Practicing with more than one gun

[nycnoob]

I have a friend who is convinced that one should only practice one gun at a time. While we have all heard the expression about "be ware of the the man with only one gun" I always assumed that practicing similar drills with with my Glock 19 and then a pocket auto (baby Glock or Boberg) would be "similar practice" but perhaps not. I assumed that most practice should be done with the full size but some "familiarity practice" with the smaller gun would allow some skills to transfer, perhaps one should only focus on one gun at a time.

What about different guns on different practice days? I have a new to me K frame that I was going to work on revolver skills with. My thoughts was mostly Glock practice one day and mostly revolver practice the next but again perhaps I should have more discipline in my practice routines.

[ToddG]

It depends on where you are in terms of skill development and what you're trying to accomplish.

If you carry the pocket gun 99% of the time, I'd say that is the gun that should be seeing the most range time in practice. A lot of people like to convince themselves that they can practice all the time with a G34 and carry a G26... and to an extent that's correct. But the smaller gun is going to recoil differently. It's going to sight a bit differently due to the radius which will start to matter on longer shots (as will the different external ballistics from a shorter barrel). And reloading is going to be a lot different with those shorter magazines. So instead I'd flip it around and ask why would you practice with the easy gun but carry the more difficult gun? The answer tends to be that folks want to shoot better at the range and a gear upgrade is easier than a skill upgrade. It's like spending days and weeks learning the zero on one rifle at different distances... and then picking up a completely different rifle to go hunt.

OTOH, shooting a different type of gun can be beneficial insofar as your goal is to improve familiarity with that different gun/type. So while time & ammo spent on a revolver won't always translate directly over into improvement with, say, a Glock it will make you a better revolver shooter. So if one of your goals is to be a better revolver shooter (or DA/SA shooter, or whatever) then spending some time with one of those guns is perfectly reasonable.

[JHC]

I agree and disagree with Todd. I can and have shot 90% of months and thousands of rounds of practice with G17's and then broke out a G26 and could run FAST and El Prez nearly indistinguishably from the larger gun (Sub 6 sec FAST or 8-9 sec El Prez) at such shorter range drills. I've measured them, photographed/video taped them. So I know I'm not kidding myself that I shoot them that close together performance wise. OTOH 5 second FAST is a barrier I've only rarely broken.

But I do work with a 26 or 19 pretty heavily when I first get them so they always feel right at home.

I prefer to move to working on different attributes; primarily more precision at much greater distances with as much speed as I can manage. As well as dabbling in USPSA and the movement and transition stuff that comes into play. I don't sweat shooting the bigger guns more. Maybe if I measured a 1-1.5 second gap in performance I'd feel differently.


And interesting to me at least, is that in the last few years, it is since my exposure to Pistol-Training.com the blog that I lost interest in packing a Glock and revolver and a 1911 to take to the range and sample shoot them all. For a few years now it's much more focused on trying to advance consistent repeatable skill and I concentrate on Glocks - which is for years is all I carry (19 or 26), with 17s in HD and hunting secondary roles also. And now some light comp with a 17 or new 34.

[ToddG]

FWIW, I definitely think it's smarter to shoot a lot with a G17/G34 while carrying a G26 than it is to practice all the time with a G17/G34 but carry a J-frame or similarly dissimilar gun.

I don't doubt that someone can shoot a G26 well. I've always had good luck with them, too. But there are differences and from a practical self-defense standpoint all else being equal I'd rather put my time, ammo, and effort into the gun I'm actually going to carry instead of one that lets me do some things more easily.

[Odin Bravo One]

If my goal is "Training", I shoot the two guns I carry on a regular basis.

But I am also a hobby shooter, and shoot because I enjoy it. And I have many guns solely for that purpose. When not "training", I shoot whatever the hell I feel like because last time I checked, that was still my decision to make.

I believe there is a lot to be said for the guy who trains with only one gun, or stays along a similar path, such as shooting only Glock's, or only 1911's, or whatever. But I also believe any trigger time is better than no trigger time. I rarely get to take part in one of my favorite pastimes, varmint hunting. I have never trained or practiced with any varmint gun I own. They get sighted in, then they sit and collect dust 51.5 weeks per year. But for the few days per year they get used, the lack of practice with that exact arm doesn't prevent me from making the hits. Fundamentals are still fundamentals.

[Josh Runkle]

Why not just carry your glock 19 and shoot the crap out of it?

[nycnoob]

I live in NYC so I do not carry anything.

I thought that learning to shoot a revolver well would "make me a well rounded shooter" and "improve my shooting in a general way".

I also practice with some heavier pull weights in my guns on the belief that it would improve my skills to learn to shoot them.
I guess I am thinking that learning "the hard way" will make me better all round
(similar idea to: learning math without calculators, learning to drive stick etc)

[gtmtnbiker98]

I train with two firearm types, J-frames and LEM equipped HK's. That's it, though. In all honesty, striving to master the J-frame trigger has drastically improved my shooting performance with the LEM. It (the J-frame) has made me focus more on the trigger manipulation.

[Chuck Haggard]

I train with two firearm types, J-frames and LEM equipped HK's. That's it, though. In all honesty, striving to master the J-frame trigger has drastically improved my shooting performance with the LEM. It (the J-frame) has made me focus more on the trigger manipulation.

I have been doing pretty much the same thing except using a Ruger LCR .22 as a cheap training gun. I shoot my Glock and my J frames better if I dry fire like I should, and use the .22 for what I call ballistic dry fire.

[CCT125US]

I train with two firearm types, J-frames and LEM equipped HK's. That's it, though. In all honesty, striving to master the J-frame trigger has drastically improved my shooting performance with the LEM. It (the J-frame) has made me focus more on the trigger manipulation.

+1

Started out shooting in the following order: revolvers, Beretta 92SB, Smith 915, and USP .45. My dad forgot to tell me they were hard to shoot in DA. Very glad he neglected that detail.