Combat Ready (Tactically Prepare) Yourself With a Pistol

A common desire when choosing a pistol is as a weapon of self-defense in a combat scenario. Certainly, the handgun's portability and accessibility make it a frequent choice in these cases. So, if you you might find yourself ima situation where self defense is necessary, it would be a good thing to be prepared ahead of time in how to handle using your pistol.

Steps

Choosing a Good Sidearm

  1. Understanding sidearms. The choice of weapon can seriously limit your ability to protect yourself with lack of accuracy or, more importantly, reliability. Here are some generalities to look at when purchasing a weapon for this specific use. None of these are absolute as there are exceptions to all of them, and a pistol that fits you personally is always the best choice. Below are some important points to consider when choosing a pistol.
    • Larger pistols may be more accurate than smaller ones, due to their fit to the hand, weight (reduced felt recoil), and longer sight plane.
    • Smaller pistols are easier to conceal and are lighter to carry.
    • Smaller calibers mean less recoil, which in turn means faster and more accurate follow-up shots, but generally, less energy and force.
    • Larger calibers inflict more damage per bullet.
    • Reliability is more important than accuracy and many other attributes of a pistol. Purchase a high-quality pistol and make sure it is maintained properly.
    • Revolvers are more reliable and simpler than semi-automatics.
    • Point-shoot accuracy is more important than sighted accuracy when considering self-defense tactics (this is a controversial point in modern pistolcraft; there will be more on this later in the article).
      • Determine basic point-shoot capabilities of the gun. With an unloaded gun, close your eyes and point the gun in a safe direction with your finger next to the trigger, but not on it, at a makeshift target. Open your eyes — the sights should be lined up exactly where you wanted it. At five yards, it should be no more than a couple inches off center-target.
      • If the handgun is pointing high or low, this can be compensated for with practice. For example, almost everyone who has never used a Glock before has a high point-shoot location by {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} at five yards. But with practice, you will find that you can compensate for that quickly. But, if you then pick up a better-fit gun, you will find that it will point low. If the point is too far off, you might want to consider a different handgun.

Select a Caliber

  1. Keep in mind that no cartridge is perfect, so consider both the benefits and drawbacks. Most people who study handgun bullet ballistics and tactics such as Jeff Cooper ("the father" of what is known as "the modern technique of the handgun") have concluded that, comparatively, handgun rounds are weak, and bullet-placement is a much more reliable fight-stopper than the round itself. Not to say that there aren't some advantages to one round over another, and in a fight, the advantage should always be on your side.
  2. Understand a few major features which should always be considered in caliber selection.
    • Penetration is extremely important. If a bullet does not penetrate deep enough, vital organs and the nervous system are less likely to be damaged. In the late '90s the FBI conducted extensive studies which suggest a bullet should penetrate at least {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} to be reliable. This allows for bullets to enter a body at less than optimal angles and still have enough energy to reach vital organs or the spine.
    • Permanent cavity is the resulting "void" in a fleshy target where the majority of a bullet's energy was transferred and tissue was destroyed. The larger the permanent cavity, the greater the chance of vital organs or the central nervous system being damaged.
    • Recoil is something that is often not talked about in bullet ballistics because it is a very subjective and weapon-specific characteristic. Low recoil allows you to place more shots quicker and more accurately. Each person will have a different feel for the recoil of a bullet, and each handgun will transfer the recoil to the user in different ways.
    • Bullet energy is an over-emphasized feature of a round. In handguns, the energy of bullets is extremely low. "Knock down power" is a fable born of Hollywood action movies; stories of people being "knocked down" after being shot have been proven to happen because of a preconceived notion that when shot, you are supposed to fall down. People shot with a .22 LR in non-vital areas have fallen down because they assumed being shot is synonymous with falling down and possibly dying.
    • "Bullet energy" is a rebuttal against people bragging about a bullet's energy without other considerations, but the amount of energy will also contribute to the first three points positively and negatively. The first three points on the other hand are all competing against each other in the search for a perfect bullet. If a low-recoil round with deep penetration and a massive permanent cavity were available, no other handgun bullet would be needed.
  3. A comparison of the most common semi-automatic handgun rounds:
    • 9mm Parabellum is the most common pistol caliber. Its relatively low recoil allows for quick, accurate follow up shots. The magazine capacity is usually much greater than other larger rounds. Cost is low and availability is excellent, making the 9mm an attractive choice for extended practice. Finally, there are excellent higher pressure (+P rated) loads available, producing excellent self-defense characteristics (make sure your handgun is rated to shoot +P loads before you use them).
    • .45 ACP uses heavier, wider bullets than the 9mm at somewhat lower velocity. The caliber lends itself to use with sound suppressors due to the fact that a standard round (230 grain) is subsonic under almost all circumstances. The permanent cavity (on ballistics gel) of a JHP .45 ACP is about 40% larger than a JHP 9mm. Recoil is more severe than the 9mm, and the magazine capacity tends to be much lower. Most law enforcement officers will say (referring to a point-blank gun fight), if you don't hit them in the first three bullets, you aren't going to hit them. So, large capacity magazines mean less than you may think.
    • .40 S&W is another common caliber with performance characteristics somewhere between the 9mm Luger and the .45 ACP. It has gained a large following in law enforcement agencies and elsewhere. Among other benefits of the round, the flat nose of the round has shown to create larger temporary cavities and also to allow the energy to transfer at a quicker rate to create a sizable permanent cavity.
  4. There are many other calibers which have not been mentioned here. .38 Special, .357 Magnum, and .44 Magnum are common revolver cartridges. The 357 SIG (a 9mm bullet in a necked-down .40 cal casing) and 10mm Auto are also somewhat prevalent autoloader calibers. Another specialty round is the 5.7x28mm, made by FN, (Fabrique Nationale) designed to defeat Class III body armor with this ammunition. Such steel-core ammunition is not widely available to civilians, but the advantage of the round as a very low-recoil, high-velocity round cannot be denied. Additionally, due to its tumbling effect in soft targets it creates a considerable permanent cavity (for its size) while still penetrating deeper than {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. The 4.6x30mm, which has the same characteristics as the 5.7x28mm, is made by Heckler and Koch.
  5. There is more information on the actual bullet choice (not the caliber) later in this article.

Practice Reloading Your Pistol

Though it may be good to be familiar with a wide spectrum of firearms, defensive practice should primarily be done with one or two pistols (allowing for a primary and "back-up" pistol). This allows your body to store procedural memory about the weapon's operation. So instead of thinking is the slide locked back? → press magazine release → magazine is clear → grab new magazine → insert new magazine with correct orientation → release slide. If you practice enough, the procedure will become second nature, and just thinking is the slide locked back? → reload pistol will get it all done while you are able to think about your current situation.

  1. You should be able to load your gun quickly 100% of the time — without looking at your pistol, your hands, or your magazines.
  2. Emergency reload is the reload in which you have spent all the rounds from your magazine and your slide is locked back. This should all be done while keeping your gun pointed at your target. Psychologically, lowering your gun gives your intended target an advantage over you and keeps you focused on your gun rather than on your target.
    • The technique is as follows: when the slide locks back, you want to grab another magazine (likely from a magazine pouch). As you move the fresh magazine toward the gun, eject the empty magazine letting it hit the ground (they should essentially pass each other during the drill). Place the rear of the magazine against the rear of the magazine well of the gun, align the two, and with some force (though there should be little resistance) seat the magazine using the heel of your palm; then depress the slide release.
  3. Tactical reload is the reload in which you encounter a lull in the gunfight and are able to place yourself behind cover. You know you have spent some rounds from the current magazine and want to prepare for whatever may come next.
    • This drill can be done at the ready, since it should be done from behind cover and the other shooter (target) may be visible, but not an immediate threat. Reach to your magazine pouch (or other magazine holder — a pocket perhaps — and grab a magazine with your thumb, index finger, and middle finger. Move back to the gun and eject the partially depleted magazine into your hand, grabbing the ejected magazine with your ring finger, pinkie, and the palm of your hand. Insert the fresh magazine into the gun and tug on it slightly to make sure that it is seated in the magazine well correctly. (This is especially important when loading a magazine that is topped off.) This reload doesn't require manipulation of the slide release.
    • This reload should be executed before you re-holster your pistol so if you need to draw again you are fully prepared.
  4. You should be practiced enough that when you are shooting (no matter how many rounds are in the magazine), you should be able to feel when the handgun is empty.
    • The slide has two separate actions every time a round is fired; after the last round is fired you will only feel the first action, ultimately there is less muzzle flip. The quicker you are able to reload the magazine, the better. After this, you execute an emergency reload.

Malfunctions

Malfunctions (often erroneously, known as "jams") are a way of life in semi-automatic handguns. Though most modern guns are relatively reliable, it is always a good idea to be prepared because malfunctions seem to happen at the most inopportune times. (Murphy's Law prevails.) Learn how to practice clearing malfunctions by reading Reload a Pistol and Clear Malfunctions.

  1. Type-1 malfunction: this is a failure-to-fire (FTF) malfunction. You pull the trigger and you get a "click" instead of a "boom." This is the simplest type of malfunction, the most common type, and the easiest to fix: just tap, rack/flip.
  2. Type-2 malfunction: a failure-to-eject is a common problem on older 1911s and other guns with shorter ejectors. This type of malfunction is affectionately known as a "stovepipe."
    • The symptom of this malfunction is a "dead trigger" (no click, just a little bit of movement), and most likely some brass sticking out of your ejection port (but not necessarily), and the slide is not completely in battery (all the way forward). Fix it using the same method at a Type-1 malfunction: tap, rack/flip.
  3. Type-3 malfunction: this is known as "the Mother Of All Malfunctions" (MOAM) by some. This is a feed-way stoppage, which means that too much brass is in the chamber at the same time.
    • If you do get a type-3 malfunction under fire, many pistol masters will tell you just to grab for your back-up. Of course, if that is not an option you should find cover before executing the clearing.
    • To clear: grab your slide and lock it back (this is optional on many handguns). Press the magazine eject, grab the magazine and throw it to the ground ("strip" it). Grab the slide again and rack it hard three times. Reach for a fresh magazine, put it in the gun (same as the tactical reload) and rack the slide one more time to load a round into the chamber. You can also learn to keep the magazine you have in your gun, read this.
    • Some pistols, notably the Glocks, may be cleared of a Type 3 malfunction simply by dropping the magazine far enough to allow the slide to go forward and then re-seating the magazine with authority. If the slide goes completely forward into battery, the pistol is then mostly likely ready to fire. If not perform the Type 1 clearing action.
  4. Type-4 malfunction: this is pretty uncommon, and if it ever happens to you when you are practicing with your gun at the range, throw the gun away and get a different model! This malfunction is when the slide does not go back into battery after firing.
    • This might happen because your guide rod or guide rails are really gummed up (to the point where it looks as if there is a wad of Juicy Fruit in there), your guide spring is too weak or your chamber design is bad. Either way, modern semi-automatic pistols should never have this happen. A gunsmith (or you) may be able to diagnose the problem and fix it, but a gun that gets a Type-4 is not a reliable gun!(edit* The gun can be perfectly reliable and still have a Type 4 Malfunction. A good cleaning may fix the problem or your recoil spring is weakened and needs to be replaced. Optionally, as stated, take the firearm to a gunsmith.)

Point Shooting and Flash Sighting

Point-shooting is a very controversial issue. What this is actually describing is the ability for a shooter to be able to shoot a target without aiming with the sights.

  1. While point-shooting sounds like a great idea (to be able to naturally point at a target), it is (for 99% of people) a VERY bad idea. Past three or four yards, it may be impossible to get reliable hits on the center-mass of a target. And remember, the old adage, "Think of the worst day at the range; you will be twice as bad as that in the middle of a gun fight!"
  2. The other option is called "flash sighting". This is done by pulling the gun up to the standard shooting position, focusing hard on the front of the gun and when the front post (sight) is somewhere in between the rear sights, the weapon is fired! It doesn't matter where; at three to seven yards even the worst flash sighting usually gets center-mass hits.
  3. Studies in police departments which train with flash sighting against departments who teach point-shooting have shown staggering results. The flash sighting police hit their targets four times as often as those who point-shoot. Average first shot times were less than one-tenth of a second slower (for those who flash sight).
  4. Most people can use that one-tenth of a second to get that guaranteed hit instead of just putting a bunch of holes in the walls behind the bad guy. Flash sighting is something that needs to be rigorously trained for, otherwise, the shooter may return to point-shooting.
  5. Ultimately the "point of the gun" (mentioned in choosing a good sidearm) is still important as it will decrease the amount of time required to flash sight, but since the sights are still being used, it is less important.

Train Yourself

Without training, knowledge is useless. You may read this, and even understand the processes of the tactical training, but without actually executing the procedures, it is nearly useless. In a gunfight you will not use anything you have not ingrained into your long-term and muscle memory. For the sake of keeping your options open if you are ever involved in a gun fight, you should practice all the drills listed below, find other drills, or create your own. This will give you more techniques to have in your bag of tricks.

  1. Position yourself about 7-yards (the distance the FBI determined a man could move in a second and a half — about the time it takes to draw a pistol and fire) away from a large (10+ inch) target. In a lowered gun stance (ready position), pull your gun up, as quickly as possible, to firing position and focus hard on the front sight of your gun, wait until you see a bit of the front sight between the rear sights and pull the trigger (this is the flash sighting technique). You should be able to land a hit in the 10-inch target every time. If you are missing, try going a little slower. The key is to practice procedure, and the speed will eventually improve naturally.
  2. The next stage is to put bursts into the target. Take a few steps back (go for 10 yards). Do the same routine as before, but this time, put two or three shots quickly into your target, between each shot, get the flash sight again. Once you are able to get to firing position and put three quick shots into your 10+ inch target consistently in under a second-and-a-half, you can move on.
  3. Practice with multiple targets. You want to start by setting up three or more targets a yard or two apart. Quickly, go to the firing position and go down the line. One shot at each target. Change it up: maybe try in a different order; have a friend tell you which one to shoot ("one!", "three!", etc.), but the key thing to be sure of is that you hit your target; once you are sure you can hit your target every time, try to accelerate your pace. At first when you fire, move the gun with the recoil. As soon as the recoil is completed you should be on the next target already. As you get faster you can force the gun into position and be ready before the recoil is complete.
  4. Practice while moving. While moving, you should still be able to hit targets at {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. Set up three or more targets a few yards apart from each other. Start about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} back. Run up to about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} from your first target while drawing your gun into the firing position. Fire a two-round burst, side-step to engage the next target, and so on. Each time you run the course, try to do it faster. Try to pause as little as possible when shooting (even while moving you should be able to get a flash sight), the longer you pause the more accurate you will be, but in a gun fight, the clock is always ticking quicker than at the range.
  5. Integrate the Mozambique Drill. If a friend is calling out target numbers, and they call the number of a target you have already shot, this time you go for a head shot. This is also known as "failure to stop" practice. The idea is you have shot the target, but he isn't impressed (i.e., he is on drugs, is wearing body armor, or is just plain determined) and keeps coming, so you have to take a head shot. Read Human Targets below for more information.

Human Targets

Read the notice about bullet consideration below for more information.

  1. Bullet placement is much more important than the bullet itself. There are two critical areas of a human which contain major organs and vital systems which, if shot, can stop a man in his tracks or kill him.
  2. The thoracic cavity is the "center of mass" in a human. This area contains the heart, major veins and arteries, the trachea, bronchi and lungs, the esophagus, and structures of the nervous system including the paired vagus nerves. To imagine the area that this encompasses, it starts above the diaphragm (just below the sternum) and makes (from a frontal view) a dome shape up to the first lateral rib. This is a pretty large target area. A shot in one area of the thoracic cavity is little different from any other, unless you hit the heart.
    • The problem with shots in the thoracic cavity is that a determined fighter or a man on drugs will be less than impressed with anything you throw at him in this area. Even if you destroy a person's heart they still have 20 to 30 seconds of full cognitive and physical ability with which they could severely hurt or even kill you. Additionally, the heart is a very small target and completely destroying the heart with one bullet is nearly impossible, which means that they will likely have even more time before their eventual fate is achieved. For all these reasons, many have adopted the self-defense rule: "shoot until the threat ends." (Or as stated in The Rules of Combat: "When in doubt, empty the magazine.") But you must determine for yourself what your protocol will be.
    • Body armor is also a factor. Just hitting a man in the chest (unless you hit him in the exact same place every time) is just going to deplete your magazine. (Your chest delivered bullet thump MAY induce a fibrillation, resulting in death, but it has to be timed perfectly with your target's heart beat. Not an advisable procedure. Nor is it reliable.)
    • Bullet penetration is very much a key factor in bullet selection. This penetration does a few things for you. At less than optimal angles, the bullet will still reach vitals, and it will give your bullet a chance to possibly hit the spine, which (depending on where it lands) can either incapacitate completely, or at least paralyze enough of the body, so you may be able to get away. An important factor to note is that while bullet penetration can be to your advantage, rounds with a high degree of penetration (e.g., the FN 5.7x28 round) can exit the target. When firing with rounds like these, beware of accidentally hitting people or objects behind your assailant. Position yourself to your advantage, and wait for a clear shot. Once it leaves the barrel, the bullet will hit something, and you can't call it back!
  3. The second major area is the cranial cavity. This area is much simpler; it contains the brain and upper spine.
    • While the brain is an obvious target, there are still some considerations in shot placement. The front of the cranium (above the eyebrows) is one of the hardest bones in the body, it is also not a flat target (angled toward the top of the head, and toward the sides). There have been instances where bullets have ricocheted off a person's forehead.
    • Incidentally, just below this bone (below the eyebrows), down to the top of the upper-jaw is a very soft area with nose cartilage, sinus cavities, and eye holes, which leads directly to the lower brain, the medulla oblongata, and the upper spine. The brain is the largest target, and a bullet in there will mean "lights out," but flinching and minor movements are also possible when the brain is shot. The medulla oblongata and the upper spine initiate those flinching signals that are sent to the body. A bullet through either one of those, should ensure that there is no way the body might accidentally pull a trigger or move in some other potentially detrimental way.
    • In a situation which requires the immediate and unquestioned incapacitation of a person, a shot through an approximately 3-inch (above the upper-jaw to eyebrows) by 5-inch (the outside edges of the eyes) window in the head is essential. This 3x5-inch area is about the same no matter what angle the person is facing you (from the rear and the sides it is about the same size and about the same level on the head).
  4. For practice, replacing the circular chest target with a dome-shaped 11x7-inch target and the head with a 3x5-inch target will get you a more realistic targeting area. When scoring (to compare your improvements), or competing, a shot breaking the line of either cavity is good. The size of the grouping should matter less than getting the hits in quickly; and when shooting at the cranial cavity, only a guaranteed shot should be taken (you should always take more time for a cranial shot than a thoracic shot). But keep in mind, "Remember your worst day at the range; you will be twice as bad when you are in a gun fight." So, a hand-sized grouping in the thoracic region is optimal, as a general rule.

Quick-draw

Learn how to quick-draw effectively. Most gun fights are very unexpected, and thus the quick-draw is a skill which should be perfected. Here is the technique to draw. There are five steps and each one has a very deliberate purpose. More detailed instructions regarding the quick-draw are available in the Do a Tactical Quickdraw With a Pistol article. Unless you are at the range, and are able to shoot a target (while following all range rules) this practice should be done with an unloaded weapon. If you are able to shoot a target after you draw, this could be good practice. Try timing yourself from your draw to the first good hit on target.

  1. Position 1: Pull your support hand in close to your body (touching your stomach is a great place). Your firing hand moves up above your pistol grip and back down on it to get a good firing grip on the gun (while in the holster). Release any retention system you may have.
  2. Position 2: Pull the pistol straight up (for passive-retention holsters, a straight, firm jerk is required), a couple inches from the holster. Notice the finger is OFF the trigger. DO NOT put your finger on the trigger until the barrel is parallel to the floor.
  3. Position 3: Rotate your wrist and lower your elbow. This gets the pistol pointed down range at your target. Disengage any safety you have. From this position you are able to shoot a very close target (0-2 yards), or threatening to shoot, while keeping your weapon away from your assailant's reach.
  4. Position 4: Move your gun straight toward the target (sights level). When the gun passes your stomach, move your support hand toward the gun and in front of your firing hand in order to acquire a good firing grip.
  5. Position 5: Complete the motion and extend your firing arm to a good firing position. Keep your support elbow low (straight down is best).
  6. Once in the firing position, you should be pulling back with your support hand, while pushing forward with your firing hand. This creates "isometric pressure" which controls the muzzle flip and felt recoil of the gun.
  7. Re-holstering should be done in the exact opposite order. Pull back to close contact position 3, place your hand on your stomach, safety on, rotate your wrist and raise your elbow, push gun straight down into the holster, and secure it. As mentioned before, a tactical reload before you re-holster is an excellent choice and habit to get into (read above to find out how to do a tactical reload).
  8. Once you have practiced drawing (to learn to do it right, start slowly!), about 500 to 1000 times (no joke — that is about how long it takes for the process to become a procedural muscle memory), you will find you can draw extremely fast. Start practicing drawing and shooting a target (if you have access to a range).

Rapid Fire

Many indoor gun ranges won't let you practice any rapid fire drills, so you may need to go somewhere else to practice this. There are two main groups of weapons, and trigger manipulation is different for each.

  1. Glock and other Constant Double Action (DAO) pistols (such as QA Walthers, LEM, and DKA triggers) have a trigger which has a reset-point after the gun has been fired. Fire a round at your target; now, slowly release the trigger until you hear a click, and resistance on the trigger is lessened. At this point you can pull the trigger again. This not only allows you to be more accurate while doing single-shots (due to the shorter trigger pull), but when you get your finger used to the motion, it is the best way to shoot the gun quickly.
  2. Most other pistols (single-action—SA, double-action—DA, double/single-action—DA/SA) are a bit more standard. You have to release the trigger completely before it can be pulled again. SA and DA/SA will be easiest for this drill, as they will have lighter trigger pulls than their DA (or DAO) counterparts.
  3. After you develop a good trigger-pull skill, the next thing to practice (at close range — 4-8 yards), is shooting the gun as fast as possible. The faster you can pull the trigger, the more options it leaves for you.
  4. Gun works like this: bullet is fired, slide racks back, shell gets ejected. As the slide moves forward, the rest of the gun (frame, barrel, etc.) rises (this is called muzzle flip), as soon as the slide is back in battery (full-forward), the gun can fire again. But, the gun is ready to fire before it has gone back to its resting position in your hands.
  5. If you pull the trigger before the gun is at rest in your hands, you will shoot higher than the first bullet. If you wait too long, the gun will actually bounce below the original position, and firing during that stage will cause the bullet to land low. You can either wait a bit longer (but that removes the word "rapid" from this drill), or, you can time the firing to when the gun is falling past the rest position.
    • You can also increase the cycle speed of the gun in your hands by getting a tighter/firmer grip on the gun (this will be too firm for accurate single-shot shooting). If you do this, timing is more important, but it allows you to shoot faster.
    • Note that each gun, and each caliber, will have totally different cycle times. Therefore, practice with a few handguns, to round out your skills. If you get the timing wrong, you will find that hitting a target consistently, even at {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}, can become difficult.
    • If your bullets are hitting high after the first shot, try shooting a bit more slowly. Or, try tightening your grip on the gun. If you are shooting low, either shoot faster or loosen your grip on the gun.
  6. With some practice, you will find you can do {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} groupings at {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. Once you are able to do that, or get close to that, you can add other drills: that is, setup two or more targets. Fire four or five rounds at one target, then turn to the next target and so on. This combines one of the earlier-mentioned shooting drills and the rapid fire drill.

Firing Positions and Cover and Concealment

Practicing firing while prone, kneeling and while behind cover is common sense. In a gun fight, you may not be standing the whole time. Crouching is extremely important as the cover you may choose may not be your height.

  1. Prone: You need to practice lying on the ground. You will find that lining up your sights will be quite different and rapid fire becomes difficult to control. Your stance on the ground should be such: lie on your stomach. Then roll slightly to the firing side. Place your support knee and elbow down on the ground. You will be a bit sideways, but your firing arm will be completely flush with the ground with your head resting on it looking down the sights. This allows burden-free breathing and a very stable platform.
  2. Crouching: This can give you a very stable platform for shooting accurately. Put your firing leg behind you and essentially sit down on the heel of your foot. Your firing-side knee and your toe will be on the ground. Rest your support elbow on your support knee. You are in a tripod position (support foot, firing toe and firing knee), and you are in an arrangement where you can move quickly (practice moving periodically to and from the crouching position).
  3. Cover and Concealment: Hiding behind cover in a gun fight seems like a smart idea, but don't think you are invincible behind most materials. There is a big difference between "cover" and "concealment." Objects like car doors and walls may only serve to keep you hidden from your opponent's view (concealment), but in most cases bullets can punch through these objects. It is better to look for something that can stop bullets, as well as hide your whereabouts (cover). An engine block will completely stop most types of bullets. Shooting from behind cover should be done while exposing as little of your body as possible. If the cover allows it, do not expose your body from the same side constantly. Variety is not only the spice of life, it can sometimes save it, by making you unpredictable in a gun fight.

Other Drills

There are other drills you can use to hone your skills. It has been said that in an intense situation you will not do anything you have not practiced. The following drills are non-standard, and will give you more options during a gun fight, or other stressful situation.

  1. This drill can be added prior to any other drill. It is designed to get your heart rate up, and maybe some adrenaline going, which will give you a mild tunnel-vision effect. Before you do a drill, with your firearm securely holstered, do 20 or more push ups. Go until you have a bit of a burn and you are getting out of breath. Jump up and do your drill as soon after as possible. You will find that accurate aiming is much more difficult, though general flash sight aiming shouldn't be too much different; this is why it is so important to get familiar with this action.
  2. Most semi-automatic pistols will not fire if the slide on the gun is not in battery (full-forward) position. This becomes a problem if your pistol is resting against something, or the front of the gun is pressed into something soft. A simple drill to keep the bad guy off your gun in a close quarter situation, is to put your support arm straight in front of your chest, bent at a 90-degree angle. This keeps the bad guy off you, while your firing arm is lowered near your hip. Practice with a tall target that you can lean your arm up against and fire into. (Make sure the target is soft, so the bullets don't ricochet, and it doesn't splinter — make sure you shoot straight forward, so you don't hit your arm.) A couple times is all you need with this drill, just to give you the feel.
  3. Charging a bad guy seems like a stupid idea in most cases, but if the bad guy is reloading, or otherwise distracted, it can be of great benefit (you may be able to catch him by surprise or disarm him). Have a center-chest-sized target (10+ inches) set up {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} away. Start your sprint at it, and when you feel you are close enough to hit the target while moving, slow down to a crouched walk with your knees slightly bent (to keep your upper body smooth) and shoot the target.
    • Add different things while running: have a friend tell you when to start shooting (at random times). Or start running at the same time a friend starts reloading. Have the friend yell when he is done to let you know to start shooting. It can become a reloading vs. sprinting contest. (This will also give you an idea of how long a reload takes if you need to rush someone.)
    • If your location allows, stand {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} away from your target. Have another person stand well off to the side pointing at a different target. The person standing to the side will have one round in the chamber and an empty magazine, with a loaded magazine within easy access (e.g., a magazine pouch). You should have your gun out and at the ready. The other person will fire; you start running at your target. When you are close enough to get good hits, you shoot; if the other person is able to reload and fire at his target before you shoot, he wins. It is best (for safety reasons) for the other person to be aimed and shooting at a target which is in a different direction than yours, so at no time will one person be in front of someone else's muzzle.
    • Additionally, you can try reloading while running at the target, then shoot the target when you are done (this is the most advanced version of this drill).

Notice About Bullet Consideration

  1. First of all, knock-down power in a pistol caliber is a complete myth if not a farce. Information can be found on the Internet, indicating that "here are twenty accounts of X caliber bullet getting a one-shot knock down." The question is, how many shootings were waded through or disregarded to get these accounts? There are documented instances where a man shot with a .22LR in a non-vital area fell down and eventually died.
  2. Newton's third law of motion says, "for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction," meaning that if the bullet had enough force to knockdown your target, firing the bullet would have enough force to knock you down. If you don't believe this, do some research on the Internet, since there are many people doing objective testing of knockdown power.
  3. All of this is to say, one bullet is not guaranteed to knock a person down better than another; it is more a matter of whom you are shooting, where you are shooting them, and whether or not this person has it in their mind that they should fall down when shot. Shot placement is much more important than the bullet size or energy. On the other side, the correct bullet choice may give you the edge, which is needed for you to survive the fight.

Choose a Type of Bullet

Bullet choice should be a major consideration while carrying or for home defense. As with calibers, there is no perfect bullet type. There are some that are better than others, but everything has its trade offs.

  1. Feeding Above all, the first consideration should be, "Does this bullet feed reliably in my chosen firearm?" Some firearms "prefer" a certain shape or length. That being said, quality sidearms will generally feed almost everything well. Just test everything out before the worst-case scenario happens.
  2. Jacketed hollow-point (JHP) bullets are almost universally considered the best choice for defense ammunition. Other expanding designs such as Federal EFMJ and Cor-Bon DPX are also considered effective. It has been proven that JHP and other expanding rounds at handgun velocity are unreliable (at best); and more to the point, that 50% of the time, subsonic rounds are less likely to expand properly in a target. Another controversy with hollow-point rounds is that when the round expands, it creates a larger permanent and temporary cavity, but because of the faster energy transfer, it reduces the penetration depth.
  3. Solid FMJ bullets do not have the problem of losing their energy as quick and are known for penetrating through barriers and still piercing deep enough into flesh to arrive at vital organs. The permanent cavity is reduced in size (compared to JHPs), but this again proves that there are trade offs to every bullet.
    • Federal Hydra-shok is a bullet which looks like a standard JHP from many angles, but inside the front cavity there is a "spear." This allows the bullet to open up and still penetrate through some things. When it was first created, this design led the industry, but now, most will say that improved standard JHP designs have since caught up.
    • Reverse-tapered hollow point is a unique kind of bullet. The hole in the bullet increases in diameter as it descends through the bullet. The design allows for some penetration through hard objects without opening. When the bullet does open, it expands into separate sections which are held together by the jacketing.
    • Soft-tip JHP is a very vague description for any type of JHP which has a filling in the hole (it may be polymer or other hard material). This allows the bullet to pierce some objects or to travel through soft material (such as clothes or flesh) for a short distance before opening up, which allows for deeper penetration. There are alternate names for such bullets, like ballistic-tip or V-Max. This is arguably the most versatile bullet. It will easily penetrate heavy clothing while retaining its ability to expand in a soft target.
  4. Bullet weight is another thing to consider. In general, lighter bullets have higher velocities than heavier ones, so over shorter distances (less than 100 yards) lighter bullets have flatter trajectories. The problem with light bullets is that against soft targets they lose their energy with less resistance than heavier bullets. It has been proven that extremely light bullets can even be stopped by very heavy clothing. A general rule is during the summer, any bullet will work, but light is nice for ballistic reasons; during the winter, when people are wearing heavy clothes, greater mass bullets are superior.
    • An example of a light 9mm bullet would be 100 grains. And a heavy bullet would be 147 grains (though 124/125 gr. is more common).
    • A light .40 would be 135 grains, and a heavy .40 would be 180 grains.
    • A light .45 would be 165 grains, whereas a 230 grain would likely be better for almost any purpose in a .45; even heavier bullets such as the 250 grain are also available.
  5. Powder loads can change a bullet's ballistics and the gun's feel. Standard loads are always recommended for most guns, but some guns, such as Glock and Heckler & Koch (H&K), specify the ability to fire hot loads. Most H&K pistols come with a dual-stage recoil spring which helps with felt recoil as well as recoil shock to internal components. This allows H&K to shoot +P (a hot powder load) and +P+ (a very hot powder load) without a problem. Other guns may need a spring replacement or other changes. The hotter loads allow for more muzzle energy and velocity as well as better reliability since the slide will be racked harder with the extra energy (less chance of limp-wristing or stovepipes).
  6. Practicing with the ammunition you intend to use for self defense can get expensive. You should fire many of your "specialty" rounds to make sure the firearm cycles reliably with them. Some pistols are picky about certain JHP bullet shapes. For general practice you can use FMJ to keep it cheap, but consider using the same weight (in grains) bullets and, if possible, the same load (Standard, +P, etc.) because rapid-fire cycles can change drastically with different weights and loads.

Pistol Accessories

Some pistol accessories can benefit you but hurt the performance of your sidearm at the same time. The following are a few common modifications with both pros and cons.

  1. Night sights are a welcome addition to any conceal carry or duty weapon. It allows the user to sight up targets in low- or no-light situations. The problem with any night sight occurs when used around dusk, or in the pre-dawn, early morning time, when there is not enough light to adequately illuminate the white rings, and it is too bright to see the tritium. Under those conditions, the sights are very difficult to accurately line up. But when it's darker (when most shootings take place) the night sights are very visible and useful.
  2. Tactical, attached lights not only allow one to light up whole rooms, but they can also inflict temporary blindness on the bad guys if used on them. The problem is that they add weight to the gun, and can possibly throw it off balance. It makes the weapon bulkier and harder to conceal also.
    • A very serious problem with attached lights is that it requires the user to aim the gun at the bad guy in order to see him, which from a legal standpoint "assaults" him, and gives the bad guy the legal right to shoot YOU! This problem can be completely avoided by using a separate, hand-held tactical light, which can do most of what an attached light can do, although it will make two-handed shooting much more difficult if not impossible.
    • Also, some argue that attached lights give the bad guy a nice easy target to aim at (but honestly, just try looking at the light for a few seconds — they may know in what direction to shoot, but they won't see what they are shooting at).
    • Buying a cheap light will almost guarantee it breaking after a short while. For a duty or concealed weapon, this can be omitted, but for home defense use, it may be a very good thing to have so that the target is always identified before taking irreversible action.
  3. Trigger work is another tempting modification that many people do to their pistols, often lightening the trigger pull, or shortening the length of the pull. This is great for target shooting or match shooting, but a trigger pull that is less than three pounds can quickly become unsafe if the gun is carried a great deal or often. It can also help substantially with quick follow-up shots, making them more accurate. This is a change that should only be made to the gun if the trigger pull is exceptionally heavy or long.
  4. Rubber slip-on grips can make a sidearm more comfortable. This is often a good thing, and for people with very large hands, it is a must to allow for a solid fit on the grip. The grips have problems though. They can occasionally move, and this can affect accuracy and require constant adjustment. Most tactical-style handguns have groves and hatches in the grip to allow a firm grip even with sweaty palms; and sometimes, the rubber makes the gun a bit slippery when wet. Additional maintenance is also required, as sweat and dirt will build up under the grip, which then requires the rubber to be taken off and the gun's grip and rubber cleaned thoroughly. With large hands, or for a gun which has a very uncomfortable grip, try using rubber grips.

Tips

  • One philosophy of thought is that one should never expend one's entire magazine and should perform a "tactical reload" before the magazine is empty. But this is often impractical to be constantly counting the number of rounds in the gun (especially during a gun fight), then reload before your magazine is empty. Practicing both tactical and emergency reloads will allow the shooter to prepare for any situation that presents itself.
  • Getting good with controlled speed-firing, and using trial and error with timing and grip, are essential. This is one of those drills that is best accomplished by repeated practice.
  • Obviously, the more you practice, the better you will get.
  • Rapid fire isn't everything. "Controlled speed-firing" is the correct term. Unless you are within an arm's reach of your target, you must be able to balance speed and accuracy.
  • The correct pistol is the one that works perfectly for you. Even if other people may not like it, the best pistol you can use is your pistol.
  • While training for tactical readiness or for self defense, most practice should be quick draw and flash sighting rather than slower-paced sight-shooting. Distances should be {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} or less (any farther, and flash sight shooting becomes inconsistent or unreliable).

Warnings

  • All practicing should be done at the shooting range while obeying all safety rules, or in a legal and private location with an unloaded gun. (An alternative to the unloaded gun would be to use snap-caps instead of live rounds.)
  • A pistol can inflict serious injury or even death. Be sure to always point the pistol in a safe direction and never point it at anything or anybody you do not intend to shoot.
  • Any firearm should only be shot in a safe and legal location. Be aware of state and local laws regarding the use and transportation of a firearm and follow those regulations carefully. Laws differ drastically between states and in some states, can even change between counties or cities.
  • Pistols are rarely the best weapon of choice for combat situations. Rifles and shotguns do much more damage than pistols. Pistols are best for targets at {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}, shotguns are best for targets at {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}, and rifles are best for targets at {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}.
  • Be sure to know what is down range. Bullets can travel for miles or can bounce and ricochet into unintended directions. Be aware of your backstop.
  • Safety first! Firearms can be very dangerous. Only use a pistol or other firearm if you are an experienced shooter or have a very experienced shooter directly supervising you.

Things You'll Need

  • A safe place to shoot, where you can have some freedom (shooting ranges are Okay, but in a real fight, you and your target are not going to be standing still directly in front of each other -- unless you time-transport back to the Old West).
  • A handgun.
  • Plenty of time to practice. These skills will not always come easily, or at all.
  • A few hundred rounds for every practice session. (Even if you do not use all of your ammunition, your excuse for not being up-to-snuff with your sidearm should not be because you got cheap when you bought ammunition).
  • Lots of targets (our practice area includes old washing machines and ironing boards with shoot-n-see adhesive targets on them). Get creative, but make sure you choose safe targets and good backstops for your targets. Different sized targets are good also. We use anywhere from 3-inch to 14-inch targets at varying distances.
  • A holster is also a good thing to practice with. The holster you practice with should be the one you wear. So if you are planning to conceal carry, practice with a concealable holster.

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