Is the 1911 Still Relevant?

Intuitively, I have embraced the ergonomic fit of the 1911 in my hand. To me, it points naturally and accurately. It pleased me to see the design advantages of the trigger and safety mechanisms explained in the video below.

In addition to point shooting, I have begun to practice focusing on the front sight. The slide trigger mechanism makes a surprising difference in negating extraneous movement.

One more thing: for a large handgun, the 1911 has a really slim profile. I wear it virtually undetectable in a Crossbreed IWB holster.

Point Shooting Demo

My barber sent me the following link to a video demonstration of point shooting. Incredible!

If they considered the handgun a musical instrument, this guy would be appearing in Carnegie Hall.

http://www.sabretactical.com/Jeff_Video/jeff_video.html

Point Shooting, WWII Style

I have the video below on VHS, but have never been able to find it online -- until now. Thanks to my barber for sending me the link.

The point shooting method taught comes essentially from the Fairbairn method as found in Shooting to Live.

My Barber's Point Shooting Drills

I received an email from my barber about my post, "Point Shooting IS Combat Shooting". I thought you Christian Martialists would profit from a peek into how he works his training in to his daily routine.

yesterday's blog entry . . . 

loved it.  especially loved the seattle combatives link which i have added to my favorites.  as i told you previously,i practice point shooting everyday.  i try to train for all eventualities,close and far.  i use full-length mirror doors when practicing.  it adds realism. part of my nightly ritual when preparing for bed,is to extinguish all lights in the house.  then i go into the bathroom,using tactical lighting techniques,i use the toilet,then cover down on the medicine cabinet mirror, over the sink.  i execute three shots,point shooting from the simulated holster,up to the shoulder,then turning the muzzle in a 180-degree arc,fire three more back down to the holster position.  then I do my flashlight drills going up the steps to the bedroom.  a little room and hall clearing along the way,and i sleep like a baby.  after my Prayers,of course. my only gripe is that kimber should make a full-size .45 without sights!  i hate compact 1911s......to be effective as a warrior,we must be complelely comfortable,and excel in the no-light,lo-light situations.  the darkness is your ally in a fight.  as defender,you have the advantage,and all the edge with prudent use of tactical lighting.  i feel as comfortable engaging targets in the darkness as i do in the light.  for father's day, [daughter's name removed for privacy & security reasons] bought me a surefire combat light that i have been lusting after for 6 years.  confidence level just soared another 10 notches...Love and Peace to you and your family,Brother.

"Point Shooting IS Combat Shooting"

The link points to an article by Bradley Steiner: "Point Shooting IS Combat Shooting"

As my veteran readers know, I am a big advocate of point shooting, and this article is a frank and forthright statement of why point shooting is the ONLY combat handgun option.

Point Shooting the Applegate Way

Although W.E. Fairbairn pioneered the modern techniques of point shooting for British commandos during WWII, Rex Applegate brought those techniques to this country and adapted them to America's wartime needs.

The following video demonstrates the Applegate technique.

Note the non-shooting hand is placed against the abdomen. This helps stabilize the body while breathing.

Motivational Quotes

From various sources (including my Bible & my barber).

Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; For the LORD your God is He that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you. -- Deuteronomy 20:3-4

Choose wisely, practice 'til you're proficient and pray that you never need it! -- as seen on a gun forum

Blessed is he who when facing his own demise, thinks only of his front sight. -- as seen on a gun forum

The patriot volunteer, fighting for country and his rights, makes the most reliable soldier on earth. -- Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson

Call me paranoid at my funeral - until then, call me prepared. -- as seen on a gun forum

A few years ago I was taking some classes in Kali. The instructor said something along that line of thught that stuck with me. He said," I don't fear the man who practices 10,000 types of punches. I fear the man who has practiced 1 punch 10,000 times." -- as seen on a gun forum in a debate about "beware the man with one gun,for he knows how to use it."

Strong men stand up for themselves, stronger men stand up for others.

Out of every 100 men sent to battle, 10 shouldn't even be there, 80 are just targets, 9 are the real fighters, and we are lucky to have them for they make the battle. Ah, but the one, one is a warrior and he will bring the others back. - Heraclitus 500 BC

For the LORD hath driven out from before you great nations and strong: but as for you, no man hath been able to stand before you unto this day. One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the LORD your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you. (Jos 23:9-10)

Defining Terms, 7

Continued from "Defining Terms, 6"

In "Defining Terms" I explained Christian Martialism as "my understanding of the motives, values and beliefs of the warrior who submits to the authority and discipline of Jesus." Just as Christian Martialism is a philosophy and lifestyle, so WARSKYL comprises the system of close combat that I have embraced as consistent with that philosophy and lifestyle.

I'm not sure, but it may have begun when I was as young as 3 or 4 years. I was in the kitchen, having a knock-down drag out battle with an invisible adversary. My mother asked me what I was doing, and I told her that I was helping God fight the Devil.

Over the years, I maintained a vigilance, looking for techniques or tricks. Many I did not understand or feel I could do, but every now and then something would click, and I would say to myself, "I can do that."

My first experience with a Judo front roll came from a (library, I think?) book on Judo by E.J. Harrison. In it, he described exactly how to perform the roll. I took the book to the back yard, then followed the directions, and I executed them in the grass. I was about twelve.

During that same time period I a couple of other books came into my possession: American Combat Judo by Bernard Cosneck and My Method of Judo by Mikonosuke Kawaishi. The latter was a Christmas present from my grandfather, and I still count it among my prized possessions.

During that same time period, I discovered a comic book hero called "The Fly". Some of the early issues each included a page which taught a jujitsu or self defense technique. I also found a little red paperback book with poorly drawn illustrations and a promise that I could learn karate by following its instructions.

My encounters with bullies in junior high school taught me something about how rage and ruthlessnes can overcome size and strength. I did a little wrestling in high school (season-and-a-half), and that taught me a little bit about the kinesthetics of grappling.

After marriage, I received some basic instruction in subduing and cuffing a suspect along with my armed security training in Florida. About that time, Fairbairn's books Get Tough and Shooting to Live convinced me of the rationale behind WWII combatives.

Up to that point in my life, however, those elements of close combat that I had picked up from such varied sources did not represent a unified, coherent system. They were merely the raw materials.

To be continued

Point Shooting a Long Arm (Rifle, Shotgun)

Some time in the 1980's I remember having read an article about point shooting a rifle. It might have been in Soldier of Fortune magazine. At the time I owned an H&K 91 (which, as much as I love my M-1 Garand, I still dearly miss). I tried the position in dry-fire mode, but I don't recall if I actually tested it with live fire.

The weapon's sling goes from the butt under the right arm and then over the left shoulder and back to the front swivel. The rifle butt rests firmly in the abdomen while the right hand grasps the rifle's grip and the left hand rests on top of the barrel to stabilize it. (Sorry if the description's not clear enough -- I don't have pictures)

The end result is that the rifle sticks straight out from your abdomen, and it will shoot where you look -- out to about 100 yards, if I remember correctly. Without rearranging the sling, you can carry the rifle, muzzle down, by letting it hang under your right arm. You can then bring it into action by swinging the barrel up and planting the butt in your abs.

I have not verified the claims to accuracy, and I think this would take a little more practice than point-shooting a handgun, but if I were a soldier in a shooting war, I think I'd want to test this method for accuracy and speed of getting my weapon into action.

Point Shooting Aid

I recently posted a series called "Point Shooting: Grasping the Weapon," which seemed to spark some interest. The third post in that series featured a link to the Point Shooting website.

That site has a short article about using a product called "Clipdraw" as a point shooting aid. I ordered one for my model 1911 & it arrived in just 2 days. It's designed so that you can carry a handgun (which you should only do lawfully, of course) inside your waistband without a holster. The clip slides under or over your belt to hold the weapon in place.

It does away with the need for a holster, and my .45 clings to my side with no telltale imprint. The big bonus, though, is that it provides a rest which keeps the index finger away from the slide (or force cone gap) when you're point shooting. I've not tried it with live fire, but as I've experimented dry firing at various ranges, it appears -- to me, at least -- to be hard not to line up dead-on with this item.

I'm not a big fan of shooting gadgets, but the clipdraw is simple, it's low tech, it required no modification to my weapon, and it was a snap to install. It might even motivate me to work on improving my draw (especially after my last post).

If you're interested to check it out for yourself, here's the link:

CLIPDRAW

Guns 'n' Knives, 2

There are some really good questions coming into the "comments" section. The danger here is that people will think I'm some kind of expert. I'm not. I have moderate experience in the areas I write about, and I've read & thought about some of these topics for a long time. But I'm not an expert -- not really.

That said, let's see if I can field a couple of questions without getting myself into trouble. Stephen Boyd writes:

I have heard a lot recently about "double taps". Some folks say that you should pull the trigger as fast as you can, and others say that you s[h]ould train yourself to re-obtain your sight picture, before pulling the trigger the second time.

Stephen, I'd say that in a lethal encounter, only shots on target count. If you can hit your target with a fast double-tap, then do so. If you can't, then take whatever fraction of a second you need to realign. Although I'm thinking that this would be less of an issue using the P&S method, only a trip to the range and some actual practice will tell you what's right for you.

drpaleophd asks about a particular gun disarm:

Do you read Black Belt magazine? Because in the current issue there is an article on disarming a gunman about 9 ft away from you, using what they call the crescent attack method.

From my short time in Shito Ryu karate, I know the crescent walk and the crescent kick, but I'm not familiar with the crescent attack. If you can send me a link to information about it, I'd be glad to look at it.

My first reaction, however, is that the whole idea gives me the shivers. If you think it would work, though, why not get someone to help you practice it. After you think you've got the moves down, give your helper an airsoft or other soft pellet gun. If you can disarm him before he shoots you, then you'll know it works. (Even with soft pellets, eye protection would be a good idea)

There were some questions about knives & knife courses, that I'll have to address in another post.

Point Shooting: Grasping the Weapon, 3

Continued from "Point Shooting: Grasping the Weapon, 2"

My last post on this topic generated a lot of questions, comments & off-blog correspondence. All more positive than I expected. Although Emil Bandy tried the method & finds it uncomfortable for him, I appreciate his thoughtful comments & questions. He says:

I have tried dry firing my 1911 in the way you described....

As soon as I saw that, I said to myself, "How cool!" Here's a young guy with his own .45. Emil, if you read this, bow your head & thank God for your parents (I certainly do), who value you so much as to let you own a 1911 Gov't Model.

Emil also asks the question:

Also, isn't it true that you will lose some control of your weapon if you remove one of your fingers from the front of the grip?

Instead of answering that question myself, I'm going to refer you to a link that I just came across yesterday (thanks to dlr). The website Point Shooting is dedicated to P&S (point & shoot), and it promotes an ingenious aid to the point shooting method. Anyone interested in the relative stability of the point & shoot grip should read "The P&S Grip is a Very Strong Grip"

As I mentioned, I did not originate any of this. I just put together various elements out there that seem to make sense to me. I'm actually happy to be able to direct Christian Martialists to resources that feature real experts. The Point Shooting site has loads of material by said experts. If you have any interest in point shooting (pistol or rifle) I'd recommend you spend some time there.

Point Shooting: Grasping the Weapon, 2

Continued from "Point Shooting: Grasping the Weapon"

I have pieced together this method from various sources. W.E. Fairbairn laid the classic groundwork for point shooting in Shooting to Live. Then there's the off-vertical orientation of the handgun so popular in the gangsta culture. Finally, there's something my barber suggested which I've added to the mix.

Since I am not an expert pistolero, instead of telling you how to hold your weapon, I want to suggest that you try an experiment. In "Point Shooting Revisited", I asked that you point your index finger naturally at an object across the room or outside the window. If you're like me, the back of your hand will align somewhere between horizontal and a 45-degree angle to the floor.

Point with your arm extended straight in front of you, at eye level.

Now, while pointing in a safe direction, take your UNLOADED handgun (always check) and place it in the hand that's pointing. Leave your index finger outside the trigger guard. If you have a large autoloader (like the Model 1911), that finger should line up with (but not touch) the lower edge of the slide.

With your index finger parallel to the barrel, the weapon points wherever you point your finger. You are now taking advantage of the hand-eye coordination that, from infancy, has become second nature. In this position, your middle finger becomes the trigger finger. Try dry firing your UNLOADED weapon (check!) this way.

Now take it to the range and fire a few rounds. Just keep your index finger off the slide to avoid injury (although in a real gunfight, I suppose a boo-boo finger is a fair tradeoff for your life). I've found that using the index finger to point helps my accuracy in point shooting, and when I point my finger, wrist alignment becomes automatic.

Welcome to the off-vertical ,digital indicator method of grasping a handgun -- also known as gangsta-plus.

If you get a chance to try this at the range, let me know how it works out for you. Does it seem more natural, or do you have too much unlearning to do? Does it extend the functional range at which you can point-shoot accurately? What works for me may not work for you. As I said, I'm no expert.

Continued in "Point Shooting: Grasping the Weapon, 3"

Point Shooting: Grasping the Weapon

Continued from "Point Shooting Revisited, 3"

In Point Shooting (VHS), the declassified Army training film, there is a sequence on the differences between the proper way to grasp the revolver & the Model 1911 . The trainers emphasize the necessity of proper wrist alignment for accurate fire. This is an absolute must if one holds the weapon in the traditional orientation -- grip perpendicular to the ground.

This is how our trainers and our heroes, from Gene Autrey to Dirty Harry, have conditioned us to hold a handgun. But I remember a training session in which the trainer (a PA State Trooper) held his weapon upside down and hit the 10-ring on the target. His point was that, as long as the sights were aligned, the orientation of the weapon did not matter.

This little fact means that the traditional orientation of the weapon is as unnecessary as it is unnatural. The unnatural way we were taught to hold a handgun makes compensatory wrist realignment a necessity. And in the stress of battle, such learned traits may disintegrate entirely.

Although handgunning is not my forte, I would like to suggest another method of grasping the weapon when engaged in point shooting. I'll describe it in "Point Shooting: Grasping the Weapon, 2".

Point Shooting Revisited, 3

I appreciate all my readers' comments, but the ones on this topic are just too good to leave in the "comments" section. WARSKYL regular dlr writes:

I think folks may be surprised how hard it is to actually hit a paper plate consistently, even at close to very close range. Try it...

That reminds me of a story . . . Hmmm, now I sound a lot like one of my heroes, George "Gabby" Hayes. Most of you youngsters under 50 will have to Google his name to find out who he was. Anyway, back to the story.

It was, let's see, way back in the '70's when I worked dispatch for a security outfit in Tampa, FL. On one particular graveyard shift, an officer I'd never met called and asked if I had a handgun he could borrow. I put my firearms out on loan about as often as I rent out my children. (That's never, in case you're wondering.) Iasked him why he needed a weapon, and he told me.

It seems that a client firm suspected some of its employees of dealing drugs. They wanted someone from our security company to work undercover, and this poor innocent agreed to do it. The client and our company both promised him total anonymity.

Well, as you've probably guessed, he eventually got subpoenaed to testify against the drug dealers. And he was scared. "These guys don't fool around. I need a gun for protection." After he found out that I don't lend my firearms, he asked me, "What kind should I buy?"

He'd never fired any kind of projectile weapon before. I did my best to give him the info to make an informed choice, and that morning after work (way back before 3-day waiting periods) he bought a .357 magnum -- although I would have chosen a 1911 Gov't Model for him. Then I called a friend of mine, and we took this neophyte out for his first shooting lesson.

After some basic safety, trigger squeeze and breath control instruction accompanied by drawing sight pictures in the sand -- Florida doesn't have real dirt -- we got to the shooting part. We used paper plates as targets.

At one point, for variety, I set up 3 paper plates about 10-12 ft. away. I told him they represented three gunmen attacking us. Since I was on the left, I would double-tap the left plate first and he would double-tap the right plate, and then we'd both take out the middle plate.

As we played out the scenario, he fired three shots at each of his targets instead of two. I, as this tyro's first firearms instructor missed both of my targets entirely. (I still cringe with embarrassment at the memory of it.) And there he stood with an empty gun & one hostile picnic platter still alive & mad as all get-out.

He learned two valuable lessons: 1) When your life's at stake, don't depend entirely on the other guy; and 2) Don't waste shots. I learned a couple of lessons, too: 1) Knowledge and experience are only valuable to enhance your skills, not to replace them; 2) Those plates must be really fast, to dodge bullets like that.

That story & dlr's comment remind me of something I want you to understand about the potential of shooting without sights. Whenever I watch the Point Shooting video, I'm impressed with the distances at which the G.I.'s in the film are able to deliver accurate, unaimed fire. I think one of the keys is that they train to always grasp the weapon exactly the same way, every time.

That is the topic in "Point Shooting: Grasping the Weapon". At some point, I'd like to expand on some of dlr's other comments, as well.

Point Shooting Revisited, 2

My previous post, "Point Shooting Revisited," garnered a couple of posted comments which I really appreciated, and which I think deserve the attention of another post.

First, dlr closed his comment with the following statement:

And I am certain what little handgunning skill I possess would go out the window the moment bullets start zinging past my head.

Yes! And that's just the reason to incorporate as many reflexive and instinctive reactions as possible into our methods. That was why I've emphasized the startle response and its practical application in unarmed self defense. When the bullets are zinging, the adrenaline dump may block a lot of your learned responses, but you will still be able to point at the orc who is shooting at you.

Of course, incorporating instinctual responses into your methods does not mean that you don't have to practice. That's why I appreciate so much the comment from Emil Bandy:

I probably need to start practicing a little more in that stance instead of the weaver stance.....

I don't think Emil means that he will forsake the Weaver stance altogether, and neither should you. The Weaver stance provides a relatively stable base for aimed shooting from a standing position. As I've emphasized before, there are circumstances when aimed placement of your shots will be necessary.

If you want to really hone your skills, you might practice point shooting with an eye toward establishing your own practical limits (20 feet? 30 feet? farther?). Once you have established that limit, practice placing aimed rounds at distances beyond that. Actually, you may want to practice aimed fire at a little shorter distance than your point shooting limit. This will give you more options in tight situations.

Point Shooting Revisited

I normally don't try to tick people off. I do all the time, though without trying -- it's a gift. And I'm afraid this post is going to rub the fur the wrong way on some very good sheepdogs.

If you've been a reader for awhile, you remember I've written before about point shooting. I've also posted comments on an FBI report entitled Violent Encounters: A Study of Felonious Assaults on Our Nation’s Law Enforcement Officers. The report details the fact that in most shootouts, the officers put fewer shots on target than their adversaries.

Before I go any further, I'd like to ask you to do something for me. Pick out an object in the room (or out the window) and point at it. Point naturally -- not as if you were going to shoot it, but as though you were pointing it out to a friend.

Now, look at the position of your hand. Is the back of your hand perpendicular to the floor, or at about a 35-45 degree angle to it? That's the natural position of your hand when you point.

That's also the typical gangsta position for holding a handgun. Did that position evolve by adapting their shooting to the natural mode of pointing? Even more importantly, is this position inherently better for point shooters?

I know this reads like heresy to handgunning purists (deepest apologies to my barber!), but it's an issue we must face if we want to train most effectively and efficiently.

Christian Martialism on a Budget, 9

So far, you have [potentially] spent $46.99 for your first year's training in Christian Martialism. You have an assemblage of some of the best martial/close combat instruction manuals ever produced. You also have access to some excellent sources on tactics and training drills. I hope you have already begun to practice some of what you've learned.

Now I want to approach an area of training that the young man who prompted this series already knows a great deal about: handgun skills. He comes from a shooting family. I'm not sure, however, if he has ever trained in point (or instinctive) shooting.

I believe that learning to use the sights on a firearm is practical and useful at the appropriate distances. You need both aiming and tactical skills. Nevertheless, I am also aware that sight alignment takes that extra second you may not have in a close encounter of the fatal kind.

Over 90% of handgun altercations occur at less than 20 feet. Remember that the pistol originally was introduced to cavalry officers as a less cumbersome substitute for the saber. And it was meant for approximately the same range.

W.E. Fairbairn's work in reducing instinctive shooting to a science is recorded in his book, Shooting to Live(free PDF online). However, you can get a great video instructional aid plus some impressive footage of the techniques being used in a VHS video called Point Shooting. It contains a WWII era declassified training film (black & white) based on Fairbairn's methods. (Video + shipping = $20.44, which brings the total expenditure so far to $67.43).

Point Shooting

Point shooting (firing a long or short arm without use of sights) is controversial. One-handed point shooting of a handgun is even more so. Some people think that their way is the only way.

A few years ago, after a church service, I mentioned one-handed point shooting to a couple that was thinking of getting their concealed weapons permits (CWP). A college student jumped into the conversation, immediately established himself as THE expert on the scene, and proceeded to lecture me about how a two-handed grip is the ONLY right way to fire a handgun. After a couple of attempts to broaden his tunnel vision, I just gave up on the principle that often ignorance is its own punishment, and let him go on.

Sure, a two-handed grip can give you a steadier base, especially if you have your weapon raised for an extended period of time. And, with practice, using sights will give you much tighter groups at the range. But are there ANY scenarios where one-handed point shooting might be advisable or even superior?

How about this one: An armed courier is carrying something vital to national security when he is ambushed. Does he just drop his attache case in order to assume an isosceles firing position? Or, do you think a young mother facing an intruder in her home will just immediately fling down her baby to get into a Weaver stance? Is there anything you might be carrying that you would hesitate to just throw on the ground, in spite of the fact that you were being attacked? Or, what would happen if you were injured or wounded in one arm and couldn't use two hands to fire the weapon?

W.E. Fairbairn developed a one-handed point shooting method as a captain of the Hong Kong police in the 1920's. He taught it to British commandoes, the OSS and elite US troops during WWII. Fairbairn's book, Shooting to Live is still considered an authoritative classic on the subject.

Rex Applegate brought Fairbairn's methods back home to the US, and the army produced a WWII era training film on the subject. That film has been declassified and forms the core of the VHS video, Point Shooting: Battle-Proven Methods of Combat Handgunning.

I recommend that the Christian Martialist acquaint himself with the basics of point shooting by reading the Wiki-Pedia article I linked to above. Then, if he wishes to pursue proficiency, the two resources I mentioned would prove to be excellent self-training tools.

Disclaimer: Firearms are dangerous and deadly weapons. This article is for information purposes only. If anyone decides to pursue firearms training, he should learn and observe all safety rules and seek out a qualified instructor.