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Tactics & Training
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Tactics & Training
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HANDGUN RETENTION:
The Armed Citizen's Perspective
Massad Ayoob
Handgun retention is the art and science of defeating an attempt to disarm the legitimate wearer of the gun. It was developed primarily by, and for, police officers, who when in uniform carry their sidearms in plain sight and, therefore, within easy reach of anyone physically close to them. On the surface, it would seem that this would be a concern armed citizens could ignore, unless they were practitioners of open carry; after all, most private citizens carry their guns concealed. Unfortunately, that's an oversimplification . . . keep reading
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Sig Sauer Academy: Off Body Carry for the Responsible Citizen
George Harris
As we work our way through everyday life, we find ourselves having to be flexible with our concealed carry options simply due to the individual lives that we lead and our changing circumstances. Most firearms professionals like myself will be quick to tell you to be consistent with your carry options. This, of course, is to enhance your proficiency when an unexpected encounter causes the subconscious mind to take command of your response, and it increases the likelihood of your success in a given situation. However, the reality is that many of us lead . . . keep reading
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One is None -- Thoughts on the Backup Gun
Michael Tan
There are many reasons to feel guilty: Have you done live-fire drills in the last two weeks? No? Your skills are getting rusty from disuse! Have you field-stripped and cleaned your primary carry gun over the past two range sessions? No? Your guns may be getting rusty from sweat and neglect! Have you formally learned and practiced empty-hand combatives? No? Your personal skill set is incomplete! Ah, the many things that evoke a twinge of guilt. Here's another potential source of guilt: Are you carrying a backup gun, knife, and light? No? . . . keep reading
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Pistol Reloads -- What You Need to Know
Heath Gunns
Do you carry a gun for self-defense? If so, the speed reload is one of the most important skills you can master. Not because so many rounds are fired in the fight -- although often that is exactly the case -- but because the reality is that all pistols malfunction eventually. The good news is that when using quality equipment, malfunctions don't happen often. The bad news is they do happen sometimes. Regardless of your brand of blaster, what you feed it, or how clean it is, it will malfunction. Whether it's because you . . . keep reading
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Street Tactics: Notes from Five Years of Force on Force
Gabe Suarez
We have been running force on force training sessions for almost five years now, and in that time, we've put about a thousand students through the course and drills. Here are some issues that we keep noticing with almost boring regularity. If your training does not take these issues into account, then your training may be . . . keep reading
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Taser Tactics: Four Simple Rules
Don Stahlnecker
It was the late 1970s, I was a kid, and the advertisement was in the back of a comic book. Still, it had to be true. For just under ten dollars I could purchase my very own ELECTRONIC stun device that was guaranteed to PARALYZE an attacker of ANY SIZE. I was tempted. After all, I never missed an episode of Star Trek and I thought the phaser was the coolest weapon ever conceived. I figured that a phaser set to stun would be the best self defense tool ever. So the idea that I could actually own such a cool and handy contraption was overwhelming. However, ten bucks was a lot of money to a kid in those days, and I was still a little jaded from the x-ray glasses fiasco. So I never did order one. It is now 2009. I still can't walk on the moon; I still don't have my very own household servant robot. But I do indeed own my very own electronic stun device that will paralyze an attacker of any size. It is a Taser model C2. . . . keep reading
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National Tactical Invitational: Higher Education for Self-Defense
Tom Givens
During the past week I've been missed by an RPG rocket fired by a terrorist, shot in the leg by an armed robber, and talked my way out of a confrontation with four angry men. And that was just the beginning! I've been at the West Shore Sportsmen's Association range complex near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, for the 19th annual National Tactical Invitational (NTI). The NTI is a unique learning and self testing event that runs from Tuesday evening through Saturday night each year, right after Memorial Day. Over the course of the week, participants are tested . . . keep reading
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Street Tactics:
Modern Force on Force
Gabe Suarez
I get a great number of email inquiries about force on force. The word is out, so to speak, and everyone seems to be curious about it, how it can benefit them, and finally, how they can get on board. In this column I will try to address some of the questions which seem the most prevalent. The first time force on force (with firearms) was ever written about was by a man named Pepe Lulla. He was a very accomplished duelist and trainer of duelists, who was operational in the antebellum south. He was known to train with wooden bullets in the stand-and-deliver dueling format. Later in that century, we read of a British officer in India arming his servants with sticks and various . . . keep reading
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SIG SAUER Academy: One Hand Only
George Harris
"Perfect practice makes perfect performance" may be true, but if you don't practice the things you need to practice it is all for naught. Most of us are guilty of practicing what we are good at, and neglecting the things at which we are less than adequate. Each of us has to decide what is important enough to put our time and effort into, and what is not. If just having a gun available is all that is necessary to make us feel comfortable, practicing for proficiency in a variety of situations is probably something that is not . . . keep reading
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Snubby School: Training with the Wheel Gun
Duane A. Daiker
I have a confession to make: I am a revolver guy. Even in this world of polymer high-tech mega-capacity semi-autos, I still prefer to carry a wheel gun. I own, shoot, and test a lot of bottom-feeder wonder guns, but I still love revolvers. I admit I am that annoying guy who shows up at a three-day tactical shooting school with a two-inch revolver. Maybe some of you are too? Or more likely, you take your Glock 17 out to the range and to classes, but you really carry a snubnose revolver in your everyday life? Lots of people rely on a five-shot .38 Special for everyday protection, even if some of them don't want to admit it. Snubby revolvers may not be . . . keep reading
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How Was Your Range Time Today?
Don Larson
How was your range time today? Did you have any results in mind when you loaded up and launched a few, or were you just sending 'em downrange? In my years of instructing and shooting, I've found that most shooting falls into one of three categories, whether we're at a range that's open to the public, a private club, or on our own property. First, there are the "Plinkers," the casual shooters. These folks are out for fun, with nothing specific in mind. They just want to put some holes in a target. This type of shooting is just fine, and a great way to spend your time if that's what you're out to do. . . . keep reading
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"My Range Won't Let Me!"
Kathy Jackson
At the end of a defensive handgun class, I was speaking with one of the students and suggested that if he wanted to retain what he had learned, he would absolutely need to practice the techniques and drills we'd done in class. With a downtrodden look, the student replied, "My range won't let me." This article is for him, and for people like him. Please note: the drills suggested below will not take the place of live fire on a hot range, and they are not intended to do so. Nor will you be able to teach yourself how to perform any of these advanced skills from the ground up using these adaptive techniques. However, if you have already learned these skills elsewhere, preferably under the watchful eye of a competent instructor, these adaptations to restrictive ranges may help maintain the proficiency you've already acquired. And that's all they are intended to do. . . . keep reading
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Street Tactics: An Historical Perspective
Gabe Suarez
Men have been killing each other with pistols since the discovery of the New World. Still, America has developed its own brand of gunfighting as a result of its history and society. We will will look at the historical development of "some of what we do" and by doing that, hopefully, gain a clearer picture of why some things are accepted and done. The first chapter in this saga comes in the Antebellum South when disputes were handled not by incessant arguing and highly paid lawyers, but by the finality of the Duel. Dueling academies proliferated, and taught the best ways to prevail in the rule-driven spectacle of the duel. Combatants trained to . . . keep reading
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Street Tactics: Fighting in Your House
Gabe Suarez
Fighting in houses -- or fighting in your house -- can take on many forms depending on your mission. Having clarity of mission is essential so you know how to comport yourself in each event. I want to be very clear that this is one of the most dangerous activities that a homeowner may encounter. Sadly, most training out there is limited to the police application, which I call "hunt the burglar." This has very little in common with much of what you may need to do as the occupant of a home, rather than as a police officer who is responding to . . . keep reading
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Force On Force Notebook: Carjacked!
Jack Rumbaugh
It's a rainy night in a city in the South. Your GPS unit is guiding you to your destination, but it didn't take into account the construction detours as you head into the downtown area. You are familiar with the city and you know the detour is taking you through an area that isn't the best in the city. You take a second to adjust your CCW gear for easy access. To top it all off, it starts to pour down rain, limiting visibility. You hang a right and a shadowy figure steps off the curb in the middle of the block and faces your car. He is blocking the lane you are in. You only have seconds to make a decision. What do you do? What did you decide? I simply . . . keep reading
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SigArms: How to be a Good Student
George Harris
You have come to the realization that you are not as good as you want to be, so a training class to elevate your performance level is on the horizon. After an intensive search of the many training institutions available to aid in your improvement, you have selected one that seems to meet your needs and promises to help you excel to the next level of proficiency. You enroll and wait with eager anticipation until the first day of training comes. When you arrive at the training site, you find that the class is being held at another location. By the time you get directions and travel to the correct location, the class has started without you. Once you get settled in and oriented to the class, you start to realize that . . . keep reading
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