Dry-Fire

[Jay Cunningham]

Most people find dry fire incredibly boring – me included. I think it’s a mistake to set a time limit (i.e. dry fire for 20 minutes) because this kind of tedium winds up with you watching the clock.

I recommend giving yourself a set number and break it into small bites. I try to dry fire 200 times each day, broken into bites of 25. I like to start with 25 strong hand supported, 25 weak hand supported, 25 strong hand only, then 25 weak hand only. I usually stand very close to a bare wall for these, and allow myself to consciously reset the trigger.

For the next 100 I like to practice dry one-shot draws… if I’m feeling frisky I’ll incorporate weak hand draws. Generally I pick out an aim point for this series instead of the bare wall. Dry fire is great because it don’t cost nuthin’ and you can focus on perfect presentation and trigger press, allowing you to work on increasing your speed with live fire at the range.

Don’t be afraid to use your .38 snubbie (especially CT laser equipped!) for dry fire! The heavier trigger and visual feedback from the laser will translate positively to your service pistol. Not having to reset the trigger with the slide makes it go faster as well! I don’t particularly recommend dry-firing your carbine… you’ll get more benefit out of sticking with your handguns. Believe me, the trigger manipulation *will* translate over.


The above is not "The Law as Told By Jay"; it is simply an expression of some opinions that I've formed through my training and experience with several very good instructors. Please feel free to discuss and disagree!

[MTechnik]

With a DA/SA gun, would you focus your dry fire on the longer double action?

I think that the heavier pull would be a better workout, as it seems harder to keep the gun perfectly still. But by all means also working the single-action to help build those neural pathways.

[Jay Cunningham]

With a DA/SA gun, would you focus your dry fire on the longer double action?

I think that the heavier pull would be a better workout, as it seems harder to keep the gun perfectly still. But by all means also working the single-action to help build those neural pathways.

Yes, I'd focus on the DA. You can mix in a little SA here and there, but you'd probably get better results with that live fire.

[David B.]

Don’t be afraid to use your .38 snubbie (especially CT laser equipped!) for dry fire! The heavier trigger and visual feedback from the laser will translate positively to your service pistol. Not having to reset the trigger with the slide makes it go faster as well!

I have a .38 snubbie with CT grips, and I still find it too boring to dry fire.



God Bless,
David

[Jay Cunningham]

One additional thought - get yourself focused and triple check your firearm clear. Don't even have ammo in the same room if you can avoid it. Pick a spot that will absorb a round if it had too - I like to use my block garage wall. Something like a Safe Direction Pad can be a really good layer of extra insurance. If you are interrupted during your dry-fire and then resume, re-focus and perform the triple verification again. When you are finished, ensure your firearm is in fact loaded if that is supposed to be it's condition of readiness.

[gtmtnbiker98]

I try to dry fire at least three times a week. Since my primary platform(s) is the P30 V3 and HK45c V1, I focus most, if not all, of my practice on the DA trigger pull. It's tedious but like Jay said, it's cheap and quite beneficial.

[ToddG]

The only caveat I would add for DA/SA guns: if you're dry firing, don't perform two (or more) quick DA trigger strokes in an attempt to simulate multiple shots. You'll program the wrong thing into your "muscle memory" and exacerbate any double-single transition issues you may already have.

For example, when I df-practice a transition, I rack the slide with the trigger pulled, aim at the first target, then move the gun and reset to the SA position for the transition shot. If you instead transition to a DA shot, you're programming yourself to move your finger farther and with much more force than you need, and you will be more likely to yank the shot.

[orionz06]

A bucket full of sand can be used to clear into as well.

[Jay Cunningham]

The only caveat I would add for DA/SA guns: if you're dry firing, don't perform two (or more) quick DA trigger strokes in an attempt to simulate multiple shots. You'll program the wrong thing into your "muscle memory" and exacerbate any double-single transition issues you may already have.

Good point.

[Thrill]

I think I understand the purpose for dry-firing, so forgive me,... but I was under the impression that "dry" firing was bad for the firearm, especially semi-autos? Is that not the case, or do you guys do something (like use a dummy round in the chamber) so as not to damage the firearm? Thanks!