What are some good defensive skills and drills to practice? I have been reading alot of threads lately but haven't quite found what Im looking for. I would love to take one of the defensive pistol courses, but I have to wait until money allows. In the meantime however, What are some good tactics and skills to practice? Can anyone give me some drills and real life scenario things to think about? I want to be able to protect my family to the best of my ability if a situation arises and I know that when in a stressful situation, you fall back on your training so anyone have any advice? Thanks!
Defensive skills training?
- Thread starter Rustyb1
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sidheshooter
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Manipulation, manipulation and manipulation. You've got to be able to run the gun under the worst circumstances; consistency (going to the gun only one way; from admin to malf clearance) is your friend. Moving. Practice looking for cover. Fending and drawing. All of that has very little to do with shooting, and plenty to do with staying in the fight in one piece.
So far as actually shooting goes, check out the sticky at the top of this forum and hit the link for practice drills. If you can pass the Gunsite/API 250 (or any of the others that look similar in terms of distance and time constraints) from a *concealed* draw, then it's back to tactics, awareness and manipulation drills.
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=571476
That's where I'd start. Oh, and reading: again, check out the library, above; and also notice how many times books like Ayoob/gravest extreme and Cooper/principles come up if you do a search on defensive books/reading in this forum...
JMHO, and worth about what you paid for it....
So far as actually shooting goes, check out the sticky at the top of this forum and hit the link for practice drills. If you can pass the Gunsite/API 250 (or any of the others that look similar in terms of distance and time constraints) from a *concealed* draw, then it's back to tactics, awareness and manipulation drills.
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=571476
That's where I'd start. Oh, and reading: again, check out the library, above; and also notice how many times books like Ayoob/gravest extreme and Cooper/principles come up if you do a search on defensive books/reading in this forum...
JMHO, and worth about what you paid for it....
In reality, there's no good substitute for a qualified instructor watching what you are doing and coaching you based on what he sees. Remember that practice doesn't make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect.
Practice also makes permanent. If you keep practicing doing something wrong, you will become an expert at doing it wrong. So some good training shows you what to practice and how to practice it. It thus helps you avoid bad habits which later on can be an awful hassle to try to correct.
I realize that money can be tight and training expensive. If there's an NRA certified instructor in your area offering NRA Personal Protection Inside the Home and Personal Protection Outside the Home classes, taking both classes would be a great way to start, and the cost is often reasonable. They will give you a good grounding in practical marksmanship and gun handling, and they will be a good foundation if you decide you want to go even further. They also go into legal issues around the use of force and both mindset and tactics.
Remember that self defense involves more than just marksmanship.
[1] You will want to know and understand the legal issues -- when the use of lethal force would be legally justified, when it would not be, and how to tell the difference. You will want to understand how to handle the legal aftermath of a violent encounter and how to articulate why, in a particular situation, you decided to take whatever action you did.
[2] You will want to know about levels of alertness and mental preparedness to take action. You will want to understand how to assess situations and make difficult decisions quickly under stress. You will want to know about the various stress induced physiological and psychological effects that you might face during and after a violent encounter.
[3] You will want to develop good practical proficiency with your gun. That includes practical marksmanship, i. e., being able to deploy your gun and get good hits quickly at various distances. It also includes skills such as moving and shooting, use of cover and concealment, reloading quickly, clearing malfunctions, and moving safely with a loaded gun.
The NRA Personal Protection classes only scratch the surface, but they at least touch on these subjects and get you started on the right track. From there, you can go as far as you'd like.
Also, if there's an IDPA or USPSA club in your area, consider participating. IDPA or USPSA competition can help develop basic skills like shooting fast and accurately, shooting from unconventional postures, engaging multiple targets, moving safely with a loaded gun, etc., under the stress of competition.
If you are really short of funds, then local IDPA may be your best introduction into firearms tactics.
I really do suggest that you invest some money into getting real training though, you need to decide how valuable your life and your family's lives are worth to yourself.
Lastly, while I have met people with natural abilities, but I have never met anyone that has been able to train themselves in any martial art. Firearms is a martial art.
I really do suggest that you invest some money into getting real training though, you need to decide how valuable your life and your family's lives are worth to yourself.
Lastly, while I have met people with natural abilities, but I have never met anyone that has been able to train themselves in any martial art. Firearms is a martial art.
I recommend southnarc's classes, or at least his videos as listed on shivworks.com.
In order of importance:
Managing unknown contacts
Controlling opponent's weapon
Drawing/presenting/shooting under stress at 0 feet
Everything else
I have concluded most people giving gun advice are relying on the gun as a talisman and are scared and physically out of shape. Prepare for the worst (ecqc) and you don't have to do mental gymnastics about how 12 rounds of 45 should be enough for 3 bad guys because you can shoot the heck out of paper at 7 yds.
A good base in physical fitness and grappling is also highly advisable.
In order of importance:
Managing unknown contacts
Controlling opponent's weapon
Drawing/presenting/shooting under stress at 0 feet
Everything else
I have concluded most people giving gun advice are relying on the gun as a talisman and are scared and physically out of shape. Prepare for the worst (ecqc) and you don't have to do mental gymnastics about how 12 rounds of 45 should be enough for 3 bad guys because you can shoot the heck out of paper at 7 yds.
A good base in physical fitness and grappling is also highly advisable.
locnload
Member
As previously said, manipulation, reloads, tacticle and combat, clearing jams although in my opinion if that is a big issue with your pistol it time to get a more reliable one. Get proficiant shooting week hand, and wierd positions and getting off the line and behind cover. IDPA and other forms of competitian are always good, they make you use cover, do reloads, and work under pressure. Go for accuracy first, then speed. As they say, you can't miss fast enough to win. IDPA also makes you use real world carry gear, don't try to "game" the system, its not about the game, its about learning to effectively use your gun to defend yourself or others. Good Luck 
I will repeat myself saying awareness is primary and the firearm is secondary. Point shooting, my opinion only is to be practiced from all positions. Distance is important as to what you can do. Other training you can do from books or video is using a walking stick or cane. Point shooting is an absolute. In SD situations you won't be able to use anything but maybe visualize the front sight. I think everything else has been covered. Don't know about you but I grew up shooting and fighting like most young fools, now awareness, distance, non traditional weapons and point shooting if necessary are tops and I havtrained and practiced over 50+yrs.
Hey everyone, thanks for all the information. Also, I firmly believe in being physically fit and capable of defending myself without a firearm as well. I am in fairly good shape, and practice Hapkido and BJJ. Anyways thank you all for the information. I will read up more on the subjects and look forward to taking courses as soon as I can. I have already taken the basic handgun safety and CCW class offered near me.
Cosmoline
Member
Videos and books are a good supplement, though as noted it's best to get quality hands-on training first. Books and videos are good at giving little tips and pointers, but not so good at giving you a feel for the correct methods. That said, much of it comes down to what works best for you anyway. It's a good idea to have a knowledge of different approaches and be able to try them out to see what's going to work best for you. Some stances may never feel right, and there's no requirement to be a mirror image of your instructor. For some of us a Chapman is just going to be more natural than an isosceles. Or the other way around.
I really like Clint Smith's approach at Thunder Ranch. He's got a line of great DVD's out that help give an overview and introduction. There's no tacticool nonsense or trying to fight like an operator when you're not. Much of the mindset is learning to be defensive, and learning not to go charging in to clear rooms and such.
Manipulation would include the particular draw into a particular stance, reloading methods, holstering, retention in a fight, moving with the gun, shooting around obstacles, etc. It starts basic and gets more advanced and complex as you deal with failure drills. I have a revolver so there's no failure drills ;-) (JK)
I really like Clint Smith's approach at Thunder Ranch. He's got a line of great DVD's out that help give an overview and introduction. There's no tacticool nonsense or trying to fight like an operator when you're not. Much of the mindset is learning to be defensive, and learning not to go charging in to clear rooms and such.
Manipulation would include the particular draw into a particular stance, reloading methods, holstering, retention in a fight, moving with the gun, shooting around obstacles, etc. It starts basic and gets more advanced and complex as you deal with failure drills. I have a revolver so there's no failure drills ;-) (JK)
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It's kind of a catchall for all of the gun handling and manual operation that may be necessary in the course of actually using the gun.Rustyb1 said:
Common manipulations include, but aren't necessarily limited to --
- loading the gun;
- doing a chamber check to confirm that the gun is properly loaded;
- reloading the gun (either a tactical reload or a speed reload);
- clearing a malfunction;
- dropping the slide from slide lock;
- engaging or disengaging a safety, if any;
- operating a de-cocker, if any;
- managing a gun and flashlight together.
sidheshooter
Member
As is often the case, fiddle, above^^, has this one. I'd only add that a lot of the training that I've been doing lately involves manipulations using only the strong hand, or only the weak hand (support hand-only combat reloads and malf clearance drills done on the clock are a real eye-opener). Being able to condition check in the dark (by feel), things like that.
Again, FWIW.
chrome_austex
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IDPA is cheap, fun, and it will give you both practice and confidence with your handgun.
After that, there are more advanced tactics, legal and moral issues, and a mindset/attitude to learn which IDPA wont teach.
After that, there are more advanced tactics, legal and moral issues, and a mindset/attitude to learn which IDPA wont teach.
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