Range Drills: Training, Skill Check, Fun

@Craig_VA , I've done the same thing: I've collected handgun drills and tests from all over, put them in a three-ring binder, and when I head to the range, I take one or two and work on that skill or measure my performance using that test.

My favorites for skills development:

Dot Torture (sight alignment, sight picture, smooth trigger press--the three fundamentals)
El Pres (target transitions, reload under pressure, the three fundamentals plus significant time pressure)
Bill Wilson's Bill Drill (Fundamentals plus recoil control)
Split the Difference (adjust splits based on target size)
X-Drill (adjust splits based on target size, various target transitions)
9-Shot Close Speed Drill by Ernest Langdon (target transitions up close, fast splits with coarse sight alignment)
3-Second Head Shot Standards by Ken Hackathorn (various target transition methods, at speed, small targets)
Switch Hitting by Todd Green (slow and fast accurate one-hand shooting, transition from DHO to NDHO, under time pressure)

My favorite skills tests:

The old IDPA Classifier
2013 FBI Qualification Course of Fire
Langdon 9-Second Standards
Langdon 3.5-Second Standards
Ken Hackathorn's SUPER Test
Ken Hackathorn's Wizard Test
ASP 10-round Skill Check

Honorable Mention:

Catch-22, by Dave Sevigny (Dominant, non-dominant hand, freestyle shooting, three fundamentals, penalties for missing)
5x5 drill (three fundamentals plus a little time pressure)
F.A.S.T. by Todd Green
Bill Wilson's 5x5 Skills Test
Hateful 8 by Bill Blowers (an accuracy drill disguised as a reloading drill)
10-Round Assault Course by Ethan Jones (See January 2014 SWAT Magazine)

Ones I regularly practice at home 15yds and in...

Bill Drill

Mozambique

Dot Torture

IDPA classifier (the short one)



That said, I also practice trying to get hits on target on a 66% IDPA metal target at 25-40yds. No drills, no time, just slow focused shooting.

ETA I will definitely have to look up some of the ones mentioned, and no doubt to be mentioned.

I’m new to this handgun thing.
This information is very helpful for me.
Now to look into each drill and learn how to apply them.
As a former PE teacher and Football Coach I’m familiar with skill development and braking things down and working in pieces towards the complete skill.
This is a great piece of info for me.

About a dozen of us volunteer as armed security at our church and we train one to two times a month. I just got back from training, and a church member who's a LEO had us working on the Box Drill. I attached a link describing it below. As he pointed out standing still in a gun fight is not a good idea, and this drill trains you to shoot while moving.

https://www.handgunsmag.com/editorial/handgun-training-the-box-drill/357154

TomJ said:

About a dozen of us volunteer as armed security at our church and we train one to two times a month. I just got back from training, and a church member who's a LEO had us working on the Box Drill. I attached a link describing it below. As he pointed out standing still in a gun fight is not a good idea, and this drill trains you to shoot while moving.

https://www.handgunsmag.com/editorial/handgun-training-the-box-drill/357154

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Competition does the same thing, under pressure.

If you are lucky enough to have the ability to run your own drills at home this is ten fold. The possibilities are endless.

I have run el prez drills with a single action. Or half el prez, where I just do one run. I also practice draw and fire one up close and then a long shot. Sometimes other things, if I’m feeling energetic. Mostly I practice the fundamentals.

Good Ol' Boy said:

Competition does the same thing, under pressure.

If you are lucky enough to have the ability to run your own drills at home this is ten fold. The possibilities are endless.

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One of our church members has his own private range which we have access to any time we want. You're correct that being able to run the drills we want as opposed to standing in a booth shooting at a target while being limited to slow fire helps tremendously.

IDPA has just announced some rule changes including allowing AIWB.

Craig_VA said:

I am fortunate to have nearby a regular competition that generally follows IDPA rules and stages, but allows AIWB carry when the range owner considers the competitor sufficiently safe with that carry. If I read the IDPA rules, official IDPA does not allow appendix carry, and USPSA rules are murky on when a match director might allow AIWB. For those of who choose AIWB, can we compete against anything other than a timer?

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Last local match I shot where someone was carrying AIWB was about 2yrs ago.

Its rarely seen but allowed, at least in my AO.