Pistol-How far and how accurate ?

[Lycanthrope]

I shoot 8" plates a lot at 45-50 yards. G35 and 2011.

I find the harder targets make you work more. When I shoot close, I shoot a hole in the paper and then chase that hole.

Go as deep as you can.


Lycanwordstolivebythrope

[orionz06]

0y-175y with my carry gun(s) with most of it being between 3-25 yards.

[dmcdonnell]

I agree that we need to shoot at a range out to at least 25 yards, but don't forget that almost all self defense situations happen within 6-7 feet... What I usually do on each range trip is to shoot around 50-75 rounds from that 6-7 foot distance and then move back to 21 feet (7 yards), then runs a string of fire at around 10 yards (30 feet), and finally at around 15 - 25 yards, I try to really dial it in and control my sight picture as best I can. The range has a couple aging and beat up reactive steel targets, that i try the same process with just to get that audible and visual feedback that I am able to hit at the longer distances,

Just the other day, I was doing malfunction drills and trying to double tap each time just for some variations in the training.

Keep in mind, as most of the folks here have said in the past, if you are shooting someone at distances greater than 7-10 yards, you will be hard pressed to prove an imminent threat was present. Withing 6 feet or as far out as 21 ft, you will be able to make the argument that he was charging you or approaching with the purpose of doing you harm.

[Lycanthrope]

Keep in mind, as most of the folks here have said in the past, if you are shooting someone at distances greater than y yards, you will be hard pressed to prove an imminent threat was present. Withing 6 feet or as far out as 21 ft, you will be able to make the argument that he was charging you or approaching with the purpose of doing you harm.

...and remember that this is also the competition forum.....and if you don't get proficient on the longer shots, you're going to suffer in terms of scores.

I also believe, that after a point,....with some better shooters..... skills begin to generalize. That is, you begin to glean feedback from shooting in different positions or even different guns that can be used for other applications that you hadn't thought of before.

For example, some shooters will be able to shoot decent groups, but will tense up when trying to hit targets in close at rapid speed. Some have "trigger freeze" or slow splits. I find that I can only achieve the fastest shots in close when I allow my trigger finger to stay relaxed while torquing the heck out of everything else. That smooth trigger pull can be highly ingrained when shooting further out.

(I also find that wingshooting can help people understand the concept of "point shooting" with rifles and pistols, but that's straying a bit off topic)

Lycanitallhelpsthrope

[RobW]

For me, it depends on the discipline I am practicing.

If I am shooting International, anything out of the 10 ring pisses me off enough to keep focusing. Scores under 90% are not acceptable in practice for precision work.

Same for Bullseye, I am working on fundamentals and expect better-than-reasonable match scores in practice.

For practical pistol, I mostly work on speed at close and mid distances. Splits, reloads, and par-times are more important to me than bullseye-level accuracy. Most of the time I'll cut the 8" -0 ring out of an IDPA target so I only have to paste the misses ;->

Carry guns - 7 yards or less with a focus on point shooting and the like.

Pistol folks, when you head to the range to practice at what distance do you usually shoot from ? And what sort of accuracy do you expect of yourself ?

[Pkspawn]

When I shoot close, I shoot a hole in the paper and then chase that hole.

I find myself doing that, especially when I use targets that have a different coloured center dot/bullseye. First I'm shooting for the bullseye.. Then I end up shooting to remove the entire dot.

After a training class I took this weekend. I think I'm gonna be practicing more at greater distances with my pistols. I've only shot my G21 at 25/50 yards a couple times. The groups weren't horrible.

I'm interested to see how I do with the G35 at 50 yards. Maybe I will try it out to 100 yards as well.

[dmcdonnell]

I DID overlook that... Good Point.. competition is a whole different beast.

...and remember that this is also the competition forum.....and if you don't get proficient on the longer shots, you're going to suffer in terms of scores.

I also believe, that after a point,....with some better shooters..... skills begin to generalize. That is, you begin to glean feedback from shooting in different positions or even different guns that can be used for other applications that you hadn't thought of before.

For example, some shooters will be able to shoot decent groups, but will tense up when trying to hit targets in close at rapid speed. Some have "trigger freeze" or slow splits. I find that I can only achieve the fastest shots in close when I allow my trigger finger to stay relaxed while torquing the heck out of everything else. That smooth trigger pull can be highly ingrained when shooting further out.

(I also find that wingshooting can help people understand the concept of "point shooting" with rifles and pistols, but that's straying a bit off topic)

Lycanitallhelpsthrope

[Bugman916]

we need to keep things in perspective here. shooting large caliber revolvers that are used for hunting or just target shooting and competition then yeah , at 25 yds you had better shoot good consistent tight groups. especially if you are working custom loads for individual guns.

in my estimation unless you are running mach grade service pistols and ammo then im very happy to keep a 6-8" group at combat distances. for me combat distance is 10 yds and in.

if i can run rapid fire or double taps at 10 yds and keep 80% them inside 8" im VERY happy.



btw OP, there are some mods that can me made to your pistol to get it in match trim if you wanted to do that.

You've piqued my interest. What are u thinking ?

[arjohnson]

Most of my shooting is done at 5-15yds and I also shoot 25-50 to help with trigger control when I get to sloppy.

[slammersworld]

Shoot as far away as you can, accurately....and as close in as you can, quickly and accurately...and ALWAYS try and improve on that standard, NEVER accept "good enough"......your aim (pun intended) should be constant improvement in both accuracy and weapon handling proficiency.....

But, practice at all ranges to know where your weapon strikes and the hold-over, hold-under you need to make hits at differing ranges......

Also, practice ALL aspects of shooting the particular weapon you have chosen:

Clearing Drills...Failure to feed, Failure to Fire, Failure to Eject, Etc...Get some dummy rounds, or better, make them yourself by seating bullets in fired cases....if you remove the primer pin on your dies, you can leave in the fired primer when resizing.....

Reloading, both tactical (partially empty magazine), and Empty Gun...


My G30 will put 5-7 out of 10 on a standard silhouette, standing, at 100yds, although the groups are a bit scattered, "I" wouldn't want to be downrange and in the gunsites.......because I've practiced....know your weapon, its potential and its limitations


Elmer Keith once had to take a Mule Deer at 600yds with a 44 Magnum Pistol when a customer he was guiding for wounded the animal......it wasn't the gun that finally made that shot....it was his proficiency from practice, practice, and more practice....

Get a good 22LR, or 22LR conversion kit to work on basic drills to make it more economical.....but practice as often as possible with your full power ammo too....