So I did my Black Badge today. I learned a bunch of stuff such as:
The BAD
1. I need to work on trigger control. More so with the single action than the double. Surprisingly the instructor said all my double action shots even weakhand were consistently hitting A's. It was my single-action long shots that were missing when it happened. I'm guessing it's because I'm not used to doing the transition from that DA first pull to the SA for the rest.
2. I need to figure out where the fuck my bullets are landing relative to my sight. That and I need to slow down a bit when trying to hit 5" square steel at 20yds. Trying to hit said target without knowing where to hold is a big problemo. Started to aim at the top of the plate and started knocking some down.
3. Fucking WHO and SHO. I know I'm a noob and there's a reason they incorporate WHO and SHO. It's hard. But still, wtf. I missed about 50% of my shots WHO and 20-30% of my SHO. My very first WHO shot I limp-wristed so hard I caused a cz85b to FTE. Goddamnit.
4. Need to reload better, gotta get my middle finger out of the way of the other side of the mag release button and I need to press the mag release harder with my thumb. Some of my mags aren't dropping free because I don't push hard enough for long enough so the mag release catch grabs on some part of the mag above the mag catch hole (don't know what it's formally called).
5. Need to slow down and get the A's. C's and D's will kill me on my quest to become a production god.
6. Need to focus to avoid brain farts like this. Had a part where we were supposed to shoot from a low port, so low that the 2 other guys who are not as flexible as me and slightly taller (about 6 feet tall) had to go prone for it. I could shoot it with a really stretched out kneeling position. First attempt I shot 2 paper targets freestyle standing before I realized I was supposed to go low port. Derp.
7. Front sight focus, some targets at 15 yds I was shooting with both eyes open, probably 3 targets I shot like that. Need to remember the steps: Look at target, bring gun/sights onto target, focus front sight, line up, squeeze trigger.
8. Fobus mag pouches fucking suck.
The Good
1. I can apparently hose decently without aiming up to 5 yds. That's a good sign.. I think?
2. Most accurate (overall) and fastest (at everything especially hosing) in the class of 3.. I guess that counts for something.
3. Best at movement, go figure, a 19 year old badminton player can move pretty fucking good.
4. Shooting on the move doesn't seem too bad.
5. Clearing the 3 malfunctions I had in the entire class, (one of which was the limp-wrist WHO shot), I feel I did better at dealing with them than I thought I was going to. One was the gun had some sort of double feed, don't know how that happened. Second was I forgot to clean the mag after dropping it in the ground, a rock got caught in it ( found out later) and it kept the next round from feeding properly after a shot was fired and the slide cycled. Dropped the mag, loaded a fresh one in.
6. End of the class was pretty much an intro to a match stage. 9 paper targets placed around the bay with 4 steel placed around the bay. So much fun. Despite the fact that I completely fucked the mock stage up by using a shooting box even though it was unnecessary... It's so much fun.
7. One of the students had a maglula mag loader for his m&p9. Holy fucking shit. That thing is amazing.
8. Gun only jammed 3 times, two of which was all me out of 300 rounds. Confidence building stuff.
The Questions/Unrelated comments to my performance
1. Do you guys shift where the trigger rests on your finger after you shoot DA, or do you just go with the part of your finger you used on the DA shot?
2. An El Prez at 10 yds in 12 seconds with 10 A's and 2 C's is what? C class? D class? 3.98 draw. I'd toss out more times for shit to see where you guys think I'd stack, but that's the only drill I was given a time for.
3. I'm thinking of going to my local range and just shooting targets with the butt of the gun / basepad of the magazine resting on something solid, and shooting targets at different distances to see where the impacts are relative to how the front sights are lined up. Is this a good idea? Or will this setup not let me know where my point of impact is relative to aim, and I'm just wasting ammo and time?
4. I saw a Glock 34 jam a fuck ton. Not sure what that guy did to it, but holy shit. Also, I had to break the unfortunate news to him that a Glock 34 is not a production legal gun for IPSC, and that unless he got a different glock such as a 17, he'd be competing in standard. He was told it was for production by a gun salesman. Go figure.
As is custom, SORRY FOR THE LONG POST and thanks for any advice/help/insults!
