Practice Reloads Without The Mag

[Catfish]

I have been using Anderson's dry fire book a bit in the last year. I especially liked his tip on doing reload practice to not starting with a mag in the gun to keep you from bending down and picking up mags all the time instead of practicing reloading.

I'm getting a lot faster on my reloads - and I've started noticing that every now and again in a match, particularly in the classifiers when I'm not moving - that I'm getting distracted by watching the old mag fall out as the new mag goes in and I'm shifting focus from the mag well to the falling mag. I've been struggling to figure out what's up with that and last night it just kinda hit me....

I'm noticing the falling mags more at the matches because it's a "new" sensation after the hundreds of practice reloads without a mag in the gun.

I think the solution to doing lots of reloads in practice as time efficient as possible but still get the sensation of seeing the old mag fall is to just mix it up a bit in my dry fire routine.

Hope this helps someone else who might be struggling with the same thing.

[Jake Di Vita]

I would definetely do at least half of my reloads with a mag falling out of the gun. It's the only way you get feedback as to the orientation of your gun as your ejecting the mag (making sure it is vertical so there is no excess friction slowing the falling mag down) and just making sure your not drilling habits it than when you actually do a reload you slam the mags into each other....or worse...your index finger between 2 fully loaded mags.

Yeah...it hurts.

[al503]

It's simple for me. I just place a chair in front of me to catch the fallling mags. Don't have to bend over to pick them up. Of course it won't work when you're moving but if you're practicing standing reloads...

Edited February 28, 2006 by al503

[p3ordie]

Catfish, I'm using the same book. For my reloading practice I found a large cardboard box, a little over 2 1/2 ft. high. I opened one end of the box and placed a large bath towel over it, makes a nice place to catch the mags as they fall out of the gun before they hit the ground. When I ordered some USPSA targets that box was the perfect size.

Mark

[davidball]

I just place a chair in front of me to catch the fallling mags.

I use a folding table with a old quilt folded up on top . . . makes a nice, soft landing for the mag and no bending over!

. . . and what Jake said. I did a lot of the "Burkett" reloads with no mag falling out and found them very useful to develop the skill of getting the new mag to the well properly. But getting the spent one out and out of the way is just as important.

Edited February 28, 2006 by davidball

[Catfish]

I think part of it too is just that I'm getting quicker and quicker on the reload and I'm seeing things like I've never seen them before.

It's a nice journey I think.

[BigD]

Catfood,

You can borrow my five year old on a Friday or Saturday night. He'll gladly pick up every mag that hits the floor. That'll give E and I and chance to hit the town. Call me! Please!

Darin

Edited February 28, 2006 by BigD

[tightloop]

For all practical intent, the draw, shot one, reload, shot one drill, either dry fire of live fire is, for me, better...you practice drawing, reloading and shooting...doesn';t get better than that..

[Bigbadaboom]

Catfood,

You can borrow my five year old on a Friday or Saturday night. He'll gladly pick up every mag that hit's the floor. That'll give E and I and chance to hit the town. Call me! Please!

Darin

That's funny because my 5 year old gets upset if he can't help me pick up mags during dry-fire, chamber check my reloads (He places them in the boxes after I check them) or clean my mags (He likes running the mag brush through the body).

[TDean]

I'm down to .6880 sec draws (Production gear mind you) but find it annoying to actually put the gun in the holster everytime, so I don't actually draw from the holster. Man talk about that biting me in the butt during actual matches! WheeW!

(Just kidd'n Steve )

[Loves2Shoot]

The biggest problem for me with this method is that that hardest part of the reload is waiting for the old mag to fall out

When I was dryfiring like a mad man, I was knocking the old mag back in with the new mag, and yes I was gettting on the button fast

[Steve Moneypenny]

Catfish, that's awesome glad to hear of your good progress.

Maybe you guys need slicker mags when it's not coming out fast enough. i know if mine get gunk on them on in the gun i slam them right back in. it's a wonderful feeling the first few times.. then amazingly annoying after that

[Steve Moneypenny]

Forgot to add.. i agree doing a reload without a mag is different... also i like to load a mag with dummy rounds to simulate weight.

[jasmap]

I agree with Steve M. and Jake. I used Steve Andersen's dry-fire mag change drills without the mag for a short while and in a match I found myself not fully depressing the mag release button sometimes. I personally need at least half of my practice to have mags falling so I altered it and I use mags at least half the time. Steve A.'s book has been great for me though.

[Chris Keen]

Forgot to add.. i agree doing a reload without a mag is different... also i like to load a mag with dummy rounds to simulate weight.

Finally someone said it ....... it really is a world of difference, especially in OPEN or LTD when you practice 100 reloads with an empty mag, then you load one up, it feels like a brick! Now I'm not sure of the weight difference between supers & .40s especially when you consider 28 supers versus 19 or 20 .40's but I do know that 20 180gr. 40's felt like a brick to me after doing 100's of reloads with empty mags. I'll never practice with empty mags again.

I load up approx. 100 rounds WITHOUT PRIMERS OR POWDER, and I'm still too nervous to rack the slide, even though I can visually see there's no primer in the top-most round.

But the weight diff. is fundimentaly important to me.

[tightloop]

I have always used dummy rounds in the mags when practicing reloading...for me, the closer to actual weight the better..

[bierman]

I stand in my bedroom with my legs up against my bed and just let the mags fall on the mattress. Makes them much easier to retrieve since the ground seems to get further away every year