FINAL PRACTICE

What I am about to describe is very dangerous, even for a good, cool shot, and should not be attempted by any but an expert.

It is practice for instantaneous shooting when taken unawares.

Put up a full-sized man target at fifteen yards. Buckle on your holster, with the loaded automatic in it, the safety bolt at “safe.” Button the holster.

Stand with your back to the target, get your pistol out and put all your shots into the target in the shortest possible time.

This practice can be made still more difficult if as many man targets as your magazine holds cartridges are placed at various distances; hit all of them in the shortest time, taking them, not in rotation, but at random.

At “go” you turn and in so doing unbutton the holster flap, drawing the pistol, taking off the safety, and firing—all in one movement.

Occasionally, instead of firing all the shots, slip in the safety, and return the pistol to the holster after one shot.See how quickly you can draw, shoot, and return to holster “all safe.”

The idea is to make the movement of drawing, taking off the safety, firing, returning the safety, and putting back in holster, all one continuous movement, and as nearly instantaneous as possible.

The safety should be off as the pistol gets clear of the holster; similarly the safety should be on again the instant the shot is fired.

If you are using a pistol having the additional safety squeeze in stock, there is far less danger in this practice, as this pistol squeeze only occurs as the trigger is pressed.

This is the only sort of practice I know of where an automatic pistol is safer than a revolver.

In drawing a revolver, if it is a single-action one, there is danger of its being fired by accident in cocking, and especially in putting back to half cock, if only one hand is available to do this.

With an automatic the safety can be put on or off without danger of an accidental explosion, and the Regulation U. S. .45 Army Colt cannot be fired till the grip is squeezed as well.

A musician has an advantage in this practice, as he uses his fingers and thumbs independently of each other.

In practising this exercise with a .45 Colt U. S. Army Automatic, be sure to draw the pistol without any pressure on the safety at back of stock, only push the thumb safety and put the pressure on the other release only as you fire.You can practise this with an empty pistol with a pad of rubber to take the blow of the falling hammer so as not to break the mainspring. As you draw, push the safety off with the thumb, pulling the pistol out with the fingers against the front of the grip, so as not to touch the back safety lever, and squeeze that with your palm in firing.

Keep in mind that the pistol is safe so long as you do not press the palm of your hand against it, even when the slide safety is off.

In all this practice remember speed is the one object, as long as you can hit the figure that is all that is necessary. To hit the enemy first is the all important thing, to hit him after he has hit you, on account of wasting time in taking a good aim, is a fatal mistake.

For extreme speed you can fire the moment the pistol is in the direction of the target even before you have raised your arm, continuing the raising of the arm as you fire and getting the next shot in as an aimed one.

Even if the first shot is a miss it disconcerts the opponent and may prevent his getting in a shot on you before you have time to fire the second shot.