..outdated. It is a throwback to the days of single-shot pistols being fired from horseback. ISSF 10 meter air pistol should be two-handed, and all air pistols should have 2-handed grips. Discuss 
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(or don't discuss )N/A One-handed offhand pistol shooting is ...
- Thread starter JDGriz
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Those guys shoot so well I don’t think the second hand would help much! But as for mere mortals like me…
I was shooting one handed last night. At 12 yards I almost managed a 2” group.
I was shooting one handed last night. At 12 yards I almost managed a 2” group.
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Well, for me that would mean changing out the grips on half a dozen pistols. Grips that I've carefully shaped and re-stippled to fit my hand. There's also the cost of the new grips and once again the work of properly shaping them. That's not something I'd be willing to do.
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I love one handed off hand. I am not good at it, but it is my favorite. I also shoot two handed offhand and enjoy it but not as much, even though I am a bit better with two. When I am feeling old and tired, I sit in a chair but still shoot mostly offhand. With the specific pistols I have, my most accurate pistols are a bit heavy for one handed but I still like it. My fun comes from shooting better groups and scores with practice, not necessarily what anyone would call good groups and scores.
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The only argument for one-handed shooting is that it does actually help all other shooting; it's like running with weights, and then you are better at running without weights compared to training by just running. One-handed teaches better trigger pulls, for example.Those guys shoot so well I don’t think the second hand would help much! But as for mere mortals like me…
I was shooting one handed last night. At 12 yards I almost managed a 2” group.
But then there is the issue of the grips - they are waaaay to optimised for just one-handed shooting.
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Olympic shooters shoot one handed and do very well . Cowboy shooters use two hands because they are not good enough or they are not strong enough to hold the gun up . But the main reason is they are just too lazy to do it right .
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I prefer holding all pistols in the accepted two handed hold that combat pistol competitors hold their guns. I do this with my Steyr LP5 with no problems except my grip position is modified a little. The non Olympic match pistols are held exactly like as if I was shooting in a USPSA pistol match.
Just as a side note; recently I was privileged enough to acquire a former 2 time national champions High Standard 22rf Bullseye target pistol. He won using this pistol both times and told me that this gun, when using the Ransom Rest to test ammo, he had found a special batch of Eley ammo that did 10 shots at 50Y into 1", Wow! I bought all that ammo too!
My friends and I also have mini matches using strong hand or weak hand. This is with pistols with ambi grips though. It's surprising how well we can do at times.
A few weeks ago we did a contest of one shot per bull on three separate bulls- strong hand, weak hand, and both hands, at 5Y with 45 autos on a 50 yard benchrest rifle target. I knew to aim at the top of the target to get a center hit so I won all the contests with mostly 10's. No I didn't share my secret to aim high to compensate for bore axis to sight height on a super short shot like that but one other guy figured it out on his own after the 2nd contest 
Just as a side note; recently I was privileged enough to acquire a former 2 time national champions High Standard 22rf Bullseye target pistol. He won using this pistol both times and told me that this gun, when using the Ransom Rest to test ammo, he had found a special batch of Eley ammo that did 10 shots at 50Y into 1", Wow! I bought all that ammo too!
My friends and I also have mini matches using strong hand or weak hand. This is with pistols with ambi grips though. It's surprising how well we can do at times.
A few weeks ago we did a contest of one shot per bull on three separate bulls- strong hand, weak hand, and both hands, at 5Y with 45 autos on a 50 yard benchrest rifle target. I knew to aim at the top of the target to get a center hit so I won all the contests with mostly 10's. No I didn't share my secret to aim high to compensate for bore axis to sight height on a super short shot like that but one other guy figured it out on his own after the 2nd contest
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Would you agree or disagree that an olympic shooter would, on average, shoot better two-handed, all other things being equal?
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DO you mean a fully trained Qualifying Olympic shooter ? no it would not matter and probably hinder the shooter . Personally i find two handed more tiring and mostly less accurate . This is using a pistol designed as a pistol , not a rifle cut down to sort of pistol size (a Marauder comes to mind , or any longer air "pistol".
Edit . using two hand on the gun introduces so many additional variance's . Heartbeat from two hands, body tension , breathing movement from both shoulders and chest . the list go's on .
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The sport is what it is, designed to be done with one hand.
Choosing to do it differently because it doesn't suit is like a soccer player deciding that they don't like kicking the ball anymore and just picking it up and running with it, as if doing that would lead to a new sport being invented!
Oh, hang on a minute...
Choosing to do it differently because it doesn't suit is like a soccer player deciding that they don't like kicking the ball anymore and just picking it up and running with it, as if doing that would lead to a new sport being invented!
Oh, hang on a minute...
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I find this topic interesting. I have three pistols with match grips and two with sporter grips. I am hoping as mentioned above, shooting one handed may improve my two handed shooting. Currently I could use 3 or 4 hands, if more hands make you more accurate.lol. When I shot archery I remember practicing at 30 and 40 yds, then when I moved to 20 I had to aim for different spots so I didn't destroy arrows.
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Is this true though, experimentally? Pointing at the wall with my index finger, one hand, is less steady than using both hands, fingers together. I am also better at drawing a small figure on the wall using both hands/index fingers - better fine motor control.
(but I am of course not trained or olympic)
The average of two noisy lines is a less noisy line - if each hand adds noise, then combining the two is averaging it, not summing it (I think). No one hand- writes with both hands, but there are also fine manipulations like engraving where using both hands can be more precise.
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Opinions are like, well you know the rest of the saying, we all have one, in my humble opinion it's nobodies business what my choice of shooting stance takes form, seems to me we live in a world where too many people have way too much free time on their hands in which to meddle in the lives of others...outdated. It is a throwback to the days of single-shot pistols being fired from horseback. ISSF 10 meter air pistol should be two-handed, and all air pistols should have 2-handed grips. Discuss
I've spent most of my life enjoying the shooting sports recreationally, competitively, and as a LE officer and Dept. firearms instructor and armorer I can tell you why learning and practicing strong and weak hand shooting can play a critical role in saving your life, the life of a loved one or of another innocent person.
If you are uncomfortable or inaccurate using one hand or are disabled in some way by all means use two hands or a rest of some kind, but if you can't shoot well with a one hand hold that doesn't give you license to criticize others or say that the practice is outdated or useless.
My advice is to get over yourself, do more practicing, and MYOB.
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It's an interesting topic to be sure. When practicing or instructing with firearms meant to be used in real-world situations, it's two hands. I shoot my blowback C02 BB practice guns the same way. Consistency works.
But, I've also been shooting one-handed in centerfire and rimfire NRA Bullseye and 10m air pistol for nearly 40 years now. One hand versus two being two very different stances and disciplines, I rarely mix the two during a day of shooting. What I'm saying is, it would take some serious re-wiring in my head to shoot my one handed guns with two hands at this point.
It's the whole old dogs and new tricks thing.
But, I've also been shooting one-handed in centerfire and rimfire NRA Bullseye and 10m air pistol for nearly 40 years now. One hand versus two being two very different stances and disciplines, I rarely mix the two during a day of shooting. What I'm saying is, it would take some serious re-wiring in my head to shoot my one handed guns with two hands at this point.
It's the whole old dogs and new tricks thing.
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I shoot my FWB 65 and 80 along with an IZH 46M one handed. more fun that way. I have some small soda type cans, about 6 oz that make nice reactive targets, I have them hung under an old sawhorse.
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When I was at the Shot Show there was a young Olympic champion at a booth where he showed people a new electronic aiming system via laser and tracking program via a computer screen. Long story short he practiced shooting pistol one handed about as much as a full work day including his exercise regimen. Of course he is going to be much more steady and skilled than any of us regular people are.
I'd also have to practice and train one handed a lot to shoot better than I do now with both hands though will never be anywhere close to this young man.
A fun story. This was back when I was in my late 30's. I was on the way down to Phoenix to buy a C02 5 shot semi auto pellet pistol but as I drove I thought I'd call a small store advertising Olympic match pistols. Don Nygord answered the phone and I decided to go there instead because he had a Steyr LP5 5 shot pcp on sale and he lived in Prescott Valley AZ which was much closer to where I Iived than Phoenix is.
In that aprox time frame I had won B stock at the American Handgunner World Shootoff so I was at the top of my game as far as speed and precision goes with a combat pistol.
Now at Don's inside range downstairs he showed me how to load the pistol and so with both hands I shot the 5 shots all in the 10 ring but some just barely in. He then loads the pistol, goes one handed, and shoots 5 shots into what amounts to dead center and a group a 3rd the size of mine, LOL!
I bought the pistol right then. A decision I never regretted.
Don was a former Olympic pistol champion at the height of his game.
Think you're a good shot?? Shoot against one of those Olympic champs and you're gonna eat some humble pie.
I'd also have to practice and train one handed a lot to shoot better than I do now with both hands though will never be anywhere close to this young man.
A fun story. This was back when I was in my late 30's. I was on the way down to Phoenix to buy a C02 5 shot semi auto pellet pistol but as I drove I thought I'd call a small store advertising Olympic match pistols. Don Nygord answered the phone and I decided to go there instead because he had a Steyr LP5 5 shot pcp on sale and he lived in Prescott Valley AZ which was much closer to where I Iived than Phoenix is.
In that aprox time frame I had won B stock at the American Handgunner World Shootoff so I was at the top of my game as far as speed and precision goes with a combat pistol.
Now at Don's inside range downstairs he showed me how to load the pistol and so with both hands I shot the 5 shots all in the 10 ring but some just barely in. He then loads the pistol, goes one handed, and shoots 5 shots into what amounts to dead center and a group a 3rd the size of mine, LOL!
I bought the pistol right then. A decision I never regretted.
Don was a former Olympic pistol champion at the height of his game.
Think you're a good shot?? Shoot against one of those Olympic champs and you're gonna eat some humble pie.
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Great story. And I'd take an afternoon spent in Prescott Valley over an afternoon in Phoenix any day of the week.
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My own pistol target shooting experience is 80% one-handed and 20% two-handed. But my one-handed shooting is more of a practice of hand and trigger stability: my elbow is slightly bent and relaxed.
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so how many of you have shot competitions with a 1911 in .45acp, raise your hands
now mixing in how a low power pellet pistol shoots and a PB other then .22lr is laughable
would a one handed shooter shoot better with 2 hands and the answer is yes
with 2 hands you can create support structure and with SS you have a steady platform and with that a better chance of hitting your target
the Weaver stance would prove that to any of you that shot pistols with recoil and the lessons learned there can be added to your pellet pistol shooting
is one handed shooting harder YES, is 2 handed shooting easier YES, would you need to change your grips on your pistols it is not the point of this thread
but what do i know i am just an old man that shot IPSC 45 years ago
now mixing in how a low power pellet pistol shoots and a PB other then .22lr is laughable
would a one handed shooter shoot better with 2 hands and the answer is yes
with 2 hands you can create support structure and with SS you have a steady platform and with that a better chance of hitting your target
the Weaver stance would prove that to any of you that shot pistols with recoil and the lessons learned there can be added to your pellet pistol shooting
is one handed shooting harder YES, is 2 handed shooting easier YES, would you need to change your grips on your pistols it is not the point of this thread
but what do i know i am just an old man that shot IPSC 45 years ago
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@marflow 777
Bringing recoil into the argument is not too fair, because it equally applies to the situations where one-handed shooting is the only option (assuming PBs).
I admit to not being too consistent myself - because I take advantage of the lack of recoil of air pistols, when shooting one-handed.
Bringing recoil into the argument is not too fair, because it equally applies to the situations where one-handed shooting is the only option (assuming PBs).
I admit to not being too consistent myself - because I take advantage of the lack of recoil of air pistols, when shooting one-handed.
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