[MrBorland]

My range doesn't allow rapid fire, and I don't compete, so I don't often get the chance to practice live double taps, etc (let's not go OT and discuss range policy, please). Nonetheless, after watching JM vidoes, I couldn't help but wonder how fast can I pull off 6 rounds, so I starting trying during some dry fire practice at home. Not very fast, it turns out. And not smoothly, either. The "clunking" sound I heard was the sound of the hand, cylinder and stop getting beat to death. So I found an on-line metronome (link below) and started practicing with an old Model 10 and some snap caps. I started out simply trying to match 100bpm without clunking. Within 2 weeks or so, I was able to squeeze off 6 rounds smoothly at 304bpm (152bpm double-timed), and can occassionally get a 320. Admitedly, the muzzle isn't real steady at that tempo, and I'm going back, slowing down and working on that.

So, just for fun, and for those interested in trying it out, were you pleasantly or unpleasantly surprised at your max speed? For those interested in practicing for a bit, were you able to speed up or get smoother? How fast are/were you able to squeeze off 6 rounds? For comparisons sake, keep in mind when JM fires 8 rounds in 1 second, he's squeezing the trigger at 480bpm, which is 160bpm triple-timed!

http://www.metronomeonline.com/

[Sans Authoritas]

Mr Borland, you're on your way to becoming another Ed McGivern. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_McGivern)

Everyone should get his book: "Fast and Fancy Revolver Shooting." He did his obscenely fast and accurate shooting with a stock revolver, and said that anyone could do the same.

-Sans Authoritas

[MrBorland]

Everyone should get his book: "Fast and Fancy Revolver Shooting." He did his obscenely fast and accurate shooting with a stock revolver, and said that anyone could do the same.


I have it. A good read, and chock full of good tips, though that verbose pre-Hemmingway style of writing really takes effort to read.

Yes, he was adamant that anyone can do it, but didn't specify just how long it'd take to get there. I'm not sure just anyone can reach his speed, but even to get close, I think it'd take many years of practice, as it likely did him. For me, 300-ish bpm came pretty quickly, but then I abruptly plateaued. My impression is that it'll take a good year of practice to get to 350 and probably 5 years to get to 400. And that's just finger speed. Keeping the muzzle steady at 400 may never come. Interestingly, in the video where JM shoots 8 rounds per second, his splits turn out to be 0.125seconds (480bpm). In his video, though, which looks to be about 10 years old, I recall he's shooting about 0.16-0.17 splits, or "only" 375-400bpm, so it may have took even JM 10 years to get that extra 80bpm.

[earplug]

What a great use of math and a metronome.
Thanks for the link and the conversion to BPM.
Now we just have to hit the target.

[Drail]

I used to spend hours just trying to dry fire a Smith as fast as Jerry. Not even close. He's from another planet.

[MrBorland]

And check out shotgun shooter Patrick Flanigan - 12 rounds in 1.442 sec - just shy of 500bpm. Yeah, it's a semi-auto, but just getting your trigger finger moving that fast is incredible! Lay your hand flat on your desk next to your computer, then play the movie while trying to tap your trigger finger in time with the shots. Whether it's JM or Flanigan, it's darned tough to do. Add in the pull weight of a DA revolver, and, well...

The ease with which I can dry fire at home is one of the many reasons why I love revolvers. Practicing to a metronome lets me safely go faster and smoother while monitoring progress, so it just adds to my fun. At some point, I'll go to a range where I can start practicing with live ammo. Of course, I'll be prepared to each humble pie when I see the groups.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qY0ufo8W8DU&feature=related