Since 09-27-06
Point Shooting...Again? What's the point in point shooting?
Since 09-27-06
Posted: September 11th, 2006
http://www.officer.com/article/article.jsp?id=32550&siteSection=3
STEVE DENNEY
Firearms Contributor
Officer.com
Every now and then, someone will bring up the subject of point shooting. And every now and then, someone will seriously try to teach point shooting as a preferred method of using a handgun for defensive purposes.
And, every time, it turns out to be a bad idea!
I'm not sure where it comes from, this notion that "instinctive" shooting is somehow superior to aimed fire. Maybe it's from too many Old West gunfighter images in the movies or on television.
Maybe it's from folks who think you get points for style in a life or death confrontation. Or maybe it's from ego.
But, we do know that the gunfights in the Old West did not happen as they have been depicted for many years as entertainment. And the old "FBI Crouch" has not been used by serious shooters, including the FBI, for decades. But, somehow, point shooting never goes away.
First of all, I have to say that some "point" shooting really isn't point shooting at all.
It is just using a different manner to index the gun on a target.
Somewhere along the continuum from "instinctive pointing" to using a conventional sight picture, we start indexing the gun in some manner that actually contributes to some degree of accuracy.
We go from: "just point your trigger finger, and that's where the bullet will go," to aligning our body parts, to bringing the gun more or less to eye level and using a silhouette of the gun, to a rough sight picture, and, finally, to using the sights as intended.
Interestingly, each step toward using the sights contributes to a greater degree of accuracy, and some of the techniques are actually useful in some limited circumstances.
Some people can get quite good with some of the techniques, but it usually requires a great deal of practice and a lot of ammunition downrange.
And while some exhibition shooters can put on amazing displays of phenomenal hand-eye coordination, I don't think the cop on the street has the time or the need for that type of shooting skill.
If you're in a gunfight, it is not for entertainment purposes.
Your need is to finish the fight as quickly and effectively as possible, and you must be the winner!
Can someone get effective hits by instinctive (actually, it would be more correctly called "reactive") shooting?
Sure, anything's possible. Is it the way to go when your life is on the line?
Okay, bottom line is, if your life is on the line, use your sights!
There is no good substitute for accuracy.
I think a lot of the terrible hit ratio statistics we see from police shooting incidents comes from the fact that, in a life threatening situation, we want to return fire fast.
But, as Bill Jordan (who was certainly one of the fastest and most accurate "from the leather" shooters who ever lived) said, "Speed is fine, but accuracy is final!"
And accuracy means doing everything you can to ensure the bullet goes where you want it.
Wyatt Earp was reported to have said that he always lined up the "fore sight" with the "back sight" and carefully squeezed the trigger. His biographer, Stuart Lake, seemed surprised that Earp managed to survive unscathed with this approach, and when he questioned him about it, Earp supposedly replied, "Stuart, that's the point. I shot them, while they were shooting at me!"
Regardless of the myths of the Old West, we know that in a gunfight, the participants took every advantage they could, and style was not a consideration.
The big selling point for point shooting is that it is "fast." But, is it?
Try this at the range (with a range timer, of course).
Stand at about 4 yards and, on the timer signal, draw (or bring the gun up from low ready) and fire by just pointing the gun.
Assess your hits.
You'll probably notice you need better accuracy, so try it again, but align the gun and make sure you get good hits.
Check the times and assess the hits.
Now, do it again, but this time bring the gun up to eye level and use either a conventional sight picture or some other visual indexing.
Massad Ayoob teaches the "StressPoint Index," which is also referred to by some as "shooting out of the notch." This means that the bottom of the front sight is visually centered and "sits" on the top of the rear sight, forming an equilateral triangle as you look over the top of the gun.
In close, say within 21 feet, this is very accurate and is faster than using a conventional "in the notch" sight picture.
Using the silhouette of the gun can also be effective, but this technique can take a little longer to get aligned.
Now check your time and assess the accuracy of your hits.
What you are likely to find is that you lost nothing to time, and gained a great deal in accuracy. In fact, you may find that you were actually faster, along with the better accuracy.
Why?
Because you are using a sighting technique that is positive, familiar and already well practiced.
This gives you a level of confidence in your hit potential and you are able to shoot as soon as you are on target. When the gun is below eye level, you have to make adjustments, based on feel, and that takes precious time. If you don't, accuracy suffers, or you have to "walk" the bullets to the proper place on the target. You can see this on the range.
But, time and again, we see street situations when there are a lot of shots fired, but there are few effective hits. There are many cases in police shootings where the fight finally ended when someone took the time to aim, rather than just shoot.
Now, how would you rather spend your practice time? Working on a technique with a lot of "Kentucky windage," or a technique that will give you the accuracy you need to stop the attack quickly?
Few law enforcement officers have the time or the ammo budget to practice non-sighted shooting enough to become even acceptably accurate, let alone truly proficient. Spend your practice time wisely.
If you think you are going to find yourself in a situation where you can't bring the gun to eye level, modern technology has provided the answer--laser sights. We've discussed them in the past, and this is one tactical use of laser sights that really delivers the results.
With the laser sights, you can be on your back, behind cover, or in some other awkward or movement impaired position and still ensure accuracy of your shots.
You can even increase the distance beyond any reasonable point shooting application and still be assured of needed accuracy. I can think of no better reason to invest in laser sights. And, if you want to test your "natural" point shooting ability without wasting ammo, try it with a laser.
First, aim the gun at the target. When you have the point of aim that you want, activate the laser. Be honest. Did the red dot show up where you thought it would? I think you'll find that having the laser gives you a considerable edge over any pointing technique you can otherwise devise.
Can point shooting work?
Maybe, if you have time for enough practice and you have exceptional hand-eye coordination. Is it a technique likely to work, when used in a life threatening situation on the street?
If you think that it is, you go ahead. But I'll wait for you here.
Steve Denney is a former municipal police sergeant, USAF Officer and chief of security/safety officer for a large retirement and healthcare community. A former SWAT officer, crime prevention officer and both military and police firearms trainer, he is currently an instructor for LFI Judicious Use of Deadly Force, LFI Stressfire, and NRA and other defensive tactics disciplines. He currently trains police, military and private citizens. He is a charter member of ILEETA, a member of IALEFI, and serves on the Firearms Committee of ASLET.