Service Rifle Rapid Fire Timer

Common uses for a service rifle rapid fire timer

Rapid fire string practice
Position change drills
Magazine change under time
Across the course preparation

Service rifle rapid fire strings start standing and finish in a firing position — sitting or prone depending on the distance — and include a magazine change partway through the string. The shooting is the easy part; the string is really a test of getting into position and reloading without wasting the allowance^[1].

Time allowances differ between CMP and NRA courses and between distances, so this page does not assert one — take it from the programme for the match you are shooting. What is stable is where the time goes: the drop into position and the magazine change together consume a large share of the string, and both improve with dry practice far more readily than marksmanship does.

The drop into position is rehearsable

Going from standing to a stable sitting or prone position with the sling correct is a repeatable physical sequence, and it can be practised without ammunition, without a range, and without the rest of the string.

Most shooters find they can take several seconds out of it with focused dry practice — time that goes straight back into the shooting. Marksmanship gains at this level are much harder won than that.

The magazine change is the other half

A reload inside a timed string is where fumbles happen, and a fumbled reload can cost more than every other inefficiency in the string combined. It rewards a fixed routine: same pouch, same hand path, same seating and charging motion, every time.

Practise it dry until it needs no attention. Attention during a rapid fire string should be going to the position and the sights, not to finding a magazine.

Take the allowance from your match

Rapid fire time limits vary by course of fire, distance and governing body — CMP and NRA highpower differ, and reduced-course matches differ again.

Set this timer to the allowance in your match programme. The structure of the string, and where the time goes inside it, is what this page is about.

Segments to time separately in practice. Actual allowances come from your match's course of fire^[1].

Where a rapid fire string's time goes
Segment	What it covers	Improves with
Start to position	Standing to stable firing position	Dry rehearsal of the drop
Position to first shot	Sling, natural point of aim, sights	Consistent setup routine
First string of shots	Shots before the reload	Marksmanship and cadence
Magazine change	Empty out, fresh in, charged	Fixed routine, practised dry
Second string of shots	Shots after the reload	Recovering the sight picture

The position change and the reload usually cost more than any realistic marksmanship gain would save.
Both can be practised entirely dry, which makes them the cheapest improvements available.

Source: CMP Competition Rules — highpower rifle courses of fire and time limits; NRA highpower rules differ

Sources

CMP Competition Rules — highpower rifle courses of fire and time limits; NRA highpower rules differ , Civilian Marksmanship Program (Use the programme for the match you are shooting) — accessed 2026-07-28

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❓ Frequently Asked Questions

How long is a service rifle rapid fire string?

It varies by course of fire, distance and governing body — CMP and NRA highpower differ, and reduced-course matches differ again. Take the allowance from your match programme; this page covers where the time goes inside the string.

What takes the most time in a rapid fire string?

The position change and the magazine change, not the shooting. Together they usually consume more of the allowance than any realistic marksmanship gain would save, which makes them the place to work first.

Can I practise the position change without a range?

Yes, entirely dry. Going from standing to a stable sitting or prone position with the sling correct is a repeatable physical sequence, and most shooters take several seconds out of it with focused dry practice.

How do I stop fumbling the reload?

A fixed routine — same pouch, same hand path, same seating and charging motion every time — practised dry until it needs no attention. A fumbled reload can cost more than every other inefficiency in the string combined.

Should I time the segments separately?

Yes. Timing only the whole string tells you that you were slow but not where. Timing start-to-position, position-to-first-shot and the reload separately turns a general problem into three specific ones.

Is rapid fire mainly a marksmanship test?

Less than it looks. The shooting is the easy part for most competitors at this level — the string is really testing whether you can get into position and reload without spending the allowance you needed for the shots.