How to Become a Master Handgunner: The Mechanics of X-Count ...

ContentsIntroduction..................................................... 11. Perfecting the Fundamentals............................. 72. Perfecting the Grip (Hold) ............................. 133. Perfectly Aiming the Handgun ....................... 214. Perfecting the Shooting Stance....................... 275. Perfecting Trigger Control ............................. 456. The Keys to Perfection ................................... 557. Diagnostics and Other Tools .......................... 598. Final Notes on Shooting Perfectly .................. 679. The Perfect Handgun..................................... 7310. Perfect Optical Sights ..................................... 83vii

Chapter 1Perfecting theFundamentalsCan any person master the skills required to allow him orher to shoot a handgun perfectly as regards exactaccuracy each time? The answer to this question isunequivocally yes. With the aid of recently developed tests,checks, and mental tools, and using the most modern handgunsever manufactured, most anyone can attain the highest level ofexcellence while shooting. A look back at the history andrecords of what is known among handgun sport shootingcompetitors as the Bianchi Cup and NRA Action ShootingPistol National Championship, the NRA Hunters Pistol, andLong Range Silhouette Pistol National Championship eventsprovides the proof that many master handgunners have achievedperfection while shooting their pistols.Riley Gilmore was the first to accomplish the believed-tobeimpossible task of shooting the Bianchi Cup with a perfectscore in 1990. In 1986, Larry Weir shot the first NRA HuntersPistol Silhouette National Championship perfectly. MarvinTannihill fired a perfect score of 80/80 over the long-rangestanding silhouette pistol NRA National Championship coursein 1998.7

8How to Become a Master HandgunnerNo fewer than a dozen handgunners have now fired perfectscores in national, international, and world championshipevents since the turn of the century. Prior to the publication ofthis new edition, Bruce Piatt of Montvale, New Jersey, won theNRA Action Pistol World Championship held in Shalvey,Australia, near Sidney, on November 5, 2006. Piatt fired aperfect score of 1920 with a 176 X-count.Handgun shooting requires only simple hand-eyecoordi na tion to achieve perfection, along with correctindoctrination, training, correct practice, and the mostmodern equipment manufactured. To perform at the verytop level while shooting a handgun, a person must firstmaster the basic fundamentals of position or stance, grip,aiming, and trigger control.Of all the above fundamentals, I have come to theconclusion after many years of experience that trigger controlis the key to achieving perfection. As in many sportingendeavors, whether it is stroking a golf ball with a putter,contacting the baseball with the bat, releasing a basketball onits arc to the hoop, or pulling the trigger on a pistol, the verylast basic fundamental in performance is the key to achievingexcellence. I suppose that’s why pulling the trigger is found tobe so intimidating to most anyone who has ever shot afirearm, especially a handgun. You can do everything perfectleading up to the very last moment, then screw up the triggerpull, with the result being an egg or zero instead of a score oran X-count.I’ve fired handguns while holding them upside down, andwhile holding them with the right, left, and both hands withvarious gripping techniques, with the result being a hit on thetarget resulting in a score on the card in competition. But noneof my perfect scorecards recorded in any handgun shootingevent were accomplished without applying perfect triggercontrol. Oh sure, one can occasionally hit the intended targetby slapping or even jerking the trigger, but I’ve never been ableto achieve perfect scores unless the trigger control wasconsistently perfect.

10How to Become a Master HandgunnerOther handgunners, such as those employed in thedangerous occupations of soldiering in times of war, or lawenforcement fighting the drug wars on the street corners ofAmerica, must face a target(s) who shoots back. To them, itisn’t a matter of winning a championship event, it’s a matterof life (theirs) or death (their enemy’s). The everyday citizenwho carries a concealed handgun may have to confront acriminal in their home, place of business, or even at publicplaces of gathering who also is armed with a firearm and isbent on taking an innocent person’s life during a robbery,burglary, or carjacking.Executing a perfect, accurately placed shot to a vital area ofan adversary’s body while looking into the muzzle of a firearmpointed at your face becomes a most desirable skill to have.Where once such a feat was considered a lucky shot, withtoday’s modern handguns it is within reach of most anyonewho has the skills to drive a car.This book contains my own personal opinions, suggestions,and instructions on how to achieve perfection while shootinghandguns. Included are suggestions on how you can perfectlytrain, as well as detailed instructions on how to stand, grip,aim, focus, and achieve perfect trigger control while shootingwith exact precise accuracy. Some of my suggestions, as well asinstructions, may seem to run contrary to what others havetaught or learned in the past. Many of my ideas are new, andmay even be unheard of before now. Nevertheless, they haveworked for me since the turn of the century while achievingperfection while shooting. If the reader will read, study, andpractice the mechanics as explained and demonstrated, he orshe also may realize this same excellent level of skill.Selecting 21st-century handguns makes good sense whenstriving for excellence. In my opinion, it is a good way to beginyour journey toward excellence. It’s the same place where Ibegan my quest. My first purchase after January 2003 was arecently designed and manufactured, semiautomatic pistol thatwas chambered for the 9mm Luger cartridge, which may beconsidered on the low side of the energy scale for either

Perfecting the Fundamentals 11defensive or offensive use. This cartridge and many more willsuffice if one shoots accurately to his mark. One’s brain orheart really won’t know the difference if struck by a 9mmbullet or one of a much larger diameter.Now let’s get started.