First Pistol RDS Installed...How Do I Start?

[Quantrill]

It could just be telling that their primary student base is people who already have a certain baseline of skill and / or already shoot irons target focused.

Their customer base is not the norm in either respect.

IME maybe 20% of “red dot classes” is about red dots and the other 80% is fixing things someone training with one of those instructors is already going to be competent in.

No, from what I’ve seen their customer isn’t the norm but they do get C and D class shooters.

[ECK]

So the OP already bought an RDS equipped gun.

However for those transitioning to optics (rather than new shooters) I would recommend limiting your variables.

I.e. if you primarily shoot Glocks add an optic to a similar Glock, don’t try to learn optics and a new platform at the same time.

That’s probably some of the best advice here.

[Erick Gelhaus]

In the few days an e-book about learning & mastering the red dot is going to drop. Might be of some help. A hard copy of it is supposed to hit right after the new year. Links will appear as the editions do.

- Accept imperfection, as long as the dot is in the window & on what you want to hit that is a good enough thing;
- Look at the target & let the dot appear between your eyes and it. "A" good way to do this is by working the presentation backward. Instead of working from the holster, start on target & work your repetitions in reverse;
- If occluding the optic works for you AWESOME, if it doesn't (10-40% by degrees), then try something other than taping over the front lens. You have to try other ways, reading stuff through the optic is a way;

The two hardest things can be tightening up your presentation so that it's very consistent and changing your visual focus.

Holler if you have questions.

[HCM]

No, from what I’ve seen their customer isn’t the norm but they do get C and D class shooters.

I don’t know how much you shoot with non-gun people, including cops, who are not gun people but here I have to lower your expectations.

The average cop is a D class shooter.

Half the bell curve of average “gun owners” are shooting up the walls and ceilings at their local indoor range, and /or not comfortable carrying around in the chamber.

I seen’t it.

[Quantrill]

I don’t know how much you shoot with non-gun people, including cops, who are not gun people but here I have to lower your expectations.

The average cop is a D class shooter.

Half the bell curve of average “gun owners” are shooting up the walls and ceilings at their local indoor range, and /or not comfortable carrying around in the chamber.

I seen’t it.

Some experience, maybe not as much as you. I don’t disagree.

I think it’s mostly just shooting problems, not red dot or iron sight shooting problems.

Have a good one.

[JCS]

- Accept imperfection, as long as the dot is in the window & on what you want to hit that is a good enough thing;

.

Are you saying this for beginners or for experienced dot shooters also?

[Erick Gelhaus]

Are you saying this for beginners or for experienced dot shooters also?

Yes, both - and I can be guilty of it to on occasion. I see people burning a lot of time trying to get that dot dead center of the glass "there, it's perfect, NOW" and having the resulting hand/trigger issues. As opposed to "The dot's in the window & on what I want to hit."

It tends to be more a new to dots thing but "i think" it comes from the equal height, equal light thing.

[JCN]

Yes, both - and I can be guilty of it to on occasion. I see people burning a lot of time trying to get that dot dead center of the glass "there, it's perfect, NOW" and having the resulting hand/trigger issues. As opposed to "The dot's in the window & on what I want to hit."

It tends to be more a new to dots thing but "i think" it comes from the equal height, equal light thing.

I think more than dead centering, newer shooters tend to want to see a round dot rather than streaks and flashes.

That takes some untraining to explain that it’s a sighting system and not just a dot.

[YVK]

Occluded pistol optics means you target focus with your non-dominant eye.[/B]

Occluded pistol optics means both of your eyes are converged on target's focal plane. If your eyes aren't converged, you're shooting through a massive case of diplopia. If you see target crystal clear with occluded sight, that means your eyes are fully converged on target plane and your nondom eye is focused there too. Under such conditions the chances of your dom eye not being focused on target's plane are next to zero. So, for pretty much all of us, except for three people who can or think they can separate convergence and accommodation, an occluded optic (assuming shooter sees at least oulines of target clearly) means you target focus with both eyes but dominant eye can't see target or it's center due to obstruction.

[YVK]

An occluded dot can help some people learn to shoot with both eyes open, and not focus on the dot. As @JCN wrote above, that doesn't work for everyone.

Some people's eyes will not converge on the target while the dot is occluded. The eye behind the occluded dot may focus at a closer focal plane.

If that was the case, the shooter will not see the target clearly. We can only focus on one plane. This is one of the reasons why proponents of occluded dot training teach, rather insistently, to pick a very small spot on the target for aiming. In my experience if I see the entire target
well, even without picking a small spot, occluded dot assures I am target focused, both eyes. Of course, seeing a small spot on the target throughout gun's cycle means you're target focused but that's harder to achieve and ascertain.

I have finally made the change so how should I start learning to use the RDS?

I haven't read all of advice above. If nobody said it, I would commit to only one gun model for all shooting and dry fire, dots or irons.