Most spring guns require a pretty firm hold. You might get away with a light hold with your R7, but anything bigger it’s going to recoil. One of the nice thing about Springers is it really teaches you to shoot. Any mistake you made is magnified.
someone else above mentioned you need different holds for different rifles. As I said above most Springers need a firm hold, they bounce around when they fire. Unless they bounce the exact same way every time you’re going to get flyers.
Most Springers don’t shoot very well from a bench with a rear bag. Quite often I only use a front rest when I’m shooting the springer from a bench. If I do use something in the rear it’s just barely touching. Lots of guys roll up a towel for the rear. I actually have a round bag that I just barely rest it on.
I believe this is contrary to some of the advice you’ve been given. Dave mentions holding the rifle like you’re holding your sweetheart. That works really well for PCPs. For a springer, you want to hold the rifle like you held the girl when you were 17, and it’s the first time you were in a clinch. I believe at that point you were holding her pretty tight. Most high powered Springers need a pretty firm hold. I find it actually sometimes easier to shoot mine accurately from a field target position, Vs a bench.
I spent an entire summer trying to shoot a 1 inch group with a springer at 100 yards. I finally did it with a couple of different rifles. The hold I used was firm, and exactly the same every time.
Now for the heartbeat thing. I think we all try to time our shots around the heartbeat. With a 60 X scope, at 100 yards, it’s maybe moving a quarter inch. It’s just a little bump. I never stop breathing, because I don’t really know when I’m going to shoot and I don’t want to hold my breath forever. I pull the trigger on the Lull not the bump. At this point it happens automatically.
I’m kind of shocked you’re seeing that much movement from your heart rate at such a small distance with 12 X. Just conjecture on my part but I would try holding the rifle firmer. You need to set it up where you’re just totally comfortable.
my 10 cents
Here are the pictures of the groups that I shot at 100 yds that summer. Because they don’t exist if there’s no picture.