Chambering a round after slide locked open: rack or slide stop?

[SeaTact]

I asked this question in a general gun forum but I'm interested in a competitive shooting angle, so to speak.

When I took a defensive handgun class, our instructors told us that when the slide is locked back, after loading a charged magazine the best way to chamber the round was to pull back on the slide and let it snap back into battery. Before then I always thumbed the slide stop lever, and this is something I still tend to do in competition.

What's are people's thoughts about either technique?

Edited October 17, 2010 by pistolcompetitor

[Leozinho]

I've heard many reasons from the tactical ones why you should use your weak hand to release the slide: thumbing the slide lock is a fine motor skill that will disappear under stress, pulling the slide back further puts a little extra power on the slide as it goes forward, it's the same motion you use in for Tap/Rack when clearing stoppages.

Rather than countering those arguments here, I'll just say I still release the slide lock lever with my thumb.

It is faster. (Using my weak hand to release the slide also has the tendency to engage the safety on my Beretta.)

Edited October 17, 2010 by Leozinho

[Vlad]

Which ever you can do consistently. I found that on guns with "real" slide releases (1911's, CZ's) I prefer the slide release, and I can handle it without thought, it just happens. On guns with afterthought slide releases (Glocks, M&P's) I manipulate the slide. Actually what I really prefer are guns that reliably drop the slide themselves when you positively insert a fresh mag, my M&P does this.

It also depends on which gun we are talking about for a different reason. Some guns (CZ again) have very little slide to grab on and I find that to be a much finer motor skill then just hitting the slide release.

[G-ManBart]

There are reasons and arguments for both techniques, and there really isn't a right or wrong, but if you put them in context, some things get a little more clear. CCW classes are taught to what we would consider is an exceedingly low level of gun skills, from a handling/manipulation and marksmanship standpoint. In that context, it's smart to teach one action to be used for loading, reloading and clearing malfunctions. Yes, there is truth in the fine motor skill deterioration under stress point, but reality has shown that reloads in social situations are exceedingly rare, even for uniformed law enforcement officers. In fact, the few standouts are the kinds of things that make national news...Miami 1986, the North Hollywood shootout etc. It's something to consider, but probably not enough reason to be a foundation of your process. It really goes back to one action that covers all scenarios in a "good enough" sort of way. My wife enjoys shooting, has her CCW permit, and can hit what she's shooting at, but doesn't practice a whole lot. For that reason, when she started shooting autos, I taught her to pull the slide back to release it when loading, reloading and clearing a malfunction....no matter what she's doing, that's going to work, and I'm confident that it's a reasonable approach.

From a competitive standpoint, the only reason I can see using the slingshot technique is for lefties shooting guns that don't have right side slide releases. Hitting the slide stop is simply faster (if only a small amount), and all of us should be practicing reloads enough that we can do it on demand, under stress. If you've been using that technique for years, I'd be willing to bet that under great stress, that's what you're going to do without thinking about it....but you've got the reps behind you to make it work without thinking about it. I shoot some Single Stack and Production, and can't remember the last time I missed or fumbled the slide stop, even when I was really pushing to go fast...in fact, that's usually when you've had an unplanned extra shot, and that can get the adrenaline flowing a little bit...uh oh, gotta make up that time I wasted on the extra shot, and the slide lock reload, it's time to GO!

I say go with what you've done for years, knowing you can always slingshot it if you need to. R,

[SeaTact]

Ya, forgot to mention what I use, which is a Glock 17 Gen4. I'm not sure if a lower level of skill would have been one of the top reasons for the slingshot approach, but I totally agree that hitting the slide stop is faster, and I don't think I've ever had to fumble for it. The lever is in a perfect place for my thumb. Interesting how Glock does call it a "slide stop lever" and not a release-- goes to show what their original intent was.

[Cold Absolute Zero]

I hit the slide lock lever as well, I feel that it is faster and easier. I feel that the slingshot/rack method is valid and useful but a bit slower in competition. The one benefit of the slingshot/rack method is that it will work on pretty much any auto pistol, so if you are shooting several different pistols you have one technique that works for all. I've heard the fine motor skill argument but here's the thing...trigger control is a fine motor skills, if you are utilizing good trigger control you probably have the dexterity to manipulate the slide lock...just my opinion.

CAZ

[G-ManBart]

I've heard the fine motor skill argument but here's the thing...trigger control is a fine motor skills, if you are utilizing good trigger control you probably have the dexterity to manipulate the slide lock...just my opinion.

CAZ

Two very different animals there....and think how quickly that trigger control goes out the window with just a little bit of rushing, much less serious stress.

If you put your hand on the gun normally, where does your trigger finger fall naturally? Yeah, it's pretty hard to miss the trigger with your trigger finger. The same isn't true of the slide stop....it's actually pretty easy to miss, or not hit squarely enough to work properly. R,

[Flexmoney]

Just a few data points.

With my Glocks, I have now had 3 instances (out of a whole LOT of trials) where, during a match, I insert a mag and the slide closes on it's own (as Glocks often do)...but the slide has not stripped a round from the magazine. So, I have an empty chamber. (One possible cause there could be worn out/weak mag springs that allow the round to bounce a bit as I slam the mag in.)

Most folks I see that rack the slide...they do so poorly (incorrectly). They ride the slide in some fashion, robbing energy from the system. Instead, pull through...and keep pulling...allowing the slide to reach the end of it's travel and, thus, slip out of their grasp (the pulling hand keeps going back as the slide now goes forward). Which would allow for full power on closing.

[mgood]

Thumbing the slide stop (with whichever hand is easiest for you on your gun) seems much faster, to me, than pulling the slide back. My support hand jams the mag in and then just sort of rolls up around my strong hand to resume the firing grip, hitting the slide stop lever along the way. If I were to take that hand off the grip to move it to the slide and then back to the grip, seems like a lot of wasted motion to me.

(Reloading is one of the few skills I don't suck at )

On my production gun, the slide nearly always drops on it's own, when I insert the fresh mag. It started doing that after about 1000 rounds. Surprised the hell out of me the first couple times. (Like "WHOA! What happened?") Now, I've come to rely on it to the point that it frustrates me when it doesn't happen. I need to get back in the habit of thumbing the slide stop on that gun all the time. If the slide goes down on it's own, great. If not, I'm already in the process of releasing it.

[Cold Absolute Zero]

Two very different animals there....and think how quickly that trigger control goes out the window with just a little bit of rushing, much less serious stress.

If you put your hand on the gun normally, where does your trigger finger fall naturally? Yeah, it's pretty hard to miss the trigger with your trigger finger. The same isn't true of the slide stop....it's actually pretty easy to miss, or not hit squarely enough to work properly. R,

You bring up a good points...I primarily shoot glocks so I find it pretty easy for me to hit the slide stop with my strong thumb by swiping down as I reacquire my grip. However, on a 1911 I can't do this and have to use my support thumb...I could see how someone could miss it under stress. I agree Sir that trigger control and hitting the slide stop are very different motions, and engaging the trigger is definitely more intuitive than utilizing the slide stop, I only mentioned the former to point out that many parts of good shooting and manipulation require fine motor skills and therefore hitting the slide stop can be made into a valid technique through copious practice While for "me" I feel the relatively mild risk of missing the slide stop on my glocks is worth the speed gain, I guess the important thing for the OP is to figure out what works for him and to practice that technique as much as possible.

CAZ

[Carmoney]

Mike Plaxco used to say, "The reason the Good Lord gave you a left thumb was to drop the slide on a .45" Obviously, he was talking about using the left thumb to operate the slide stop, and I think his observation extrapolates out to various other calibers and pistol platforms.

[Joe4d]

The sling shot method can work in a class room setting where you have a hole class of different guns, Generally it works the same with every gun. The slide release is simply faster, Surprisingly noone has posted the actual correct answer.

The answer is neither, dont let your gun run dry.

[Alaskapopo]

I use my support hand to to pull the slide back. Its easier for me as that is the way I was trianed and my thumbs have a hard time reaching the slide stop without contorting the pistol. I have timed my reloads and I am actually faster with the over hand rack technique. But that is just me.

Pat