N/A What's the point of shooting single hand unsupported?

[kkarmical]

Last couple of weeks of Olympic shooting has sparked numerous conversations about airguns, which always happens.

But what keeps coming up is the use of single hand non support.
Can anybody honestly say they can shoot single hand non support better than one hand support?

In the same Olympics that introduced Break Dancing, they're shooting as if dueling with flintlocks & black powder

 

[jps2486]

I've shot NRA bullseye matches indoors at 50 ft and outdoors at 25 and 50 yards, and air pistol at 10M similar to the Olympic style. Always single handed unsupported. It separates the men from the boys.

 

[Motorhead]

Shooting single hand is a Super human feat !! This skill is worthy of seeing / finding who can do so by competing as they do

 

[UDABEGGER]

There was a time when shooting a pistol was like pointing your index finger at something. Sights were very simple and small . In a fight one hand was enough even if that was all that worked !

 

[kkarmical]

Shooting single hand is a Super human feat !! This skill is worthy of seeing / finding who can do so by competing as they do

Before Richard Fosbury, no one in competition competed going over back first either.
And while yes I do agree it's a super human skill set, personally I'd rather see less technology and use offhand support, and see where it goes.

Not saying stop competition as it is now, just add another displine..

 

[Septicdeath]

When I shoot pistols, PB's or air pistols, it's always good to practice different disciplines. Doing so is fun and makes you a better marksman. I will also shoot left handed, because you never know...

 

[tor47]

Olympic pistols have very ergonomic grips, with adjustements in several direstions, which make aming easier. It can not compare to a "normal" grip like on a service pistol a police offiser use. My guess would be espesially at 10m air pistol range, any more support than what is now would lead to groups so small making them difficult to measure.

 

[Bedrock Bob]

I was trained in combat pistol where you always shoot with two hands and you always draw from a holster. Semi auto pistols you never shoot one handed. Ditto with magnum revolvers.

But when shooting single action I always stand one handed. I'm not sure why. It seems more natural to put it out there and shoot it than try to hold it steady.

Either way you do it it's all about trigger timing. A two handed hold is easier to time than a one handed hold if you are shooting for accuracy. Timing big swooping movements can be as easy as small jittery ones if you are just trying to get a bullet into the target.

 

[MikeVV]

Relax Mr K -

It's just "another" method of shooting, simple as that !

Funny...you EVER...seen a shootem-up Cowboy movie ? ALL one handed shooting. They most probably DID shoot that way in the early days of the US growth.

Mike

 

[Motorhead]

Relax Mr K -

It's just "another" method of shooting, simple as that !

Funny...you EVER...seen a shootem-up Cowboy movie ? ALL one handed shooting. They most probably DID shoot that way in the early days of the US growth.

Mike

Equally funny how "Them" Hollywood cowboys and there Winchesters had a hard time hitting someone on the street from a rooftop
Yet those in the know using a Winchester rifle could have a very real chance to unsaddle a moving rider at 150+ yards

 

[maxtrouble]

Never competed but shooting one handed feels natural.

 

[SilentSquirrel]

Now c'mon boys
That's real shootin"!
Just like in them Western movies

IMO
What the Olympics need are 1 on 1 gunfights
Can't you just picture guy/gals in protective gear, 5 fpe 177s holstered on the hip, shootin' it out at 10 paces.
Now that would bring Olympic shooting into Prime Time on TV

My bet is on Gold for the descendants of veterans of Spaghetti Westerns

 

[Bedrock Bob]

This guy is the best. He trained actors to gunfight and many of those actors were ultra fast and accurate pistol shots as a result. Much of what we think we know about the "old west" was a creation of this one man.

He's the guy that Matt Dillon faces off with in the street at the start of every episode of Gunsmoke.

Arvo Ojala - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Bedrock Bob]

So ol' Arvo Ojala drew, fired and hit his target in less than the blink of an eye. Most of those trick shots were small targets at close range and moving. One handed. Single action colt pistol. One shot. No sights.

With a semi auto pistol it is common to train with a double tap. The first shot may miss. But the hand corrects and the second shot hits or gets closer. With practice your hand learns to orient itself and you are hitting double tap. Most guys use red dots. Some guys don't use the sights at all. But lots of guys can whip out a pistol and hit beer cans at 15 yards as fast as they can pull the trigger. Some can hit shotgun shells.

With a single action you have to work the hammer. So you loose your hold. No double tap. So it takes more practice. Add to that the quick draw. Ol Arvo had some serious hand/eye coordination learned from a whole lot of misses.

Shooting tiny patterns is cool. It's probably a fun thing and a nice hobby for some guys. It's hard to watch. Kinda like bacon frying. The Olympic shooters just don't excite me either. Biathlon is kinda cool. Meh.

Seeing a guy draw a gun and shoot six beer bottles in a row is awesome no matter how many hands he uses. It's just practical shooting skills. I learn more from Hickock45 than watching Olympic shooters.

 

[boscoebrea]

the target pistol is locked in your hand and your body is also locked; Locked is the key word, that is why the adjustable grips are so important.
You do not need a support hand because you are one with the target pistol,in other words, your body is an extension of the pistol.or the other way around.

 

[Motorhead]

your body is an extension of the pistol.or the other way around.

EXACTLY ... Wrist is canted and bound up making the pistol in hand an extension of ones arm.
If you can point your finger w/o wobbling, in theory with a correctly fitted 10m piston in hand one should come close to being able in doing the same.

 

[Sawney Bean]

I was trained in combat pistol where you always shoot with two hands and you always draw from a holster. Semi auto pistols you never shoot one handed. Ditto with magnum revolvers.

But when shooting single action I always stand one handed. I'm not sure why. It seems more natural to put it out there and shoot it than try to hold it steady.

Either way you do it it's all about trigger timing. A two handed hold is easier to time than a one handed hold if you are shooting for accuracy. Timing big swooping movements can be as easy as small jittery ones if you are just trying to get a bullet into the target.

Seems to me that in combat you might not have the option of shooting with two hands, or even shooting with your strong hand.

 

[Bedrock Bob]

I'm not sure the Olympians are "locked" on anything. Sure their movements are small. But they are playing the trigger timing game just like all of us.

Another hand would definitely steady their aim. But that's not how the game is played. If they allowed a two handed hold I bet most would use it. Just a guess.

It's definitely not practical and arguably not the most accurate way to shoot. But it's the game they play. And they are really good at what they do.

 

[Bedrock Bob]

Seems to me that in combat you might not have the option of shooting with two hands, or even shooting with your strong hand.

Yes.

When I say "combat pistol" I am describing a style of pistol training. I'm not talking about "combat training" or "defensive training". It's not about training for combat situations. It's about handling and shooting a combat style handgun.

 

[groak]

Olympic style pistol shooting, one handed, is about sight picture, trigger control, breathing, and patience. It is a very difficult skill to master and certainly deserves its place within Olympic sports. Give it a try and see if you can score 80%, or better. (480/600.) A low Olympic qualifying score would be 555/600, for example. Be fore-warned, the sport is addictive.