If you want to improve your marksmanship, practice is essential. However, you don’t actually have to fire a gun to enhance your shooting technique. By honing your skills without firing, you can practice more safely and in a wider variety of locations. What’s more – you won’t spend a fortune on ammo when you practice shooting without firing. With this in mind, take a look at these practical ways to train shooting without firing:

1. Dry Fire

Dry firing simply refers to using your gun without ammunition and it’s a surprisingly effective way to practice. When you shoot with ammunition, the recoil can mask any potential errors you’re making and make them harder to correct in the long-term.

When you dry fire, however, there’s no recoil, which means you’re able to analyze your shooting skills in greater detail. Dry fire allows you to practice the basics, establish muscle memory and hone your hand-eye coordination. However, it’s essential to check your weapon is unloaded before you engage in dry fire and you should always have a backstop in place, just in case.

2. Pellet Guns

Although pellet guns aren’t quite as safe as dry firing, because ammunition is involved, they can be a great way to practice. You can even create a safe space on your land to ensure that you develop your shooting skills without putting anyone at risk.

Both pistols and rifles are available in air versions, so it’s easy to find something similar to your standard firearm. In fact, many manufacturers produce pellet guns that are virtually the same as real firearms, which makes practicing with them highly effective.

While you will need to purchase pellets, and CO2 cartridges depending on the gun you’re using, the cost of this type of ammunition is much cheaper than buying bullets. As a result, you can practice to your heart’s content without putting a dent in your wallet.

3. Laser Trainers

Adding a laser to your firearm allows you to assess your skills more easily and identify what you may need to change. There are plenty of lasers to choose from and many are created solely for the purpose of training. After firing, a laser will show exactly where your bullet would have landed.

Due to the level of detail, training with a laser is a great way to improve your shooting skills. Being able to see where your bullet would have struck makes this one of the most practical ways to train shooting without firing live ammunition. What’s more – it can be a whole of fun too! With targets that light up or emit a sound when the laser hits them, you can train alone or have a competition with friends.

Improve Your Shooting Skills

If you want to improve your shooting skills, regular practice is essential. However, training without firing means you can incorporate your practice into your schedule more easily, learn the basics more quickly and save some cash too.

Choosing the right firearm ensures your gun fits your needs, is comfortable to use, and matches your budget. However, different firearms are appropriate for different uses and environments. You’ll want a very different firearm for home defense than you would for hunting, for example.

With this in mind, take a look at these critical factors to consider been you’re choosing a firearm for everyday carry (EDC):

1. Size

An everyday carry firearm should be easy to carry about your person, which means size is always a determining factor. If you’re permitted to conceal carry, you’ll want to ensure that your gun isn’t visible under your clothing too.

However, more compact firearms can sometimes lack the accuracy associated with larger weapons. Due to this, finding the ideal EDC firearm can mean balancing the need for accuracy with the size of a gun.

2. Action

When you’re choosing a gun for everyday carry, your three main options include: single-action; double action, or striker-fired. Single action pistols are typically the listed option, which can make them ideal as an EDC firearm, but you do need to cock the hammer manually. In contrast, a double-action gun usually features a heavier trigger, because of its dual purpose.

Striker-fired pistols don’t feature an external hammer, which means they can combine the lightweight feel of a single pistol, with a consistent trigger feel. However, if you’re more proficient with single-action, double-action, or striker-fired guns, you may want to choose the same action for your EDC.

3. Capacity

Another consideration when selecting a firearm for EDC is how many rounds its capable of holding. Again, the smaller size of the ideal EDC can reduce the capacity in the gun’s magazine, which could leave you without enough bullets to effectively neutralize a threat.

Many smaller pistols have a capacity of six to eight rounds but, if you’re worried this won’t be enough, there are other options out there. Some lightweight pistols are capable of holding 10 to 12 rounds, as well as one in the chamber.

Furthermore, you can often purchase a larger capacity magazine to use with an EDC gun. This allows you to increase its capacity while still maintaining a lightweight and streamlined feel, which makes a lot of sense.

4. Price

When it comes to the price of an EDC firearm, it’s important to consider your budget carefully. Although a high price tag doesn’t always mean better quality, spending a little more on an EDC gun can mean that you get a better weapon.

If you need to use your everyday carry for any reason, you’ll want to be confident that it won’t let you down. That’s why it’s important to find the best quality gun in your price range.

Choosing an EDC Firearm

Now you know what matters most when selecting an EDC firearm, you’ll be able to decide which model is right for you. Visiting your local gun store or gun range will give you the chance to assess what’s available and try out the most popular EDC firearms.

Firearm Instructing – The Right Way to Hold Your Gun

There are a few things that should always be a priority when you’re handling a firearm, especially if you’re a beginner.

First, you’ll want to make sure that you have complete control over the weapon. Safety is more important than anything when you’re holding a gun. If you don’t feel as though you have the right grip or that a single shot could cause you to lose control, you’re not holding it the right way.

Second, it’s important to hold your firearm in such a way that won’t tire you out quickly. Whether you shoot as a hobby or for training, no one wants to tire out quickly after holding their gun for only a short period of time.

So, why is it that most firearm instructors tell you to push your weapon out as far as possible? In reality, it makes more sense to keep your moment arm shorter. This gives you more control and won’t cause fatigue, so you stay on your target longer.

Still confused? Let’s cover a few more tips about the right way to hold and prepare your firearm to shoot.

The Rules of Safety

Again, holding your firearm in a safe and secure matter should be your top priority. There are a few ways to make sure you’re always staying safe while the gun is in your possession, including:

• Imagining that it’s always loaded (even when it isn’t)
• Pointing it in a safe direction away from yourself and others
• Keeping your finger away from the trigger
• Understanding your surroundings

By keeping these ideas in mind, you’re more likely to hold your gun safely, whether you’re ready to shoot or not.

Using a Dominant Grip

You’re always going to shoot more accurately and have more control over your firearm when you use a two-hand grip. Start by holding the gun with your dominant hand, and place your other hand should move underneath it, just below the trigger guard with your last three fingers securing the bottom of the grip.

Holding your gun with two hands doesn’t mean you have to have an extremely tight grip. This will cause fatigue quickly. It’s about having control, not holding your firearm so tightly that you lose that control and stay too focused on your grip to think about anything else. A two-handed grip might feel unnatural at first. It takes time and practice for it to become second nature.

The Ready Position to Firing

If you work with a firearms instructor, you’ll learn what the “ready position” is very quickly. Simply put, it’s how you should be holding your gun when you’re not firing, but you could be at any time.

In the ready position, your gun should be relatively close to your body, just in front of your abdomen. Your finger should be on the trigger guard but not the trigger itself, and your firearm should be pointed directly at your target and nowhere else.

When it comes time to fire, most instructors will tell you to extend your arms fully. This can be useful for beginners, but as stated above, it will cause muscle fatigue relatively quickly.

You should extend your arms to determine your dominant eye. Your dominant eye may not be the same as your dominant hand, so make sure you do a “test” to determine which eye will work better for you when sizing up a target. By extending your arms forward in a firing position, you can look at an object with both eyes open. Close one eye. If that object moves at all, the eye you closed is non-dominant, and you should be looking at your target with the other one.

But, when you’re finally ready to fire, you don’t necessarily need to leave your arms extended. Instead, keep a bend in your elbows and keep your moment arm shorter. This will not only give you more control, even after firing, but it will allow you to keep your energy levels up so your arm won’t become fatigued so quickly.

The Art of Pulling the Trigger

Most people think they know the basics of how to fire a gun. And, the reality is, almost anyone can do it. But, that doesn’t mean they’re doing it correctly or safely. One of the most common areas of error is how people “pull” the trigger.

If you’ve gone so far as to make sure you’re following safety procedures, you have the gun in the ready position and you’re set to fire, the last thing you want to do is pull the trigger the wrong way.

Really, dealing with the trigger is more of a press than a pull. You’ll want the center of your index finger to come in complete contact with the middle of the trigger. This gives you the most control and will make it nearly impossible for your finger to slip.

When you’re ready to fire, push down with fluid, consistent pressure. The last thing you should be doing is jerking the trigger back or pulling it abruptly. This will cause you to lose some control and you won’t be as accurate with your shot.

Practicing Your Technique

Everyone has their own personal style when it comes to using a firearm. But, firearm instructing should teach you the basics of how to stay safe and shoot effectively. Keep these tips in mind, especially if you’re just starting out using a gun for the first time.

If you’re working with a firearm instructor and they show you a technique that you’re uncomfortable with, don’t be afraid to speak up. If you don’t feel in control, you could be putting yourself and others in danger. So, pay attention to what feels right, and work with your instructor to develop the best ready position and method for firing.

Once you do have the basics down, you can make small adjustments on how you hold the gun in the ready position (closer or further away) to keep full control over the weapon at all times. Mastering these skills will make you a much better shooter and gun owner.

If you find that you are having a hard time acquiring targets, or if you want to make sure that you are doing everything you can to improve your overall shooting accuracy, then here are some of the steps that you need to be taking.

Slow Down

Everyone wants to be able to shoot at lightning speed, but if you do this then you will sacrifice accuracy. If your target starts to look like it has been blasted a couple of times with a shotgun then slow down and realign your aim. When you are in the rhythm of shooting and you know how to handle your gun, you can then begin to pick up the pace.

Dry Fire

This is super easy to do. There is absolutely no substitute for dry-firing and it can help you out a lot when it comes to your aim. Another bonus of dry-firing is that it can save you a lot of ammo. Before you dry-fire, unload your gun and look to make sure that the chamber is empty. When you have checked this, you then need to put up a target, and proceed with a few practice drills. This will give you the chance to focus on how the gun feels in your hand and it will also help you to perfect your technique.

Trigger Control

Trigger control is so important when you visit a shooting range. If you want to have a high level of trigger control, then you need to work on your surprise break. This is when you place an equal, yet gradual amount of pressure on the trigger. Eventually the hammer will drop, and it’ll probably surprise you. If you do not achieve a surprise break, then the round will probably go anywhere but the bullseye. Achieving a surprise break is critical because it means that the trigger finger is performing independently to whatever your body is doing.

Aligning your Sight

Sight alignment is essentially the distance between your rear sight, front sight and your eye. The clear tip at the front is centered horizontally and vertically in the rear sight. If you want to obtain a good level of sight alignment then you have to know that the human eye is only capable of focusing on a single object at any one time. This will always be the front sight.  If you are able to maintain your sight alignment, then you need to place the focused sight in the blurred rear sight.

Grip

If you are using a pistol then grip is essential. You need to place the web of your firing hand high on the pistol, and then wrap all of your fingers, minus the trigger finger around the pistol grip. The trigger finger will run alongside the lower receiver of the gun, unless you are looking at a target with the intention of making a shot.

If you follow all of these tips then you will soon find that it is easier than ever for you to maintain a good level of control over your gun.

If you want to buy a gun, then you need to think about the caliber of bullets as well as your choice of firearm. If you don’t give enough thought to the caliber of bullets you are using, then you may find that you end up not getting the best experience out of your gun. You may also find that you end up hitting way more shots, by simply understanding your preferences with a firearm. If you want to find out which caliber is most suited to you as a medium-sized male, then this guide will help you to find out what you need to know.

Caliber and your Choice of Gun

A gun’s barrel is measured in hundreds of an inch.  If you have a 0.45 handgun then this means that the barrel is 0.45 inches and therefore, you’ll need a 0.45 bullet. The diameter of a barrel can also be referred to by using the metric system, such as a 9mm handgun.

Rimfire

Rimfire bullets have the primer built right into the rim. The firing pin hits the primer and ignites the powder. This was invented in the year 1845 and the most popular option is the 0.22. The advantage is that they require very little pressure from the firing pin, meaning that the firearm is light and low cost.

Centrefire

Centrefire cartridges have the primer located in the middle of the cartridge. The cartridge is thicker when compared to rimfire and it’s much more preferred by the military. These are used because they are small in size and they are able to withstand way more pressure. This gives the bullets more velocity.

Which Option is Best for You?

There has been a huge debate for quite some time in regards to which caliber is best. Some say the .45 is best because it has a huge amount of stopping power.  Others think that the 9mm is better than the others, but every caliber comes with its own merits.

Shot Placement

A specific caliber is not as important as your own ability to hit a target. Shot placement truly is key when it comes to neutralizing a threat. If you miss your shots when you are using a .45 caliber, then the bigger caliber is not serving you well.

Accuracy

You may find that you are more accurate when using your 9mm Beretta when compared to your Colt 1911.  It doesn’t matter which gun you prefer, what matters is how accurate you are. A lot of people think that bigger is better, but this isn’t the case at all. It all comes down to how it feels and what the shooting range is telling you. If you are way better with a gun of a lower caliber then there’s nothing wrong with this. If you need some practice, use your local shooting range to your advantage and always make sure that you are trying out a lot of different options. You never know, you may be surprised by the results you see.

How To Choose The Best First Handgun

When picking out anything for the first time, it can be a little stressful. In today’s world, there are so many variations and options to choose from that it would be easy to spend all day either at the store or staring at the computer screen with an open tab titled “Amazon”.

Still, some items definitely take a little more investigating when picking out. For example, deciding between cars is much different than choosing between red or blue sneakers. It also becomes even harder when you are buying said object for the first time. That is especially true when that object is a handgun.

So what makes a good first handgun? Well, there are plenty of factors:

What will it be used for?

There are plenty of uses for a handgun. They can be used for target shooting, home and/or self-defense, hunting, etcetera. So when deciding on what handgun to buy, try and find the best gun for the purpose intended.

For example, a 9mm pistol is great for self-defense being a smaller caliber gun, but a 45 caliber maybe something preferred for target shooting. Then again, someone may prefer the larger caliber weapon for self-defense, so in the end, it is up to the buyer’s preference.

What size caliber bullets?

Similar to the intended use of the weapon, the caliber size is at the discretion of the consumer. Nevertheless, it is still an important topic to think about when purchasing a handgun.

Larger caliber bullets would obviously do more damage. So if knocking down a possible home intruder for the count would make it easier to sleep at night, a 45 would be a better purchase than the aforementioned 9mm discussed.

Revolver or a magazine?

Handguns can be categorized into two groups: a revolver or an automatic. Revolvers do not have magazines and have to be manually loaded. They have a cylinder that typically maxes out at six bullets. On the other side of things, an automatic weapon can usually hold up to 14 bullets in a magazine.

That may make the decision seem easy, but some may think a revolver is more dependable than an automatic. There is a decreased likelihood of jamming a revolver due to the simplicity that lies with that type of weapon.

How much are you willing to spend? 

Money is valuable. No matter how obvious that statement is, it is true. So when deciding what handgun should be someone’s first, the price can play a very big role. It could even be the determining factor in the end.

For instance, a Heckler & Koch USP Compact 9mm pistol is priced up to $900. At the same time, there is the Springfield Armory XD-3 Subcompact that sells for $350. If the buyer wants to spend up, by all means, but some people are unable to drop almost $1000 on a handgun. So at the end of the day, the best first handgun is the one that the consumer finds most appealing. They do say the buyer knows best, right?

One of the most important things to keep in mind when purchasing a handgun, especially for the first time, is how well the size of the firearm fits your hand size and shape. Why does this matter, you may ask? It is something often overlooked by customers, but ensuring that you have an optimal grip on your gun is crucial and plays a massive part in the result when firing it. Although the sizing of guns can seem pretty simple, they’re just like shoes; you might be a size 9 in one brand, but that doesn’t go to say you couldn’t be a 10.5 in the next shop.

It wasn’t until recent years that manufacturers caught onto the importance of fitting guns to the user’s particular hand size. Still, more and more models are now being made with interchangeable backstops to accommodate to all customers without adjustments. However, there’s still a long way to go before this is universal within the industry. So, where should you start when handgun shopping to ensure you find your perfect fit? The first step is to get a general feel for how the firearm feels in your hands. Is it generally comfortable? Do you feel as if you have a strong natural grip on the gun? Does it feel big and clunky? These are all the kind of things that need to be running through your mind when you first get hold of your potential new gun.

After these initial checks, you might want to get a bit more specific. The next step is to place the web area of your hand as far up on the back-strap as you can and to align the weapon with your forearm. A dead giveaway that the gun your handling might be too big is if you feel tempted to tilt you shooting arm and re-orientate it to reach the trigger more comfortably. This can cause serious injuries in the long run, as the majority of the gun’s recoil is then absorbed by the thumb rather than the larger arm bones. This can also reduce your ability to shoot accurately, as the time it takes to get back on target after a shot can be much longer.

After this, it’s always useful to get somebody to take a bird’s eye view photo of your grip on the gun to be sure. Look out for the gap between your index finger and the handgun with your finger on the trigger. If your finger is flat against the gun, then this is a sign that the gun may be too big for you, and there is not much room to manoeuvre your grip when shooting.

Overall, the most important thing is to find a handgun size that you feel comfortable both handling and shooting. The key to this is to ensure a solid and easy grip and to find a firearm you can shoot without compromising this grip. As previously stated, the growing use of hand-straps is making many guns more accessible to those with smaller hands. Still, it is essential to remember that even though you may love a particular handgun, if it is not the perfect fit, then it will not work well for you.

Practicing marksmanship on a regular basis is the best way to boost your confidence behind the trigger. However, ammunition is expensive, and firearm training with live rounds is dangerous. While frequent practice makes your marksmanship perfect, you may not want to waste your live rounds shooting at nothing in the course of training. Thankfully, there are ways to practice your shooting lessons without using live fire. Want to hone your rifle shooting skills? Here is how to train without live rounds.

Dry-Fire with Snap Caps

Dry-firing is the act of pulling the trigger without actually loading your gun. It’s similar to practicing a golf lesson without hitting the ball. Dry-fire practices allow shooters to master fundamental shooting skills. It’s the first step to learning trigger-pulling without any fear of recoil. The idea behind opening dry fire is to perfect your vision with respect to your target. You could use a snap cap to practice dry-shooting in a remote area. Basically, snap caps are fake or plastic bullets with no primer or propellant. Double-check to ensure that your firearm is unloaded with live ammunition.

Laser Trainers

Laser-training is a modified version of dry-firing. With a laser installed on a gun, the shooter’s motion is easy to see, and you can position the laser on your target. This way, shooting trainees can learn how to maintain the laser on their targets before and after releasing the trigger. One company called Laserlyte introduced Trainer Pistol Cartridge for accurate shooting practices without live ammo. It’s a caliber-specific cartridge case that shoots out a laser beam when the firing spring hits it. With this tool, shooters can simulate where their bullets would land if they were live rounds.

Pellet Guns

These are also cool materials you could use to train without wasting your expensive bullets or detonating your gunpowder. Pellet guns are relatively affordable, and you could get 50-round boxes of 9 mm target ammunition for about $15. They are also convenient for neighborhood practices as they pose no real threat to lives if you use them wisely. You could hang tin cans from trees and aim at them with pellet guns. Improve on your ability to locate the target in the scope and hit it once without using real bullets.

Trigger Squeeze Practice Drill

This is a crazy drill that can be used to teach trainees how to keep a consistent trigger squeeze and vision during shooting. The United States’ military even applies this training technique to teach new recruits how to shoot without wasting live ammo. To practice trigger squeeze, you will need a penny and your firearm. You could either kneel or stand during the practice.

Load your snap cap and place the penny on the top of your gun’s barrel near to the muzzle. Assume a comfortable shooting posture with your feet the same width as your shoulders while facing your target. If your trigger-squeeze is perfect and your sight picture is great, you should be able to aim at your target without the penny falling off. And that’s how to train without opening live fire.