Training and Competition Shooting has helped improve my shooting accuracy. It is a balance of speed and precision depending on the shot being made.
2 Likes
Being able to do practical drills, including draw and movement, which, unfortunately, most ranges won’t allow.
4 Likes
I chose “other” and it asked me to explain below: if you are carrying concealed, you need to draw from holster, and clear cover garment. you should also be able to go from unholstered low ready or high ready to extend and sight on target. so, slowly, smoothly repeat "clear garment> grip pistol with shooting hand > draw (NOTE: having the proper grip before you pull from holster is important)> from draw bring support hand to grip, create proper grip, tight squeeze no gaps between palms and grip, and present from high or low ready to extended. You must practice from ready to extended until your front sight is aligned on your target every time without looking. the process above can take several weeks at one to two hours a day until you have created neuro-pathways to draw smoothly and have from t sight on target every time. you should include dry firing with this near the beginning of the self-training process. I like the laser inserts that way i can see my hits every dry fire to insure my trigger pull is smooth and not jerking. There are no short-cuts, just practice like its your job. within two months, you should be able to hit within a 4 inch circle in less than 1.5 seconds from concealment, every time
12 Likes
I’ve used a system of range time with logging my results per round (mag capacity) and dry fire laser, building muscle memory, while graduating to greater distances.
4 Likes
I have been using the LaserHit target practice, it’s cheap compared to other alternatives but works just as well. I like that the laser come in different calibers and can be placed in any gun as long as the caliber matches. I have been getting better groupings due to this product.
5 Likes
One must be a good “trainer” before they can be a good “shooter”. What does this mean? Learn proper grip, stance, finger placement on the trigger, trigger squeeze, and front sight focus… you master all of that with dry fire, then you will be a very accurate shot even under stress.
6 Likes
Enzo T, that is exactly what happened to me. After learning the basics I wanted to quickly move to shooting fast and found I got very sloppy and wasted a ton of ammo (Luckily this was a couple years ago). All I succeeded in was just magnifying my bad habits only quicker. After taking my first class I realized I needed to refocus and slow down. I actually set myself back and had to pretty much start all over. A lot of time and ammo wasted because I wanted look cool trying to get a rocket fast draw to shoot. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast had become my new mantra.
6 Likes
I think that all the options are excellent & may display a system of progression for novices, like myself, to pursue. I am surprised that I am in the majority of primarily using visualizations, and hope to supplement with courses as soon as possible. I have found that a content expert’s teaching to consistently improve my skills among a variety of subjects. I expect defensive accuracy to be no different.
3 Likes
A little bit of all of the above. Training on the range, privately, in groups, or at home all help develop defensive shooting skills.
4 Likes
Dry fire with lasers AND training
5 Likes
Dry fire, dry fire, and dry fire some more
4 Likes
I think that new shooters do need to have some idea of marksmanship fundamentals before training for defensive shooting. In fact, they need all the fundamentals before defensive shooting training in my opinion. I think they should go in this order.
- Safe handling
- Safe Operation
- Marksmanship
- How to get a handgun in out of a holster safely
- Everything else
Some people can figure out 1-4 in 20 min, some people it takes years. I also think that a person is never too old or experienced to revisit the fundamentals
7 Likes
Without live-fire training one will not be ready for a real-life encounter. The violent recoil of the handgun (especially small, light guns like those used for concealment) teaches one to remember to grip the gun tightly. It also mentally prepares one for the significant movement off of target from recoil, and the need to quickly re-establish one’s sight-picture for the next shot. Shooting of light, compact handguns is, in most cases, simply uncomfortable on the hand. It takes live-fire training to force one to get used to this, and develop determination to undergo the experience time after time, without letting the discomfort distract from maintaining the sight-picture and maintaining a strong grip, as well as mastering trigger-control, so as not to pull the shots of the target while squeezing the trigger. Also, even when wearing ear-protection, the loud report of the firearm can still be distracting. Live-fire target practice helps accustom a shooter to this as well. These are things that cannot be learned through simulated firing drills.
6 Likes
The range near my house has programmable target carriers that turn the target 90 degrees to the shooter and only present the target according to the program. They can also change distance within that program to present a slightly dynamic environment. IDPA is far superior but these automated targets help reach more people.
1 Like
It’s all about ,practice practice and more practice. I have 5 pistols that are in my EDC rotation. So each time I go to the range I always take a different pistol to familiarise myself with one of the 5 that I carry. Most of my others are relegated to “Safe Queen” status unfortunately. After 40+ years of shooting, that method works for me…
3 Likes
Over the years I’ve used a combination of all techniques available and had sessions with numerous diverse instructors.
In real life your target will/could change dramatically in a split second causing you, the defender, to react/act accordingly.
Much different then a static standing target.
Yes, speed is important just as well as degree of accuracy.
Handgun challenges were the best for me.
I never worried about the time as much as I did making sure I hit an area that would cause an attacker to hesitate or end their attack (their next action) giving the advantage for me to decide instead of act/react.
3 Likes
I also add serious and varied uses of laser sights to determine appropriate muscle training for various positions and both hands.
4 Likes
Trigger management and draw and shoot
3 Likes
Apply the basics, good grip that is firm and comfortable. Sight pitcher and sight alignment; focusing on the front sight. Even and smooth trigger pull without moving the wrist or other parts of your hand.
4 Likes
I started bullseye shooting at a young age. The times & rapid fire stages shooting only with one hand transitions very well to defensive shooting since rapid fire is merely rapid aiming. Sometimes you may only have one hand to shoot with too. If you have both hands, swell. I regularly train using both hands as well as weak hand/ dominant hand only.
Standing erect & holding a 2lb weight in your hand with arm outstretched is a good way to build muscle & endurance, or you can use a 1x quart canteen of water on a pistol belt hanging from your arm as you dry fire.
You can be the best shot & have muscles tuned to handling your $5k wonderful but if you don’t have the mindset that the lives of your loved ones as well as your own life is more valuable than the life of the goblins putting you & your loved ones in imminent danger of serious injury or death then you will fail in a crisis. You must be ready to use all means to avoid, de-escalate & use other methods at your disposal to avoid a fight.
Sadly there is Evil in this world & the evil that men do can only be effectively countered by the rapid & accurate deployment of your crisis management device as you rapidly & accurately dispense crisis management advice directly into the center of mass of the goblins attacking you & yours.
Maintain situational awareness & be prepared when faced by multiple goblins to do what needs be done.
If you cannot bring yourself to face the evil in this world then having a gun no more makes you armed than buying a guitar makes you a rock star.
Prepare & train now so that you can stay alert, stay alive.
Old Ranger.
11 Likes