Defensive practice

Somewhere, (can't remember exactly), there was a very interesting demonstration about how good a sight picture is really necessary for self defense.
According to the video, it doesn't have to be a very good one to get effective results.
The person doing the demonstration had a camera mounted so as to be able to see the sights on the pistol.
Even when they were noticeably off center, the hits on a IDPA target at about seven yards were still in the A zone.
Plenty good enough for self defense.
The conclusion was to spend more practice on the draw time and trigger control than worrying about shooting tight groups.
 
You really dont need any sights at all, and at distances, many would not think possible.

What you do need though, is the practice shooting that way, so your brain gets the various indexes recorded. You may not physically and consciously see the sights, but your brain uses other inputs to accomplish the same thing as sighted fire.

It all takes regular practice though if you hope to get to where you can do it without thought.
 
^^^
Yessir.
As I get older and the eyes get less dependable, using instinct or point shooting has proven quite reliable.
As you say, practicing with less dependency on the sights can work very well.
Mostly it takes confidence that it will, and working on the form and presentation that allows it to work.
 
You should always start close to your target when learning to shoot instinctively. It is more important to hit the target and build confidence in your technique than to have small groups. 3 to 10 feet is good for the first few shots. As you find that your shots are grouping well move the target a few more feet away. Instinctive shooting is done when your assailant is close enough that he can take, or interfere with, your gun. At 3 to 5 feet you can lose your gun if you extend it to use the sights. At that range it is fairly easy to train yourself to hit the proper area on a 3/4 silhouette combat target from the hip. As the range increases you can determine when you can extend your gun and use the sights. It is also possible to use your gun in holds that are between pure instinctive and pure sight shots. Practice is your best friend, so practice at different ranges and with different holds.
 
statistical averages do play a "part" in defensive methodology but you cant predict if your gun fight is going fall within the statistical norm or not. I think 25 yards is a better threshold than the whole 3-3-3 mantra. Why focus on less skill as opposed to more skill.. that's just not very constructive. Now, if you have some physical limitation that prohibits you from training at certain distances, I can certainly understand the need for a limited or modified training method.
 
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