Many responsible citizens carry a snub revolver or pocket pistol for personal defense. But should you find yourself in a situation where you have no viable alternative but to utilize deadly force, are you and your firearm up to the task? A snub revolver and a trained user may very well prevail over a single adversary. But what if there was more than one assailant? A recent study which analyzed over 30 incidents involving gunplay taken from security cameras in gas stations, food markets, liquor stores etc., illustrated more than half the incidents involved at least two individuals. How do your skills measure up? While this drill may not be the definitive test, it will certainly give you some perspective. Give it a try.
The Snubby 5X2 Drill
Objective: This drill was designed to assess practical marksmanship potential with a snub revolver or classic pocket pistol in a fast breaking scenario.
Target: Any cardboard or paper silhouette with a realistic size high value scoring area such an IPSC or IDPA may be used. Realistic size high value areas can be created on any target using smaller paper plates, index cards and 3X3 inch sticky notes. Create challenging targets! Train hard and fight easy.
Distance: T1 at 3 yards, T2 at 6 yards
Rounds Needed: 10
Begin Exercise: Concealed handgun loaded with 5 rounds only. On the signal, draw & fire:
Phase One- 2 body shots to T1, 2 body shots to T2 and 1 head shot to T1
Phase Two- 2 body shots to T2, 2 body shots to T1 and 1 head shot to T2
Scoring: Combine times for both phases. Master Blaster=9 seconds or less. Good performance =11 seconds or less. Hit on target but outside high value area=one second penalty added to total time. Missed head shot=DQ
Layout: T2 @ 6 yards
T1@ 3 yards
Shoot Box A
Random Thoughts: This isn’t as easy as it looks, particularly when shooting a small handgun at speed! Caught in a bad situation with no alternative than deadly force? How do those hits look? Bear in mind, in real life those threats will likely be moving. Trouble all often comes in twos! Are you and your gun up to it?
These drills are excerpted from Mike Boyle’s book: “101 Drills for Handguns and Rifles and Shotguns.”
Mike Boyle is a retired law enforcement officer and has been active in use of force instruction for over 40 years. He has been a police academy assistant director, instructor, Rangemaster and is the author of 2 books, 3 training videos and hundreds of magazine articles on firearms, training and tactics. Mike served 21 years on the Board of Directors of the International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors. Mr. Boyle can provide instruction on various firearms disciplines including handgun, shotgun and low light threat management. He can be reached at mboyle308@gmail.com.
