Another training/EDC question.

Millie

Get on with your life!!!
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We all know I'm starting over in my training. I'm taking a Basic Handgun Class next weekend. I hadn't taken one before. This is where my journey should have begun, but I'm doing it now.

I asked you all who carries a 9mm every day, because it's what I carry every day. I was curious to see who does also.

Now that I've asked about what you men/women carry every day, I'm interested in how you train to defend yourselves with your carry gun, and what training frequency and standard you hold yourself to when you train to use that gun.
I want to be sure I can use my gun to save my life, but also not shoot an innocent person in all the confusion and fear. I'm interested in how we can all get to be more proficient shooters with our carry guns.

* NOTE: I don't want to get into the whole 2A thing here. We already covered it. I want to know how you train and what your goals are, so I can learn, and document this training journey here on CFF.

Thanks for the input.
 
I started out going to IDPA matches to test my EDC choices. That little bit of stress and running through the paces showed me where I went wrong and what worked well. From there I found a group of like-minded guys at my club to shoot with. Now when I go to the range I generally pick a skill to work on for the day and focus on that. Drawstroke, reloads, move and shoot, accuracy, speed, odd positions, etc etc etc.

Have a little fun, run some drills, make sure you have a way to measure progress. That can mean accuracy, time, falling steel, etc. Get a shot timer if you donā€™t already have one.

The simplest and easiest standard I know is the Wizard.
 
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I started out going to IDPA matches to test my EDC choices. That little bit of stress and running through the paces showed me where I went wrong and what worked well. From there I found a group of like-minded guys at my club to shoot with. Now when I go to the range I generally pick a skill to work on for the day and focus on that. Drawstroke, reloads, move and shoot, accuracy, speed, odd positions, etc etc etc.

Have a little fun, run some drills, make sure you have a way to measure progress. That can mean accuracy, time, falling steel, etc. Get a shot timer if you donā€™t already have one.

The simplest and easiest standard I know is the Wizard.
Thanks. I'll work on some of those, now that I have a place outside to do them. My indoor range doesn't allow a lot of things, but I have some woods I can go to now, thanks to a cousin.
 
3rounds 2.5 second draw from EDC carry

6" round target from 3yds to 10yds all three shots in the circle

2.5 seconds draw and point fire 3 rounds on targets closer then 3yds to 1 inch.

Left wall pie, right wall pie, kneeling left/right pie

Thats 50rnds

Oh, IDPA every month
 
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Minute of bad guy from the concealed draw. I gear it mainly towards being on the centerline of the torso. Between the nipples, belly button to throat. I usually shoot a torso shaped target, or one drawn on the target if I'm working on this stuff. Wish I had more time to do it.

I try to practice the draw clean and dirty. Clean is two hands, clearing your cover with one drawing with the other. Dirty is one hand clearing cover and drawing. Hint on drawing dirty, if you are not scratching yourself up pretty good you're not trying hard enough. I shove my strong hand thumb into my leg pretty hard, then rake it up to my mid torso to clear the cover, then drop down to the gun and draw. Usually scratches up your side pretty good in the process.
 
3rounds 2.5 second draw from EDC carry

6" round target from 3yds to 10yds all three shots in the circle

2.5 seconds draw and point fire 3 rounds on targets closer then 3yds to 1 inch.

Left wall pie, right wall pie, kneeling left/right pie

Thats 50rnds

Oh, IDPA every month
JBā€™s from the draw drills should be a standard must for those carrying concealed ... good thing it uses a stationary target but bad thing a lot of public ranges donā€™t like you working from the holster, especially some concealed types (one a quite a few reasons why I am no much on public ranges).

As to competitive shoots ... might be about the only way the get your heart rate up and anywhere close to pressure on you to perform ... and the element of not being something youā€™ve seen before makes you react as well as act.

His cutting the pie drills are damn important for HD and again public ranges where you actively move and engage are kinda rare. Good thing is you can somewhat practice at home ... not with a loaded gun of course but still you can practice and actually apply it to your home. Along with that comes knowing your body limitations on movement AND what limitations as well as advantages you will find in your own home ... movement involving a staircase is a bitch for the person moving but a hell of a ambush point.

One JB didnā€™t list but I think is a good, especially for those who have the restrictions of the stationary public range, is put back a few dollars every week and save for a Spring and Fall outdoor training course (Iā€™ve done one pistol and the other a carbine). I doesnā€™t hurt to take any training which 95% of the time has some range work beyond your regular range time. It also give a fresh look at ways of doing things as well as puts another set of eyes seeing what you are doing.
 
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I spent the first 9 years or so that I carried a gun thinking that I was basically good enough. I could hit what I aimed at, more or less, and I knew how to safely handle a firearm. Then Apex Defense opened up in my town, less than 10 minutes drive from me. So last October I went to my first real training class and found out what I didn't know. I did change out my gear, but that wasn't an attempt to buy skill, it was just because I discovered my 1911 flat didn't work as reliably as a defensive gun should. I have retaken that class with Ryan, just took the CQB class with him, and just signed up for another force on force with him. My skills aren't great, but they're OK, and I can work on them dry at home. I do dry fire twice a week now. But what I'm trying to focus on at this point is not gear or techniques, but tactics and mindset.

A great book on training, by the way, is Karl Rehn's Strategies and Standards for Defensive Handgun Training. A lot of it is only directly relevant to teachers, but I still think it's a super valuable book for us students, too. It helped me think through what I'm trying to accomplish, and why, for sure. Well worth the investment!
 
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Take some defensive pistol classes. Doing all the drills, trying to teach yourself how to draw, how to punch out, how to not shoot yourself in the foot when re-holstering your weapon, strong side, weak side, emergency and tackical reloads, flashlight methods, ... etc ... are all fine and good but if your not doing it right then it's all for not. Take a class from someone who teaches said class and has a curriculum to take you from nothing to trained and then practice, practice, practice. Even if someone tells you something you already know well then it's confirmed to be correct and move on. The classes should include lot's of range time under supervision to insure you are doing it right.

Not to promote any particular class but I took 4 defensive pistol classes at Triangle Shooting Academy and when it was over I had probably been through 12-16 hours of range shooting time with at least 3 folks supervising the range time and helping to get all the parts-n-pieces right. I probably went through 1000+ rounds during that range time and another 1200+ between every class to make sure I was ready for the next one. And, the classes aren't just about the mechanics but also the why you're doing things the way you are, different scenarios you might come across, and of course as many questions/answers you want to ask. I would recommend the TSA classes but there are many all over the place and after you've done that then do everything the rest of us are telling you that you should do. It won't be super cheap but won't break the back either and once you learn the basics it's all about practice, practice, practice and that's just a focused goal when you go to the range to shoot anyway and of course much can be accomplished w' dry fire practice at home.

I've heard that there are reputable you tube videos on the subjects as well but personally I don't think that could be as good as the face to face interaction you'd get in a class/range setting.

Just my $0.02 ... ymmv but I hope it's helpful or at least thought invoking.

M
 
10 minutes a day, every day.....Presentation...UP Now draw point and press at anything in your house. When you Know where your gun is and how to put it up Without looking you will start feeling more confident.

AND if you aren't willing to do that 10 minutes a day...you are Not serious about your carry skills.
 
The most important defensive tool is your mind. Don't forget to train it in addition to shooting.

Look into criminal psychology, OODA loop, violent encounters ,the body's response to stress and other related topics.

How about physical conditioning and emergency medical skills? I don't bring this up to muddy the waters, but it easy to become too "gun centric." You want to be as well rounded as possible, and I'm not saying you aren't, just some things to consider.
 
The most important defensive tool is your mind. Don't forget to train it in addition to shooting.

Look into criminal psychology, OODA loop, violent encounters ,the body's response to stress and other related topics.

How about physical conditioning and emergency medical skills? I don't bring this up to muddy the waters, but it easy to become too "gun centric." You want to be as well rounded as possible, and I'm not saying you aren't, just some things to consider.
Very true ... best way to say safe is avoid having to act.
 
I think grip technique and pressure is very important to get right at the very beginning.
Because everything else is built upon that.

Also, shooting while moving. Just my opinion.
 
My defensive needs are a bit different. As I can expect single insider threats (blue on green), suicide bombers to 50 Taliban ground assault every minute of the day. I practice every chance I get and I do more teaching these days to others than I train myself. But, weekly stress shots where I run the clock on different shoot/no shoot scenarios, Wizard and El Presidente drills weekly. Marksmanship out to the farthest distance that I can. 9mm out to 300 yds, 10.3" 5.56 out to 500 yds. Try and get some night shooting every three months. Sun, rain, sleet or snow will find me on the range.

CD
 
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