much prefer the position where you can support your elbows on your knees, as shown in the photo accompanying Gary's article on the home page. However, I can see where you might have to use the sticks without elbow support; ie. shooting while standing, or in some sitting/kneeling positions..

Definetly reccomend the pads for shooting a heavilly recoiling pistol when elbow contact is used. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. I just cut the cuffs off of an old pair of my welding gloves and use them.