Minimum set of handgun self defense competencies

[Librarian]

Given carrying a handgun for self defense, what should one be able to do with it?

Now, that's obviously not all of SD, but what I'm interested in is something like 'when I go to the range with my handgun, what are some drills I really MUST do well ?'

For example, it seems to me that a SD encounter is not going to allow much preparation or sighting-in or 'warming up', so doing some exercise utterly cold - surprise! shoot now! - ought to tell me something.

 

[Series 70]

It seems to me, if you want to simulate what you might really be doing in a self-defense situation it is this - draw from concealment and put two rounds center mass. Three seconds is a good time. If you have a good outdoor range that you can work some movement in, do that while moving to cover. Practice shooting around cover as well.

Fr. Frog has some classic drills here http://frfrogspad.com/courses.htm#Pistol

 

[tomrkba]

Shooting:

Controlled pairs
Double taps
Hearts and minds
Zippers
Transitions between targets
Shooting on the move
One handed shooting
Weak hand shooting
Long range precision shooting (25-50 yards)
Shooting while wounded from odd positions
Weapon retention
Shooting in contact
Extreme close range fighting
Combatives (martial arts)
Malfunction clearance
One handed reloading techniques
Alternative loading techniques

Tactics:

Pre-attack indicators
Cover versus concealment
Situational awareness
Covering a shot attacker
After action checks
Knowing when to/when not to insert yourself into a situation
Managing the police
Managing witnesses legally
Moving through buildings

I'm sure there are other skills that I cannot think of right now.

One cold drill you can do is very simple:

Conceal your loaded gun.
Load it with three rounds. Place a fully loaded magazine in your magazine holder.
Under time:

Step off the line of force with an incortada (or start moving laterally if your range allows it).
Draw and fire two to the body and one to the head while moving to cover
Reload while moving or behind cover
Fire two to the body from behind cover (timing ends here)
Scan from behind cover

This trains you to move before drawing (avoiding getting shot). It tests your ability to reload while moving as part of a string of fire.

Repeat with variations: move the cover, add targets, use moving targets, shoot one hand or weak hand only, etc.

Also take a look at Todd Green's FAST drill.

 

[coolluke01]

Make sure you work on slow shooting with proper technique. Poor technique done fast is sloppy and ineffective.

Front sight, press. Slow shooting to develop the skills.

Given carrying a handgun for self defense, what should one be able to do with it?

Hit your target! I don't mean to make obvious statements, but this really is fundamental and truly the most necessary. Note my signature line!

If you shoot slow you allow more time for the bad guy to do what he's doing. If you shoot fast and miss you do his work for him. When you miss the bad guy you can kill innocent people. I'll die before I shoot an innocent.

 

[Series 70]

Yeah, coolluke01 speaks the truth. Technique is important. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast. You can't miss fast enough to win a gunfight.

 

[Librarian]

Step off the line of force with an incortada

? incortada ? For the first time in ages, Google and translation software have failed me.

As is true with a lot of urban areas, not least California, drills including movement are difficult because few places allow them. I have trained in them, just can't keep up the practice.

There are places - 9mmepiphany is a member at a range near Sacramento that will rent small bermed areas, but I'm 90 miles from there, so that's a Special Occasion.

Fr. Frog looks useful.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Practice drawing and dryfiring. If you do that enough, you'll have spent your time well. When you go live, do what you have practiced. Practice makes better.

 

[9mmepiphany]

If you can find a range that will allow you to draw from the holster:

draw from concealment and put two rounds center mass. Three seconds is a good time.

...is a bad bar for minimal skill; however I'd go a bit further and spec from 5-7 yards, keeping the shots inside 6" (3"x5" card would be better) and lower the time to 2 seconds.

I've found a good test is the F.A.S.T. drill good test of all around handgun skills.

Given you available facilities, I'd practice your draw in Dry Fire at home and shooting single shots on the Push Out at the range

 

[mljdeckard]

Post number three is frankly a bit absurd. Are you saying that if you can't do all of those things, you shouldn't carry? Most COPS can't do all of those things.

I tell my students to start with the 3-3-3 drill. Three shots, three meters, three seconds, on a torso-sized target. It's somewhere to start. Then build up to things like the el presidente and F.A.S.T. drills.

But to say there is a MINIMUM level of skill you should have is leaning towards the antis demanding minimum training requirements to carry. (They would set the bar so high NO ONE would be able to carry.) Everyone has to start somewhere.

 

[Librarian]

Gee, there's a lot of familiarity in the F.A.S.T. drill ....

That's doable as an occasional check. And dry fire is free and available every day.

 

[sidheshooter]

I dunno, post 3 seemed pretty reasonable to me. Doesn't mean I've mastered any of that stuff, but with the exception of hearts and minds (which I've never heard of) I've trained on all those bullet points/topics, and I'm no expert shooter.

 

[beatledog7]

Post 3's list under the header "Shooting" is reasonable in the tactical proficiency sense, but most people who carry will never see the need for let alone master a lot those skills. The vast majority of CCWers will simply need to be able to put rounds into center of mass, repeating as necessary, with both are either hand, and to clear malfunctions.

The list under "Tactics" is mostly good except that they're more closely aligned with what I think of as operational skills or strategies than they are to tactics.

A lot of ranges don't allow for practicing anything more than measured, deliberate fire with the muzzle always down range. Unless a person shoots at a more flexible range and/or takes courses specifically designed to teach these tactics, he or she will not learn or be able to practice them.

And that's probably ok considering that most CCWers will never have to shoot, and those who do will likely not be facing multiple attackers and will not be in a shootout. Statistics are not at hand, but anecdotally speaking, most SD shots are from "hard to miss" range into a single attacker.

Otherwise, are they really SD?

 

[Kingcreek]

I want my 75 year old widowed mother to be able to protect herself adequately but I see no reason why she should be required to do tactical drills. If she can handle her handgun safely and with some basic proficiency, I'll call that good enough and better than nothing.
I think every one should train to their own perceived need and comfort level. Not necessary for every gun-carrying individual to shoot and move like the bianchi cup masters.
I'm not against training, I just think some folks get carried away and want to project that on to everyone regardless of circumstance.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Jelly Bryce practiced the fundamentals.

Vistit www.gutterfighting.org for the accounting.

".practicing facing a full-length mirror at police headquarters, sometimes for as much as eight hours at a time..".

He had made himself an exceptional shot way before making himself into a machine through simple desire and practice.
There are no shortcuts, just drill.

 

[Kleanbore]

Post number three is frankly a bit absurd. Are you saying that if you can't do all of those things, you shouldn't carry?

Beat me to it.

 

[Frank Ettin]

Minimum set of handgun self defense competencies

Given carrying a handgun for self defense, what should one be able to do with it?...

When I've been asked this sort of question, I usually look at the package of knowledge and skills. Competently carrying a gun for self defense involves more than just marksmanship:

• You will want to know and understand the legal issues -- when the use of lethal force would be legally justified, when it would not be, and how to tell the difference. You will want to understand how to handle the legal aftermath of a violent encounter and how to articulate why, in a particular situation, you decided to take whatever action you did.
  
  
• You will want to know about levels of alertness and mental preparedness to take action. You will want to understand how to assess situations and make difficult decisions quickly under stress. You will want to know about the various stress induced physiological and psychological effects that you might face during and after a violent encounter.
  
  
• You will want to develop good practical proficiency with your gun. That includes practical marksmanship, i. e., being able to deploy your gun and get good hits quickly at various distances. It also includes skills such as moving and shooting, use of cover and concealment, reloading quickly, clearing malfunctions, and moving safely with a loaded gun.

Of course, as others have pointed out, the practical pistolcraft can be tough to work on given the limitations imposed by most ranges.

Dry fire and some of the drills mentioned would be useful. Also, when on the square range and not able to do holster work or move, it never hurts to keep up with basic marksmanship skills -- trigger control and flash sight picture. I'll often shoot quick 2, 3 or 4 shot strings starting a low ready. I'll also do some multiple target drills by putting smaller targets (I like the 7 inch Shoot'Nc ovals) around on a standard bullseye target and shooting 1, 2 or 3 shots on each, starting at low ready.

IPSC and IDPA competition, can also be helpful. I believe that there are a couple of clubs near the OP that have competitions several times a month.

 

[mavracer]

In the words of Harry Calahan "a man's gotta know his limitations"
Other than setting some bar, always strive for improvement.
The most important skill is knowing when to pull the trigger and conversly when not to.

 

[9mmepiphany]

I'd like to think that my answer was in that vein of being practical for most folks and achievable even with limited range facilities...I'm sure I was influenced by having met the OP and knowing what ranges he has available in his area.

My response was based on what I think a person who carries a handgun...I'm thinking CCW...should be able to do on demand. Something this is easy to practice given a wide spectrum of range limitations and even limited time in which to practice.

'when I go to the range with my handgun, what are some drills I really MUST do well ?'

... is a lot different from the skills listed in post #3...the OP wasn't even asking about Tactics. I believe the OP was purposely limiting the question to keep the responses more focused.

 

[Frank Ettin]

...I'm sure I was influenced by having met the OP and knowing what ranges he has available in his area...

And in the vein, I should add that I believe the Richmond Rod and Gun Club still opens the IPSC/IDPA range on Saturday mornings for practice, for qualified people.

 

[tomrkba]

It is an incomplete outline the defensive handgun martial art. If you think such skills are silly, then you are not maximizing your odds of success. If you think you do not need the zero to five feet stuff...good luck!

Most of the skills in my post are taught in any defensive handgun level one and two courses. The combatives and zero to five feet stuff comes straight from Southnarc's ECQC course. Roger Phillips teaches a great course on movement. Any simulation course will give you some experience with scenarios and managing the police.

I never said the unproficient should not carry. Many people carry daily who have nearly no concept of trigger control (observe any CCW class). The key for people with this sort of attitude is to be less unproficient and more lucky than the bad guy. I do not find this comforting and actively improve my skills because I do not treat carry as a sport.

 

[Librarian]

And in the vein, I should add that I believe the Richmond Rod and Gun Club still opens the IPSC/IDPA range on Saturday mornings for practice, for qualified people.

I believe it does; and the United Sportsmen range here in Concord does something similar - I know the Diablo R&G guy.

If I may digress into the frivolous, the problem with those is mornings. I'm newly retired. Nobody pays me to do things in the morning, so I don't. Needing to do things in the morning is somewhat of an 'emergency situation' on its own. To you morning people, including my wife, I say "Bleah!" </frivolous>

[Note: to the inevitable response 'the bad guys don't care about your diurnal cycle' I reply in advance (1) in the mornings I am regularly at home, and home defense is a different animal, though there are some transfers of training, (2) I can't get a license to carry a gun in my county in CA anyway (but I still want to prepare), and (3) you missed 'frivolous'.]

I did write "Now, that's obviously not all of SD..."; my intent was to suggest I already had the mindset, the understanding of awareness and avoidance, and the legal ramifications.

Having passed through the full set of preparation phases, I was concerned with the time the classic 'condition red' might obtain: I need to shoot HIM, NOW.

The answers have been helpful, and I thank you all. As usual, now I have things to work on.

 

[Frank Ettin]

...If I may digress into the frivolous, the problem with those is mornings. I'm newly retired. Nobody pays me to do things in the morning, so I don't. Needing to do things in the morning is somewhat of an 'emergency situation' on its own....

As someone retired himself, there's nothing frivolous about that.

 

[HorseSoldier]

Post number three is frankly a bit absurd. Are you saying that if you can't do all of those things, you shouldn't carry? Most COPS can't do all of those things.

I was taught everything on that list in the police academy I attended -- but that was a six month program with tons of range time for pistols and a pretty good amount for both rifle and shotgun. Recognizing that most people don't have the free time or money to get the same level of training on their own time/dime, I'd say it is a good working list of skills to aim for. For basic minimum skills I like the move-draw-shoot drill that has been discussed, with work on basic pistol fundamentals thrown in.

 

[huntsman]

I pratice firing while moving backward

 

[justice06rr]

I highly suggest attending a 3-gun event for those who have not done it yet. It has opened my eyes and honed some skills that I lack and never thought I would be able to do at all.

Pistol shooting esp indoors is very limited. Most places don't allow shooting from the hip; in fact most places I know always let you put the pistol on the table before you can shoot it.

What you need to know to be well rounded are:
- Shooting weak side and strong side
- shooting will sitting down, prone, knee, etc.
- shooting multiple targets: this is where an indoor range is highly
lacking. A 2-gun or 3-gun event will allow you to practice this
- rapid fire
- reloading techniques
- clearing malfunctions
- shooting on the move
etc

I'm sure there are more, but thats what come to mind. One of the most important things I learned is shooting weak side/support side with my pistol, shotgun, and rifle. Most people only practice weak/support side shooting on one platform. IMO you need to know and practice with all your weapons you intend to use. If you are only limited to one platform i.e. pistols then practice all you can with it.