practice distance for beginner

[jtg452]

All the tactical training in the world isn't worth anything if you can't get the gun sitting in your hand the same way every time and you can't pull the trigger without jerking, flinching, milking or generally screwing it up. Face it, most misses are operator error not ammunition, gun or equipment related. The initial post states clearly that he was a novice that was just starting out shooting pistols. That's why I suggested (in detail) that he master the basics of grip and trigger press (as verified by a big paper target up close initially and then farther away as progress is made) before he tried shooting rapid fire, multiple targets, instinctive shooting or shooting on the move. Toting a gun when you can't shoot straight makes as much sense to me as buying a Ferrari when you can't drive a stick. Yeah, it looks cool but what are you gonna do with it? You learn to crawl, then stand, then walk, then run. Shooting is the same way. You have to learn to hold the gun and pull the trigger in a consistent manner before you start shooting at speed or without using sights if you want to do more than spray and pray. You can't run a marathon if you don't know how to stand up yet and you can't expect any sort of success running and gunning (whether it is competition or gun fighting) if you don't have the fundamentals of shooting down pat. It isn't about 'fighting like you train' because he hadn't advanced to the 'training' part yet. Misses don't do anything but make noise and endanger innocent bystanders in a self defense situation. Hits are all that count. If you hit first and make it count by hitting where you need to, you win. If you miss, you lose.

[Iam2Taz]

All the tactical training in the world isn't worth anything if you can't get the gun sitting in your hand the same way every time and you can't pull the trigger without jerking, flinching, milking or generally screwing it up. Face it, most misses are operator error not ammunition, gun or equipment related. The initial post states clearly that he was a novice that was just starting out shooting pistols. That's why I suggested (in detail) that he master the basics of grip and trigger press (as verified by a big paper target up close initially and then farther away as progress is made) before he tried shooting rapid fire, multiple targets, instinctive shooting or shooting on the move. Toting a gun when you can't shoot straight makes as much sense to me as buying a Ferrari when you can't drive a stick. Yeah, it looks cool but what are you gonna do with it? You learn to crawl, then stand, then walk, then run. Shooting is the same way. You have to learn to hold the gun and pull the trigger in a consistent manner before you start shooting at speed or without using sights if you want to do more than spray and pray. You can't run a marathon if you don't know how to stand up yet and you can't expect any sort of success running and gunning (whether it is competition or gun fighting) if you don't have the fundamentals of shooting down pat. It isn't about 'fighting like you train' because he hadn't advanced to the 'training' part yet. Misses don't do anything but make noise and endanger innocent bystanders in a self defense situation. Hits are all that count. If you hit first and make it count by hitting where you need to, you win. If you miss, you lose.

+1 - Qualify to get your license. (I saw the original thread started in NY) However many states have some similar avenues for success. In MO (CCW1) then practice to get to a point you can hit your target. Slow is accurate, accurate is fast, =Slow is fast!. (Paying for a lesson from a professional is not a wennie thing to do.) Work 5 feet, 10 out to 20 ft. Then consider CCW2 - Call it beginners training. - Practice more. Then move to some other training. IDPA is a huge amount of fun and you can learn some very good skills.