Favorite low-light drills??

[Chuck R.]

Anybody have any favorite low-light drills??

I've got a couple guys (3) coming out tonight to work with lights (HH and WML). Plan on doing some modifications of regular drills (El Presidente's, movement, Mozambiques etc.) along with this, which should be a blast in low-light:

https://youtu.be/m3HgxWj0BNA?t=1

I think tonight we'll stick with handguns, and next weekend work on some long guns stuff. Besides just working the standard flashlight techniques, anybody have any favorite low-light drills??

Thanks,

Chuck

 

[Jeff White]

Chuck,
I covered some drills in this post a while back:

http://www.thehighroad.org/showpost.php?p=10041132&postcount=10

 

[taliv]

I have a new favorite one I've been doing several nights over the past two weeks. It involves using some of these awesome lights http://www.rtacprecision.com/i.r.i.s..html
Which are probably a little expensive for just this drill but maybe you can improvise.

Basically the way you're supposed to use the light is to hang the sensor on the target and point the light at your position and when you shoot the target (usually with a rifle from 1000+ yards) the light flashes about 4 times over 2 seconds to let you know the target got hit.

What I'm doing is pointing the light at the target about 7 yards away then standing 10 yards from the target with the sensor in my pocket or held by a friend. Repeat setup in a horseshoe with shooter in center. Then smack a sensor (random on if you have multiple targets.

The effect is it goes from being pitch black to about 2 seconds of strobing illumination on a target in unknown direction (maybe left right or center) so you have to draw and get a round on the target before the light goes back off.

It's a lot more challenging than it sounds. Having a friend illuminate a random target with a flashlight might be a simpler solution.

 

[Chuck R.]

Jeff,

Got it!! Think we'll try the box drill (it's how we work movement in light) an the lateral, both look like great drills.

taliv,

don't have access to those cool sounding lights, so I think we may have to go with the "Having a friend illuminate a random target with a flashlight might be a simpler solution"

Thanks,

Chuck

 

[FL-NC]

In all honesty, the drills should be the same as any other time. The difference is the conditions and the equipment. Basic drills in low light will quickly prove the superiority of mounting the light to the weapon vs hand held with any weapon.

 

[Chuck R.]

Thanks for the suggestions, last night went pretty well. Weather was about perfect, with a little more moon than I would have liked, but "it is what it is" (or was). We each went though about 250 rds working some variations of drills (thanks Jeff) and by using different handheld techniques. We ran everything on AR500 plate, so we wouldn't have to paste targets.

Favorites turned out to be:

1. A version of El Presidente using 8" plates staggered in depth, going down using FBI technique, coming back using Check/neck index, then going back using Harries, then Roger's etc. etc. until you'd covered most of the standard trained techniques. Really made me appreciate the enhanced accuracy of the Roger's, Harries, and my favorite the Graham method's over the index(s) or old FBI.

2. A version of Jeff's Lateral Slide, but with a twist in that while the shooter had his back turned, non-shooters placed cardboard numbers 0-6 (and H for Head-shot and F for fail to stop) above the targets. We broke the area into 4 zones (like the Pincus Drill), at the Command "Gun" shooter had turn, strobe to ID (and count) fire, then light off before moving to next zone to strobe on again. Like the Pincus drill you had to spend time in each zone and complete a reload.

I think the numbers played big dividends as it forces light alignment onto the target. Normally with a good enough light a near miss with the beam is enough to illuminate for a hit. The numbers made us work a little harder on the light to slide/bore alignment to read the number or type of shots required.

Also we worked some barricade/cover. Tried to make use of my VTAC 9 hole barricade, but the holes were just too much of a PITA and the splash back from the brighter lights sucked. Right/left cornering, not as bad, but still sucked on right corners for the Harries as you're leaning out more, unless you want to go "uncrossed".

WMLs got limited play. We all brought them, but decided after a couple runs to spend the time where it was needed rather than with the much easier to shoot with WMLs. I think the tactics are the same basically, it's just the HHs are so much harder to shoot accurately and quickly with.

Finished up with a couple of rounds of low-light bowling pins. Overall a pretty good way to spend the night.

Chuck