Successful Shooting
by Bill Pullum and Frank T Hanenkrat
The best marksmanship books are typically written by high level competition shooters because it is rare to find high level marksmen without competition experience. Problem is these books tend to focus on the specific shooting discipline and are primarily read by other competitors in that discipline.
General gun owners, hunters, military and law enforcement need to be exposed to higher level shooting in order to understand it. Successful Shooting is a rare gem that is written by someone involved in top notch shooting competition but addresses shooting to the gun owning masses.
Lieutenant Colonel William C. Pullum was a coach of the US Army Marksmanship Unit Service Rifle and International Rifle teams. He also had personal, high level shooting experience having competed as a service rifle shooter and earning the Distinguished Rifleman Badge. His major contribution was coaching highly successful Olympic Rifle Teams during the height of the US programs, back when United States shooting community actually cared enough to support Olympic shooters. Lones Wigger, Lanny Bassham, and John Writer were a few of the Olympians on Pullum’s team.
Successful Shooting takes Pullum’s lessons learned from International Rifle competition and puts them in the context of shooting for everyone owning a firearm. The first chapter, Recoil and Related Esoterica, is worth the price of the book alone. Quite frankly, if you don’t understand the ideas discussed therein (and most gun owners don’t) you simply do not understand how to zero a firearm and your shooting will forever suffer for it.
Firearm User Network 
May 23, 2012 @ 00:15:41
Uh-oh, another book I’ll have to read! Not to mention stiff competition for mine, from fellows way over my head! Heheheheh!
Live, read, learn…then practice it!
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May 23, 2012 @ 10:39:35
No worries. This one is long out of print and the NRA, who originally released it, foolishly refuses to republish. Given 98% of NRA members seem unaware of NRA shooting events I’m sure few current NRA would recognized the authors.
I originally found this in a public library and snatched up a copy in the used market.
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May 23, 2012 @ 12:29:27
Well I’ll have to look for it anyway, I’m sure I’ll learn something about shooting, or instructing, or both.
The USAF Thunderbirds are thundering outside, they should have just finished their show for the graduating Academy youngsters and their commander-in-chief.
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May 23, 2012 @ 15:14:49
There are a number of used copies in good shape listed on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Successful-shooting-Bill-Pullum/dp/0935998403/
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May 26, 2012 @ 14:45:28
John, I had the privilege of meeting Lones and Lanny on several occasions. As a matter of fact I had dinner with Lones and his family at Benning. I always remember him telling me that at the Montreal Olympics someone asked him how he made a certain number of nines. He told them I don’t know and even if I did I wouldn’t tell you else I’d remember to make them again. I only want to remember how to shoot a ten.
“Practice makes perfect…No, Perfect Practice makes perfect!”
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May 26, 2012 @ 15:06:54
John:
As far as successful shooters are concerned it would be remiss of me not mention Gary Anderson, past Director of the DCM. He got into AMU by successfully challenging the then members to a shootout. If my memory serves me right he was instrumental in getting a hold of the Russian Rifle Manual and by 1962 the AMU had it translated and put into use so that for the first time the US Rifle Team kicked their collective butts. Gary went on to distinguish himself in the Olympics, World Shooting Championships etc., etc.
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May 27, 2012 @ 08:54:46
>> Gary Anderson, past Director of the DCM
He’s also the current Director of Civilian Marksmanship-Emeritus.
>> If my memory serves me right he was instrumental in getting a hold of the Russian Rifle Manual and by 1962 the AMU had it translated and put into use so that for the first time the US Rifle Team kicked their collective butts.
Competitive Shooting by A.A. Yur’yev which covers conventional International disciplines as shot in the Olympics.
http://www.amazon.com/Competitive-Shooting-Techniques-Training-Running/dp/0935998535/
The English version was edited by Anderson, who authored his own book, Marksmanship
http://www.amazon.com/Marksmanship-Gary-L-Anderson/dp/0671211366/
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