Which handgun do you recommend for EDC?

Foxhound5366 said:
I'm happy my grip is solid, but I think my shakiness comes from my arm muscles. I'm wondering whether building muscle strength in my arms will improve stability. Has that worked for anyone?
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My wife as booked me to go and shoot for my birthday in a couple of weeks - just 50 rounds with the 9mm of your choice!

I went to shoot a couple of times before at Flora Guns about 5 or 6 years ago and while I mostly hit the target, my grouping was all over the place. I got back into fitness since then and I'm much stronger now so it will be interesting to see if I have more inherent control over the firearm as a result.

Hypothetically, I would suggest that pushups, pullups, squats, lunges, deadlifts and kettlebell swings as well as some core exercises like planks, Paloff Press, Hanging Knee raises etc. would all be beneficial for pistol shooting.

If you had to pick one exercise, bang for buck, I'd say the two-handed kettlebell swing would be great for pistol shooters - grip strength, core, posterior train, hip-hinge and legs - kind of a similar movement pattern to shooting pistol in a nice stable isosceles stance.
 
InvisibleJim said:
My wife as booked me to go and shoot for my birthday in a couple of weeks - just 50 rounds with the 9mm of your choice!

I went to shoot a couple of times before at Flora Guns about 5 or 6 years ago and while I mostly hit the target, my grouping was all over the place. I got back into fitness since then and I'm much stronger now so it will be interesting to see if I have more inherent control over the firearm as a result.

Hypothetically, I would suggest that pushups, pull-pullups, squats, lunges, deadlifts and kettlebell swings as well as some core exercises like planks, Paloff Press, Hanging Knee raises etc. would all be beneficial for pistol shooting.

If you had to pick one exercise, bang for buck, I'd say the two-handed kettlebell swing would be great for pistol shooters - grip strength, core, posterior train, hip-hinge and legs - kind of a similar movement pattern to shooting pistol in a nice stable isosceles stance.
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This is cool. I have a new theory though ... most of my shots are consistently down and to the left ... interspersed with the odd accurate shot or three. My new theory is its my trigger squeeze.
 
RanzB said:
It's your grip.
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Entirely possible. Blatting off rounds like I'm in the gunfight scene from Heat and trying to do the Mozambique Drill probably didn't help either.

I'm hoping the place we're going to this time will give a little more critical direction with respect to technique.
 
InvisibleJim said:
Entirely possible. Blatting off rounds like I'm in the gunfight scene from Heat and trying to do the Mozambique Drill probably didn't help either.

I'm hoping the place we're going to this time will give a little more critical direction with respect to technique.
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This will all come into play once you get your own firearm, but the best thing to do is to watch YT videos. There's tons of helpful stuff on there, whether it's stance, aim,grip or what seems to be Foxhound's issue, which is indeed his trigger pull motion.
 
RanzB said:
This will all come into play once you get your own firearm, but the best thing to do is to watch YT videos. There's tons of helpful stuff on there, whether it's stance, aim,grip or what seems to be Foxhound's issue, which is indeed his trigger pull motion.
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Indeed my trigger pull motion? :P Are you an instructor, RanzB? Or have you suffered from what I'm describing before?

I noticed that when I shoot faster I actually get more accurate, and I think it's because of more consistent trigger pressure. I've actually wondered whether the split-trigger on the Glock isn't causing my finger to sit skew on the trigger, which causes me to pull the gun a bit to the left with each shot...
 
Foxhound5366 said:
This is cool. I have a new theory though ... most of my shots are consistently down and to the left ... interspersed with the odd accurate shot or three. My new theory is its my trigger squeeze.
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Trigger pull and breathing are important components of marksmanship. But responding to your comment made me think about certain aspects of strength and posture would also be beneficial.
 
bwana said:
Learn to control the muscles you have and learn how to breathe properly.
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I think the kettlebell swing would be an excellent exercise to support exactly this, supplementing shooting specific practice. Just a theory.
 
Being the armchair expert that I am, I'll leave this here, it's apparently not so much about big strong muscles.
 
Foxhound5366 said:
Sounds right. I was super safe ... after every mag emptied I'd pop it out, do a visual inspection, then release the slide and rack it back a few times, then lock it back for a final inspection before placing it on the bench facing away from me and re-loading the magazine. I got through 200 rounds without shooting myself in the foot, so it worked lol.

I'm happy my grip is solid, but I think my shakiness comes from my arm muscles. I'm wondering whether building muscle strength in my arms will improve stability. Has that worked for anyone?
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If you grip too tight, you will introduce "shakes". You can try this at home with any object that is fairly light. For example, grab a hairbrush and squeeze the handle hard. While doing that, try and keep your hand steady. You will see the slight shake.

Your grip should be firm enough to stop limp-wristing, and you should still have decent control. It is not necessary to develop overly strong muscles just for shooting.

You should control your breathing. Deep breaths in and out. Don't hold your breath as you will start to shake.

Learn the trigger of your chosen firearm. This means dry fire (with a snapcap on some models). Balance an empty case on the front of the slide if you can (Glock's have nice flat slides, so this works well). When you pull the trigger, the case shouldn't fall off. You need to know where your trigger breaks and resets.

You can also go to an accredited trainer for assistance. I went for training before I had my licence. The trainer provided a firearm for me to use and he helped me with my technique. I then knew what to practice while waiting for my licence.
 
Foxhound5366 said:
This is cool. I have a new theory though ... most of my shots are consistently down and to the left ... interspersed with the odd accurate shot or three. My new theory is its my trigger squeeze.
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Virtually all new right handed handgun shooters have the same problem.

It's a classic "flinch", where you have got used to the exact point at which the gun goes off and then anticipate that, by pushing forwards (and thus downwards) against the recoil, just before the gun fires. Right handed people push to the left because their right hand is stronger, as they push.

The solution is to dry fire at the range, in between actual shots, while you concentrate on holding the sights dead on target all the way through the trigger pull. You need to see your sights still on target as the trigger breaks.

Do double the amount of dry fired shots compared to the actual shots you take. So, for eg, do ten dry fired shots, where you concentrate on not allowing the sights to move all the way through the trigger pull, and then fire five real bullets. Or if you start dipping again, stop firing real bullets and go back to dry firing, until you can consistently hold the sights on target all the way through the trigger pull, without pushing forward as you expect the shot to break.

It's just muscle memory.

Glocks make this easy because they can dry fire without the magazine, so just dump the magazine, fire off the last shot and then go through a series of dry fired shots, while concentrating on hold those sights absolutely steady through out the trigger pull.
 
Foxhound5366 said:
You got a sport license? I'm just going for self-defence so can only pick one.
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Self defense license only valid for 5 years.
Can I suggest section 15 occasional sport. its basically the same thing but is valid 10 years.

Its easier to motivate occasional sport than self defense. And you can still carry everyday with a sec 15.
This also allows you 4 Fire arms on the section 15. You do not need to belong to a club or do anything extra.
 
Foxhound5366 said:
Indeed my trigger pull motion? :p Are you an instructor, RanzB? Or have you suffered from what I'm describing before?
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Not an instructor, just trained a lot, studied a bit and have put tons of rounds through my gun.

When you get your firearm, one thing you wanna train is dry firing and making sure the muzzle never moves when pulling the trigger.

Shoot down and to the left is symptomatic of right handed shooters. It's an easy fix.
 
Sorry, I see Alan covered this in a better post above mine.
 
qscwbt said:
Self defense license only valid for 5 years.
Can I suggest section 15 occasional sport. its basically the same thing but is valid 10 years.

Its easier to motivate occasional sport than self defense. And you can still carry everyday with a sec 15.
This also allows you 4 Fire arms on the section 15. You do not need to belong to a club or do anything extra.
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Interesting.... what happens if you kill someone in self-defence with a section15 licenced handgun?
 
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