Dry Fire Reload Of Me And My Wife

[iweiny]

Ok. So I watched Jakes reload video and I am feeling quite inadeqate.

Perhaps someone would like to critique my wife and I?

http://ira.homelinux.net/~iweiny/Movies/reload-technique.mp4 7.1M

Thanks,

Ira

PS the download might not be real speedy as my server is not the fastest. I appologize in advance for any problems.

Edited March 23, 2006 by iweiny

[tightloop]

I would love to help you, but since I am a senior, I don't think I will live long enough to have it download on my system....sorry

[Matt Cheely]

OK, so I finally got it downloaded j/k

Suggestions for you: Keep the gun up. Move your left hand to the mag faster. You're smooth but try and slap that hand down to the new mag, and I bet you'll drop a tenth.

Your wife: On her draw, I think she puts her weak hand too high on her chest while pulling the gun almost straight up out of a race holster. I'd snap the weakhand to the tummy region and get the gun moving forward from the holster as soon as it's loose instead of pulling it just up. (Looks like something she might have learned from a really high belt holster in her past.) She'll be able to get both hands on the gun sooner, and get a better grip.

For the reload have her practice shifting her grip to hit the mag release. She'll get better at it and have the old mag out sooner. She could lean the gun farther to the right so that her weak hand is bringing the mag straight into the gun, instead of having to adjust the angle of her whole left arm and drop her elbow, to get the mag in.

If any of that dosen't make enough sense, let me know.

[Calamity Jane]

Wanted to help the wife

The draw: I really like that you move both your arms together that is the right idea. However, I agree with Matt, you may want to bring that left hand closer to the belly button area and meet up with the gun there. It will be much quicker.

The reload: I would suggest an extended mag release button. When you can reach the mag release it makes A BIG DIFFERENCE. Find a mag release button that fits you. However, depending on what division you are shooting this may not be legal. You may want to turn the gun a little to put the mag in. It seems to me you are almost feeding it in straight through the bottom. It's OK to turn the gun so you can see the mag go in the well.

The stance: I can't see your lower body very well, but from what I can see I would suggest that you put your feet wider apart. Make sure your feet are at least a shoulder wideth apart maybe even a little more. As women, we need a little wider base to help control recoil. At least that is what I've been told and what I have found to be true from experience.

You doing fine Keep it up! You're smooth and soon you will be quick.

Edited March 25, 2006 by Calamity Jane

[HSMITH]

I think you can improve not only the reload but your overall shooting by getting your head up straight and shoulders down and in a natural position. Don't hunch up as much, just keep the weight forward enough on your feet that recoil doesn't push you around.

Keep the gun out further and higher on your mag change. Get AGGRESSIVE and see what happens. As you get more and more aggressive it will fall apart, video is a great way to see WHY it falls apart.

Have your wife try to get the mag out of the gun before the weak hand gets to the magazine on her belt, it isn't going to happen in reality but the sensation/intention will get it clear long before the new mag gets there and she can be more aggressive with getting the new mag in. She has a nice motion and positions, but seems to be waiting for the magwell to clear......

How cool that you shoot and practice together!!!

[iweiny]

Suggestions for you: Keep the gun up. Move your left hand to the mag faster. You're smooth but try and slap that hand down to the new mag, and I bet you'll drop a tenth.

If any of that dosen't make enough sense, let me know.

I have a question though. When I really get agressive toward getting the mag I tense up and don't always get a good grip on the mag. This results in me blowing reloads... After about 50 mag changes last night it started to get better when I slammed my hand down for the mag but made a real effort to pause the mag before insertion. Have others found this to be the case? I have to say this video forum is awsome. Especially watching all you other guys do your reloads. When I compare myself to, say Jake, it is real obvious all the extra stuff I am doing which is just wasted time... Kudos to whomever's idea this was!!!

My wife has her own comments but I told her to post... Yes I love dry firing together, she makes this whole thing so much better... Anyway yea you nailed it. She used to shoot a Sig with a kydex holster. The SV and race rig is only a few months old...

Thanks!

Ira

[Matt Cheely]

Yes, there is initially going to be a "pause" when you get that mag to the magwell. It should only be mental as you see the top of the mag and the magwell aligned and then seat it. Eventually it becomes all one fluid and fast motion.

Try not to tense up. Don't think "slam" your hand down, just think "quick". You don't need to use more muscle to get your hand down to the mag faster. Practice the Burkett reload: Grab the mag and stop with it an inch away from going in the gun. Make sure you're lined up and that your grip on the mag is correct. Go do it 500 times and then see if it's better

[Jake Di Vita]

I haven't seen the video because my internet connection is slow, so I will only make comments on what has been posted.

Think of your weak hand as a wet towel snapping down to the mag. It will take practice to get a good grip on the mag every time. When Matt said 500...I'm thinking more like 3 months and 15 to 20,000 because it becomes 2nd nature.

When you snap your weak hand down to the mag, make sure the pad of your hand contacts the basepad first. Use this as a point of reference. If the same place impacts the basepad everything, I guarantee your grip on the mag will be consistent.

The Burkett reload is good but I've never really been a fan of it. Half the reload is how fast you get the gun back on target. I vote for practicing the whole thing.

The pause before inserting the mag is very subjective. I pause in all my match reloads, but onlookers say there is no pause at all. The pause is basically used to confirm orientation of the mag to the gun before you attempt to insert it. This has saved me from launching many mags into low Earth orbit.

[lweiny]

Thanks for the advice. I have gotten faster at shooting now that I have an SV instead of a Sig 220 (which had lots of problems). But, I still do some things like I did with the Sig (draw straight up to clear the holster).

Draw: Previously, I was drawing and then hunching down to shoot. Ira pointed it out and I have been working on it. Hopefully that is permanently fixed but I still need to pay attention to it.

Reload: I used to cant the gun more to do the reloads with the Sig but for some reason have changed to try to not move the gun so much -- apparently not working.

I am attending Ladies Camp the first week of April so I am sure I will get more advice on ways to make the reloads better there as well.

Keep the advice coming,

Lorrie

[Flexmoney]

Lorrie, I'm pretty OK with that high draw and press out. Did you learn that in a formal school/intruction somewhere?

[lweiny]

I took a tactical defense class late 2004. We followed the 4 step approach with the first step putting your weak hand on your chest and grabbing the gun.

It worked well for me until I got the new SV and race holster. Now, I need to learn to reduce the steps.

I was putting my hand on my belt during my draw for awhile. I am not sure if I put my hand on my chest that high normally now. During dry fire I try to put it there. Maybe I need to go back to grabbing near my belt.

Lorrie

[Flexmoney]

You don't need to reduce any steps. What you are doing isn't wrong, it's just a little bit different from what some of the (competition) guys are used to seeing.

They are still doing a 4-step draw (regardless if they know/call it that), they are just rounding the corners off. They are coming from the holster to full extension in a straight line (which would look like a 45 degree angle if we traced it from holster to extension).

Your school taught you up and out...which kinda throws a right angle in there. But, as you are pressing out from up high, you have the gun along your sighting plane (think a laser beam going from your nose to the target). That is not a bad thing...at all.