When did 2 handed shooting become cool?

S

SPUSCG

New member
Just wondering, seems like ww2 era all the training videos show 1911s being shot one handed, and I see old police training videos where they shoot old model 10s one handed. Now its all about two hands.when did the transition happen? I know it wasnt instant but what time period.?
 
I'd guess it happened when someone figured out they could shoot a lot better two handed than one handed. Big difference between paper punching and combat shooting.
 
I remember in the middle sixties when the FBI were taught to shoot with the right hand while holding their left arms bent across their chest as an attempt to slow-down/deflect opponent's bullets. Just after that, Weaver and Isosceles stances (two handed), became popular.
 
It's a post WW-II thing,,,

Thing is many shooters follow whatever the big names are doing. Wondering what got them on that path.
Click to expand...

Weaver started winning,,,
People emulate those who are winning.

The Weaver stance came out in the 1950's.

The Isosceles stance came out in the 70-80's.

If my informal observations are correct (and I could easily be wrong),,,
Just about the only shooters still using the one-handed stance are Bullseye shooters.

Aarond
 
I think I read a book by Jeff Cooper wherein he outlined the progression of competitive shooting. Don't recall the name of the book, but if I can come up with it I will post or pm you.
 
It is my understanding that Mr. Jack Weaver developed the two hand shooting stance when shooting in Southern California multi target matches some time in the mid to late 60's.
 
I learned on bullseye in the early '70s, then went to the Weaver, and then the Isosceles. Now, practicing hip, point and flash sight shooting and I'm back to a one handed grip part of the time. Interesting, this tactical shooting.
 
I've kinda come full circle... started out shooting one handed under the tutelage of old military guys and bullseye shooters. Switched to both hands in my 20's, with incentive from a police academy; we were shooting DA revolvers and running them DA most of the time, so it made sense.

I'll still shoot two-handed given the time but a good 60% of my practice these days is with one hand. I am convinced that practice kept me from getting munched by a couple of big mean dogs awhile back.
 
I shoot mostly one handed. Every time I got into a position where I needed a hand gun, be it in SE Asia, or in 20 years in LE I found I had something in my other hand.

I figure if I ever need to use a handgun again, there will probably be something in my other hand. Why practice with two hands if most likely you be shooting with one that.
 
For me... two handed became cool....well necessary.... when I was just out of high school and got a Desert Eagle 44mag...It wasnt very easy to hold with one paw.
 
My stepfather served as a USAF MP after WWII and shoots everything one-handed. I learned two-handed, then started shooting Bullseye and found that the focus and practice needed for one-handed shooting makes two-handed shooting seem a LOT easier.
 
Interesting topic.

I remember an older guy shooting with one hand but with the weak hand underneath as if to stabalize things vertically. My girlfriend shoots the same way at our home pellet setup. She does not remember if someone taught her that or not. Is the one hand and other as a stabilizer a technique used often or considered undesirable by instructors? I am trying to convert her over to Isoceles but maybe I should'nt.
 
actually "cool" is one handed and turned sideways...not very accurate though if you actually want to hit the broad side of a barn :)

I shoot isosceles till my arms get tired and then fall back into Weaver style. Depending on what I'm shooting and for how long.
 
I haven't figured out how to shoot two guns using a two handed grip so I'll stick to one hand... :D JK

I switch up while at the range ,but for some guns two hands are a must. I think practicing with one hand is a must cause you never know if you will have two hands available.
 
I went to a seminar by Saber Group, (Mike Conti.) He showed the evolution of police firearms training. Started out with showing police and FBI shooting one handed combat shooting in the 20's and 30's, up to the OSS in WWII firing one handed and point/instinctive shooting. He had videos. Then the NRA got involved and it showed police target shooting. The real world shootouts stats were aweful when the police switched to target/bulleye shooting. MSP switched to one handed combat training and instinctive shooting around 2001 and the hit ratio went way up in real world gun fights in MASS. I ended up getting a couple of books on it by Saber Group.
 
It started really catching on in the late 1960's. Like a number of things in the shooting world, Jeff Cooper did a lot to popularize it.

gary
 
Fairbairn-Sykes have got to be the grandfathers of shooting techniques.Their book "Shooting to live"still makes good reading.They were decades before anyone gave serious thought to shooting stances,and this was in the 30's.
 
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Cooper's "Fighting Handguns" 1958 had very few photos of two hand hold.
The 1970s is when things changed a lot. Training schools started and various techniques were developed .
It became obvious that two hands provided a steadier platform and two eyes provided better sighting. Try Weaver and Isosceles and pick what works best for you. Sighting of course is far better if you focus on the FRONT sight !!
 
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