Should have trained more.

deathracer · Jul 19, 2021

As a CCW holder always kept up on my target skills. One thing I never did consistently was alternate the dominate hand and become just as efficient in shooting one-handed, non dominate.

Well fast forward, now having my dominate arm, shoulder surgery. Will not be able to utilize this arm for 2-3 months for shooting. Wish I had "carried" on my non-dominate side for practice, and trained more to shoot confidently as well one-handed with the non-dominate arm. Things to think about.

I have shot from the non-dominate but really only under the thinking of being struck in the other in a one-time event. Never thought about CCW carrying for an extended time on the other side, and practicing to be as efficient.

trickg · Jul 19, 2021

How many times in the last 2-3 months have you needed to draw and utilize your CCW? I could be mistaken - there is always that chance - but I'm thinking you'll probably be fine. Now would be the perfect time to get some practice in with your weak hand though.

deathracer · Jul 19, 2021

trickg said:
How many times in the last 2-3 months have you needed to draw and utilize your CCW? I could be mistaken - there is always that chance - but I'm thinking you'll probably be fine. Now would be the perfect time to get some practice in with your weak hand though.

You are absolutely correct. None! And hopefully will always be the case. But ironically, as I never put thought in this, I do not even have an opposite hand holster. I am better off not doing so at this point until fully recovered. But in the future, I will obtain one, and get used to carrying on the opposite side as much as I am on dominate now. Currently, I have what fits perfectly(walking, driving, etc.) and easy to reach, and usually forget I am actually carrying. Would like the same feeling on the other side.

trickg · Jul 19, 2021

deathracer said:
You are absolutely correct. None! And hopefully will always be the case. But ironically, as I never put thought in this, I do not even have an opposite hand holster. I am better off not doing so at this point until fully recovered. But in the future, I will obtain one, and get used to carrying on the opposite side as much as I am on dominate now. Currently, I have what fits perfectly(walking, driving, etc.) and easy to reach, and usually forget I am actually carrying. Would like the same feeling on the other side.

I WISH I could do that. I won't be able to until I move out of this state though.

bratgirllcp · Jul 19, 2021

We live n learn don't we, good luck with surgery and speedy healing

Biggfoot44 · Jul 19, 2021

I always advocate that from the start to train if not literally equally , substantial porportions of practice and training all three flavors : Two Hand , Dominant Hand Only , and Weak Hand Only .

If you learn strong first , and add weak , it will feel very awkward , unless you are true ambidextrous . But if you learn both simultaneously from the start , the weak hand is no more awkward than the untrained dominant hand , and you will then build skills more or less equally with either .

Jim12 · Jul 19, 2021

dominant

Harrys · Jul 20, 2021

Biggfoot44 said:
But if you learn both simultaneously from the start , the weak hand is no more awkward than the untrained dominant hand , and you will then build skills more or less equally with either .

How true, back in the 50s I favored my left hand in Kinder garden. The teachers made me write and draw with my right hand. When I got home I did stuff left handed. As a kid you do not think about which hand to use. I ended up being able to use both hands equally for everything. Today I can shoot right/left handed equally well. It use to drive the USCG range captains nuts as I typically scored sharpshooter/expert. One day I shot the 45 left handed and the next day I shot the M16 right handed.

Blaster229 · Jul 20, 2021

Fortunately point shooting at close distance is spectacular. Off hand, easy.

twybyll · Aug 9, 2021

Biggfoot44 said:
I always advocate that from the start to train if not literally equally , substantial porportions of practice and training all three flavors : Two Hand , Dominant Hand Only , and Weak Hand Only .

If you learn strong first , and add weak , it will feel very awkward , unless you are true ambidextrous . But if you learn both simultaneously from the start , the weak hand is no more awkward than the untrained dominant hand , and you will then build skills more or less equally with either .

Is it better to train one-handed with a lesser caliber at first? I imagine you'll be able to train with better technique that will transfer over when you go back to your regular caliber, but I'm just guessing.

Biggfoot44 · Aug 10, 2021

Personally my first handgun was .22lr revolver , so I don't have personal input .

****************

" Better " ?

In general and overall , initial skill building with .22lr vs service caliber from the start is an eternal , never to be settled debate , and both are frequently done sucuessfully .

It IS a true statement that skills of trigger control and sight alignment developed with a .22lr,will carry over to all your shooting . Blaster will point out correctly that .22lr will teach you nothing about controlling recoil , and also quite possibly teach you bad habits in that regards that would have to be Unlearned later .

Private individuals who buy ammunition out of their own pocket vs have employer provide training ammo , can shoot a lot more rimfire , even today .

Do you have a suitable .22lr pistol ? If so , add it to your range sessions , and see .

Wangbadan · Aug 10, 2021

Biggfoot44 said:
Personally my first handgun was .22lr revolver , so I don't have personal input .

****************

" Better " ?

In general and overall , initial skill building with .22lr vs service caliber from the start is an eternal , never to be settled debate , and both are frequently done sucuessfully .

It IS a true statement that skills of trigger control and sight alignment developed with a .22lr,will carry over to all your shooting . Blaster will point out correctly that .22lr will teach you nothing about controlling recoil , and also quite possibly teach you bad habits in that regards that would have to be Unlearned later .

Private individuals who buy ammunition out of their own pocket vs have employer provide training ammo , can shoot a lot more rimfire , even today .

Do you have a suitable .22lr pistol ? If so , add it to your range sessions , and see .

What sort of bad habits are you referring to?

-big Wang

outrider58 · Aug 10, 2021

twybyll said:
Is it better to train one-handed with a lesser caliber at first? I imagine you'll be able to train with better technique that will transfer over when you go back to your regular caliber, but I'm just guessing.

I say no. Most problems that will arise while shooting single weak hand/single strong hand will have to do with recoil. You will never learn how to control or become accustomed to those effects shooting a .22lr.

Biggfoot44 · Aug 10, 2021

Potential bad habits would include weak grip and stances that you can get away with with ( near zero recoil ) , but would suck with either a " manly man " caliber , or medium caliber in small light gun . As further alluded above by Outrider .

I'm familiar with the argument . If you frame it as a person with zero prior experience , only ever train/ shoot with .22lr , and then suddenly hand them a ( micro Boomer of your choice ) will they be taken aback at that moment ? Yeah .

Could a person wisely use a .22lr as part of their advancement of skills ? You betcha !

To use the opposite extreme example , would a new shooter probably be a better all around shooter after firing 50 rounds of 9mm , or 50 rounds of 9mm , plus 500 rounds of .22 lr ?

My further counterpoint , if you don't yet have the trigger and sighting skills to accurately place rounds into a relevant grouping for intended purpose ( arbitrarily say a paper plate @ 10 yds ) , either usual two hand stance , weak hand only , whatever ) with a .22lr field/ target gun , you're not going to magically shoot better with a pocket size 9mm .

A counter counter argument is that that modest level of marksmanship is unnecessary and irrelevant for SD , and hitting anywhere on torso sized target at 5- 7 yds is plenty .

Eventually , it's a philosophical thing , and you takes your choice of approach .

Blaster229 · Aug 10, 2021

People never listen to me, but that's ok. Start someone out on a 9mm. Teach them grip and then just have them shoot the pistol to get used to recoil a hundred times. Not even at a target. You can coordinate trigger pull in this step, so they can get a feeling of when the pistol will fire. The whole "Let the gun surprise you" is the most ridiculous thing.
Get recoil out of the way so that when you eventually teach them sight alignment and all the other bs, they know what's coming. Recoil is intimidating. When they are at a little point to ignore it, they can concentrate on other things.
One step at a time. How can someone juggle stance, sight alignment, trigger control, recoil management and the whole slew of other crap all at the same time? It's ridiculous.

Mark75H · Aug 10, 2021

Blaster229 said:
People never listen to me, but that's ok. Start someone out on a 9mm. Teach them grip and then just have them shoot the pistol to get used to recoil a hundred times. Not even at a target. You can coordinate trigger pull in this step, so they can get a feeling of when the pistol will fire. The whole "Let the gun surprise you" is the most ridiculous thing.
Get recoil out of the way so that when you eventually teach them sight alignment and all the other bs, they know what's coming. Recoil is intimidating. When they are at a little point to ignore it, they can concentrate on other things.
One step at a time. How can someone juggle stance, sight alignment, trigger control, recoil management and the whole slew of other crap all at the same time? It's ridiculous.

The best

outrider58 · Aug 11, 2021

Blaster229 said:
People never listen to me, but that's ok. Start someone out on a 9mm. Teach them grip and then just have them shoot the pistol to get used to recoil a hundred times. Not even at a target. You can coordinate trigger pull in this step, so they can get a feeling of when the pistol will fire. The whole "Let the gun surprise you" is the most ridiculous thing.
Get recoil out of the way so that when you eventually teach them sight alignment and all the other bs, they know what's coming. Recoil is intimidating. When they are at a little point to ignore it, they can concentrate on other things.
One step at a time. How can someone juggle stance, sight alignment, trigger control, recoil management and the whole slew of other crap all at the same time? It's ridiculous.

But we're talking about training and practice for W&C people. Not teaching someone how to shoot as a beginner.

Blaster229 · Aug 11, 2021

outrider58 said:
But we're talking about training and practice for W&C people. Not teaching someone how to shoot as a beginner.

Some WC people need beginner training lol

outrider58 · Aug 11, 2021

Blaster229 said:
Some WC people need beginner training lol

That's possibly true...

:lol:

Blaster229 · Aug 11, 2021

outrider58 said:
That's possibly true...

I've seen them.

Should have trained more.

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