Running a Gun with Only One Hand

[Paul Gomez]

I've been a proponent of learning to work the pistol with one hand for a long time. Why? Of course, the obvious answer is Injury to one hand. Another, less obvious, but more common occurrence is situations where one hand is being used to perform a task such as opening a door or controlling/guiding someone.
Another aspect is confidence. Simply put, if you are confident manipulating the gun with your offhand, everything else is easy.

I divide my practice into thirds. 1/3 Right Hand Only, 1/3 Both hands, 1/3 Left Hand Only. The basic gun skills are the same regardless of how many hands you get to use. They are Drawing, Shooting, Reloading and Addressing Stoppages.

Here are a couple of clips illustrating my take:

Gunhand Only Gun Stuff
Offhand Only Gun Stuff

 

[JustinJ]

I would say that if in the vast majority of self defense shootings people will use both hands it should encompass far more than just 33% of training.

 

[holdencm9]

I'd say I am like 80% two-handed, 15% strong hand only, 5% weak hand only.

 

[loper]

Some good points here, but I still do a certain amount of "wrong-handed" shooting, just because I can use the most improvement there.

 

[Al Thompson]

I would say that if in the vast majority of self defense shootings people will use both hands it should encompass far more than just 33% of training.

That's a big "if" in my opinion. No real way to quantify the numbers, but I would argue that a rather high per cent of the time, one handed may be all you get a chance to do.

One thing is certain IMHO. If you get good strong or weak hand only, when the situation allows you to use both hands you will appreciate the gain in control. Sort of like getting good at shooting a rifle off hand makes shooting from a rest much easier.

 

[JustinJ]

That's a big "if" in my opinion. No real way to quantify the numbers, but I would argue that a rather high per cent of the time, one handed may be all you get a chance to do.

I can certainly see SD situations in which one will be forced to use their weak hand for other things and shoot with strong hand only but the amount where one will have to use the weak hand to shoot i think is going to be extremely low.

One thing is certain IMHO. If you get good strong or weak hand only, when the situation allows you to use both hands you will appreciate the gain in control. Sort of like getting good at shooting a rifle off hand makes shooting from a rest much easier.

Does gaining an appreciation for one thing being easier necessarily make one better at it?

I agree with some training for highly unlikely scenarios so one isn't forced to try and figure out how to do it in a real life event but think focus should be on those events most likely to occur.

 

[Bubba613]

The main point to me of operating (and here I mean drawing and shooting) with strong or weak hand only is not the idea that your hand will get injured. Rather, especially as most of us get older, things like carpal tunnel surgery come along and we lose the use of our hands for a short time. Having the confidence in one handed operation during such a time would be a very big advantage, well worth the time training.

 

[Paul Gomez]

JustinJ,

If we look at what data is available, most shootings do allow for both hands to be used. However, as a private citizen in the US, the odds of ever needing to use a gun to defend ourselves is very slight. If, however, you do find yourself in that situation, you are already on one end of the statistical bell curve. As my friend and colleague, Tom Givens says 'We don't call them Secondary Skills because they are less important. We call them Secondary Skills because, statistically we are less likely to need them.' Of course, if we do need them, we need them every bit as badly as the skills we do practice.

One hand shooting is more difficult than two hand shooting. A lot of people have significant issues and/or reluctance to one handed gun work because they know they are marginally competent with both hands. If they find themselves in a situation where they do need to work the gun with only one hand, they are at a huge disadvantage.

Additionally, when someone practices one hand skills, there is a crossover that shows in their two handed work. Working sights and trigger does not change. Being able to make your hits with either hand adds to your ability with both hands. The inverse is not true.

 

[conw]

Additionally, when someone practices one hand skills, there is a crossover that shows in their two handed work. Working sights and trigger does not change. Being able to make your hits with either hand adds to your ability with both hands. The inverse is not true.

I was about to make this same point to JustinJ.

 

[JMusic]

I think what has to be qualified in Paul's statement is experience. By that I mean how much you have shot prior to coming to Paul's conclusion. In my younger years I was pretty much one hand dominant, today I am not. I shoot about the same with either hand. Interesting discussion and opinions.

Let me say though over the years, injuries to my shooting arm and practice with off hand got me to this skill set. Its pretty neat being comfortable shooting a pistol with either hand. I am still trying to get there with a shotgun.

 

[JustinJ]

If we look at what data is available, most shootings do allow for both hands to be used. However, as a private citizen in the US, the odds of ever needing to use a gun to defend ourselves is very slight. If, however, you do find yourself in that situation, you are already on one end of the statistical bell curve. As my friend and colleague, Tom Givens says 'We don't call them Secondary Skills because they are less important. We call them Secondary Skills because, statistically we are less likely to need them.' Of course, if we do need them, we need them every bit as badly as the skills we do practice.

I couldnt agree more about how extremely unlikely it is to ever have the need to use a gun.
However, most shooters and CHL holders, myself included, have plenty of room for improvement with the more commonly used two hand shooting method and i believe it makes much more sense to practice primarily at what you are much more likely to do in a SD event at least until a high level of proficiency is reached. For highly advanced shooters who have reached an advanced skillset of two handed shooting I could certainly see a strong arguement for spending a much higher percentage of time on methods that are infrequently used as the return on investment may then be higher. But for the average shooter i see at the range I think the vast majority of time should be spent on two handed shooting, with some on strong and the least with weak.

One hand shooting is more difficult than two hand shooting. A lot of people have significant issues and/or reluctance to one handed gun work because they know they are marginally competent with both hands. If they find themselves in a situation where they do need to work the gun with only one hand, they are at a huge disadvantage.

Of all the SD shooting accounts i've read of I'm hard pressed to think of one where one handed shooting was needed but if statistics are available i'm sure we'd all love to see them.

Additionally, when someone practices one hand skills, there is a crossover that shows in their two handed work. Working sights and trigger does not change. Being able to make your hits with either hand adds to your ability with both hands. The inverse is not true.

But would you say that for the average shooter who is not advanced improvements would not be made faster in two handed shooting by the practice of two handed shooting? Admittedly i've done very little weak handed shooting but i agree that two handed certainly felt easier after but couldnt say if it really made an improvement.

 

[Purgatory]

Of all the SD shooting accounts i've read of I'm hard pressed to think of one where one handed shooting was needed but if statistics are available i'm sure we'd all love to see them.

Speak for yourself, Justin.

Plenty of more-than-valid points have already been made to justify the OP's view on one-handed training and you're just refusing to accept their validity.

Anyone who's ever used handguns in competition will tell you that it's a skill that is paramount to be comfortable with. It can make or break your match performance.

There is also plenty of shooting from retention in competition, which is basically drawing and shooting one-handed from the hip.

I believe this is an invaluable skill for attacks that take place at point blank range where you will often need one hand to fend off the attacker and the other hand to draw and fire directly from the holster to keep the gun as far from your attacker's reach as possible while defending your life with it.

If you feel you need to practice two-handed only while standing in one place at a non-moving target, then that's certainly your prerogative.

 

[JustinJ]

Purgatory:

Quote:
Of all the SD shooting accounts i've read of I'm hard pressed to think of one where one handed shooting was needed but if statistics are available i'm sure we'd all love to see them.

Speak for yourself, Justin.

Some are interested in information. Sorry, I'll never mistaken you for one of those again.

Plenty of more-than-valid points have already been made to justify the OP's view on one-handed training and you're just refusing to accept their validity.

Okay, let me say this for you as simply as i can for you. I don't disagree with practicing strong and weak handed shooting. I don't agree with 33% for each. How you missed that i don't know.

So then do all reputable firearms instructors advise a 33% split? If not does that mean they are just missing the points too?

Anyone who's ever used handguns in competition will tell you that it's a skill that is paramount to be comfortable with. It can make or break your match performance.

There is also plenty of shooting from retention in competition, which is basically drawing and shooting one-handed from the hip.

Which of my posts said anything about match shooting?

I believe this is an invaluable skill for attacks that take place at point blank range where you will often need one hand to fend off the attacker and the other hand to draw and fire directly from the holster to keep the gun as far from your attacker's reach as possible while defending your life with it.

Yes, said attacks will generally entail strong hand draw with as you said point blank shooting.

If you feel you need to practice two-handed only while standing in one place at a non-moving target, then that's certainly your prerogative

You write in english so i assume you can read it? If so you might have noticed that i wrote: "But for the average shooter i see at the range I think the vast majority of time should be spent on two handed shooting, with some on strong and the least with weak."

And please explain where i made any mention of practice with only static positions at static targets.

There are few things more rude than putting words in other's mouths and misrepresenting thier positions. Maybe work on your own positions more and spend less time trying to invent ones for me.

 

[Old Fuff]

Quoted from another thread:

NYPD Shooting Report

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/25/ny...nt&tntemail1=y

This is an interesting article with a link to the report. It details all shootings by the NYPD in 2010. Some of the info is surprising, such as...

"Last year, 52 officers from the New York Police Department fired a total of 236 bullets during confrontations with suspects. About half of the officers used a two-handed grip on their firearm, as the department encourages, while the others shot one-handed. And in a sign of just how tense these 33 separate shooting episodes were, and how rapidly they unfolded, only one officer reported using the gun’s sight before firing."

Paul would seem to have reality on his side. Apparently in spite of NYPD training and policy, in 33 shooting incidents only about 50% used a two-handed stance, and only one said he used the sights on his pistol. I would expect much fewer civilian CCW holders, with less training, would use a two-handed stance or the sights when push came to shove.

 

[Deaf Smith]

Since I shoot with either hand because I once broke my right hand and found out how rotten a shot I was left handed, I can understand why to train equally with either hand.

No I am not ambidextrous, but I found if you simply train to draw using a dummy gun with your weak hand after a while you gut used to it. And then on the range, with a .22, you will get used to shooting with that weak hand. In time it will not matter which hand you use.

Why? Cause you might injure your strong side hand (as I did), or it is busy with another task like driving, or fighting, or manipulating keys, locks, doors, etc...

I say yes, train to be able to use either hand. Now reloading is not a high priority as what is in the gun to begin with is far more important, but once you have got pretty good with either hand, sure add reloading skills.

Deaf

 

[Strykervet]

Well, one of my main draws has the left arm extended in a "Stop!" fashion while the right draws and keeping the pistol next to my abdomen. If the threat is touching my hand, that is all the aiming and reason to fire I need (provided I had reason to draw in the first place). However, if the threat is farther away and not advancing, the draw is completed to bring the pistol up to the left hand and then both are copasetic.

If the heat ramps up, you can fire from the belly, again halfway up, and a third time as you assume the two handed positon.

Most work I did shooting lefty was with an M4. We'd train on that from time to time, and there are situations like firing from underneath a car or through a rat hole where you can only shoot left handed to maintain cover. I find if you line everything up, the only difference is that it feels awkward and takes a little bit more time. With pistols, you give up some accuracy.

 

[Byrd666]

Of all the SD shooting accounts i've read of I'm hard pressed to think of one where one handed shooting was needed but if statistics are available i'm sure we'd all love to see them.

Being a strictly one handed shooter, and not by choice, I prefer to NOT be one of those statistics of which you seek.

That being said, any and all information I can gain on the subject or matter of one handed shooting and or one handed manipulation of any of the tools available to me in almost any situation will be digested and possibly used if the situation warrants. There are so many different and plausible uses of one handed practice that it is almost impossible to count.

I myself am a hemipalegic, one side of my body paralyzed, because of a gunshot wound that I was lucky enough to survive. So being at a "disadvantage" from the start is enough for me, and hopefully anybody else that thinks "IT" can't happen to them, to learn and or practice any and all possible scenarios you might think could or will happen to you and yours


Side note:
Thanx for the vids Paul

 

[Shawn Dodson]

I don't bother with strong-hand only training - just weak-hand and two-hand training.

For me, weak-hand only training carries directly over to the strong-hand - except the strong-hand tasks are more efficient due to it being the dominant side. In addition, strong-hand tasks are simply two-hand tasks without the support (weak) hand.

In regard to one-handed shooting skills - it's better to have them and not need them than to need them and not have them.

 

[Al Thompson]

I believe it makes much more sense to practice primarily at what you are much more likely to do in a SD event at least until a high level of proficiency is reached

When you link a timeline (of proficiency) to your practice drills, that makes good sense and a good point.

I do think that achieving enough accuracy two handed to start looking at moving to one handed drills can be accomplished fairly quickly, especially with a good coach.

 

[JustinJ]

Quoted from another thread:

Quote:
NYPD Shooting Report

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/25/ny...nt&tntemail1=y

This is an interesting article with a link to the report. It details all shootings by the NYPD in 2010. Some of the info is surprising, such as...

"Last year, 52 officers from the New York Police Department fired a total of 236 bullets during confrontations with suspects. About half of the officers used a two-handed grip on their firearm, as the department encourages, while the others shot one-handed. And in a sign of just how tense these 33 separate shooting episodes were, and how rapidly they unfolded, only one officer reported using the gun’s sight before firing."

Paul would seem to have reality on his side. Apparently in spite of NYPD training and policy, in 33 shooting incidents only about 50% used a two-handed stance, and only one said he used the sights on his pistol. I would expect much fewer civilian CCW holders, with less training, would use a two-handed stance or the sights when push came to shove.

Except I'm talking about SD shootings. Not LE for which circumstances tend to be significantly different. Also, how many were shooting one handed by choice versus necessity given many police are far from proficient.?The link by the way does not work.

 

[Old Fuff]

Sorry about the link. This one should take you to the original thread here on THR.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=627445&highlight=New+York

Anyway my point is that when push comes to shove, and especially when the the shove is quick and unexpected, I doubt that many but the most highly trained are going to use a two-handed stance or a flash sight picture. This is often borne out by after action reports. This may be good or bad depending, but it's a fact because it's the natural way human beings are programed.

This may be overcome with extensive practice, but in the overall picture very few police departments or individuals are willing to go to the trouble or expense.

In my view, Mr. Gomez has a grasp on the reality of the situation, and is willing to go outside the box to address it.

There is a time when a two-handed stance may be the best option, but there are also others where it isn't, and without question it isn't useful if it isn't employed - for whatever reason. This is true regardless if it's a law enforcement officer being attacked or a civilian defending themselves against a lethal encounter.

It is better to train and perfect techniques that will best fit the most likely situations, then to spend more time gaining expertise that is less likely to be used.

 

[holdencm9]

Except I'm talking about SD shootings. Not LE for which circumstances tend to be significantly different. Also, how many were shooting one handed by choice versus necessity given many police are far from proficient.?The link by the way does not work.

I also take the NYPD shootings with a grain of salt. First of all, small sample size. 33 shootings over the course of one year, by one group of similarly-trained individuals in the same line of work, does not make for drawing a good conclusion as it pertains to armed citizens. What does a cop usually do? If they are not in uniform, they may be showing their badge with one hand, or instructing the BG to get down, calling for backup on the radio, etc. An armed citizen, if he/she draws, will likely be firing, not calling 911. Furthermore, it did not say how many of those cops shot weak-hand. My guess is none. But again, if n = 1 you have but an anecdote; n = 33 it is better, but still a SSS.

I am in the camp that it is good and smart to practice 2-hand, strong hand, and weak hand, the question is how much of each, and what kind of practice? To me, it makes little sense to break it in 1/3's if an actual SD scenario heavily leans statistically to one or another. It also makes little sense to do the same routine with each. I understand drawing and shooting one-handed, because maybe your other arm is extended to defend against a blow or knife strike. I also understand drawing and shooting weak-handed...maybe someone grabs your strong arm and you can't break free. But in that case, the weapon truly becomes a belly gun. I don't really see the need to practice bullseye shooting at 7+ yards, weak-handed. If that situation were ever to arise, I'd either shoot 2-handed, strong hand, or not at all.

I understand where the point is made that anything COULD happen, but I have to be realistic, since practice costs both time and money, and we all have a finite amount of each. So for me, I tailor practice to what is most likely going to happen. I may find myself one day where I need to make a 25 yard shot, upside-down, weak-handed, with pepper spray in my eyes. It could happen, but I won't invest too heavily in practicing.

All that said. This thread has encouraged me to practice more one-handed. I think I may start doing around 60% two hand, 30% strong hand, and 9% weak hand.

(The extra 1% is reserved for upside-down with mace in my eyes )

 

[MachIVshooter]

I would say that if in the vast majority of self defense shootings people will use both hands it should encompass far more than just 33% of training.

That's a big "if" in my opinion. No real way to quantify the numbers, but I would argue that a rather high per cent of the time, one handed may be all you get a chance to do.

Agreed.

I think many have garnered a rather romanticized view of SD situations. In reality, the odds of being able to draw and take a nice, controlled modified Weaver stance to engage your target with excellent marksmanship and deliberate aim are not good.

IMO, the most valuable training focuses on drawing from concealement as fast as possible, with firing from retention or off-kilter positions. Weak hand practice is valuable, but not as much as one-handed, strong-hand practice from less-than-ideal positions. I would bet only a tiny fraction of SD shootings invloved firing with the weak hand, while an extreme majority were one-handed, many from the retention position and most point-shooting (sights not used at all).

 

[holdencm9]

I would bet only a tiny fraction of SD shootings invloved firing with the weak hand, while an extreme majority were one-handed, many from the retention position and most point-shooting (sights not used at all).

I'd agree there 100%. Always do a fair amount of "point" shooting practice. Unfortunately it is hard to contort into too many positions at your average indoor pistol range. Outdoors I can see it being easier (and fun).

 

[Shawn Dodson]

I think many have garnered a rather romanticized view of SD situations. In reality, the odds of being able to draw and take a nice, controlled modified Weaver stance to engage your target with excellent marksmanship and deliberate aim are not good.

"A gunfight is more like a fistfight than a tactical nuclear exchange." - Keith Jones