USA Carry
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Concealed Carry Maps
  • State Guides
    • A-E
      • Alabama
      • Alaska
      • American Samoa
      • Arizona
      • Arkansas
      • California
      • Colorado
      • Connecticut
      • Delaware
    • F-J
      • Florida
      • Georgia
      • Guam
      • Hawaii
      • Idaho
      • Illinois
      • Indiana
      • Iowa
    • K-M
      • Kansas
      • Kentucky
      • Louisiana
      • Maine
      • Maryland
      • Massachusetts
      • Michigan
      • Minnesota
      • Mississippi
      • Missouri
      • Montana
    • N-O
      • Nebraska
      • Nevada
      • New Hampshire
      • New Jersey
      • New Mexico
      • New York
      • North Carolina
      • North Dakota
      • Northern Marianas
      • Ohio
      • Oklahoma
      • Oregon
    • P-U
      • Pennsylvania
      • Puerto Rico
      • Rhode Island
      • South Carolina
      • South Dakota
      • Tennessee
      • Texas
      • Utah
    • V-Z
      • Vermont
      • Virgin Islands
      • Virginia
      • Washington
      • Washington D.C.
      • West Virginia
      • Wisconsin
      • Wyoming
  • Articles
    • Defensive Gun Uses
    • Concealed Carry
    • Gun Reviews
    • Gear Reviews
    • Training
    • Firearm Laws & Litigation
    • CCW For Women
    • General Firearm
    • Open Carry
    • Self-Defense
    • Survival
    • Home Defense
  • Forums
  • Podcast
  • Store
  • Deals
  • Contact
  • Home
  • Concealed Carry Maps
  • State Guides
    • A-E
      • Alabama
      • Alaska
      • American Samoa
      • Arizona
      • Arkansas
      • California
      • Colorado
      • Connecticut
      • Delaware
    • F-J
      • Florida
      • Georgia
      • Guam
      • Hawaii
      • Idaho
      • Illinois
      • Indiana
      • Iowa
    • K-M
      • Kansas
      • Kentucky
      • Louisiana
      • Maine
      • Maryland
      • Massachusetts
      • Michigan
      • Minnesota
      • Mississippi
      • Missouri
      • Montana
    • N-O
      • Nebraska
      • Nevada
      • New Hampshire
      • New Jersey
      • New Mexico
      • New York
      • North Carolina
      • North Dakota
      • Northern Marianas
      • Ohio
      • Oklahoma
      • Oregon
    • P-U
      • Pennsylvania
      • Puerto Rico
      • Rhode Island
      • South Carolina
      • South Dakota
      • Tennessee
      • Texas
      • Utah
    • V-Z
      • Vermont
      • Virgin Islands
      • Virginia
      • Washington
      • Washington D.C.
      • West Virginia
      • Wisconsin
      • Wyoming
  • Articles
    • Defensive Gun Uses
    • Concealed Carry
    • Gun Reviews
    • Gear Reviews
    • Training
    • Firearm Laws & Litigation
    • CCW For Women
    • General Firearm
    • Open Carry
    • Self-Defense
    • Survival
    • Home Defense
  • Forums
  • Podcast
  • Store
  • Deals
  • Contact
No Result
View All Result
USA Carry
No Result
View All Result
  • DAILY GUNS & AMMO DEALS – CLICK HERE!
Home Articles

The 44 CONCEALED CARRY DRILL: Easy But Challenging [POLL]

Ben Findley by Ben Findley
February 11, 2014 - Updated On July 5, 2024
in Articles, Concealed Carry, Training
Reading Time: 6 mins read
The 44 Drill with 4 Hits

The 44 Drill with 4 Hits

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

This is a very easy-to-remember, simple, and basic shooting drill for those who conceal carry a handgun. It is designed to help you with drawing or presenting from a concealed carry holster and garment, as well as improving your accuracy, speed, and techniques for shooting. Its purpose is to help you respond to a general concealed carry scenario and the usual four elements present. The 4 elements of the drill involve the number 4… thus the 44 Drill. Included are the typical distance involved between you and the bad guy or gal, the usual time consumed in a criminal assault, the average number of shots fired, and a challenging center mass target size. You must understand and integrate the fundamentals of shooting into the scenario drill, like proper grip, front sight focus, breath control, trigger control, follow through, etc.

Remember, SAFETY always comes first when handling, practicing with, and shooting a firearm. Also, recognize that many gun negligent discharges happen when drawing and re-holstering the handgun. In a very high number of my gun classes for new shooters, I have observed this happening in the classroom when students shoot the replica BB guns before we go to the range for live fire. For some reason, there are shooters who, after firing their shots, go back to their holsters very quickly. Why? Perhaps they think it just looks cool. Or maybe because they are not focusing on getting their trigger finger off the trigger and out of the trigger guard. We know that when the gun fires and the front sight comes off the target, the manual safety (if there is one) should be engaged and the trigger finger placed along the frame, out of the trigger guard. We know to only re-holster after the attacker is down (the target is hit) and there is no longer a threat. We have assessed our surroundings and searched for any remaining threats. We re-holster only when we are satisfied our situation is safe. So, there is every reason to re-holster slowly and carefully… a learned process that must be practiced. Re-holster slowly. Be very careful when you practice these drills or any drill or firearms technique.

Start slow and do not rush the steps and shots. You probably do not even need a stop watch or timer because speed is not of primary importance initially, since you should heavily focus on the fundamentals first. Let me repeat that… do NOT rush.  At first, speed is not important. It is best to go slow and deliberate focusing on mastering the draw steps, techniques and fundamentals and then getting accurate target hits with speed later. Do not misinterpret this to mean that speed is not important, because it is. Here is a summary reminder of my 9 steps for Drawing from Concealed Carry (see my “Drawing from Concealed Carry: Steps & Tips” article on usacarry.com-1-2-14). No matter if drawing from an open OR closed garment, the shooter may use these basic 9 Steps in the Draw Process:

1. CLEAR the garment to quickly access the handgun; move garment out of the way;

2. GRIP the handgun properly & firmly (web of shooting hand between thumb & index finger should be placed very high on the backstrap underneath the beavertail; trigger finger straight along side of holster; 3 lower fingers together; thumb pointed forward & up high to create gap for support hand later);

3. LIFT the handgun straight up from the holster so it doesn’t drag while bringing support-hand opened with fingers extended (ready to receive shooting hand & gun later- however some like making a fist) close to center chest; strong elbow held high, close to body, and pointed backward; Do Not rotate the elbow out away from body since this will cause drag and bind;

4. ROTATE the handgun to the front & up (by moving strong elbow down to waist- lock the wrist of your gun hand) toward the threat/target without sweeping your support hand;

5. MEET & MOVE the support hand to the strong gun hand in a two-handed grip for support, switch safety off, & quickly assess the threat/target, with muzzle pointed toward threat/target; remember, you need to get both hands on the gun as early as possible in the process;

6. EXTEND arms & handgun straight out & fully forward at eye level with sights on target confirming sight picture; place finger on trigger; hold your breath;

Note: Eyes visually verify that gun is on target by use of the front sight and/or an approximate, rough placement of gun on blurry target, depending on distance & degree of precision desired in situation.

7. PRESS the trigger smoothly straight back & not intermittently, with only the trigger finger of hand   moving, to take the shot IF deadly threat/target exists;

8. REMOVE finger from trigger to side of frame after shots and when eyes and sights are not on threats/target, lower muzzle some, breathe, SCAN & assess for other possible threats;

9. ENGAGE SAFETY & REHOLSTER slowly without looking at holster, in case another threat emerges.

Notes: (1) Beware of the natural tendency to quickly “speed reholster.” It is important to be certain that you do not need the handgun any more and determine the threat status. Lower the gun to the ready position and look for threats, then deliberately and slowly reholster.

(2) Recognize that most negligent discharges and accidents when working from the holster occur on REHOLSTERING and NOT from the actual draw or presentation.

The 44 Drill with 4 Hits
The 44 Drill with 4 Hits

This 44 Drill is a pass-fail test for bringing together everything from your knowledge of shooting fundamentals and concealed carry draw to accuracy and speed. So you either pass by properly drawing your handgun and hitting all 4 shots anyplace on the 4-inch target in 4 seconds at a distance of 4 yards or you do not. An easy drill but a challenging task. Improving your time is not really a goal, since getting all your hits someplace on your small target in 4 seconds is your purpose that will do the job in a representative assault scenario. Don’t get discouraged with target misses when you start to practice the drill. Again, when you begin the drill your focus is almost totally on the fundamentals with accuracy and speed to follow. Just like with anything new in life or something you really want to master, you must thoroughly know the foundations and fundamentals FIRST. The basics are practiced over and over again when you begin. Then as you develop the skills, refine your techniques and basics and have genuine safety awareness, practice for speed as well as accuracy. All of these are important, but to me ACCURACY is key, with speed next, AFTER mastering the fundamentals. It is also best to get regular practice presenting your handgun from your Concealed Carry (CC) Holster to practice draw strokes and clearing your handgun from the holster. So, start slow and deliberate so the proper muscle memory basics can be ingrained. This drill presumes you are in a close-quarters tactical situation and are using a flash-sight picture aiming that quickly focuses on only the front sight, rather than a point shooting technique or long-range sight alignment of front and rear sights. For safety concerns and depending upon your experience level, you probably should initially begin this drill starting from the Low-Ready Position with the handgun pointed to the ground at a 45 degree angle in front of you. Then after you feel comfortable with the drill and scenario elements, you can move to drawing the handgun from a holster and a cover garment. You do need to practice this drill drawing from your holster and clearing your cover garment. You can even use paper plate targets without a bullseye or center mark and just aim for the inner circle of the plate, about 4 inches or so.

Here is my easy-to-remember, simple, and basic 44 Concealed Carry Drill:

  1. Fire 4 Shots
  2. In 4 Seconds (from CC holster & CC garment)
  3. At 4 ” Target
  4. Placed 4 Yards (12 feet) Away.

Remember, ALWAYS BE SAFE. Go slow at first and carefully and deliberately practice the fundamentals, techniques, and the draw presentation. Then progress to accuracy and then speed.

Continued success!

* This personal opinion article is meant for general information & educational purposes only and the author strongly recommends that you seek counsel from an attorney for legal advice and your own personal certified weapons trainer for proper guidance about shooting & using YOUR firearms, self-defense and concealed carry. It should not be relied upon as accurate for all shooters & the author assumes no responsibility for anyone’s use of the information and shall not be liable for any improper or incorrect use of the information or any damages or injuries incurred whatsoever. 

© 2014 Col Benjamin Findley. All Rights Reserved. This article may not be reprinted or reproduced in whole or in part by mechanical means, photocopying, electronic reproduction, scanning, or any other means without prior written permission. For copyright information, contact Col Ben Findley at [email protected].

Tags: concealed carrydrawingdrilltraining
Ben Findley

Ben Findley

Col. Ben is retired with 30 years service in the U.S. Air Force, with joint services weapons training, Special Ops duty at various bases, and is Air Force qualified as “Expert” in small arms. He is a Vietnam-era veteran and serves on the Board of Directors for the Florida Veterans Foundation of the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs and for the Veterans Memorial Park Foundation. Ben is an experienced NRA-Certified Pistol Instructor, NRA Range Safety Officer, and FL Concealed Carry License Instructor. His doctorate is in business and education and he has served as director of legal affairs for an organization and taught university business law. He is a graduate of two law enforcement academies for civilians. Ben wrote the book “Concealed Carry and Handgun Essentials for Personal Protection” (second printing) with 57 comprehensive Chapters about concealed carry and handgun principles, techniques, and tips for both experienced and new shooters. His reference book is endorsed by several organizations and is available on his website at FloridaHandgunsTraining.com. Contact him at [email protected].

Next Post
Nonsense from a Utah PD

Nonsense from a Utah PD

0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Connect with
Login
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
Notify of
Connect with
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
Please login to comment
18 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Previous Post

A Laser for Your Home Defense Gun?

Next Post

Nonsense from a Utah PD

Related Posts

Articles

Facing Three Armed Intruders Alone, Evansville Man Shoots One Dead, Sends Two Fleeing

May 15, 2025
Articles

Suspect with AK-47 Opens Fire in Florence Fast Food Restaurant as 17-Year-Old Employee Shoots Back

May 14, 2025
Articles

GOA Slams House Committee for Betrayal Over Suppressor Tax ‘Compromise’

May 14, 2025 - Updated On May 15, 2025
Articles

Armed Citizen Defends Himself After Suspect Pulls Gun During Online Sale, Teen Shot During Attempted Carjacking

May 13, 2025

© 2024 USA Carry LLC

Navigate Site

  • State Guides
  • Maps
  • Articles
  • Forums
  • Podcast
  • Store
  • Deals
  • Giveaway
  • Advertise
  • Contact

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Concealed Carry Permit Reciprocity Maps
  • Concealed Carry Permit Guides By State
    • Alabama
    • Alaska
    • American Samoa
    • Arizona
    • Arkansas
    • California
    • Colorado
    • Connecticut
    • Delaware
    • Florida
    • Georgia
    • Guam
    • Hawaii
    • Idaho
    • Illinois
    • Indiana
    • Iowa
    • Kansas
    • Kentucky
    • Louisiana
    • Maine
    • Maryland
    • Massachusetts
    • Michigan
    • Minnesota
    • Mississippi
    • Missouri
    • Montana
    • Nebraska
    • Nevada
    • New Hampshire
    • New Jersey
    • New Mexico
    • New York
    • North Carolina
    • North Dakota
    • Northern Marianas
    • Ohio
    • Oklahoma
    • Oregon
    • Pennsylvania
    • Puerto Rico
    • Rhode Island
    • South Carolina
    • South Dakota
    • Tennessee
    • Texas
    • Utah
    • Vermont
    • Virgin Islands
    • Virginia
    • Washington
    • Washington D.C.
    • West Virginia
    • Wisconsin
    • Wyoming
  • Articles
    • Defensive Gun Uses
    • Concealed Carry
    • Gun Reviews
    • Gear Reviews
    • Training
    • Firearm Laws & Litigation
    • CCW For Women
    • General Firearm
    • Open Carry
    • Self-Defense
    • Survival
    • Home Defense
  • Forums
  • Podcast
  • Giveaway
  • Store
  • Daily Deals
  • Contact

© 2024 USA Carry LLC

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Concealed Carry Permit Reciprocity Maps
  • Concealed Carry Permit Guides By State
    • Alabama
    • Alaska
    • American Samoa
    • Arizona
    • Arkansas
    • California
    • Colorado
    • Connecticut
    • Delaware
    • Florida
    • Georgia
    • Guam
    • Hawaii
    • Idaho
    • Illinois
    • Indiana
    • Iowa
    • Kansas
    • Kentucky
    • Louisiana
    • Maine
    • Maryland
    • Massachusetts
    • Michigan
    • Minnesota
    • Mississippi
    • Missouri
    • Montana
    • Nebraska
    • Nevada
    • New Hampshire
    • New Jersey
    • New Mexico
    • New York
    • North Carolina
    • North Dakota
    • Northern Marianas
    • Ohio
    • Oklahoma
    • Oregon
    • Pennsylvania
    • Puerto Rico
    • Rhode Island
    • South Carolina
    • South Dakota
    • Tennessee
    • Texas
    • Utah
    • Vermont
    • Virgin Islands
    • Virginia
    • Washington
    • Washington D.C.
    • West Virginia
    • Wisconsin
    • Wyoming
  • Articles
    • Defensive Gun Uses
    • Concealed Carry
    • Gun Reviews
    • Gear Reviews
    • Training
    • Firearm Laws & Litigation
    • CCW For Women
    • General Firearm
    • Open Carry
    • Self-Defense
    • Survival
    • Home Defense
  • Forums
  • Podcast
  • Giveaway
  • Store
  • Daily Deals
  • Contact

© 2024 USA Carry LLC

wpDiscuz
18
0
Join the conversation, please comment.x
()
x
| Reply
You are going to send email to

Move Comment
Gun Deals
Gun.Deals