# Mastering the art of Point Shooitng



## Robinson (Dec 2, 2013)

I am trying to master ‘Point Shooting’ these days. Some of my folks believe that point shooting is an advanced technique that is to be learned only after mastering the basics of shooting. But, I think with training and practice you can carry out point shooting with proficiency. You need to have a good hand-to-eye coordination to aim. Also, the use of ‘point shooting’ during a self-defense situation allows you to quickly and accurately position your handgun to the center of the threat. To learn more about point shooting I bought some dvds. 

What’s your take on this? Any experience so far?? - carrydefense


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

You can't "master" anything, merely by watching a few DVDs.
If you want to learn "point shooting," or any other pistol technique, I suggest that you need a competent teacher or coach who will watch your technique, and correct it as you go.

Point shooting is not an easy skill to master on your own. It is very useful to have a qualified observer who watches where your hit actually strikes, and then suggests corrections.


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## AdamSmith (Dec 18, 2013)

Not sure what exactly is meant by "point shooting."

If you mean shooting from the hip, well that takes careful training from a pro so that you don't shoot yourself in the process.

If you mean shooting reflexively without aiming, then it all depends how close the "target" is from you.

How you shoot depends on what you are shooting at and whether they already have the drop on you.

If someone has gotten the drop on me already, I was taught to take two quick giant steps to the left, while I am drawing, then depending on the distance shoot from the hip or from the two handed position. If there is not time to aim, then there is not time to aim. Fire a couple of shots quickly, then aim, and shoot again. This is called a hammered three. You can go all the way up to a hammered 5 if need be, then scan and repeat another hammered 5 if need be.

Everything requires training, yes, I agree with Steve on that.


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## rex (Jan 27, 2012)

Practice is the only way you'll get there. It works off 2 basic principals, your natural ability to point at something and peripheral vision.

If you look at something you can naturally point directly at it, so now you have to retrain your brain to point with the finger at a different angle because rarely is your finger parallel with the bore. With practice it will come.

As long as you aren't doing a speed rock out of the holster, the gun is normally in your lower peripheral vision. This helps index the gun laterally so once the pointing comes around you'll start zoning in. Always look at the exact spot you want the bullet to hit and in time you'll walk the shots to it.

There's a guy named Brownie at Threat Focused in Arizona that teaches this with handguns and long guns, and he's very good at it. Years ago Mas Ayoob criticized the technique but now teaches it himself, hmm. It goes by different names but Brownie was taught it as the Quick Kill technique and retained that name. He travels teaching this along with hand to hand, knife use and quite a bit of gun techniques. I don't know exactly where he travels but he comes to FL a few times a year and I know he has been through the New England area. I believe his website is Welcome to if you'd like to check it out.

I don't know if the site is down or that isn't the site address, you may have to Google it.


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## Glock Doctor (Mar 14, 2011)

> Originally Posted by Robinson,
> I am trying to master 'Point Shooting' these days.
> 
> Some of my folks believe that point shooting is an advanced technique that is to be learned only after mastering the basics of shooting; but, I think with training and practice you can carry out point shooting with proficiency.
> ...


My thoughts? I think that anyone who intends to work quickly out of a holster should first have a lot of experience simply handling pistols without experiencing any untoward incident(s). This said, you don't need to draw quickly in order to be a decent point shooter. I've been (instinctively) point shooting with pistols since I was 13 or 14 years old. I'm very good at it; and, for the life of me, I can't ever remember using my, 'peripheral vision' in order to hit the target. Why?

I will say this, though: If any form of shooting relies more upon acquired proprioceptive reflex then I don't know it. Good wing shooting requires coordinated proprioceptive reflexes; but, there's a much stronger reliance upon visual imagery, and matching the muzzle to the moving target. When I was shooting PPC I never consciously aimed at any target inside 7 1/2 yards; and I used to blow the centers out of my targets all of the time. How? Well, for one thing, I never listened to the older shooters' advice. (Things like, 'Watch your front sight.' 'Don't watch the bullet holes; watch the front sight, instead;' and all sorts of remarks like that.

Were someone to tell me to use my peripheral vision, today, I'd ignore that advice, too; and continue to shoot as I'd learned how to do when I was a young boy. This said, I'd like to meet the pistol instructor who could watch a shooter's form and tell him how to be a better point shooter. I'm a pistol instructor; (supposedly a good one) and, when it comes to point shooting, I couldn't do that!

Point shooting is best learned by example. You continue showing someone how until he reaches the point where his brain, his eyes, and his hand finally begin working together. (It's not like watching for trigger flinch or muzzle jerk. Point shooting movements are much more subtle than that.) If you want to learn about the CQB combat applications of point shooting one of the best places to start is with Jim Cirillo's books.

Cirillo used to strongly recommend combat point shooting; and, according to comments he made many, but not all, of his CQB pistol gunfights were won by his point shooting ability. (Personally I believe this!) I am, also, aware that one of Cirillo's favorite gunfighting techniques was to rush at his opponents while simultaneously point shooting at his targets from extremely close range.

Now, never having taught anyone how to point shoot with a pistol I don't know if this is right; or if this is wrong; but, personally, I always, 'drive' the muzzle of my pistol into the target; and I'm sure that my peripheral vision has little or nothing to do with the fact that I usually hit exactly what I'm aiming at.

It, also, helps me to point shoot well by - at least initially - very carefully watching the exact spot on the target where I want my bullets to hit. To my mind this has always meant that there's more to learning how to point shoot than (simply) watching the front sight! When you, 'drive the muzzle into the target' it's the target that you have to watch, and not the gun. In fact were I to give just one reason, 'Why' I'm a good point shooter, my answer would be, '_Because I know how the pistol has to feel in my hand in order to (accurately) push the muzzle forward and into the spot that I want to hit._'

About the only thing that's identical between conventional, 'sighted fire', and point shooting a pistol is the necessity to watch the smallest point on the target as possible. In other words: Don't make the mistake of inadvertently aiming at the whole target.

Here's a few point shooting targets that I fired on a bet with someone who loudly proclaimed that it couldn't be done. (He was wrong!) :mrgreen: At the time I was using what I consider to be a very difficult pistol to point shoot with: A Glock Model 21 fitted with one of the old 10 round magazines. At between 18' and 21' yards I very rapidly fired (nearly) every round into a 10.5 x 12 inch square pistol target; and I did it out of the holster, 'from the hip', and with each of my hands. (If those targets were closer I'm sure I could have put everything into a 6 inch circle.)

http://i1034.photobucket.com/albums/a422/69204Me/18YrdsRapidLeft-Hand2_zpsdd633d0b.jpg

http://i1034.photobucket.com/albums/a422/69204Me/18YrdsRapidRight-Hand_zpse65187fa.jpg


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## dennis40x (Feb 27, 2014)

I've been around longer than I like to admit but over the decades I've witnessed very-very few that were proficient on demand in the "Art of Point Shooting". That's not to say it can't be done but for the average shooter I believe there are better methods of shooting per their abilities.


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