Can I speed up without a timer?

[SC_Dave]

For the purpose of this thread I'm not necessarily talking about split's although split's are important. More-so shortening the time between going from concealment to 1, 2 or 3 shots on target.

I have put off buying a timer and I don't know why. It makes sense that if you can't measure it, you cant manage it. In my frame of reference can I speed up without one?

With or without a timer How/Where should I start.

Other Info FWIW

AIWB
G-19 w/RMR
Right Handed
Cover garment 95% of the time is a t-shirt

SCD

[spinmove_]

Surefire makes an app that is a timer and allows you to work on doing drills both live and dry to do par times against. That's better than nothing, but a real and dedicated timer is definitely better.

You have a G19 with an RMR and SCD. Is there a reason why you can afford those things and not a timer?


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[LittleLebowski]

Yes, if you have a dedicated training buddy. However, you need a timer.

[breakingtime91]

I would say yes but without real accountability of skill. You can do cadence, such as 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and 5. Then speed up to 1, 2, 3, 4,5. That helps manage speed but once again, to see how consistent you are, you need a timer.

[voodoo_man]

[breakingtime91]

wouldnt the ideal* be to have a video camera and a timer?

[voodoo_man]

wouldnt the ideal* be to have a video camera and a timer?

If you are doing a long training session (like 30 mins or so) I'd suggest getting an app like kinemaster or something of that nature to break it down to the milaseconds and then you just slow play through it and you get your times.

The point of the timer isn't as much as the time itself, though it helps, its the beep when not on a range. You can get an app, or a program on your computer, or alexa or whatever else to do it for you.

[BN]

I have put off buying a timer and I don't know why. It makes sense that if you can't measure it, you cant manage it. In my frame of reference can I speed up without one?

How will you know if you have gotten faster without a timer??

[41magfan]

Depends on what you're trying to accomplish. You obviously need a timer to measure your performance against an established standard or time constraint, but I happen to believe that you can do a lot of meaningful practice without a timer if all you're trying to do in improve your overall skill.

If we can agree that the goal of all shooting is about hitting, then practice that as a mindset when you go to the range. Regardless of the target you’re shooting; the A-Zone, a paper plate, a B8 center, a 2” dot, whatever ….. THE GOAL IS TO NEVER MISS. Misses are failures - pure and simple.

So, regardless of what you’re working on i.e. presentations from the holster, from low ready, single shots, controlled pairs, Bill Drills, whatever …. push yourself on speed until the wheels fall off and you miss. Repeat the exercise and then slow down just enough to hit again. Repeat this process over and over; every time you go to the range for every drill. You’ll soon learn where YOUR limits are.

Most of our shooting disciplines fail to emphasize hitting, as the penalties for misses aren’t severe enough. All shooting should be about hitting, and on a square range with no dynamic stressors at play – you should strive for NO MISSES.

Shooting fast is fairly irrelevant if you can’t discipline yourself to hit 100% of the time in the benign atmosphere of a static range. The truth is, in real-life most people feel compelled to shoot fast without having any idea where the wheels will fall off …… with predictable results.

A timer for most of us is largely a tool that enables us to only remember our best performances - not our true abilities. If you will view a timer as simply a means to an end and not the end itself, it will be more useful to you in the end.

Just one man's opinion - YMMV.

[spinmove_]

Depends on what you're trying to accomplish. You obviously need a timer to measure your performance against an established standard or time constraint, but I happen to believe that you can do a lot of meaningful practice without a timer if all you're trying to do in improve your overall skill.

If we can agree that the goal of all shooting is about hitting, then practice that as a mindset when you go to the range. Regardless of the target you’re shooting; the A-Zone, a paper plate, a B8 center, a 2” dot, whatever ….. THE GOAL IS TO NEVER MISS. Misses are failures - pure and simple.

So, regardless of what you’re working on i.e. presentations from the holster, from low ready, single shots, controlled pairs, Bill Drills, whatever …. push yourself on speed until the wheels fall off and you miss. Repeat the exercise and then slow down just enough to hit again. Repeat this process over and over; every time you go to the range for every drill. You’ll soon learn where YOUR limits are.

Most of our shooting disciplines fail to emphasize hitting, as the penalties for misses aren’t severe enough. All shooting should be about hitting, and on a square range with no dynamic stressors at play – you should strive for NO MISSES.

Shooting fast is fairly irrelevant if you can’t discipline yourself to hit 100% of the time in the benign atmosphere of a static range. The truth is, in real-life most people feel compelled to shoot fast without having any idea where the wheels will fall off …… with predictable results.

A timer for most of us is largely a tool that enables us to only remember our best performances - not our true abilities. If you will view a timer as simply a means to an end and not the end itself, it will be more useful to you in the end.

Just one man's opinion - YMMV.

For the most part I agree. However, having the hard numbers allows you to establish your baselines definitively, gives you a means to establish realistic goals, and gives you a way to consistently measure your progress. Of course we should be striving to never miss, but we should also be striving to never miss AND be faster at the same time.

Do you shoot at all black targets at a distance and never count your hits ever? Of course not, your hits show you exactly how you're doing regardless of feel. The timer does the exact same thing for speed. Less than the cost of a case of ammo buys you a good quality timer. Buy the timer and use the ammo more effectively in practice.

EDIT - For the record I'm not happy unless all my shots are A zone hits regardless of how fast I'm going. Mistakes and random flyers will happen, but if half my hits are outside of the A zone, then what good did going that fast do unless I'm just trying to push myself to failure?


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