Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Share One Important Handgunning Tip!

I got to thinking that the folks at the Campfire collectivly have a vast knowledge about shooting and the people who spend time in the Handgun forum have much knowledge about handguns and handgunning both from a sport and combat perspective.

I am interested in learning more about my handgun hobby and thought it'd be interesting to see what we think are important pieces of info related to hanguns.

I was a cowboy from the first time I saw a western movie. Hoot Gibson, Bob Steele, Johnny Mack Brown, Hoppalong Cassidy, etc., etc., were my heros. I don't remember when or how I learned it but I've known from my earliest days that single action revolvers are carried with the hammer down on an empty chamber. So I submit that as my important handgunning fact.

Thanks,

Front sight, always see the front sight!

I was going to say that. My shooting greatly improved when I read somewhere to focus on the front sight and the target.

In my opinion, if you are carrying for self-defense, it is more important to practice your "firing stroke" than time spent live firing at targets. The firing stroke is the entire motion starting from your weapon being holstered and concealed, and ending in dry firing, or live firing, on a target. You should, in fact, spend more time with the firing stroke practice with an empty gun than at the range with a loaded gun. Just make sure the gun really is unloaded. Practice should be slow and deliberate until it is second nature, and then you can add some speed to it. If you spend 90% of your handgun practice time doing this, and 10% live firing, you would become highly skilled fast. Make sure to have a target to dry fire at, so you are developing marksmanship skills at the same time. Otherwise it is a waste of time.

If you don't want to shoot it ... don't point at it!

Norm, I second every tip that has so far been offered. Hawkeye's suggestion on dry firing, either out of the holster or statically, is THE technique in all rifle and pistol shooting for accuracy improvement.
My contribution is this: buy a case(5000 rounds) of quality practice-grade .22 ammo and shoot the entire case in 2004. RS

� Focus on the front sight -- make it the center of your attention, irrespective of how blurry the rear sight and the target become. Concentrate on it and get to know it completely.

� Train yourself to distinguish between the exact middle, the left corner, and the right corner of the front-sight blade. IOW, see the top of the front sight as a width, not a "point."

� Practice holding the top of the front sight 1/4, 1/2, 3/4. and all its height above the top of the rear sight, and you'll be both surprised and gratified to see how accurately you can shoot even a four-incher at longer ranges than a handgun is supposed to be good for.

� Master shooting with issue sights (especially with sighted-in adjustable sights but even with fixed sights if that's what you have), before you mess around with a scope on a handgun. A scope is not as helpful or useful for eliminating the need for skill with open iron sights, as green handgunners think it is. You won't even get all the benefit of the scope if you haven't first mastered the use of the iron sights.

Lots of good tips...mine is... grip, sight picture, trigger control...master these and you are going to be acccurate.

I'll second the raising of the front sight for distance shots...flat out amazes me how accurate it can be. dvnv

My wife and I are both LEO's and she was a mediocre(230's out of possible 250) in qualifying combat course. First, we worked on her drawing her Glock and assuming the proper shooting stance be it standing, kneeling, use of cover, etc. and to do it repeatedly until she could do without thinking. She had the basics down as far as sight picture, breathing, trigger control so we worked on "Aim small, miss small". Instead of aiming at center mass of a sillouette target, aim at the spot where a shirt button would be in the center of chest. She practiced with deliberation at first and then speed followed(Combat courses are timed). She now shoots 248 or 249, she hasn't scored 250 yet but will before long. Handguns are more accurate than most people can shoot them. Practice and you can use one to its full potential

First I would like to provide a comment on avagadro's post which is very good advice but...from an LE or personal protection standpoint you may very well have to point at something you do not want to shoot but feel you may very well have to shoot at any moment. That being said I offer two tips at each end of that spectrum:

Practice holding a handgun on a target in an "at gun point" situation with both eyes open trying to be aware of your surroundings. Try giving commands and then fire at a signal provided by someone else at an unpredictable time.

Second, once you have mastered basic handgunning skills stop standing in one spot and emptying the entire magazine. Practice the "Firing Stroke" as The Real Hawkeye said. Perfect it and then apply it, add double and tripple taps. Life and death can be decided in fractions of a second.

I guess you could sum it up as holding long and shooting quick.

I also agree with all the above. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> Would add to keep your trigger finger alongside and not on the trigger untill the millesecond before you are going to shoot.

Not much to add to the above. Ken, I believe, said something in another thread about getting your technique right, then practice, practice, practice. And practice some more. Steve

On the lighter side.....have fun with it. Especially when introducing new shooters. Make it fun and they'll come back for more. Seen too many "experts" turn off new shooters.

I may have missed it in all the good tips here.

Lock your wrist, firm your grip.

I grew up in the old one handed pistol shooting days so this doesn't apply as much as it did when everybody shot one handed. It was taught me by an old Texas Ranger.

When you draw train yourself to bring your sight up from the bottom instead of down from the top. When you shoot in a hurry there is a natural tendency to shoot high. If you bring your sights up into point and fire too quick there is more down there to hit.

BCR

� When you swing the cylinder out of a double-action revolver, never slam it out or back in by its own weight. Push it out to the side and back into battery position. IOW, be nice to it if you want it to always line-up right -- and tight.

� When you seat a fresh clip into the butt of an auto, don't slap it into place after you've inserted it just far enough to be stopped by the clip release. Push the clip release to "release," push the clip past it, then let go of the clip release as you push the clip into locked position.

� Be aware that the magazine "safety" feature of some autos does not prevent the gun from firing if you've taken the initial slack out of the trigger pull before you drop the magazine out of the butt. If there's still a round in the chamber, it'll fire if you finish the trigger pull.

I am a Sheriffs Deputy and official gun enthusiast (GUN NUT) for the department but in line with the comments made about practice is the simple quote of "Smooth is Fast" If you move faster then your abilities allow you are twice as far behind as if you are smooth and fluid. Speed comes with practice and ability.

Another aspect that is important in tactics relates to the Combat Triad (Marksmanship, Gunhandling and Mindset) the most important is Mindset. I work with many an officer on my department that has an improper mindset. They are carrying because they have to, they will shoot to wound, feel it will never happen to them. The proper mindset is being able to assess the situation and stop the suspect without hesitation. That hesitation and that lack of thought placed on the why you are carrying a weapon and will/can you use it when needed, can kill you. Worse yet it could kill the guy next to you that you are supposed to be covering. Think about why it is you carry and what you are willing to do with it.

Last thing is when off duty, those that generally have the wrong mindset wont carry off duty. For me, I would rather have it and never need it, then need it and not have it. Being unprepared can kill. My long winded 2 Cents.

Bushwhacker, Amen and amen.
The best advice I ever got when I was a young hot rod and thought I wanted to carry a gun for a living was given to me by an old time Texas Ranger, G W Burkes. He said, " Son, don't ever carry a pistol unless you have the guts to pull it. Don't ever pull it unless you mean to shoot it. Don't ever shoot it unless you intend to kill the s.o.b. you are shooting at."

BCR

This really is not a handgun tip, but is so closely related that I think it should be mentioned.



First as has been pointed out, any handgunner has to be WILLING to shoot RIGHT NOW if the situation calls for it. He must develop the correct mindset for this. Some men and many women want to talk the assailant out of his bad ideas. That is fine given a proper safe distance, but if he's close, the time for talking is over.



Second, and this was my tip, be tactically aware, all the time. Think ahead.....where would bad guys hide? How could they approach me/my vehicle/home without being observed. Use your car keys with your weak hand if the area is "hot". Going to the mall late? Don't park in an isolated corner of the parking lot, just because it is a little closer to where you want to shop. Going to the convenience store? Don't park around the side even if that is the direction you're coming from. Walking down the street in a big city. Walk toward the street side of the sidewalk, away from doorways, alleys, etc. See some suspicious types down the block or on the next block....don't be brave or stupid, get on the other side of the street, change your route, turn around,. ETC. ETC. Be Aware of your surrounding at all times.



Carjacking have become very common, keep you windows rolled up, doors locked. These are usually kids/gangbangers who have absolutely no compunction about shooting you. Don't make yourself an easy target.



Remember, if you've got to shoot, shoot, but the best result is not to get into that position to start with.

I haven't seen this mentioned and it actually happened to me this morning.

I went snowshoeing this morning and carried my S&W 696 w/me. Now the problem. The gloves I was wearing got caught in the trigger slot in the frame, the trigger wouldn't reset fully and when I tried to fire the next shot the cylinder half turned but obviously no shot fired. Luckily, my first shot did in that nasty stump so a second shot wasn't required <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> but lesson learned. Try that handgun with gloves on if you live in the cold, make sure it works. Sean

It's already been said. Front sight and mind set. Thanks Boggy and welcome Bushwacker. E