Training Tips

Gunsite is much more than America’s oldest and largest privately owned firearms training academy. We help you prepare for life, long and short term. It...

Switching handgun systems — if you have a good reason — isn’t that hard.

Are you as good with a handgun as you used to be? It makes sense to keep track.

It is one thing to pick a pistol out at the gun store, another to actually carry it daily, but even more important is to shoot the pistol well.

Take a short look at a class about long-range shooting. Nic Lenze gives a brief overview of his time attending a two-day Intro To Long Range course with...

A pocket cannon is a defensive handgun most people wouldn’t carry to start with because it is “too big.”

Take a moment to think back on all your previous firearms training. Chances are when you train and practice, it’s with either the pistol or the rifle.

The issue at hand: Are the drills we practice really helpful or in fact, might they be harmful? Do we truly understand where they came from and what their...

How best to protect the average runner/jogger while going about the business of pounding the earth flat one step at a time. The other slight tactical...

When it comes to fighting, no matter who you are, victory depends on movement, communication, shooting as necessary, and whenever possible, using cover.

Weaponry is in the eye of the beholder. The ability to recognize and apply practical, functional improvised weapons can ensure that you always have a...

What is the proper position of your gun if a threat is near?

Whether you have a firearm for self-defense or carry a weapon professionally, the best way to develop and hone your fighting skills is with dry-practice.

Today, GUNS Magazine Editor Brent Wheat attends Steve Tarani's Professional Protection Live Fire training course. This course looks like it's meant only for...

You don’t need anything special to defend yourself effectively. The MCC System is designed to work with all styles of canes and is not specific to any...

All the sighted-fire pundits out there are conditioned to grunt, roll their eyes, and dismiss point shooting as nothing more than spray-and-pray, un-aimed...

The ultimate goal of the training we do and the skills we perform is to be able to do them without thought. The military and many police departments use the...

We can learn a lot from the actions of the heroic young man who stopped a bad guy with a gun at an Indiana mall. The Gun Cranks discuss these lessons and...

Switching to the non-dominant hand is an old tradition. The fact is, though, technique can be easily altered to correct this problem.

Acquiring “good enough” skill with a rifle, at least adequate for big-game hunting at moderate ranges, is actually not terribly hard.

Probably training to shoot the handgun one handed with either hand in case of injury is wise.

Our sermon of the month is simple: Know when to stop hanging crap off your gun!

What is Combat or Range Marksmanship? Actually I do not think there is a difference between the two as far as the end result, which is, of course, to hit...

We in the gun fraternity constantly discuss what the best self-defense handguns may be. “Firepower!” “Stopping power!” “Shootability!”

The Mozambican War for Independence formally ended with the Lusaka Accord signed in 1974. This pitiless fight technically began back in 1498 when the first...

While factors such as weight, accuracy, ammunition availability and cost all factor into the selection of a defensive firearm, reliability is always a prime...

Stress inoculation is when ever-increasing levels of stress are added to training scenarios to prepare the mind to succeed in real-world situations you...

Being a cop provides you with a front row seat to the greatest show on earth.

Combining rifle-grade power with handgun-sized portability, these testosterone-laden pistols are either the best or worst of both worlds.

If you’ve not heard about the C.A.R. (Center Axis Relock) System, it’s because it had limited exposure in the U.S., taught to police departments and...

The Radians Custom Molded Earplugs are similar to the product you can have done professionally at a hearing aid office or many major gun/outdoor consumer...

The ammo shortage is no longer news and has sharply limited most of our ability to practice.

A look into the events that typically follow a (claimed) negligent discharge where injury or death has occurred.

Mantis Laser Academy Training Kit is advanced, technology driven, training system that uses the shooter’s gun and equipment without modification.

HITS Arms laser bullets function as SAAMI-spec snap-caps with a built-in laser for visual feedback.

If you’re considering buying your first gun, it can be very confusing. Here's a list of the top four considerations for selecting a handgun.

CRASH!!! I sat bolt upright in bed after a smashing, clattering noise burst from my living room.

The idea is you use the lowest level of force needed to handle the situation. What is too much and how much is enough?

Some years back I acquired three samples of the doggonedest targets I’d ever seen — a trio of long-lasting bullet stoppers from Champion made from some...

The PCC (Pistol Caliber Carbine) is all the rage today. Its relatively mild sound signature is less damaging to the ears than pistol, rifle, or shotgun if...

How you can turn your fun time into training and improve how well you handle and shoot your firearm.

American Handgunner Editor Tom McHale offers another quick shooting tip on how to manage recoil when shooting a handgun.

Shots Fired in Anger (1947) was written by Major (later Lt. Colonel) John B. George.

Is it the shooter or the equipment? How do you really know?

Accuracy is one stop on the road to effectiveness.

"Soft Skills" are the things we should be doing prior to combat, to perhaps avoid a fight altogether.  In this episode we talk to Steve Tarani,...

I’ve made no secret of the fact I love the Mantis X10 Shooting Performance System.

While professional firearms training is always preferable, most new shooters start their learning journey under the auspices of a friend or family...

“Understudy gun” was a term first heard in these pages and is now more relevant than ever.

The jaws immediately drop. “You shoot 1,000 yards? With iron sights?” It’s amazing how many people think it’s impossible.

Longshot's innovative target camera makes sighting in, training, and plinking more fun, allowing you to record videos and see shots without walking downrange.

I’m a serious gun toter who has in recent years become a mobility-impaired person.

Air guns have come a long way. Daisy, Crosman and Beeman are brands I’ve known forever and they have been joined by several other companies

Training for personal defense incidents is a priority now more than ever. Attacks on private citizens have increased.

It’s axiomatic — we “play like we practice,” and therefore should be “building our repetitions” with the same gear, even the same clothing, and...

Whether you’re a first-time gun owner or range regular, becoming a better shooter is simple, but not easy, so the Gun Cranks share their most helpful...

Wanna know the "insider" tricks to becoming a better pistol shooter? The Gun Cranks crew share some of their favorite training tips gleaned from decades of...

Spoiler Alert: Not really! The three easy steps talked about are "training, training, training."

Sometimes, we all have bad days at the range — we get frustrated. Rather than waste our time (and money), here are a few tips for how to end things on a...

A self-protection expert who served on Donald Trump's pre-election protection detail, Steve Tarani shares tips on how to keep your most "precious cargo"...

American Handgunner's Roy Huntington reveals his secret to his steady hand when pistol shooting.

Like most of us, my introduction to shooting was with a .22 rifle. Mine was a single shot Winchester Model 60A my grandfather gave to my father, who gave it...

“I can help 94 percent of shooters improve in 20 minutes.” Sounds pretty presumptuous and smacks of those Get-Rich-Quick or Lose-50-pounds-in-two-weeks...

When my editor assigned me to an upcoming concealed carry class, I cringed. Not another “ladies-only concealed carry course,” I thought. Needless to...

Editors tend to spend a fair amount of time at a desk, hovering over a keyboard, wrangling text, photos, and videos. But every now and again we get out to...

When Gabe White first trained with me in the early 2000s, he was already well along the way to mastering the handgun. Gathering much training in a broad...

My introduction to shooting was through the shotgun sports — trap and skeet specifically. It was through my own initiative. My dad didn’t shoot...

I’m writing this shortly after returning from the Texas Firearms Law Seminar hosted annually by the State Bar of Texas. It’s a CLE (Continuing Legal...

Why a tactical shotgun, you may ask? This question comes up all the time. A tactical shotgun can be a great option for defensive use.

The mere mention of “BB gun” inevitably conjures up the Daisy Red Rider. But let me tell you, BB guns have evolved well past this stage. Thanks to my...

How to shoot accurately is simple to explain. In reality there are only two things necessary: (1) Stabilize the muzzle in the proper perspective to the...

I spent 25 years in captivity. No, not in North Vietnam or North Korea, but in a desperate day-to-day fight for survival in the pit of weekday despair known...

The last few years have witnessed an unprecedented growth in the rise of airguns in the role of firearm trainers. At the forefront of this training wave are...

When the Summer Olympics took place in Rio de Janeiro the entire world focused on the myriad of sporting events on display. One of the techniques many of...

How much spare ammo should you be wearing for your carry gun?

Many, if not most, defensive firearms programs these days emphasize three points of aim on deadly human opponents: center chest, brain and pelvic girdle

There are a lot of obstacles to competing: The travel, the equipment, the guns, the ammunition, learning and mastering the game. But, I find, the obstacles...

In reality the possibility of using and firing a handgun with one hand in a fight exists. Are you ready?

Lights are a good idea so you don’t shoot the wrong thing.

How I learned (the hard way?) to not throw stuff like ammo, boxes of ammo, loose rounds, loaded magazines and or full-moon clips.

Thinking and training beyond the firearm, the acquisition and practice of personal awareness and personal tactical skills are probably as important as the...

Two things in life are very loud in the overall audio spectrum: a gun going click when it supposed to go boom, and a gun going boom when it is supposed to...

Enough has been written about shotguns to fill several books, yet there are still plenty of people who misunderstand what the shotgun does and why.

If you practice this well enough, you too may qualify to be a doctor of sorts—not of brain surgery—but perhaps a doctor of sight alignment and the...