I just read through an excellent thread by Whinebag, and it got me wondering how my grip and trigger control really is.
I usually shoot between 15' to 25', the videos following are from 15'.
Most of my hits are low and to the left, from any distance, so I am guessing trigger.
I have played these videos back at 1/8 speed, and I don't see what I am doing wrong.
Since I can only insert one video per post, I will post in three consecutive posts.
If you are bored, and don't mind making suggestions, I will be glad to hear them.
Grip your weapon with your strong hand. You see the space on the left side of the grip? Put the heel of your off hand in that space. Then, lay your off hand thumb flat so it points forward along the frame. Lay your strong hand thumb directly on top of your off hand thumb. You should not be using your thumbs at all for grip at this point. Push forward with your strong hand and pull back with your off hand (firm, not white knuckle). You should feel the grip "lock in" as your wrists stiffen up. Elbows slightly relaxed, and lean forward into the gun just a touch. This is the basic grip taught to all pistol shooters in the Marines. Try some dry fire, and tell me what you think.
In all seriousness, I also own a PX-4 compact. But what's with the left thumb? Based soley on your pictures, you seem to have both grip issues, and shooting low and left, flinch issues as well. As stated previously, you will not find anything more on this forum than you'll likely find in a pistol shooting 101 guide. Pictures and videos will not do justice to exactly what all you are doing wrong, as the grip is not the only consideration as to how you shoot.
Grip your weapon with your strong hand. You see the space on the left side of the grip? Put the heel of your off hand in that space. Then, lay your off hand thumb flat so it points forward along the frame. Lay your strong hand thumb directly on top of your off hand thumb. You should not be using your thumbs at all for grip at this point. Push forward with your strong hand and pull back with your off hand (firm, not white knuckle). You should feel the grip "lock in" as your wrists stiffen up. Elbows slightly relaxed, and lean forward into the gun just a touch. This is the basic grip taught to all pistol shooters in the Marines. Try some dry fire, and tell me what you think.
I see what you guys mean. I went through my old books and videos last night and found one from Shawn Smith. These pics are from his video
I apologize that he is using a Glock 17 and not a PX4, but, some people can not be convinced.
I started out with this kind of grip, but on a early trip to the range I kept getting my thumb rubbed by the slide. So (my best guess) I think I must have instinctlively made the wrong choice of how to protect my thumb. I will try to get back to this grip again.
Recon is on to something, namely your support hand thumb. Don't have it pointed inward toward the gun, find a position where the thumb points forward but doesn't interfere with the gun's controls. Also, your support hand should be providing rotational resistance opposing the direction of recoil
This brings up a more general observation and comment of mine, which is that a compact or sub-compact gun is a tough gun to start shooting with. I know that snubs and PX4s and the like are easy to pocket and conceal, but they really are specialized guns and it takes a serious, dedicated shooter to master the gun in a reasonable period of time. If it was my training curriculum, I'd start students off with a 4" K-frame or full-size automatic and gain proficiency before moving on to the specialized concealment guns. Not that one can't master the small guns, it just takes a concerted effort to do so.
A good trigger drill is to make a fist and place it flat on a table with a pencil in front of it. Extend your trigger finger and slowly roll the pencil towards you. Try to do this with only the tip of your trigger finger moving, repeat.
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