I kinda like the fact that hardly anyone answers these questions. ‘Cause I know from the stats that y’all read them. And think about them. Don’t think of a pink elephant. See how that works? In this case, I’d like you to contemplate how accurate you need to be for self-defense shooting. Conventional wisdow says you need to be able to hit center mass within the space of a dinner plate at “combat distance,” or somewhere around ten feet. Yes, well, the rabbi told me about an LEO who had to shoot at a kid who was firing at him (the cop) from across a street. So I asked him to demo it. Could you do it? Do you need to do it? Feel free to talk amongst yourselves. Or not.
Be a accurate as you can afford to be…..training is fun!
How far is 75 feet in yards??
http://www.ksl.com/?sid=12459686&autostart=y&…
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700065933/Offi…
Wow.
I have (as previously stated) a "not suitable for self-defence" ruger blackhawk in .357 magnum. I used to routinely be able to pop beer cans at 75 yards (not feet – yards) shooting off-hand. I could do the same with a ruger security six (.357 with 6" barrel). I've hunted and killed small game at well over 50 yards (that's 150 ft to you and me) using a ruger mark III .22 rimfire pistol. I've killed nuisance grackles at over 75 feet using BB pistols.
Not bragging, just stating that pistols can be shot at much longer ranges than most people think. It just requires presence of mind to relax, concentrate, and really know the pistol you're shooting. I've read accounts of soldiers during WWII using .45 autos to hit the enemy at over 100 yards. So yeah, it can be done.
At a rural shooting range I used to frequent, there was a manhole cover set on a hillside out at 100 yards. It was fairly conspicuous, and most pistol shooters would eventually give it a try. I was surprised how often I heard the ‘gong’ ring. Once I figured out the proper hold-over (a lot) I could ring the gong myself, with my 1911, more than 1/2 the time.