TECHNOID HAS FITS... "Do it yourself gunfitting" is not quite in the
same league as "do it yourself root canal" or "brain surgery projects for
the home handyman", but it can be equally thrilling. We all know that a
properly fit gun is easier to shoot, but few of us know just how to go
about making it fit. This is where the professional instructor with the
charming clipped accent usually comes in. He will check you out in an
afternoon and return your adjusted gun in a few days. Keith Lupton
(914-855-3825) and Charles Schneible (914-677-5756) are two of the
best fitters anywhere.

Naturally, the stubborn Technoid would rather screw it up all by
himself than seek advice from his betters. Doing it right the first time
takes all the fun out of it. Come, let the Technoid lead you down the
garden path of stock fittment.

We will not get into length and pitch in much detail here. If your
mounted stock length permits one to two inches of space between your
glasses and the back of the lower part of your thumb, your length is OK.
If not, simply temporarily add in a few spacers or install a thinner recoil
pad. Child's play. If your pitch is between zero and two inches, you
are in the ball park. If not, a little shimming with bits of plastic will
bring it around. If you do not know what pitch is, leave it alone. Our
main concern today is height and cast and their effect on point of impact.

First, you must find out where your gun is currently shooting.
You can check for your gun's point of impact in several ways, but a
proper pattern plate is best. Mid Hudson Trap and Skeet, New Paltz,
NY has a nice one- bring your own paint and roller. Pattern paper is a
more labor intensive second best. Testing for point of impact is not
patterning. Patterning tells you the size and density of your shot cloud.
Point of impact is where that shot cloud hits in relation to where you are
aiming. The two are very different.

Testing for point of impact is dynamic, not static. You cannot do
it reliably by checking eye alignment over the rib in some gun shop.
You must actually shoot the gun.

Here is how- First paint your pattern plate. Put in your full
choke (do all testing from the same barrel of your O/U) and stand back
about 30 yards. You want a heavy, dense strike on the plate.

Assuming that the plate has a single central aiming point, start
with your gun in the normal gun down position and the muzzle right on
the aiming point. Raise the gun and fire in one smooth move. Do not
repaint the plate yet. Load again and this time start your muzzle slightly
to the left of the plate. Mount and fire as you swing through the aiming
point from the left. Now do it from the right, top and bottom of the
plate. The idea is to average all your normal mounting moves.

The plate will now have five overlapping strikes on it. It will be
apparent if your gun shoots to point of aim. Repaint the plate and
perform this entire exercise enough times to get consistent results.
Always aim for the center, but do not try to "correct" if the gun is
shooting a bit off.

If your five shot cloud centers the aiming point or is very slightly
high, go have a beer. You are done. You are also very lucky. If your
point of impact is too high, you will need to lower your stock. If too
low, raise it. If too much to the right, you need cast on (assuming you
are a righty). If too much to the left, you need cast off.

How to make temporary stock adjustments to an Over and Under:
Go out and buy a big roll of silver duct tape- the Universal Adhesive. If
your gun shoots too low, simply layer some tape on to the top of the
stock. Then test for impact. Add or subtract tape as necessary. If your
gun shoots to the right, you can add temporary cast on by taping the
inside of the side of the stock.

If adding tape to the stock does the trick on the pattern plate,
shoot the gun with the tape on it for a week or three. Tinker until it is
perfect. Mark the exact place on your stock where you put your cheek.
Then, and only then, take your gun to your friendly stock bender and
have your changes made permanent by bending.

What to do if your O/U shoots too high or shoots to the left? All
you can really do is to note how far off center your point of impact was
and trundle off to tell your local stock bender. There is nothing more
that you can do without taking drastic, permanent action with a sanding
block. Remember, it is easier to bend than to sand, restain and refinish.

Gas gun adjustments: You lucky gas gun owners will have a
much easier time of things. Minor gas gun stock adjustments are easily
made by simply inserting various shims between the rear of the receiver
and the head of the stock. The most excellent Beretta autos even come
with eccentric shims and washers supplied for the purpose. Just loosen
up the stock, flip the shim around, tighten things back up and -Presto
Gasso!- the stock is properly readjusted. Go drink a whole bunch of
beers while the O/U guys are camping out at the stock benders.