Just how accurate are handguns...

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Stormshotty

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I just got finished watching The Outlaw Josie Wales and Clint Eastwood finish off bad guy after bad guy with his revolvers. And I got to thinking how many of the gun antics in movies are myths (cough, Wanted) and some might actually happen. How accurate are handguns? If you were good enough, could you really take down moving targets while on the run yourself? Are there people good enough to hit a target (say the size of a quarter) whenever they wanted without aiming down the sights or going into a stance? I'm new to the whole target shooting crowd, so I'd like to hear your opinions of just how accurate people can be (point shooting or moving while shooting anyways).
 
Lol. You should probably get out and do some shooting. You'll quickly realize its nothing like the movies.
 
I've done a bit of target shooting and I'm not very good yet. Believe me, I know how inaccurate people can be. But I want to know if there are trained people out there who have been able to do some of things you see in the movies.
 
With a scope mounted, and some practice shots getting the elevation adjusted into the scope, I made a 159 yard shot (verified with a laser rangefinder) on a groundhog with a tuned 1911 in 9mm Luger. With the same gun, I made a WINESSED 89 pace shot with open sights on a groundhog. That is all I would ask of ANY handgun.
 
Are there people good enough to hit a target (say the size of a quarter)
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There are a few people who could.

The late Bill Jordan could hit tiny saccharin tablets & larger aspirin tablets from the draw several feet away.

Jerry Miculek, Bob Munden, and a select few other professional & exhibition shooters would not have any trouble with quarters.

Everyone else better use the sights if they want to hit quarters.

Moving while hitting is part of several action pistol match disciplines.
But they use the sights while moving. And they shoot at man-size targets.

A very large percentage of the movie gunmanship is BS.
Say 99.99%!

None of the real old-time gunfighters were anywhere near as fast or accurate as todays best using todays equipment.

rc
 
The ten ring on an NRA target is 3.39" in diameter. A Master class shooter will hit it most of the time at 50 yards slowfire and 25 yards timed and rapid fire. He isn't shooting fast but he is standing on his hind legs and holding the pistol in one hand.
 
Bill B. nailed it. Exhibition shooters are that good because they did what it takes to get that good. Practice,Practice, Practice!
 
Any quality handgun is more accurate than the person holding and shooting it. To get real good with a handgun requires lots of practice, but it's the rare shooter who at all times can shoot as accurately as his handgun can.
 
All of my handguns are extremely accurate. It's me that sucks:D

"Are you gonna pull those pistols or whistle Dixie"
 
When I use a rest, my group shrinks by half or so. So that tells me the gun is pretty damn accurate, now, if I could just catch up to it...
 
Most handguns are capable of far more accuracy than a human being can deliver. I used to use Ransom Rests quite a bit at one shop I worked at. Then I saw people who could print a tighter group than the Ransom Rest. The are people living and dead that have done things with a handgun you would not believe possible even when you stand behind them and watch them do it. Jerry Miculek and Rob Leatham are two I have personally watched amaze people.
 
One movie that comes to my mind about the BS in movies, is Winchester '73. It starred Jimi Stewart. In one scene he supposedly uses his lever action rifle to shoot a hole through a coin flipped into the air.
I saw a picture of that particular moment being filmed, Stewart is standing on platforms, to make him look taller, while the real sharpshooter stood next to him and really did do the shot.
The article I think was in a American Rifleman article, but I can't find the correct magazine.
 
Not very without sights.
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I disagree. While I have very little experience it myself I have had a chance to witness some fine point shooters. Point shooting is a technique based on the fact that you can point to an object, without looking down your finger, and be pretty much lined up with it. It's very practical for quickly firing from a carry position, and on the move. It's based around shorter range, but the guy who are really good at it can do well at 10-15 yards.
 
BigGuy52 said:
The article I think was in a American Rifleman article, but I can't find the correct magazine.
Click to expand...

Herb Parsons was the guy's name. He is a legend in exhibition shooting. He was also the first person to shoot 7 hand thrown clays with a shotgun before they hit the ground- using a Winchester Model 12.
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by BigGuy52
The article I think was in a American Rifleman article, but I can't find the correct magazine.

Herb Parsons was the guy's name. He is a legend in exhibition shooting. He was also the first person to shoot 7 hand thrown clays with a shotgun before they hit the ground- using a Winchester Model 12.
Click to expand...

Aka, "The Showman Shooter." The man died long before I was born, but he is one of the greatest exhibition shooters who ever lived. He was able to perform his feats because of A) natural God given talent and B) Practice, Practice and more Practice. And for good measure, more practice!

As for shooting the 7 hand thrown clays with a shotgun, I believe Tom Knapp recently bested that record by shooting 8 clays with a pump shotgun before hitting the ground. http://www.tomknapp.net/about/worldRecords.php

On The History Channel's Sharpshooters, he was using a 22 rifle to shoot aspirin tablets thrown in the air and in one example, through the hole of a washer also tossed in the air. Quite impressive. I'd be happy to hit the aspirin, stationary, from a yard or two :p .

So the some of the feats you see in the movies may be possible, in reality only about .0001% of the population can do them.

I always get a kick out of seeing these spectacular shots in the movies, made by an actor with absolutely horrible shooting technique. The severe trigger jerking by Mel Gibson in the Lethal Weapon films comes to mind.
 
Eastwood's old cowboy movies were most always with cap and ball revolvers too, which seemed to hold about 15 shots apiece and never jammed up on split caps. My 1851 Navy clone LOVES to jam up on spent caps, s.o.b. lives for it, I swear.

The BG's always seemed to just drop dead too. I gotta wonder just how deadly cap and balls really were. I know they'd kill, but I'd bet there were a lot more wounded than dead. Probably more deaths from bleeding out or infections than DRT hits.
 
Even an average Joe such as myself, with a little bit of practice, can shoot paper plate sized targets at a 100yds. I dunno about shooting through a washer flipped up in the air tho. That was just bonkers. Who was that guy?
 
Seems like he put a piece of tape over the hole and shot the tape out. I watched that show and it was amazing what they could do.
 
I have a friend that shot three running coyotes with four shots with a DA .44 mag. Longest shot was just over 60 yards. He routinely hits deer at 80 yards or more with iron sights.

When I worked at the gun shop, we had a competition shooter that would put ten 9mm's rapid fire (maybe one shot per second) thru one hole at 10 yards.

Most guys with pistols are good at turning money into noise. You need a gun that has a good trigger and lots of GOOD practice. Just because they are lousy shots, they think everyone else is.

I've seen guys that amazing. I've seen guys that couldn't hit a barn from the inside
 
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