A variety of considerations enter into the accuracy equation. These include problems with stance or trigger squeeze, the heretofore unrecognized matter of which eye is dominant, improper technique, lack of practice, and use of a handgun unsuited to the shooter. Yet every shooter wishes to improve his shooting; that is why we constantly strive to improve our marksmanship. Here we have glimpses of a number of factors the serious shooter needs to contemplate as he works on his shooting form.
Sound journalist that he unquestionably was, Jack O’Connor knew to turn to others more expert than he when the occasion demanded such an approach. That is precisely what he does here: he takes wisdom from first-rate handgunners he knew and distills it into readable, reliable coverage. The material comes from his Sportsman’s Arms and Ammunition Manual (1952).
Few will dispute the fact that the handgun is the most difficult of all weapons to shoot well; also that, once sufficient skill is developed, using a handgun is one of the highest forms of shooting pleasure.
Handgun shooting is just like offhand rifle shooting, although more so. Every rifle-shooting fault is enormously magnified with the handgun. The prone rifle shot can do a little flinching and cover it up pretty well because of his tight sling, heavy firearm, and steady position. If he tries to shoot offhand, wild shots make his flinch apparent. Nevertheless the rifle is both heavy and long-barreled, and what a nice flinch can do to a rifle shot is nothing compared with what it can do to a handgun shot.
Usually I am not too enthusiastic about the theory of training in one subject to become proficient in another. If a man wants to learn Spanish he should study Spanish, not Latin. And if he wants to think well and clearly on social and political subjects, he should study psychology and logic to find out how his mind works, and then do some plain and fancy contemplating on social and political subjects, instead of sharpening his wits through the study of dead languages and mathematics, as old-fashioned teachers used to advise.
However, supplementary shooting of the handgun is one of the finest of all ways to keep a rifleman on the beam, to perfect his trigger control, to steady his hold, to sharpen his sighting. The unsteady one-hand hold, the short sight radius, the light weight of the handgun—all make for mistakes that prove fatal, though a rifleman could make the same mistake and score fairly well. As a consequence a good handgun shot is almost always a very good rifle shot, whereas the reverse is a long way from being true.
For years a friend of mine did a lot of handgun shooting. He almost never shot a rifle, however, because he was not a hunter. Then some friends talked him into buying a .30/06. Much to their astonishment this “beginner” started immediately to knock their ears down in offhand matches. Why? He had already mastered steady holding and trigger control with a vastly more difficult weapon.
I am not going into the selection of a handgun here, except to say that the smart thing to do is to start with a .22 because the ammunition is inexpensive and its light report and relatively gentle recoil are not likely to bother the novice. The smart thing also is to get as good a weapon as one can afford. I have always liked the feel and heft of the revolver, but most .22 target sharks use automatics and there is no doubt that the short-barreled, light automatics like the little Colt Woods-man with the 4½-in. barrel are sweet to pack around for plinking and general small-game shooting.
Form in any sport is acquired only by thought and practice. Give a man a tennis racket or a golf club for the first time and he will pick it up all wrong. His stance will be terrible. For the most part there is nothing “natural” about good form.
Likewise, the man who first picks up a handgun will do everything wrong. He will grasp it as if it were a dagger that he was about to sink in someone’s back. He will hold it with a bent arm. He will waver and wobble the trigger.
All of which reminds me of a story. Back in my boyhood, a couple of Western ranchers had a falling out over a stolen calf and decided to go a-gunning for each other. They eventually met in a saloon. One walked in the front door just as the other, who had been powdering his nose, emerged from a rear door. They emptied their guns—and did no damage except to the bar mirror and the walls. Before they could reload, friends overpowered them. The law came in. They were fined, warned by the judge to keep the peace, and then turned loose.
They next met on the open range, and this time they started popping away at each other at about 80 yd. Again neither got a hit.
Then it struck one of them as being funny. “Joe,” he called, “got an ax?”
“Not with me, you damned fool!” Joe replied.
“You go home and get yours and I’ll get mine. We ain’t a-doin’ no good with these here six-shooters!”
Then they both began to laugh, and for years they told that story on each other. It turned out that somebody else had stolen the calf after all.
In getting the correct hold for a handgun, the first thing to remember is that it arm’s length. A general tendency of beginners is to hold with a bent arm, but this is wrong. Try to think of the gun being held so that there is a straight line from the shoulder right through the sights to the target.
Furthermore, the gun should be held from the shoulder with no conscious tightening of the muscles of the arm. An attempt to get steadiness through stiffened arm muscles will produce an exactly opposite effect; arm and gun will vibrate every which way. Held from the shoulder, with the arm virtually limp, gun and arm will act as if one piece, and movement will tend to be up to control.
Left to himself, the beginner probably will grasp the gun rather than hold it. He’ll clamp down on the grip as if it were the last dollar he had in the world. Instead, the handgun should be held firmly but lightly. The frame just back of the trigger guard should rest on the middle finger. (Think of it as being balanced there.) The thumb should extend high along the frame for steadiness, and also because the thumb in that position promotes holding rather than grasping, to use that term again.
Many beginners (and also some darned good handgun shots) put too much index finger through the guard, so that the pad of flesh between the first and second joints contacts the trigger. This is O.K. for rifle shooting, where the feeling should be that one is simply gently tightening up with the whole hand. In handgun shooting, however, the sensitive ball of the fingertip should be employed to touch her off. If the index finger is too far through the guard, it often contacts the guard as well as the trigger, and part of the pressure is actually being put upon the guard. The trigger finger must remain free to complete the squeeze at the right time.
If your sole acquaintance with a handgun comes from having played cowboy and Indians with a cap pistol in your youth, this method of holding the handgun may seem awkward at first. However, that’s equally true of a golf club or a tennis racket, and using the correct grip will soon seem as natural as rolling the eyes and uttering a gentle sigh when a lovely maiden comes floating by.
Most good handgun shots stand with their feet at about a 45-degree angle to the line of the arm. However, I have seen some very sharp characters face the target. Others continue the straight line of muzzle to shoulder through the other shoulder; in other words, they face away from the target at a right angle. But since the first method is the easiest and most natural, the beginner should form the habit of using it. Thrust the left hand in your pocket or rest it on your hip, so there is no temptation to wave it around and destroy balance.
Anyone taking up the handgun is appalled by the fact that the front sight wobbles and wibbles so. He hears talk about the champions’ rocksteady holding, and feels like a very inferior fellow indeed.
Between us girls, I think that the “rock steady” handgun hold is purely relative—that actually there ain’t no such thing. Holds range from very wobbly to fairly steady. Even a rifle resting with fore-end and butt on sandbags on a bench rest isn’t “rock steady.” The more a man practices, the more he develops the important muscles in hand, forearm, and shoulder, the steadier he can hold. He will never, however, become a machine rest. If he did, all the fun would be gone.
Stage fright, weak and untrained muscles, too much smoking, and not enough sleep will make the extended arm with the handgun wobble; but even at that the wild and unpredictable shots are caused, not by wobble but by flinching.
So if you’re a beginner, don’t worry too much about wobble. If the trigger is squeezed off smoothly and the sights remain more or less in line, the shot won’t be too sour. Let me repeat: It is flinching—not wobble—that causes those wide shots. One way to convince yourself of that is to shoot with a deliberate and exaggerated wobble; if you manage to keep the sights lined up, you’ll find that you still do fairly well.
Now let us suppose that, instead of feeling strange, as it did at first, the orthodox grip has come to seem natural. You’ve learned to hold the handgun firmly yet not hard, because holding hard only accentuates the tendency to wobble. You’re ready to try some dry firing—holding the handgun sights on a mark and squeezing off the shot with no disturbance of aim. (Dry firing, by the way, isn’t going to hurt your handgun and every good shot does worlds of it.) If you can put up a 25-yd. pistol target in the backyard, well and good. Failing a backyard, paste a small bull on the window and go to it.
Shooting the handgun is a grand hobby, and one that is neither expensive nor troublesome to follow. The small-bore rifleman has to be loaded up with a long and heavy rifle, a heavy scope sight of high power, a spotting scope and stand, and what not. The pistol shot can put all his gear in a container no bigger than a brief case. One of the best small-bore shots I know has switched almost entirely to the handgun because he grew weary, he says, of taking care of so much rifle equipment.
A good man with a handgun can get a lot of game, if he has to, and a .22 pistol or revolver is an excellent supplementary weapon to take along on a big-game hunt. On a 30-day trip into the Rockies one time my companion carried a Colt Woodsman and used it very effectively. Almost every day we’d run into grouse of some sort on the trail and my pal had no trouble giving the whole camp an occasional feast of wild chicken. To the wilderness dweller a .22 handgun is almost a necessity for supplementing the diet with grouse and rabbit and, perhaps, porcupine.
I know some very good handgun shots who hunt varmints with their favorite weapons and who would rather knock over one jack rabbit with a .22 hollow point or a .38 Special at 75 yd. than a dozen with a rifle. One amazing character I know has killed two mountain lions with a handgun. Wait a minute and I’ll make it worse. They had NOT been treed by dogs. In both cases he saw them when they were crossing mountain roads. He got one with a Colt Woodsman and the other with a little automatic for the .25 A.C.P
To me, the most interesting thing about the handgun is the training it gives and the lessons it teaches the rifleman. Do you tighten up too much? Do you jerk the trigger? Do you have poor breathing habits? If you want to find out (and have a lot of fun doing it), try the handgun!
This selection comes from the Army Marksmanship Unit Pistol Training Guide (1980). Poor trigger control, especially jerking or snatching the trigger (rather than pulling with a smooth, even motion, normally referred to as “squeezing”), can be a problem when shooting any type of firearm. However, shortcomings in this arena are magnified when working with handguns. This straightforward text describes proven ways to optimize control of the trigger when firing a handgun.
Correct trigger control must be employed in conjunction with all other fundamentals of shooting. The physical act of applying pressure on the trigger to deliver an accurate shot may vary from individual to individual. Proper trigger control for each individual gradually assumes uniformity when the techniques of proper application are mastered. Many shooters, for example, maintain a degree of trigger control with a relatively light grip, while another shooter may use a very tight grip. Some shooters prefer to apply consistent trigger pressure at a rapid rate, while maintaining correct sight alignment. For another shooter, a slower, deliberate application may achieve the same results. An ever increasing number of shooters use the positive approach to trigger control, that is, once it is initiated, it becomes an uninterrupted, constantly increasing pressure until the weapon fires.
Trigger control is of very great importance in producing an accurate shot. When the shooter exerts pressure on the trigger, he must do so in a manner that does not alter the sight alignment, or position of the pistol. Consequently, the shooter must be able to exert smooth, even pressure to the trigger. Furthermore, the trigger must be pressed in conjunction with maximum concentration, peak visual perception of sight alignment and minimum arc of movement.
In order to produce an accurate shot, the shooter must carry out many diverse, but related, actions. Fulfilling this action is compounded by the fact that the pistol is in some degree of motion throughout the period of sighting and aiming. The movement varies according to the stability of the shooter’s stance. Consequently, the sight alignment deviates from the aiming area. Often it will move through the aiming area, pausing only for a short period of time in perfect alignment with the target. It is impossible to determine when, and for how long the properly aligned sights will stay in the center of the aiming area. This difficulty is aggravated further by the fact that the shooter is trying to execute coordinated actions when reflex action seeks to contradict them. Such a situation requires the development of conditioned reflexes, and improvement of coordination.
The coordinated action of correct aiming, timely pressure on the trigger and the correct delivery of the shot is difficult and can be accomplished only by overcoming former uncoordinated reflexes or by acquiring new ones. Only through constant training and attention to accepted techniques can these new reflexes be acquired.
The pressure put on the trigger must come from independent movement of the trigger finger only. The gripping fingers and the thumb do not move or tighten. Keep the grip pressure constant. Align the sight, settle into your normal aiming area and exert positive, uninterrupted, increasing pressure, straight to the rear, until the hammer falls. You must not look for a perfect sight picture combination of rear sight-front sight-bull’s eye. Instead, focus your eye on the front sight, keeping it perfectly aligned in the rear sight notch. The blur of the out-of-focus target may move about slightly, but this movement is relatively unimportant. Any time the weapon is fired with good sight alignment within the normal arc of movement and it is a surprise shot, the shot will be a good one, and will hit the target within your ability to hold.
Trigger control has a series of actions that take place if a smooth release of the firing mechanism is accomplished.
Slack and Initial Pressure—Any free movement of the trigger, known as slack, has to be taken up prior to a light initial pressure. This action assures that the tolerances in the firing mechanism linkage are taken up and are in firm contact before positive trigger pressure is applied.
Initial pressure is an automatic, lightly applied pressure, approximately one-fourth or less of the total required to fire the weapon. This careful action is an aid in the positive pressure that will release the hammer quickly and smoothly.
In order to fire a controlled shot the shooter must learn to increase the pressure on the trigger positively, smoothly, gradually, and evenly. This does not mean, however, that the trigger must be pressed slowly. It must be pressed smoothly, without interruption, but the release of the trigger must take no more than 2 to 5 seconds. Numerous accurate rapid fire strings of five shots in ten seconds are fired in a cycle that allows only one second or less to employ the principals of correct trigger control.
Smooth trigger action makes special demands on the trigger finger when pressing upon the trigger; its correct functioning determines to a great extent the quality of the shot. The most carefully attained sight alignment will be spoiled by the slightest error in the movement of the trigger finger.
Function of Proper Grip—In order for the index finger to be able to perform its function without spoiling the aim, it is first necessary to have the hand grasp the pistol correctly and create the proper support; permitting the trigger finger to overcome the trigger tension. The pistol grips must be grasped tightly but without any tremor. It is also necessary that the index finger clears the side of the stock. The movement of the index finger must be independent as it presses on the trigger, and also not cause any lateral change to the sight alignment.
Proper Placement of the Trigger Finger—It is necessary to apply pressure on the trigger with either the first bone section of the index finger, or with the first joint. The trigger must be pressed straight to the rear. If the finger presses the trigger to the side, undesirable things will happen. The weight of trigger pull will increase; because of additional friction on certain parts of the trigger mechanism an otherwise flawless trigger action will take on the characteristics of a poor trigger when side pressure is exerted on the trigger. Another consideration is the effect that side pressure has on sight alignment. Only slight pressure to the side is required to bring about an error in sight alignment. The prime cause of exerting pressure to the side is improper placement of the trigger finger.
Ideal trigger finger placement may be modified to a degree by the requirement that the grip provide a natural alignment of the front and rear sights. The shooter frequently must make a compromise to overcome the undesirable effects of not being able to utilize each factor to full advantage.
Coordination—It must be emphasised that match shooting is successful only when all the control factors are consistently in coordination.
Ability to control the trigger smoothly is not sufficient in itself to produce an accurate shot. The trigger must be activated in conjunction with correct sight alignment, minimum arc of movement, and maximum undisturbed concentration. This might be called cadence, rhythm or timing. Under any name, it comes only to those who practice frequently. Occasional ability is not the answer to championship shooting. A three-gun aggregate requires 270 successful results. Consistent, exacting performance is enhanced by an ability to compensate automatically for errors. It is necessary during firing to press the trigger under varying conditions of pistol movement in conjunction with correct sight alignment. In order to apply coordinated pressure on the trigger, the shooter must wait for definite times when all factors and conditions are favorable. Frequently, it will be impossible to exercise maximum control. However, the shooter must never attempt to fire until he has completely settled into a minimum arc of movement.
Positive Uninterrupted Trigger Pressure-Surprise Shot Method—is primarily the act of completing the firing of the shot once starting the application of trigger pressure. The shooter is committed to an unchanging rate of pressure, no speed up, no slowdown or stopping. The trigger pressure is of an uninterrupted nature because it is not applied initially unless conditions are settled and near perfect. If the perfect conditions deteriorate, the shooter should not fire, but bench the weapon, relax, replan, and start again.
In instances when the pistol is stable and steady, and the periods of minimum arc of movement are of longer duration, it is immaterial whether the release of the trigger is completed a second sooner or a second later. Anytime that the shot is fired with minimum arc of movement and the sights are in alignment, it will be a good shot. Therefore, when the shooter has established stable minimum arc of movement and sight alignment, he must immediately begin to press on the trigger, smoothly but positively, and straight to the rear without stopping, until a shot is produced. This method of controlling the trigger action will give the shooter a surprise break of the shot before any muscular reflex can disturb sight alignment.
Interrupted Application of Trigger Pressure or the “Point” Shooting Method—This is a method of trigger control not recommended, although used by some shooters. Some shooters think they can pick the trigger release time even after years of experience.
The shooter will align the sights and exert initial pressure on the trigger. He will then make every effort to hold the weapon motionless. During extremely brief moments of motionlessness, pressure is applied on the trigger. If the sight alignment changes and is not perfect, or the arc of movement of the weapon increases, the pressure on the trigger is halted and trigger tension maintained. When sight alignment is again perfect and movement diminishes, pressure on the trigger is resumed until the shot breaks, or after the slack in the trigger is taken up, Initial pressure is applied and the shot released by a single swift movement of the trigger finger when there is a decrease in the minimum arc of movement. In this case the presence of perfect sight alignment is not considered essential in initiating trigger action. Abrupt action in applying trigger pressure will disturb the existing sight alignment and other fundamental control factors are subordinated to a minimum arc of movement. The application of all other fundamentals is required regardless of whether or not they are optimum.
While applying positive trigger pressure straight to the rear, if any thought enters the shooter’s mind to speed up or slow down this trigger pressure, it will result in the concentration on sight alignment being broken down.
The decision to increase the trigger pressure may result in a reflex action commonly known as anticipation and usually results in heeling the shot (The bullet strikes the target at approximately one o’clock). The recoil becomes more imminent and the brain will send a signal for the arm and hand muscles to react prematurely a split second before the shot is fired; resulting in frequent bad shots and low scores.
The most serious and disrupting error made by the shooter is jerking—that is, the abrupt application of pressure on the trigger accompanied with muscular action of the hand and arm muscles.
If jerking was limited to abrupt pressure on the trigger, and the rapid displacement of the axis of the bore, it would cause only part of the results.
Jerking is usually accompanied by: the sharp straining of all the muscles in the arm and shoulder; the abrupt tightening of the hand on the grip; failure to press the trigger directly to the rear.
All of these factors, taken together, lead to a great shifting of the pistol to the aide and down and only a very poor shot can result.
Most frequently, jerking is observed in new shooters. Usually, because of a large arc of movement, favorable moments for producing a good shot are of very short duration.
The cause of trigger-jerking, is the practice of “snatching a ten-pointer,” as the expression goes. The shooter tries to fire at the moment when the centered front sight, as it moves back and forth, passes under the lower edge of the bull’s eye, or comes to a stop, for a brief time, near the center of the aiming area. Since these moments are fleeting the inexperienced shooter strives to exert all the necessary pressure on the trigger at that time. This rapid and abrupt trigger pressure is accompanied not only by the work of the muscles in the index finger, but also by the sympathetic action of a number of other muscles. The involuntary action of these muscles produces the “jerk,” and the inaccurate shot that results. The young shooter, in anticipation of the recoil of the pistol and its loud noise, strains his muscles by flinching, to counteract the anticipated recoil. This is also known as heeling the shot.
Practice has shown that a young shooter must be warned sufficiently early in his training about the dangers of jerking the trigger and effective steps taken to instruct him in the correct technique of accurate shooting.
Difficulty in detecting errors in trigger control is frequently because the pistol shifted during recoil and errors are not recognized. The shooter has a more difficult time in evaluating his actions than a coach, and often does not realize that he is jerking the trigger, blinking his eyes, or straining his arm and shoulder muscles.
The easiest way to correct jerking in the young shooter is by the coaching of an experienced coach. A coach can more readily detect errors and correct habits that will produce poor trigger control. Frequently a shooter does not consider it necessary to prove conclusively whether or not they are jerking on the trigger. It is necessary, though, to know that if he does not get rid of the detrimental habit of jerking on the trigger, he will never succeed in achieving good results.
Signs of jerking are an increase in the size of the area of the shot group or shots off to the side which are not called there; chiefly to the left and down (for right handers). To correct this condition, the shooter must make a change in his training exercises, but in no instance must he stop them.
Dry-fire practice will enable the nervous system to rest from the recoil of the shot. By this practice some of the reflexes which are detrimental to firing (tensing of the arm in order to counteract the recoil, the straining of the muscles in expectation of the shot, blinking from the noise of the shot), are not being developed. They will, in fact, begin to decrease and may completely disappear.
Secondly, the shooter may continue regular-training, but occasionally he may practice “dry”. This way, he will not lose the stability of this position, as well as the useful reflexes which the shooter has developed during the process of previous firings.
By aiming carefully and noting attentively everything that happens to the pistol when he presses on the trigger, the shooter will discover his errors and eliminate them. Training by means of ball and dummy and dry firing is of great benefit. It makes it possible to develop correctly and carefully the technique of pressing the trigger, and contributes to acquiring proper habits in controlling the trigger.
When beginning to use dry firing the shooter must first overcome the desire to “grab” for a shot when the centered front sight is under the bull’s eye. Despite the arc of movement the shooter must teach himself only to press smoothly on the trigger and to use the uninterrupted positive control method of trigger action. When the smooth control of the trigger again becomes habitual and he no longer has to devote special attention to it, he can again shoot live cartridges. After starting again to shoot live cartridges, the first training exercises should involve firing at a square of blank white paper, rather than at a target with a black aiming area. Simultaneously, the shooter must devote special attention to analyzing his performance, counteract the desire to jerk on the trigger, and be conscious of reacting incorrectly to the firing of a shot.
Another error committed by a shooter when controlling the trigger is “holding too long,” that is, the drawn out action of pressing the trigger.
A consequence of holding too long is that the shooter does not have enough air to hold his breath, his eye becomes fatigued, and his visual acuity decreases. In addition, his stance loses part of its stability. Consequently, when he holds too long, the shooter presses on the trigger under unfavorable conditions.
Holding too long is a consequence of excessively slow and cautious pressure on the trigger. This is caused by the shooter’s fear of producing a bad shot. Such indecisiveness and over-caution may be regarded as the opposite of jerking. Moreover, holding too long stems from the lack of coordination of movement which frequently occurs during those stages of training when the process of inhibition outweighs the process of stimulation. Simply stated, the shooter cannot force himself to exert positive pressure on the trigger at the proper time. One favorable moment after another goes past, and soon the chances for an accurate shot are gone. Naturally, the trigger control phase has been extended far beyond its effective duration. This situation frequently occurs after a period of dry-fire training exercises. The shooter loses the sense of the trigger’s true weight when he fires for extended periods of time with a round in the chamber. When the trigger is released in a dry shot, the trigger seems to be rather light, but when the shooter switches to live rounds, the trigger weight seems to be considerably greater. He feels that he must exert greater effort to overcome this seemingly greater weight. Frequently, the shooter will blame his troubles on faulty adjustment of the trigger mechanism. Nothing is gained from such assumptions. More times than not, the shooter returns to normal trigger control since the root of the evil is lack of coordinated control and not trigger adjustment.
The restoration of coordination of movement, and the return to the correct balance between stimulation and inhibition is brought about primarily through systematic practice, match training and dry-fire exercises. It is precisely this method of training which develops the necessary coordination of the shooter’s actions. When the shooter’s movements become automatic, the trigger finger will operate in an unstrained manner, and the shot will break at the proper moment. It is important that each training session begin with a few dry-fire exercises. It has been demonstrated that such exercises are necessary for the development of accurate shooting. Such exercises may also be repeated after record shooting to restore equilibrium in the nervous processes.
Frequently, a shooter, when firing for record, is unable to fire a shot. After several unsuccessful tries, a loss of confidence will arise. Rather than risk a wild shot the shooter should unload the pistol, time permitting, and dry-fire a few shots. After restoring coordination of movement and regaining his confidence, the shooter is far better prepared, both physically and mentally, for the delivery of an accurate shot. Firing the shot during the first few seconds after settling into a good hold will guarantee confidence.
We have considered the fundamental errors that arise in trigger control. Let us now consider a problem that is also closely related to trigger control—trigger adjustment.
The firing of an accurate shot depends to a great extent on the quality of the trigger adjustment. An incorrectly adjusted trigger aggravates adjustment the errors committed by the shooter as he exerts pressure on the trigger. Incorrect adjustments include: excessive trigger weight; excessive long creep (movement of trigger); too light trigger weight; variable trigger weight.
The shooter should not try to overcome these difficulties with modification in his trigger control but take the problem and pistol to the armorer (gunsmith) for solution.
Taken from the same source as the previous selection, this piece deals with the critical matter of alignment. Although stellar marksmanship certainly involves hand-eye coordination, the accurate shooter aims rather than points. Here are data on how to align one’s eyes with the handgun’s sight for maximum effectiveness.
Sight alignment is the most important contribution to firing an accurate shot.
In order for the bullet to hit the center of the target, the shooter must aim the pistol and give the barrel a definite direction relative to the target.
In theory, accurate aiming is achieved when the shooter places in exact alignment, the rear sight with the top and ideas of the front sight, and holds them in alignment in the aiming area.
A requisite for correct aiming is the ability to maintain the relationship between the front and rear sights.
When aiming, the front sight is positioned in the middle of the rear sight notch with an equal light space on each side. The horizontal top surface of the front sight is on the same level as the top horizontal surface of the rear sight notch.
It is necessary to be acutely aware of the relationship of the rear sight to the clearly defined front sight. Normal vision is such that the rear sight of the pistol will be as nearly in focus as the front sight. Some shooters may be able to see only the notch of the rear sight in sharp focus; the outer extremities may become slightly blurred.
Angular Shift Error—If the shooter does not observe correct aiming (maintaining the top surface of the centered front sight on a level with the top of the rear sight and equal light space on each side of the front sight), there will be few accurate shots. Most often, he locates the front sight in a different position in the rear notch. This accounts for a greater dispersion of shots on the target, since the bullets will deviate in the direction in which the front sight is positioned in the notch. This aiming error is known as angular shift error.
Parallel Shift Error—If the hold (arc of movement) is deviating in near parallel error from the center of the aiming area, the shooter should know that these deflections will not lower the score to the extent of angular shift error. Therefore, sight alignment is the most critical of the two. Thus, the accuracy of a shot depends mainly upon the shooter’s ability to consistently maintain correct sight alignment. The main effort should be toward keeping your sights aligned. Holding the pistol perfectly still is desirable but it is not mandatory.
Correct sight alignment must be thoroughly understood and practiced. It appears on the surface as a simple thing—this lining up of two objects, front and rear sights. The problem lies in the difficulty in maintaining these two sights in precise alignment while the shooter is maintaining a minimum arc of movement and pressing the trigger to cause the hammer to fall without disturbing sight alignment.
The solution is partly in focusing the eye on the front sight during the delivery of the shot.
It is imperative to maintain “front sight point of focus” throughout the sighting and aiming of the pistol. The shooter must concentrate on maintaining the correct relationship between front and rear sight, and the point of focus must be on the front sight during the short period required to deliver the shot. If the focus is displaced forward, and the target is momentarily in clear focus, the ability of the shooter to achieve correct sight alignment is jeopardized for that moment. Frequently, this is the moment that the pistol fires. A controlled, accurate shot is impossible under these conditions.
When the eye is focused on the target the relatively small movement of the arm appears magnified. However, when the eye is correctly focused on the front sight this movement appears to have been reduced.
If the sights are incorrectly aligned, the net result is an inaccurate shot. Carelessness in obtaining correct sight alignment can usually be traced to the shooter’s failure to realize its importance. Many shooters will, in the initial phase of holding, line up the sights in a perfect manner. However, as the firing progresses and the shooter is concentrating on delivering the shot, he often loses correct sight alignment which he attained in the initial phase of his hold. Usually, when the shooter is unable to maintain a pin-point hold, his concentration on sight alignment wavers. An accurate shot is lost because the shooter is thinking of his arc of movement and not the perfection of sight alignment.
Another factor which contributes to the deterioration of sight alignment, is the feeling of anxiety which arises over the apparently stationary pressure on the trigger when attempting to fire. An impulse is generated to get more pressure on the trigger, so that the shot will be delivered. When the shooter thinks about increasing the trigger pressure, a degree of the intense concentration required to maintain correct sight alignment is lost. Even if trigger control and the hold are good, the net result will be a poor shot. Sight alignment must remain uppermost in the shooter’s mind throughout the firing of the shot. Positive trigger pressure must be applied involuntarily. Consistently accurate shots are produced when the shooter maintains intense concentration on sight alignment during the application of trigger pressure, while experiencing a minimum arc of movement. Control of the shot is lessened in direct proportion to the loss of concentration on sight alignment.
The average, advanced shooter is probably limited in sustained concentration to a period of 3 to 6 seconds. This short space of time is the optimum period in which a controlled shot can be delivered. This concentration interval should be attained simultaneously with acquiring a minimum arc of movement, a point of focus, satisfactory sight alignment, and the involuntary starting of positive trigger pressure. If exact sight alignment is maintained, and the trigger pressure remains positive, the shot will break during the limited time the shooter is able to control his uninterrupted concentration. Result! A dead center hit on the target.
The principal difficulties which confront the shooter during aiming are determined to a great extent by the inherent characteristics of the eye and its work as an optical apparatus.
Recoil and the dread of recoil, even if subconscious, can be the bugbear of the handgun shooter. It may not figure prominently in the shooting of .22 pistols, but as the handgun’s caliber moves up and the kick does likewise, the shooter faces an issue he must deal with. Charles Askins, Jr., addresses the matter in this selection taken from Colonel Askins on Pistols & Revolvers (1980).
If a man had 6 fingers on either hand he would be a better pistol shooter, maybe even seven digits would help the more. Too, if the wrist joint was not quite as flexible this would be a further assist. Recoil in the pistols is controlled by the fingers and the more of them the better. It might be for the really ambitious that a surgical graft of another finger or two would not be such a bad idea.
The uplift of the muzzle when the trigger is mashed is a most important item in the success of the shot for the gun commences recoil on the instant the propellant is sparked to fire. By the time the bullet quits the barrel the muzzle has raised and this is the final direction of the bullet. If the shooter’s hand is weak and the grip ineffectual the muzzle upchuck will be considerable. What’s even worse is that if it isn’t constant from shot to shot the hits will be strung up and down on the target.
Target pistol shooters are compelled to bang off their rounds using only the one hand on the grip. This is in accordance with the rules. The new school of thought, exemplified by the silhouette marksmen, the hunting fraternity, and even the cops is that both hands should be gripped about the gun stock. It is the only smart way to go. To control the kick which has such an influential bearing on the goodness of the hit the more hands on the stock the better!
The grip is second in importance only to the trigger let-off, the pistol is somewhat like the scatter gun, it is never still and while we may get so good we can hold it almost rock steady we never entirely succeed. For this reason the pistol is a close relative of the shotgun, both are fired while in movement.
The trigger squeeze must be coordinated with that movement. The tighter, quieter and harder the grip the less wobble and the easier the squeeze. Any shooter almost regardless of who he may be can hold a gun steadier with two hands rather than with one.
And by the same token [any shooter] can control the recoil more effectively with the 2-fisted hold rather than the one. We have grown, these past two decades into a fraternity of big bore men. The twenty-two and the .38 used to be the popular shooting irons; with the old .45 Auto running a distinctly poor third. This isn’t so today. The magnums are now edging forward most especially with the hunting clan. The .45 ACP from a distant 3rd choice is now clearly the gun preferred by the combat shooters. The cops stick to the thirty-eight not so much from choice but through the obstinacy of their city fathers.
The recoil of the magnums has a formidable bearing on accuracy, the more the kick the faster and the higher the barrel climbs and the more probability of a wide hit. To control this jump at least in some measure is the name of the game. One of the big factors in the successful manhandling of the big bores is the grasp on the stock.
Regrettably the stock makers have not really given much serious thought to the design of a grip for the 2-hand hold.
The stocks on all the big handguns are obsolescent because they are all designed for only the one hand. This will be corrected in time but right now we have to live with it, a complication that has got to be resolved is that the gunner wants a grip small enough to make a one-hand draw but afterward will then catch the grip with the left hand overlapping the right.
While the stock may be big enough to nicely contain the one hand there simply isn’t room enough for the other. It overlaps the principal hand, usually the right, and while it is decidedly important it is very much the accessory hand. Just how this is going to be improved is a problem for the stock designers. We’ll hope they are working on it.
Recoil is controlled so far as possible by a tremendously hard grip. A force exerted by both hands. A grip so strong that during the first few months of practice the hands will tremble because of the inordinately hard grasp. With time and more firing the force put on the stock can be maintained and there will be no tremble. Unfortunately we do not have a grip indicator with a handy dial gauge to show the pressure to be 50 psi or whatever is proper. If we only had a neat little meter which showed when the grip-pressure got up to the proper limits the grasp could then be kept uniform. After that we’d all shoot better.
Another weak link in the equation is the wrist, it is a swivel and bends and gives under the force of the up-turning muzzle. If, somehow, there was a lock on that swivel what a boon it would be!
Since we can’t snap that latch the gunner wants to stiffen the wrist against the kick all he possibly can. With the Big Berthas he must also lock the elbows. This is easily done but a conscientious effort has to be made at least in the beginning for the recoil with calibers such as the .41 and the .44 magnums will break the elbow joint unless the gunner is prepared to resist it.
There are two movements when the pistol is fired. One direction is upward and the other and secondary motion is angular and is away from the supporting hand. The palm of the hand provides the principal resistance to the kick while the fingers are secondary in their support. If the hand was better designed to hold the pistol there would be 10 fingers, 5 on a side and these when wrapped around the butt would dampen not only the upchuck but also the tendency of the gun to kick to the left.
The fingers are not as strong as the palm and so these give way under the recoil. The muzzle not only rises but it kicks off in the direction of the fingers. That is to the left which sees a hit not only high but to the 9-10 o’clock point on the target. The addition of the left hand, wrapped as it is over the fingers of the right dampen this flip on the muzzle leftward.
That is one of the major advantages of firing any handgun with the 2-fisted grip. Some fine day when the shooting fathers become a little less hidebound there is no doubt in my mind that the rule will be revised to permit strictly bullseye shooters to compete with both hands on the gun. Scores will improve when this becomes reality.
Recoil is determined by the size and the weight of the bullet, by the weight of the powder charge and the poundage of the firearm. It follows that if a big ball of sizeable heft and backed by a strapping quantity of propellant is fired in a light frame gun there is going to be a lot of punishment! These are immutable laws and the guns and ammo designers are fully aware of them. It is for these reasons that handguns for the magnum calibers are designed around heavy frames. This is ordnance that weighs upwards of 44 ounces and some go as much as 60 ounces.
Since the recoil begins on the instant the powder commences to burn it is contended that one solution is to make the barrel shorter so that the ball and powder combo is more quickly free of the bore. The further contention being that the muzzle will not rise so high since it is free of the ball the more quickly. These theories are in fact partly true; the only fly in the ointment is that the shorter the barrel the lighter the gun and the greater the impact of the gases on the atmosphere at the muzzle.
This impact is one of the most violent phenomena in the whole recoil equation and must be given much weight in any consideration of the problem.
Hatcher has this to say about recoil: “For example if we have a .38 Spl gun weighing two pounds and it fires a bullet which weighs 158 grains with a velocity of 860 fps, we would expect the gun to have a recoil velocity of 860 divided by the weight of the gun and multiplied by the weight of the bullet in pounds. As there are 7,000 grains in a pound, the bullet weighs 
ths of a pound, hence the recoil velocity would be 860 ÷ 2 ×158 ÷ 7000 which works out to 9.7 foot seconds.
“This is the velocity of recoil; but we are more interested in the energy of recoil than we are in the velocity. The weight of the gun, combined with the velocity is what makes it hard to hold. Velocity in itself does not mean much without weight. Thus a tennis ball coming very fast is easy to stop; it has velocity but not much weight. A baseball has more weight and at the same velocity would obviously be much harder to stop.
“The energy if the recoil of a gun is equal to one half the mass of the gun times the square of the recoil velocity, or 54 ½ MV2. The mass of the gun is the weight divided by the acceleration of gravity, or 2 pounds divided by 32.2; and the velocity squared is 9.7 multiplied by 9.7, or 94.09. Hence the recoil energy would be ½ of 2 ÷ 32.2 = 94.09, or 2.9 foot pounds.
The development of such improvements as the Mag-Na-Port, a design which incorporates ports or orifices in the top side of the barrel just back of the muzzle and which then jets the gases skyward before these same gases pass the muzzle is a monumental step in the right direction.
While the Mag-Na-Port is best adapted to revolvers it can be accomplished in the big automatics although I am uncertain just how successfully since the ports in the barrel must necessarily be in perfect alignment with like ports in the slide.
Unfortunately, the large frame revolver, the common choice for the make up of the big magnum calibers, is sorry indeed for the control of heavy recoil. It is immutable that the deeper the frame on the revolver the harder it will kick. The frame was designed during the last century and no improvements have been made since. The barrel stands some inches above the grip and because of this height the kick develops a turning motion which accentuates the punishment.
The big auto pistols are much better designed for heavy recoil because the barrel does not stand nearly so high above its support. This, beyond question, is one of the reasons the .45 ACP has crested in popularity among the combat shooters.
Ask the average handgunner and he will be certain the peewee .22 caliber has utterly no upchuck at the business end. This is an illusion, it does develop recoil and while it is of little consequence to the garden-run user there are certain marksmen who give it full measure of serious concern. These are the fellows who shoot the Olympic rapid fire game.
This match firing requires a shot on each of 5 silhouettes in a time interval of 4 seconds. The shooter must commence with the pistol pointed toward the ground and upon the appearance of the targets which all swing into view simultaneously, has to aim and squeeze the trigger meanwhile swinging along to the next silhouette. It should be explained that so keen is the competition that it is not just a game of plugging each man-shaped target but an oblong 10-ring in the chest has to be punctured to insure a reasonable chance of being among the winners. Recoil, faint though it may be, is a factor. The Olympic aspirants all fire very special .22 Short cartridge, a round that is more accurate than the run of the mill but a selection, I suspect, more notable for its lightness of recoil.
Such accessories as the Bo-Mar heavy rib, an attachment for all big auto pistols and some few revolvers has integral sights both fore and aft but more especially is designed to add weight the entire length of the rib. Its prime purpose is to hold down muzzle flip.
The Clark heavy slide for the Model 1911 pistol accomplishes the same ends from a slightly different direction. Clark chops two slides in two and then welds the longer pieces together again. The finished slide is a full one-inch longer than standard. Besides the elongated slide there is a special barrel from Douglas to fit the elongated piece. While this precision job adds to the sighting radius, which God knows is appreciated on the .45 Auto, more particularly it does muchly appreciated things to the recoil.
Interestingly one of the very most accurate shooting arms in the handgun firmament is the Feinwerkbau air pistol. It is a .17 caliber and is shot at 10 meters. This pistol will shoot tighter groups than all save an exceedingly small number of the best Continental-tuned free pistols. Even though the Feinwerkbau does not burn powder it too develops recoil.
There is a spring and a plunger with a piston attached and upon the release of the trigger this piston is driven forward compressing the air needed to give the .177 cal pellet some 450 fps velocity. The very movement of the piston is so disturbing it may be likened to the conventional kick of the powder-burning firearm.
To overcome this vibration the designers have struck on a novel system which on the release of the trigger also loosens the entire action of the gun which floats on horizontal rails for a fractional part of an inch. The weight of the barreled action magically compensates for the vibration of the rapidly moving piston and spring and thoroughly dampens these parts. The extraordinary design feature accounts in no small part for the phenomenal accuracy of this remarkable pistol.
Before the larger powder-burning handguns, and most especially the magnums are to be made truely accurate a similar development must come along. Recoilless artillery fires both frontward and backward. There is a moderate escape of gas rearward which reduces the recoil to negligible proportions. Fantastic though it may seem the big magnum handguns need much the same application.
This selection, also from Colonel Askins on Pistols & Revolvers (1980), is included here because of the manner in which hunting sights can improve the sportsman’s accuracy. Clearly, this piece has equal applicability to the next chapter of this primer, which focuses on hunting with handguns. Drawing on his vast wealth of experience, Charles Askins, Jr., weighs in on hunting sights and gives the handgunner obvious reason to consider them and their performance carefully.
Probably the poorest sights on a hunting pistol are those of plain black iron. It does not much matter the color of the animal nor the background, his surroundings, the time of day, nor the position of the sun, those coal-black sights will show up poorly. I am a believer in a front post that is as star-spangled as the old fashioned barber pole. And if the rear notch is set in a bilious green, Navy brindle, or Polar bear white that is OK too.
For strictly target panning the straight iron patridge out at the business end and a rear sight just as unprepossessing in appearance is alright but for game-taking this ain’t so hot.
The facts are, in truth, a gold faced front post and a white inset rear may be easier to see and quicker to pick up but for gilt-edged accuracy this combo leaves quite a lot to be desired on the score of good precision. The contrasting colors don’t do anything for visual acuity and this accounts for somewhat poorer performance but my contention has always been that the shooter can give up something here in favor of faster sight alignment.
There are two or three factors in the handgunning equation that are important. I have always contended the most important is the trigger mash but the sight picture is only a half-step behind. No one can shoot any better than he can aim and when the shot gets beyond fifty yards the sight becomes quite critical. If it wasn’t for the fact that the post in front and the notch behind were so close together it would not be such a problem but that proximity of one to the other makes alignment super critical!
The best of our target marksmen do not focus the aiming eye on the target at all but concentrate on the front post.
This, in effect, causes the bullseye to blur somewhat but it brings the sights into sharpest focus. This, they have found, accounts for closer hits and is conducive to better accuracy and performance.
This is alright for the bullseye panner but it is not recommended for the game shot. He has to keep his eye on the critter and simply move his sights into the line between shooter’s eye and the living target. If there is something lost in the process so be it. The idea that the game is going to be a blur while the sights are in sharpest outline won’t work when you are stalking whitetails!
Because ordinary pistol sights are a pair it is argued by some of the strategists that the best solution is a low-power scope sight. This dingus eliminates half the equation and in theory, at least, improves the prospects of a close hit. Too, the problem of fuzziness in either the rear notch or around the front post is negated. The crosshairs, if the scope is in adjustment, don’t develop those funny aberrations that are all too common with the conventional sights.
Thompson/Center, the makers of the excellent line of Contender single-shot hunting handguns, has a new one that is yet to be proofed in the game fields. It is an optical sight which has no magnification, projects an illuminated crosshair into infinity, has windage and elevation adjustments, weighs 5 oz, is only 2¾” in length, and readily attaches to the Contender handgun. This accessory like the low-powered short-tube conventional scope, eliminates one of the two iron sights.
I am something less than enthusiastic about a glass sight on the belt gun. It violates, in my conception, the true utilization of the one-hand shooting iron. A handgun is meant to be short, handy, fast, and highly portable. When we hang an optical sight, however small, however compact, on the pistol it loses a lot of its utility. I want my hunting arm to be readily carried either at the hip or in a half-breed rig and the only way this can be comfortably done is to stick with the original sights. Maybe sights colored up like a Navajo at the annual corn dance but standard so far as size and shape are concerned are the answer.
Sights have been wonderfully improved these past three decades, handguns except target models which were few, all had a rear notch machined into the top strap with a front that was usually a half-moon in configuration. Only a smallish handful of pocket models are so unhappily blessed today. A pistol because it is so short, with its abbreviated barrel and its sights all too close together needs the finest most precise kind of sights. And by this I mean sights that are not only adjustable but finely movable at that. The idea that all you need is a groove in the top of the frame and a semicircular blade in front is utterly wrong!
There was once a well established prejudice against any kind of an adjustable sight on a handgun. “These movable sights are too flimsy,” was the consensus of opinion and it was most especially strong among that clan which took to the woods. The cops were just as adamant, they were double-damn certain that any kind of a movable sight was sure to be so weak it would not hold up on a service gun. This prejudice has now all but disappeared.
During those days when the only handguns that had adjustable sights were target models, Colt had a novel system whereby the rear sight was movable only laterally, and this permitted it to be gotten in zero from side to side; the front sight was adjustable for elevation. These were the crudest sights imaginable. Both had to be gotten in zero and then left strictly alone. The bucko who was so sanguine as to try to move his sights from distance to distance, as from 25 yards to 50, was soon hopelessly lost. Smith 8s Wesson had a fixed front sight and a rear that was adjustable for both deflection and elevation. The side-wise movement was accomplished by backing off on the left-hand screw and tightening on the right. This, believe it or not, was pretty definitive. The only point was that once you had the pistol in adjustment you left it alone!
The elevation was done with a single flimsy screw and once the zero had been found a second screw was supposed to lock the first in place. Sometimes it held but more often it worked loose under the impetus of the recoil and then the gunner was all at sea.
There was a manufacturer in San Francisco, named D. W. King who had a sight company called the King Gunsight, and he was very definitely ahead of his time. He developed a rear sight that was movable for both elevation and deflection and the adjustments were simple and uncomplicated and what was maybe even more important the lock on both would hold against the kick of the gun! Attached as an integral part of the rear sight was a raised ventilated rib. This was new and startling and handgun hunters did not know whether they wanted such a dingus or not. At the front end of this rib was front sight which was quite innovative too. It consisted of a one-eighth-inch red plastic post. King used to call his post “red ivory” but this was just advertising hocum, it was common plastic but it held its color very well. The notch behind was outlined in an inset white and between the two visibility was excellent. Just behind the red post and inset in the rib was a mirror made of chromium steel. This was supposed to pick up the light and reflect it on the post. This was another gimmick but it looked good and everyone who used the King sights and accompanying rib were happy with it.
Front sights on the hunting gun are placed from ½ inch to as much as a full inch above the axis of the bore, this because of the recoil which commences once the powder is sparked to flame. Actually these high standing sights are part blessing and part nuisance. They are quick and easy to find when a fast shot is needed but they are also terribly easy to cant. A canted shot is one that is fired when the sights are not truly perpendicular. A front sight canted to the left will pour the hit out in that direction. To my notion the advantages of the extra high front post outweigh its drawbacks. The old .45 Auto has a front sight, on the issue model, that is altogether too low and hard to see. When some enterprising pistol-smith adds a set of his high sights it is a decided improvement.
Sight design, the outline that is, has been muchly bettered here of late. Instead of the old half-moon configuration or something near it, we now have a ramp base with a post that slants away from the eye quite pleasingly. For the woods gun this can scarcely be improved. The base with its ramp effect, along with the post itself gets a front sight above the barrel far enough and high enough so it can be seen quickly and easily.
It used to be that bead sights were common on the one-hand gun. If it was just plain vanilla the bead was made of black iron; if on the other hand, it was all jazzed up it would be of gold, or ivory or maybe canary yellow. The rear notch, U-bot-tomed to conform to the bead might be outlined in white. This was thought to be the one plus ultra of refinement and while maybe you never see a combo like that these days the truth is that out to 25 yards the big gold bead in front and the white outlined rear notch worked very well. It distinctly was not a target proposition and for shots on game beyond off-the-muzzle yardages it was pretty ineffectual but for all that it had its uses. Rear sights must stand up above the frame and be highly visible. The sight must be so prominent that it instantly catches and holds the eye once the pistol is lifted into the line between the man and his target, I like the Dan Wesson which has a sight that is 
” in height; and the Ruger Blackhawk which stands 
” in height. Along with this good size the rear face of the sight must be grooved, stippled or checkered to dampen sun glare.
A great failure of many manufacturers is to provide us with a rear notch that is too shallow. This is a fault of S&W sights and it has been that way for a very long time. Too, Smith sights usually have a notch that is too narrow so that the front post fits too snugly.
This lends itself to shots that plop to the left or right because the gunner cannot align the post with the good precision that is needed. A hunting rear worth its salt should be not less than .09” in depth and if it runs a full 
-inch so much the better.
Just as importantly, maybe even more critical, is the fit of the front post in the rear notch. Far, far too many sights as they come from the factory are altogether too snug one with the other. There should be a good ribbon of light on either side of the front sight as it is held in alignment within the rear notch. I’d reckon if these ribbons could be measured that each would be not less than 
-inch. It is a fact that it is scarcely possible to have too much light around the front post. The eye automatically centers the front sight in the rear anyway and because so often hunting conditions are poor indeed on the score of good light the more space between the sights the better.
The width of the front sight is a most critical part of the equation. It used to be that all front sights, almost regardless of the type of handgun, had blades of -inch. This was a standard and even today, and especially on foreign imports you will find front sights that are still this dimension. This is poor indeed!
The first shooters to abandon the all-too-narrow front post were the target gunners. These marksmen went to a 
-inch sight and they have clung to it ever since. Today, all our hunting revolvers and auto pistols have sights of this width. It is very near the perfect choice.
One time I had a series of front sights made up and these ran ”, ”, 
”, 
” and one-quarter inch in widths. I attached these sights, one after the other, to a Colt python with 6-inch barrel. The ammo was limited to Federal wadcutters .38 Spl. I shot 10 scores at 50 yards with each front sight. I commenced with the ” width and as the front posts grew broader I simply filed out the rear notch to compensate for the wider front.
The one-tenth-inch post shot the highest scores and made the best groups. I believe this indicated the popularity of this sight for lo these many years. The ” was next best. It shot scores almost on a par with the one-tenth but what was more revealing, I think, was that it was done with less eye strain and less hard work.
The ” front post was not so hot at 50 yards, it simply covered too much of the bullseye and scores and groups were enlarged. Where this sight really showed its worth was at 25 yards rapid fire. It was quick and easy to pick up, was plenty accurate enough for the 10-second stanza during which the shooter has to bang our 5 rounds, and generally indicated its real worth at the closer range.
The ”, and 
” blades were utterly no good at the long range. However at 25 yards both turned in very credible jobs.
If there were any lessons to be gotten from this test it was to pin down why the ” front post has had its adherents; and why the ” is the happy choice of virtually all today’s handgunners. The latter is by long odds the better choice.
The ” wide front sight is the choice of all of today’s handgunners
The pistol sights both front and rear, are intended to be viewed at a distance of 24 inches. This is the average length of arm of the shooting man and his gun when extended in firing position and presents the sights in a certain perspective.
When the gunner bends the shooting arm at the elbow, or rests both elbows on his knees as when firing two-fisted and in the sitting position; or when he tries to fire prone, the sights are immediately thrown out of the accustomed perspective. When this occurs accuracy suffers, the front sight commences to loom up too large, the back notch appears out of proportion, and alignment is poor. Unless the pistol and its sights can be kept extended at the usual 24-inch distance from the aiming eye trouble will ensue.
There is another side of this coin. With a lot of hunting guns sporting barrels of 8 ½” to 10 inches, the front sight gets to be like 30 to 34 inches from the aiming eye. If that post is only ” in width it can look awfully skimpy and sometimes not too well defined. On all my handguns that I intend for serious hunting usage, I replace the standard post with another that measures 
-inch. On a brand new .45 Colt Contender with 10-inch bbl, I have swapped the regular front post for an even wider post. It goes 
-inch, and this looks good at the end of that ten-inch barrel, I’ll tell you.
In my opinion there are only two worthwhile shooting positions in the game fields; one is offhand with a two-fisted hold; and the other is sitting with the one-hand grip, the arm rested over the right knee and the left hand behind the body and bracing it for greater steadiness. The business of taking up the sitting posture like a rifleman with the elbows on the knees and the gun gripped in two hands is for the birds. It places the sights too close to the eye and because both elbows are bent, is not steady at all. The prone position is ridiculous. The body is close to the ground, the head is thrown back so abruptly and the sights are too close to the aiming eye that it is futile.
Because of the inherent inaccuracy of the handgun at any very great distances plus the crudeness of the sights, shots at game want to be limited to close range. I recollect a fellow who should have known better who bragged about killing a pronghorn at 217 yards. The pistol was the AutoMag which for some reason was at that time rated as being just slightly more lethal than a nuclear weapon but in truth is far outdistanced at any such ridiculous yardages. The bullet in going 217 yards will fall 70 inches which means that either the gunner held over the back of the game and thus could not see it, or he simply jerked the trigger so hard the muzzle was pointed high when the gun fired. At any rate it was a contemptible thing to do and should never had been told in public.
A hunting handgun ought to be sighted in at 50 yards to hit point of aim. If chances are offered at 100 yards these should be passed up, this business of trying for a trophy at such yardages places the shooter in a very questionable bracket. He is one of these jazbos who will freely risk a wounded and lost animal simply for the sake of trying the impossible. It is a reflection of good sportsmanship, stalking skill and woodsmanship to fetch the animal into the sights at 50 yards rather than to hazard the shot at distances beyond. There are a lot of jokers who will recite, chapter and verse, how with the .30 Herrett, or the .30-30 in the Contender, or the .44 Mag loaded with 26 grains of Bullseye have knocked off moose, caribou, elk and mule deer at distances so lengthy it took a long horseback ride just to get to the dead critter.
For those who have these tales to spin I can tell you 10-for-l about the questionable sportsmen who tried the doubtful shot, crippled the game, and the trailing a failure left a fine animal to die miserably. The handgun is a hunting arm when it is used well within its limitations. And it does have decided capabilities in the game fields, keep the shots close and both gun and man will come off looking much better.