I believe this can better be understood by quoting from MG Jullian S. Hatcher’s book, TEXTBOOK OF PISTOLS AND REVOLVERS.
Many practical users of pistols are fond of making fun of target shooting, and of advice given on how to learn this branch of the sport. This attitude is well understood by the psychologist. It is founded on the unconscious jealousy of feeling of inferiority that the poor shot feels when he sees a well trained marksman making scores out of his power to equal. Unconsciously he will try to belittle that accomplishment that he does not possess, so that he will seem to his audience to be just as important and well equipped as the good marksman whom he ridicules.
It is true that practical shooting differs greatly from target shooting in several important ways, and that a target shot who has never had any experience or training except at bull’s-eye is apt to give an ordinary account of himself in a gun fight. But just the same, instruction and practice in accurate target shooting is the foundation of all success in practical shooting as well as in target work.
What instruction and practice in slow fire and then rapid fire target shooting does is to drill into the marksman’s physical makeup an ability to contract the muscles of the hand easily and smoothly, to let off the shot without twitching the pistol in one direction or another. Trigger control is only one foundation of good shooting with the pistol or revolver, whether its target or target or practical shooting.
The practical sot who has learned to soot without any target training is likely to possess only a sketchy degree of accuracy. Most likely he will be what is described as trigger snatcher. Able to register a percentage of hits on a man size target at ten feet, but will have many misses on the same target at twice that distance.
On the other hand, the target shooter who has graduated to the practical stage is like to be a first class marksman at either target or practical shooting, at standing or moving targets of any kind.
The Practical shot, who had no knowledge or experience of accurate target shooting will find himself at the mercy of a good target shot, regardless of what the target shooter knows or doesn’t know about practical shooting.
This subject doesn’t just relate to pistols, but to rifles also. In Col Whelen’s book on rifle shooting, he describes military rifle shooting where as the Infantry board adapted a course of study (We now call the Small Arms Firing School or High Power Rifle Clinics put on my many CMP Clubs and at Camp Perry). This training greatly increased the overall qualification scores fired at the Infantry School. As Col Whelen calls them, the rifle shooters you find at Perry are the greatest rifle shooters in the world.
We don’t have to go back in history to study this subject, its being proved every day by the Army Marksmanship Unit. When we needed snipers in Vietnam, who did the army (and Marines) turn to? High Power shooters. Look at the International Sniper Competitions held today, The High Power Shooters of the AMU always place well, in not winning the compitions. Or looks at the Steel Challenge and other practical compitions across the country, and see how the AMU pistols shooters fair.
I know this post is going to grate against many close up practical shooters on this board, but if you are truly honest with yourself, you can see that Gen Hatcher is correct.
Many practical users of pistols are fond of making fun of target shooting, and of advice given on how to learn this branch of the sport. This attitude is well understood by the psychologist. It is founded on the unconscious jealousy of feeling of inferiority that the poor shot feels when he sees a well trained marksman making scores out of his power to equal. Unconsciously he will try to belittle that accomplishment that he does not possess, so that he will seem to his audience to be just as important and well equipped as the good marksman whom he ridicules.
It is true that practical shooting differs greatly from target shooting in several important ways, and that a target shot who has never had any experience or training except at bull’s-eye is apt to give an ordinary account of himself in a gun fight. But just the same, instruction and practice in accurate target shooting is the foundation of all success in practical shooting as well as in target work.
What instruction and practice in slow fire and then rapid fire target shooting does is to drill into the marksman’s physical makeup an ability to contract the muscles of the hand easily and smoothly, to let off the shot without twitching the pistol in one direction or another. Trigger control is only one foundation of good shooting with the pistol or revolver, whether its target or target or practical shooting.
The practical sot who has learned to soot without any target training is likely to possess only a sketchy degree of accuracy. Most likely he will be what is described as trigger snatcher. Able to register a percentage of hits on a man size target at ten feet, but will have many misses on the same target at twice that distance.
On the other hand, the target shooter who has graduated to the practical stage is like to be a first class marksman at either target or practical shooting, at standing or moving targets of any kind.
The Practical shot, who had no knowledge or experience of accurate target shooting will find himself at the mercy of a good target shot, regardless of what the target shooter knows or doesn’t know about practical shooting.
This subject doesn’t just relate to pistols, but to rifles also. In Col Whelen’s book on rifle shooting, he describes military rifle shooting where as the Infantry board adapted a course of study (We now call the Small Arms Firing School or High Power Rifle Clinics put on my many CMP Clubs and at Camp Perry). This training greatly increased the overall qualification scores fired at the Infantry School. As Col Whelen calls them, the rifle shooters you find at Perry are the greatest rifle shooters in the world.
We don’t have to go back in history to study this subject, its being proved every day by the Army Marksmanship Unit. When we needed snipers in Vietnam, who did the army (and Marines) turn to? High Power shooters. Look at the International Sniper Competitions held today, The High Power Shooters of the AMU always place well, in not winning the compitions. Or looks at the Steel Challenge and other practical compitions across the country, and see how the AMU pistols shooters fair.
I know this post is going to grate against many close up practical shooters on this board, but if you are truly honest with yourself, you can see that Gen Hatcher is correct.
