Shooting your handgun at 100 yards

D

Dave R

New member
How many of you shoot your carry handgun at long distance?

I do, and I am usually surprised at how well I do. Yesterday afternoon, I was shooting .22s in the desert, and decided to try my .22 revolver (NOT my carry piece) at 100 yards. Shooting at my favorite long-distance reactive target--an old frypan from the thrift store. This one was 16". Hit it more times than I missed it.

First time I tried shooting my carry gun at 100 yards, it was a Kel-Tec P-11. Again, out in the desert, I found an old real-estate sign. The 2'X3' metal kind. Paced off 100 long steps, turned and fired, and hit the thing. I was surprised. Emptied the mag, and went 8 for 10. If the P-11 had a better trigger, I probably could've got all 10.

I realize there is little 'tactical' need for 100 yard shots with a carry gun, but part of practicing with a gun is to know what you can do with it, and what you can't. You never know what's possible until you try.

Have you tried it?

Edit: I now see Dragon55's thread on long range plinking. Apparently a lot of you do.
 
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I find it to be pretty entertaining, if only because I don't get a chance to do it often. Like you, I was surprised the first time I attempted it. Not only was I able to make pretty consistent hits, so were others shooting that day.
 
First time I tried was at the Dept range. Only one guy showed up for range class, me, so the four instructors and I had a BUNCH of ammo to get rid of. :D One thing we did was set up the steel gong on the 100 yard rifle range, and plinked with the Glock 19, hit it at least 90%.
I have shot my Smith Model 10 at a supposed distance of 250 yards, (I think it's more like 175, someone pulling my leg), and 4 out of 6 hit a 2 foot by one foot black target board out there. Lead reloads of my making. Great revolver.
 
It's a blast.

As everyone else, I was shocked at how accurate stuff can be at long range..

Next time out, but up a 5 gallon bucket. Shoot at it starting at 75 yards, then move it out 25 yards every now and then.....You'll keep your accuracy better to longer range (Seems. as your concentrating harder on a fixed target..I think).
 
It's a confidence builder!!

Think of it this way, the more you shoot at 100yds, the better you will be at closer range.

GM .45, using the base of the front sight, will group a magazine load on a 100yd rifle target.

Using Weaver standing.
 
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No problem

Not a great challenge shooting at 100 yards and actually hitting a 12" steel plate occasionally. At least not with .38 special and larger calibers (including 9mm). Chance of hitting the plate is directly proportional to caliber. The challenge is hitting the 100 yard berm without adding a ridiculous degree of elevation with my Ruger LCP. I discovered that with aiming directly at a 100 yard target my shots fall about 25 yards short and skip into the berm. Like skipping stones on water. Almost got near the 12" plate with the .380 once. Great fun.
 
There is a lot of satisfaction that comes with hitting targets set out 100 yards. I nearly always finish a session with some long range shooting.

It helps build confidence in your handgun and your own abilities.
 
Once, when living on the Western Slope in Colorado (We were shooting in Milner, just west of Steamboat Springs), I visited a friend who's house was on a ridge, overlooking a wide valley that had just been plowed, and was completely dry. The temptation to bust a few rounds had three of us popping .45 autos out into the fields at rocks, or anything that would give us a reference. We had no idea how far the valley extended, but it must have been at least 1200-1500 yards, as to make hits into the center and beyond, we started using, as a reference point, a thin line of clouds above the opposite ridge, which was easily as high as we were or higher. When I say "hits", I mean getting close to a rock, or patch of whatever that was out in the valley. Puffs of dust were barely visible in the valley, it was so far way, but we had two spotters for each shooter. We were walking our 230gr slugs out there, and holding our guns WAY above being able to see (we woud look at the target over the gun, then raise the gun straight up to the cloud line and cut loose), then lower the gun after the shot to see where the bullet was hitting. I'd like to to tell you we were putting heat on "targets" at 1000-1500 yards, but we never did attempt to verify the distance. BUT we were holding the guns at an angle of maybe 30-35 degrees above what would have been a level bubble sightline to the opposite ridge, and shooting into a valley........
 
I've shot my carry gun at 75 yards, but had never shot a handgun at anything as far away as 100 yards until Saturday. The target was a steel plate rectangle, about 18" x 24". Calling my shots was pretty easy - I knew when I was going to miss - but hitting the target wasn't. My best run was five or six hits in a row out of 100 rounds total, and I was usually able to hit it three-to-five times in each 10-shot string. My buddy was able to hit it ten times in a row with my gun. :mad: We also shot at a 10" round plate, and I was able to hit that only about once in every five or six shots. It was fun, and I wish I'd brought a .22, so I could have shot another couple of hundred rounds without too much expense.
 
I love shooting at the longer ranges because it really magnifies any shooter error.

At 25 yds, you miss the mark by six inches and ya think, "Ah, that aint too bad."

At 100 yds, that six inches is two feet-- or more, and you know you're doing something wrong.

It's also a real boost to the ego when you preform well in front of folks who for some reason simply think it can't be done. Believe me, it can; even with the snubs. jd
 
When I was a LEO, I carried a Chiefs Special (pre-Model 36) with a 3" barrel and square butt. As others have said, I just wanted to know what the gun would do at 100 yds and found it surprisingly easy to keep my shots on a standard silhouette target at that range. Then I tried with a .357 Model 28, and found I could keep about a 6" group shooting two hand hold, standing.

No, I wouldn't choose a carry gun, even a .357, for that distance, but if I had ever had to do so, I think I could have made someone very uncomfortable. And I think I proved that the folks who say a handgun is worthless over ten yards are pretty ignorant.

Jim
 
I posted in the rifle forum about putting 2 out of 3 in the ten ring at 100yds while casually shooting my 1911 thru the chrony.
Not to be duplicated....
 
I'm feelin inadequate...Just started shooting 6 momths ago...First time I shot at a 25yd target I think I only hit the darn paper 5 times! Guess I need to practice before backing up to 100!!!!
 
Used to shoot my Desert Eagle .44 Magnum at the steel plate at 100 yrds and hit it more often then not. Benched and it was a clout shot with that hand cannon! :D
 
One of my fun past times is shooting a 12-inch plate at 100yrds offhand with 3-inch 1911s in 45ACP. Once you figure out the hold over, they hit with nice regularity. Makes me feel more confident carrying them every day to know they can be used out that far to back down a threat.
 
When I was getting ready to work the 84 Olympics in LA I practiced with my 4" Model 19 round butt at 100yards with B-27 Silhouettes aimed at the neck and all went into the chest/heart area.
 
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