Crutches

With the tremendous emphasis in concealed carry there are more handgun add-ons, modifications and accessories out there than you can shake a stick at. Some are good some are not so good. Reading gun book adds and window shopping in gun shops is akin to walking into a bait shop to buy a fishing lure. There are laser sights , flashlights, high visibility sights, trigger assemblies, high performance barrels, snap caps, special holsters, ad infinitum. Do they all have their place? Certainly they do. For example a flashlight shining into a bad guys eyes or a red dot bouncing all over his body definitely has a psychological effect. However I would guess that most of the people that slap a laser sight on their gun could not keep it on a 6 inch paper plate at 20 feet. There is no accessory or modification to a firearm that will magically make you a better shot. Only range time and practice with the "raw" gun can do that.

A high percentage of people that wish to conceal carry are homeowners. People with a home mortgage, one or two vehicles to pay for, credit card debt, couple of kids to raise and maintain. People, that aren't gun magazine writers that get free guns to shoot, or are wealthy enough to afford a $1000 Kimber. They are lucky enough to afford a .380 Phoenix. So when they plop down $300 - $600 for a gun, pay the taxes, buy a $75 holster and then they find out it costs $30 a box for ammo, plus another $20 an hour range time and $20 worth of gas to shoot it, the bank is just about broken. They look for crutches that make them think will make them a better shot and reduce the high cost and need for practice. Doesn't work that way. There is nothing you can do to or put on a gun that will make you a more proficient shooter, only practice can do that.

So what' s the answer? There are Airsoft pistols that replicate nearly every popular handgun available. Many are available on the internet or at gun shows for a couple of bucks. They can be used to practice in your living room (with a suitable backstop). Except for the noise and recoil they are just like shooting your carry gun. The plastic bb's are inexpensive and can be used over and over.

I have the luxury of owning more than 30 handguns and being able to step out on my back porch and shoot them. What do I use to do my daily practice? My airsofts and my CO2 BB pistols.

Do crutches have their place? Of course they do, but only after you know how to shoot your firearm well. What happens when at that "moment of truth" your flashlight battery goes dead, or the switch on your laser sight doesn't work, or your add-on sight gets displaced, or you accidently load snap caps instead of live ammo in your gun, etc.? Many people might panic because they bet their lives on those crutches. The situation goes South in a hurry.

My opinion, What are yours?

I believe in cheap, robust and sparse gear, well considered and well maintained. Each piece of specialized gear is one more item of fragility waiting to fail at the worst possible moment.

Admiral Rickover prohibited computers in his enginerooms for their fragility. Read Taleb on fragility, robustness and anti-fragility.

The analogy to shotgun-chic and gallus-snappers leaps instantly to mind - elites in their own mind only.

To your last paragraph, I imagine sighting systems (including lasers & even weapon lights) are out the window when it comes to sh!t your britches, point and jerk the trigger, I'm about to die kind of encounters. Could be wrong though.

To that point, range time isn't enough even with unlimited funds, thus airsoft and BB's ain't gonna cut it. You can develop your trigger control until you're knocking gnat balls off at 50 yards but I'd wager your investment in time/money is not going to pay off at self defense distances in high stress surprise situations. There is other training for that, and range time is typically not the focus.

Trip20 said:

....I'd wager your investment in time/money is not going to pay off at self defense distances in high stress surprise situations. There is other training for that, and range time is typically not the focus.

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HandyHamlet said:

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Hooray, Hooray...it's the 1st of May;
Outdoor shooting begins today!!!

View attachment 8230 Give 'em Hel Jack; if they don't like her, give 'em your mother-in-law...

trip20:

None of us know how we would react if the "rubber hits the road". Military and law enforcement trainers will tell you themselves that you can attempt to influence a person's subconcious moral convictions and fear but you can never train a person to disregard them altogether. Those trainers will also tell you that they can never predict how any of their trainees will react in a real firefight. I don't know how I would react. I hope I never find out. Maybe even with my proficiency and experience I will crap my pants and run screaming down the street. I take compfort in knowing that if I am able to maintain my composure my abilities and equipment will be equal to the task and get me out of the situation.

I use an airsoft with blowback action to "train" in my basement. Drawing and firing from weird positions (seated, on back, etc...)

My mental training came via Vietnam...once you have been actually shot at, you have no problem shooting a threat.

As for physical practice...my High Standard Trophy probably get 1000 rounds through it for every round I fire through my variety of center fire pistols of various calibers. I buy my .22 by the brick, (10 boxes) not the box, and as one time, when the price was particularly good, by the case (100 boxes of 50).