The following information comes from The Elusive Ten by William Reichenbach. The Elusive Ten is also available to purchase in print.
Concluding this first series of chapters, I am almost tempted to say that constant practice makes a master. This may sound a little trite, but so do lots of things that are very important truisms.
We enthusiasts take our shooting very seriously. We do not want to stay “just average shots.” We want to get somewhere. That is why we practice daily.
It may be that all of us do not have the facilities for shooting on a range every day. However, there is the great expedient of “Dry Practice.”
Take six empty shells and fill them with lead. Use these weighted shells in your cylinder and snap away. It will do no harm to a good gun, and it simulates sharp-shooting well enough to be very valuable.
Spend a few minutes each day in dry practice, aiming at a little spot on the wall and you will be surprised at the speed of your progress.
But, do not waste any shots, even though you are only snapping. Take aim as carefully, call your shots as painstakingly, and be as honest with yourself as a real target would be.
Make a firm resolution now to practice every day—and stick to it.
Keep a constant watch on yourself, particularly in regard to coordinating the functions as practiced singly by you.
Just squeezing the trigger will not score, if you forget about the grip and the other items dealt with.
Among the seven functions, some may be less important than others, but they all are cogs which fit definitely into the scheme.
Resolve to check up every time you shoot to determine whether or not you are forgetting one of the seven functions, and if so, correct the omission.
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