Submitted for your perusal and edification, E-mail Blog report received from:
The Tactical Wire sponsored by Bushmaster
*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*
Skill Set: Sights versus Point Shooting
by Rich Grassi
This is a view of the front sight in focus. The rear sight is out of focus, blurred, but you can still see it and see the relationship of the front sight to the notch. It appears the front sight is tending slightly right which, if the trigger press doesn't disturb it, will lead to the bullet striking to the right. Could you see this in a fight?
It had to happen; one of the darling controversies of the gun publishing world (next to Revolver vs. Automatic and .45 vs. 9mm) is showing up here at The Tactical Wire. So here we are: what works best in the gunfight? The answer?
Yes.
The question is poorly phrased. What works best is what was used if it stopped the fight. I've known of cases where either system was used and a few where a combination was used. Which is better, more appropriate to teach, can it be taught, is one really better than the other - these are questions of substance. So let's look at aiming and pointing.
If you're a male, it's said, you are point shooting when you go to relieve yourself, unless you have sights on your . . . uh, body. An argument made by a mentor of mine, I responded that he should ask people who have to clean toilets how well that was working out! Again, it's not helpful to the controversy.
A nationally known instructor demonstrates the Applegate point shooting stance. Notice the gun is below eye level but only slightly so. His focus in on the threat allowing the gun to intrude into his field of view.
At a training event, I organized a panel of experts to discuss this very topic. I included industry pros like Bert DuVernay, then at the S&W Academy, Brian Felter, author of the last book on police shotguns, Massad Ayoob, Clive Shepherd, Vince O'Neill and Jim Cirillo. There was some lively discussion, but the fact remained - each side had success stories and each side had failures.
Later, I was on another panel with the same topic. The panel consisted of firearms instructors presenting at the conference. One had been a member of the staff at Gunsite while it was still the American Pistol Institute. API, Gunsite and Jeff Cooper were synonymous with "focus on the front sight."
That former staffer told us that the sights were a "training aid."
"They confirm what you are feeling when you point," he said. "But, it's all point shooting. Mostly we assist pointing with a visual reference to sights."
When I started out in police work, I found I was a crappy point shooter. Our qualification had a stage at fairly close range where you fired "point shoulder without using sights."
"Wait a minute," I said. "Why would you not use sights when you could?"
Damn rookie.
Years later, Policeman-Instructor-Mentor-Friend Jim Cirillo was asked why he had developed the "nose point" and the "weapon silhouette" methods of shooting without sights when, in his very first gunfight, he saw his front sight so clearly he knew the number of serrations in the blade.
"Well, in that gunfight, I had distance, I had what I thought was cover, and I had good lighting," he said. "I'd have been stupid not to use the sights! These other techniques are for when you step around a corner and into a threat you didn't expect."
Over the years, as I gained long experience using sights, I found that the point shooting skill just "happened" - "an overnight success."
More important, you must control the trigger. If you have the gun centered in the threat, don't jar it off threat by abusing the trigger or changing your grip.
To learn more about firearms skills, learning how to teach firearms skills, or to learn how to conduct firearms training on a budget, check out Rich's book, POLICE FIREARMS INSTRUCTION: PROBLEMS AND PRACTICES, available from Amazon and other fine book sellers.