My daughter just joined the rifle club at her university. Thanks for the inspiration. We both find your videos entertaining and educational. Your hard work is much appreciated!
Kirsten-Another good video. I also use a "laser bullet" when I dry fire with a "laser target" that beeps when you hit it. Makes it more fun and still lets you focus.
Great tips. I always clear the firearm and use snap caps in my handguns, rifles, and shotguns. Great for site picture, trigger pull, simulated failure to fire clearing, etc. Good tip on keeping live ammo away from where you're practicing, so important!
Dry firing is the most underrated method of training out there. It serves to build muscle memory through repetition and it WILL improve your shooting. Well said Kirsten.
One of my friends said they had competitions for years and, in all that time, there was only one time where the winner wasn't the person who did the most dry fire (and that occasion was a draw). I recall hearing too that one of the Olympic medalists from Japan had a rig built up to dry fire since the gun control laws prevented them from having the actual firearm. The first time they ever actually shot was the Olympic competition and believe that person took the bronze medal if I'm not mistaken. It may not be the most glamorous way to build up your skill set but its very effective.
Hi there, I love your videos because they are informative, inspirational and educational. One tip I thought I might add is that when properly dry firing a weapon would be to wear hearing protection. It allows one to hear their own breathing, monitor their heart beat, attain steadiness and obtain maximum accuracy for when a live round is expelled from their rifle or handgun. I'm not an expert marksman like you but that helped me when I went back to Missouri to hunt for food.
thoffman79 I've never done this on purpose, I'll have to give it a go. See this is what I love, learning things from this community as well and we all learn together. Thank you!
Kirsten Joy Weiss Thank you for your response, I wasn't expecting it. My personal discovery was accitental. I've practiced dry firing for many years and it hadn't made a difference. One day while my noisey neighbors were being noisey, I put on my ears and noticed that my heart beat increased just before the break. I then trained myself to inhale, mentally prepare myself for the recoil, blink, focus, exhale and then squeeze the trigger. This may not work for everyone but it has helped me improve my accuracy. I wish you the best and hope to see more tips =)
As a very experienced handloader and long range shooter, I have to say , some of your tips have helped me improve. Keep them coming and thanks so much.
I was told never to dry fire my .22 cal rim fire but never told why. I appreciate the explanation you provided as to why not to dry fire a rim fire gun.
Another great video! For the many people who will start dry firing after watching this, here are some dry firing pearls I've found to make it more enjoyable while working on skills I cannot perform at my local range (apologies for the novella): -Buy snap caps. People will say you need these to prevent damage to your firing pin, but that is not entirely true. Most modern rifles and handguns have firing pins that will withstand dry firing to your heart's content. Snap caps are valuable training tools allowing you to simulate malfunctions, perform tap/rack/bang drills, and practice reloading. Try setting a timer, when the timer runs out the next dry fire is a "malfunction" (a failure-to-fire). Do a tap/rack/bang, rinse, and repeat. Take some brass, make a stovepipe every once in a while. Every once in a while practice a reload from your magazine pouch. Mix things up a bit. -Consider buying a laser training cartridge (preferably caliber specific, firing pin activated). One of the most frustrating aspects of dry firing for me was not knowing exactly where I was holding when the trigger broke. There is always a little movement when the trigger breaks whether we want it or not, but if you have a laser training cartridge in you can see exactly where the round "should" have landed. Not only this, but a laser training cartridge (or laser boresight) allows you to see where your sights are in relation to the bore at distances below the factory sight-in. Caution: make sure the cartridge has a good fit in the chamber, otherwise the laser can be a couple inches off point of aim. -Use targets! Sure you can have a lot of fun dry-firing at zombies while binging Walking Dead on Netflix (*cough* YankeeMarshal *cough*), but I've found that setting a BC/BF-27 on a lone patch of wall works great for fixing problems that come out on the range. The combination of the green silhouette with a red laser training cartridge is particularly easy to see. Shooting at the targets you typically train with also makes it easier to more rapidly pick up your sights and place accurate shots with live ammunition at the range. The BC/BF-27 have the large silhouette plus a small point guide silhouette allowing simulation of multiple distances with the same target. If you want to spend a little more, pick up a Laserlyte training target. The Laserlyte records shots placement (provided you use a laser cartridge) and allows for feedback after several shots. A good drill is to shoot for bullseye, then try to place the next 4 shots exactly where the first shot hit (a good drill with live ammunition too). If you're successful it will only display the single dot when you are done. As you succeed, increase the distance. Laserlyte also has a much newer/more expensive model which has a shot timer and score keeper. -Practice drawing and firing from the holster (especially if your range doesn't allow it). It doesn't matter if you can put 5 round through the same hole if you catch the gun on your clothing/holster, decock it when taking off the safety (done it on my FNX45), or drop the magazine. Draw/shoot/re-holster and repeat 10-20 times. Thanks again Kirsten for the awesome video!
Good video One note though, a lot of modern 22LR firearms can be dry-fired safely. Ruger, for example, specifically states that their 10/22 and American Rimfire rifles can be dry fired.
shread802 Well that's good news! Generally any rimfire not specifically made for it, shouldn't be dry fired. Ugh, now we have to read the owners manuals, lol
Kirsten Joy Weiss Owners manual or not, firing pins can break because they are hard and brittle. If there is nothing to slow them before they hit the shoulder all of them have, over time, they can get cracks and eventually break. I believe Anschutz makes a shortened firing pin just for dry firing, so you do not damage the one you need when it counts. Same thing goes for centerfires. Dry firing is OK, but not a hundred times in an evening. They will break early. When I worked with a gunsmith for 4 years, firing pins were our #1 repair, and about 90% of them were broken from excessive dry firing. So... if you do plan to dry fire, get yourself an extra firing pin. Now most older rimfires, you would worry more about peening the edge of your chamber, causing rounds not to load or extract. Newer rimfires are usually OK there now, but you can still break the firing pin from excessive pounding steel on steel without the brass rim to soften the blow. Just some info from seeing hundreds of guns come in the shop with broken firing pins.
pickin4you Yes, I usually put a brass empty cartridge in the chamber even with guns that are "safe" to dry fire - just for extra security, but I didn't want to recommend this as it could be a saftey hazard for people who don't go through the correct precautions, since it looks just like a live round... Good comment!
Great to see you again, and good advise. I also like to use snap caps in my pistol and at the same time practice clearing a jam and racking the next round in. That looked like a p238, my favorite summer carry and backup gun. Thanks again and will be watching for more great tips!!
Tape a laser pointer to the gun where both eyes can see it and practice your trigger pull. The visual feedback allows you to see where your pull is knocking your aim off. This very useful on guns with poorer triggers. Not every gun fired has a match trigger. Thanks for the good and concise tips.
Great video as always. I really enjoy dry firing actually. It helps you learn to call your shots when on the range, as well as exercising all of the fundamentals you went over.
Another suggestion is if you are stuck indoors in the winter without adequate distance for dry fire aiming....put a laser bore sighter in the muzzle and hold on a spot on the wall at any distance that the red dot can be seen and see if your triggering and follow through move the red dot.
Hey Kristen thanks for the video. I would like to see you do some more videos like this and maybe some on firearm safety. I would also like to see you continue your trick shots. Thanks again for sharing your awesome skills. Keep up the good work.
I like the straight forward, no-frills format of this video, KJW. My first centerfire handgun was a Taurus PT92 (Beretta 92 clone). I could dry fire that all day long because it was DA/SA. I traded it in towards my Glock a few years ago. I'm not too ashamed to admit that I dry fire the Glock a LOT less because it's effectively SAO and the slide must be racked every single time. The extra work is bothersome but at least I can work on my single handed slide operation, sight acquisition, and dry firing all at the same time. Dry firing my AR makes me want to get a side-charging upper. I'm not sure what Stoner was thinking putting the charging handle where he did. I guess it's closer for the firing hand to operate it but taking one's hand of fire control is a tactical no-no these days.
Also worth noting that from a mental standpoint, one of the benefits of dry firing is that you never miss. Every shot I ever took while dry firing was a "10", or a "10.9". Whenever I was in a slump, I did LOTS of dry firing. While on the range, my coach would occasionally load my rifle for me, mixing live rounds with spent shells. That way, I wouldn't know if I had a live round in the chamber or not. It forces you to focus on technique rather than the result.
I have been doing this every time I shoot and sometimes just at the house. I have seen a huge difference in my trigger control and sight picture retention. My accuracy has increased pretty substatially. 👍
This is one of the first things I learned at Army Infantry OSUT with the M4. The only thing we did different was put a section of cleaning rod in the end of the barrel, then have someone balance a dime on the cleaning rod. If you could pull the trigger without the dime falling off, then you know you didn't move the rifle. We called it "dime/washer drills".
I've wondered about this for a while, and now see it as a key part of preparing to fire, warming up, and even as you say between shots to trial new techniques. I shoot a Savage 17 hmr and have purchased some dummy rounds meant for dry fire. This will help me quite a bit. The 17 hmr is pretty stable and keeping site picture isn't such a problem, however with my R700 308 the recoil lifts and I lose the sight picture. I'm now looking for a muzzle attachment, to improve the barrel rise issue while staying range friendly. Not alot of info but will start experimenting with a few. I shoot bench on bipod and butt pad.
In the 1990's I would go to Quantico VA. to shoot at the Marine Corps base . We were still using the M 14's M 1A's at the time. Julia Watson a top shooter and marine would be teased by the marine armors because of the number of firing pins she broke from dry firing. It does help but a tough discipline to keep up.
Good point about not dry firing rim fire guns. Not only do you risk ruining the firing pin, but eventually, due to the location of impact on a rim fire cartridge , when there is no round chambered the pin will peen the edge of the chamber. Only dry fire a rim fire rifle or pistol with a snap cap.
Great video! My wife and I dry fire between range days quite often. One of the techniques I think took me to "The next level" (not close to your level though) is loading 5 in my S&W 686 instead of the cylinder capacity of 6 when I am at the range. I dry fire on the empty cylinder first and then fire the next 5.
Most rimfire snap caps don't last very long in dry-fire practice. I use them a lot in ball-and-dummy training, but not so much for dry-fire. If you can't or won't dry-fire on an empty chamber, in a semi-auto a neat solution is to cut a small piece of a magnetic business card and stick it on the breech face just above the chamber mouth, where the firing pin would hit. The material cushions really well and is easy to remove when you are done. You want to cut it and position it so that it will not interfere with the extractor. I haven't tried it with a bolt action - the rotation of the bolt might move the cushion out of position.
Loving your videos!! Could you go over your equipment? Ammo, sights and other stuff you rely on to do your shooting. Would love to see the technical side of your gear. Keep the great videos coming please.
Something that might help supplement this is to get a cheap notebook and write down what you did and any observations. This serves two purposes: the obvious one is to work on making improvements. But there's another consideration: if you ever have to defend yourself, everything about what you do and how you train is going to be dissected. Its a major benefit in those circumstances to produce evidence that you didn't just decide to throw on a gun and call that good enough (like Kirsten touches on in other videos, you need to train. Just having a gun is not enough). And something to remember is that shooting is a perishable skill set; if you go weeks, months, or even years without shooting, there's going to be significant rust. Dry fire is a quick and easy way to make sure that doesn't happen.
Ms Wies. I personally thank you for your tips, tricks, and techniques. You have proven that shooting is not only for men. my 11 year old daughter is enjoying shooting with daddy. She is only shooting a Redrider BB gun. But with safety first the fun and joy of shooting comes second nature. Thankyou again. One happy and proud dad. P.S. my great friend also came with my daughter and I and enjoyed every minute. On are next outing she is bring her two daughters ages seven and eleven.
I really like semi-dry firing using laser cartridges. I get to see where I am hitting and eliminate any flinch while pulling the trigger. The only cost is replacement batteries which actually seem to last a fairly long time. I also have laser targets which let me see my actual groups.
Oh wow ill try dry firing at the range next time i hadnt shot in a while went to range week ago and noticed i was doing weird stuff. Good way to get back into fundamentals without using rounds
Thanks for the tip: an ex-Marine told me the same thing: he told me his trainers would take his unit out to the field and they would dry fire for two or three hours at a time.
It looks to me like the Savage rimfire bolt design makes it easy to take out the firing pin and extractor just by popping out that spring clamp around the bolt.
I like to use a laser mounted to the rifle or pistol when dry fire training. It’s a great tattle tale and works well at close distance where you can see the laser dot well. It has done wonders on my trigger control.
Excellent advice. Dry firing has helped me a lot. I used to shoot low, dry firing has helped me see that I was dipping down as I was pulling the trigger. I have a couple of questions though. 1. Can you make a video of how to teach eyes to shoot with both open, I have tried and tried but I still see sets of sights. 2. I have always been told not to dry fire rim fires. But if that is the case, then why would the 10/22 not have a bolt hold open after the last shot?
John Rob That's awesome that you could self diagnose your shot process like that. Good! 1) I'm open to working more with it, but I'm not a fan of both eyes open without a cover unless it's maybe shotgun in the skeet/trap sense. If you notice in some of my videos I either close the eye entirely or leave it half open (my eye flutters a bit) just so the other eye doesn't interfere. I also have dominant eye switches so that could be a factor. That said, I AM a HUGE fan of both eyes open but with a blinder on your non-shooting eye. This way ,when shooting for long periods of time, the same amount of light enters both eyes AND you don't have that awkward eye fatigue that makes your vision blurry after trying to close the non-shooting eye/keep it half open. You will shoot far more relaxed in long shooting sessions with a blinder for rifle/pistol. A light colored one is best. Hope that helps a bit 2) I'm not sure. I think one or two occasional shots might not damage the gun (I've never had an issue). Some 10/22s are made to dry fire as well, but check the owners manual always. I would guess it simply has to do with design. The AR platforms are made it do it, while the 10/22s traditionally havent been. But someone with more insight, please feel free to chime in!! I am not a gunsmith....:)
I've never done dry firing. I have used dummy rounds to check operation of the weapon and to get familiar with a new weapons cycle. I always use live ammo when shooting. Interesting concept. Do you see a benefit of dry fire (with an empty chamber) versus using dummy rounds for practice? Thanks for the tip.
emf4kv Cool, well you're half way there! A lot of people prefer dummy rounds for 1) extra firing pin protection just in case 2) Extra Safety - as dummy rounds are not easy to confuse with live rounds, like empty brass *could* . There's no advantage to empty chamber vs dummy rounds for pure fundamental dry firing. However, a lot of people enjoy practicing clearing a chamber with dummy rounds. So that is also beneficial.
Great video Kirsten! The goal of the shooter is to deliberately bring the trigger back, causing the gun to fire, such that you do not disturb sight alignment, and follow-through. When you combine this with perfecting your natural point of aim (NPA), you have a way to constantly check that you're NPA is correct. So you cause the gun to fire such that you don't disturb your sight alignment, or sight picture in the case of aperture sights, and then follow-through long enough to verify that your NPA is correct. Kirsten, why don't you do a video on finding your natural point of aim?
Kirsten, woulsd you make some videos on gun cleaning,maintenance; and, bluing for beginners? It would be very informative to beginners to know how to take care of their pistols and rifles.
Since you practice with both eyes open I assume you shoot that way too. I prefer both eyes open also. But when I shoot left handed I also use my left eye, now that makes it a little tougher. Great videos!
good video and good info! --way back in the day an old mean NCO would make us balance a penny on the barrel and dry-fire . and if the penny fell off --you won a prize!!--
I remember hours of laying in the prone in front of the barracks doing dime drills with my m16 . for those that dont know . thats where you balance A dime on your muzzle or front sight and dry fire without knocking the dime off . it sounds silly but it works
Man your great really I also do shooting and I'm learning many things form you and I'm from India, my name is shikhar. I'm a big fan of yours I would like to meet you
My friend recommends just two minutes a day, ideally more would be better but that's enough to keep you sharp and not be too much of a time drain. Also doing it first thing in the morning, that way in case you find yourself in the need to actually defend yourself, that moment is not the first time you've touched your gun that day.
I know you said you shouldn't dry fire rim fire guns. What about center fire guns? Would the risk of damaging the firing pin just be not as great? Not existent? What about snap caps?
As my old junior Olympic coach would say, "practice practice practice". Also while dry firing, take aim, close your eyes and take the shot. Open you're eyes and see if you're still on target. If you are, you've found your natural point of aim. If not, adjust.
Kirsten Joy Weiss I unload my carry pistol, insert a laserlyte trainer and proceed to go around my bedroom shooting random targets, light switches make really nice small targets to hit. :-)
I inherited my grandpas winchester 69a recently. Since its apparently bad to dry fire rim fire guns how do i decock it; would you know if its even possible on this particular model. I would hate to damage the firing pin because finding a replacement will be very hard for me. My problem is it cant be cleaned with out cocking it. Any advice?
That is a beautiful pistol! Love the scroll work. We do a drill with a penny on the front sight post when we do our trigger press. We go until only one of us is left and he buys the soft drinks at dinner the next time we get together. Our record is 21.
Kirsten Joy Weiss In the Years we've been doing this, it has become known as the "Winner's Tax". Everyone takes it with a smile. It also is from us each wanting to better our friends bad enough, that we'd pay to make the point! 8p And like rupert93r asked, what kind of pistol is that?
Thank you Kirsten. I'm glad experts are finally endorsing dry firing. It's a real confidence builder and developer of muscle memory.
My daughter just joined the rifle club at her university. Thanks for the inspiration. We both find your videos entertaining and educational. Your hard work is much appreciated!
Kirsten-Another good video. I also use a "laser bullet" when I dry fire with a "laser target" that beeps when you hit it. Makes it more fun and still lets you focus.
Also gives you that accuracy feedback.
Great tips. I always clear the firearm and use snap caps in my handguns, rifles, and shotguns. Great for site picture, trigger pull, simulated failure to fire clearing, etc. Good tip on keeping live ammo away from where you're practicing, so important!
Excellent video. Dry firing is an important part of mastering technique. Thanks for sharing
Dry firing is the most underrated method of training out there. It serves to build muscle memory through repetition and it WILL improve your shooting. Well said Kirsten.
One of my friends said they had competitions for years and, in all that time, there was only one time where the winner wasn't the person who did the most dry fire (and that occasion was a draw). I recall hearing too that one of the Olympic medalists from Japan had a rig built up to dry fire since the gun control laws prevented them from having the actual firearm. The first time they ever actually shot was the Olympic competition and believe that person took the bronze medal if I'm not mistaken. It may not be the most glamorous way to build up your skill set but its very effective.
Hi there, I love your videos because they are informative, inspirational and educational.
One tip I thought I might add is that when properly dry firing a weapon would be to wear hearing protection.
It allows one to hear their own breathing, monitor their heart beat, attain steadiness and obtain maximum accuracy for when a live round is expelled from their rifle or handgun.
I'm not an expert marksman like you but that helped me when I went back to Missouri to hunt for food.
thoffman79 I've never done this on purpose, I'll have to give it a go. See this is what I love, learning things from this community as well and we all learn together. Thank you!
Kirsten Joy Weiss Thank you for your response, I wasn't expecting it.
My personal discovery was accitental. I've practiced dry firing for many years and it hadn't made a difference. One day while my noisey neighbors were being noisey, I put on my ears and noticed that my heart beat increased just before the break. I then trained myself to inhale, mentally prepare myself for the recoil, blink, focus, exhale and then squeeze the trigger.
This may not work for everyone but it has helped me improve my accuracy.
I wish you the best and hope to see more tips =)
As a very experienced handloader and long range shooter, I have to say , some of your tips have helped me improve. Keep them coming and thanks so much.
Hardwoods2020 wow, wonderful! Thank you for taking the time to let me know
I was told never to dry fire my .22 cal rim fire but never told why. I appreciate the explanation you provided as to why not to dry fire a rim fire gun.
Another great video! For the many people who will start dry firing after watching this, here are some dry firing pearls I've found to make it more enjoyable while working on skills I cannot perform at my local range (apologies for the novella):
-Buy snap caps. People will say you need these to prevent damage to your firing pin, but that is not entirely true. Most modern rifles and handguns have firing pins that will withstand dry firing to your heart's content. Snap caps are valuable training tools allowing you to simulate malfunctions, perform tap/rack/bang drills, and practice reloading. Try setting a timer, when the timer runs out the next dry fire is a "malfunction" (a failure-to-fire). Do a tap/rack/bang, rinse, and repeat. Take some brass, make a stovepipe every once in a while. Every once in a while practice a reload from your magazine pouch. Mix things up a bit.
-Consider buying a laser training cartridge (preferably caliber specific, firing pin activated). One of the most frustrating aspects of dry firing for me was not knowing exactly where I was holding when the trigger broke. There is always a little movement when the trigger breaks whether we want it or not, but if you have a laser training cartridge in you can see exactly where the round "should" have landed. Not only this, but a laser training cartridge (or laser boresight) allows you to see where your sights are in relation to the bore at distances below the factory sight-in. Caution: make sure the cartridge has a good fit in the chamber, otherwise the laser can be a couple inches off point of aim.
-Use targets! Sure you can have a lot of fun dry-firing at zombies while binging Walking Dead on Netflix (*cough* YankeeMarshal *cough*), but I've found that setting a BC/BF-27 on a lone patch of wall works great for fixing problems that come out on the range. The combination of the green silhouette with a red laser training cartridge is particularly easy to see. Shooting at the targets you typically train with also makes it easier to more rapidly pick up your sights and place accurate shots with live ammunition at the range. The BC/BF-27 have the large silhouette plus a small point guide silhouette allowing simulation of multiple distances with the same target. If you want to spend a little more, pick up a Laserlyte training target. The Laserlyte records shots placement (provided you use a laser cartridge) and allows for feedback after several shots. A good drill is to shoot for bullseye, then try to place the next 4 shots exactly where the first shot hit (a good drill with live ammunition too). If you're successful it will only display the single dot when you are done. As you succeed, increase the distance. Laserlyte also has a much newer/more expensive model which has a shot timer and score keeper.
-Practice drawing and firing from the holster (especially if your range doesn't allow it). It doesn't matter if you can put 5 round through the same hole if you catch the gun on your clothing/holster, decock it when taking off the safety (done it on my FNX45), or drop the magazine. Draw/shoot/re-holster and repeat 10-20 times.
Thanks again Kirsten for the awesome video!
Good video
One note though, a lot of modern 22LR firearms can be dry-fired safely. Ruger, for example, specifically states that their 10/22 and American Rimfire rifles can be dry fired.
shread802 Well that's good news! Generally any rimfire not specifically made for it, shouldn't be dry fired. Ugh, now we have to read the owners manuals, lol
That's perfect considering most people start off with a 10/22
Snap Caps are a great way to safely fire older rimfire and centerfire guns. they are good for reloading drills as well.
Kirsten Joy Weiss
Owners manual or not, firing pins can break because they are hard and brittle. If there is nothing to slow them before they hit the shoulder all of them have, over time, they can get cracks and eventually break. I believe Anschutz makes a shortened firing pin just for dry firing, so you do not damage the one you need when it counts. Same thing goes for centerfires. Dry firing is OK, but not a hundred times in an evening. They will break early. When I worked with a gunsmith for 4 years, firing pins were our #1 repair, and about 90% of them were broken from excessive dry firing. So... if you do plan to dry fire, get yourself an extra firing pin.
Now most older rimfires, you would worry more about peening the edge of your chamber, causing rounds not to load or extract. Newer rimfires are usually OK there now, but you can still break the firing pin from excessive pounding steel on steel without the brass rim to soften the blow.
Just some info from seeing hundreds of guns come in the shop with broken firing pins.
pickin4you Yes, I usually put a brass empty cartridge in the chamber even with guns that are "safe" to dry fire - just for extra security, but I didn't want to recommend this as it could be a saftey hazard for people who don't go through the correct precautions, since it looks just like a live round... Good comment!
Great to see you again, and good advise. I also like to use snap caps in my pistol and at the same time practice clearing a jam and racking the next round in. That looked like a p238, my favorite summer carry and backup gun. Thanks again and will be watching for more great tips!!
Tape a laser pointer to the gun where both eyes can see it and practice your trigger pull. The visual feedback allows you to see where your pull is knocking your aim off. This very useful on guns with poorer triggers. Not every gun fired has a match trigger. Thanks for the good and concise tips.
Great video as always. I really enjoy dry firing actually. It helps you learn to call your shots when on the range, as well as exercising all of the fundamentals you went over.
Another suggestion is if you are stuck indoors in the winter without adequate distance for dry fire aiming....put a laser bore sighter in the muzzle and hold on a spot on the wall at any distance that the red dot can be seen and see if your triggering and follow through move the red dot.
Always a great idea Kirsten. Thanks for the vid.
Hey Kristen thanks for the video. I would like to see you do some more videos like this and maybe some on firearm safety. I would also like to see you continue your trick shots. Thanks again for sharing your awesome skills. Keep up the good work.
aliensoldier21 Hey thanks! Great to get the feedback, and I plan on continuing both :)
I like the straight forward, no-frills format of this video, KJW.
My first centerfire handgun was a Taurus PT92 (Beretta 92 clone). I could dry fire that all day long because it was DA/SA. I traded it in towards my Glock a few years ago. I'm not too ashamed to admit that I dry fire the Glock a LOT less because it's effectively SAO and the slide must be racked every single time. The extra work is bothersome but at least I can work on my single handed slide operation, sight acquisition, and dry firing all at the same time.
Dry firing my AR makes me want to get a side-charging upper. I'm not sure what Stoner was thinking putting the charging handle where he did. I guess it's closer for the firing hand to operate it but taking one's hand of fire control is a tactical no-no these days.
You are not left handed are you?
I remember back in the army, we used to balance a dime on the barrel of our rifle when dry firing
As usual, awesome video. Keep up the good work!
Great video, love the advice. One of the best you've done so far.
Chris Sierra Thank you Chris!
Awesome in every way, as always.
Also worth noting that from a mental standpoint, one of the benefits of dry firing is that you never miss. Every shot I ever took while dry firing was a "10", or a "10.9". Whenever I was in a slump, I did LOTS of dry firing.
While on the range, my coach would occasionally load my rifle for me, mixing live rounds with spent shells. That way, I wouldn't know if I had a live round in the chamber or not. It forces you to focus on technique rather than the result.
I have been doing this every time I shoot and sometimes just at the house. I have seen a huge difference in my trigger control and sight picture retention. My accuracy has increased pretty substatially. 👍
Kirsten Joy Weiss
Excellent tips and knowledge.
Great video!
Dry fired before but have not tried your tip of firing one round then dry firing 3x.
This is one of the first things I learned at Army Infantry OSUT with the M4. The only thing we did different was put a section of cleaning rod in the end of the barrel, then have someone balance a dime on the cleaning rod. If you could pull the trigger without the dime falling off, then you know you didn't move the rifle. We called it "dime/washer drills".
Really glad I found your videos Kirsten. My new motto is “Shoot like a girl!” Thank you for all your help! Clayton
Great video and information . As a newer shooter at 50 I try to get all the information I can . Thanks for the video and information .
Excellent video.
#4 size drywall ancors can be used in weapons chambered in .22lr as snap caps for dry fire exercise .
I've wondered about this for a while, and now see it as a key part of preparing to fire, warming up, and even as you say between shots to trial new techniques. I shoot a Savage 17 hmr and have purchased some dummy rounds meant for dry fire. This will help me quite a bit. The 17 hmr is pretty stable and keeping site picture isn't such a problem, however with my R700 308 the recoil lifts and I lose the sight picture. I'm now looking for a muzzle attachment, to improve the barrel rise issue while staying range friendly. Not alot of info but will start experimenting with a few. I shoot bench on bipod and butt pad.
Good video for new and novice shooters on how to improve their performance.
In the 1990's I would go to Quantico VA. to shoot at the Marine Corps base . We were still using the M 14's M 1A's at the time. Julia Watson a top shooter and marine would be teased by the marine armors because of the number of firing pins she broke from dry firing. It does help but a tough discipline to keep up.
Good point about not dry firing rim fire guns. Not only do you risk ruining the firing pin, but eventually, due to the location of impact on a rim fire cartridge , when there is no round chambered the pin will peen the edge of the chamber. Only dry fire a rim fire rifle or pistol with a snap cap.
Great video! My wife and I dry fire between range days quite often. One of the techniques I think took me to "The next level" (not close to your level though) is loading 5 in my S&W 686 instead of the cylinder capacity of 6 when I am at the range. I dry fire on the empty cylinder first and then fire the next 5.
Vince Millioto Good idea
very well spoken.love the videos you make.
drakejdf Thank you :) and glad you're enjoying them
Most rimfire snap caps don't last very long in dry-fire practice. I use them a lot in ball-and-dummy training, but not so much for dry-fire. If you can't or won't dry-fire on an empty chamber, in a semi-auto a neat solution is to cut a small piece of a magnetic business card and stick it on the breech face just above the chamber mouth, where the firing pin would hit. The material cushions really well and is easy to remove when you are done. You want to cut it and position it so that it will not interfere with the extractor. I haven't tried it with a bolt action - the rotation of the bolt might move the cushion out of position.
Very well explained!
Great Video!
Clear structure and nice way of explaining it!
Thanks for posting this!
Loving your videos!! Could you go over your equipment? Ammo, sights and other stuff you rely on to do your shooting. Would love to see the technical side of your gear. Keep the great videos coming please.
Something that might help supplement this is to get a cheap notebook and write down what you did and any observations. This serves two purposes: the obvious one is to work on making improvements. But there's another consideration: if you ever have to defend yourself, everything about what you do and how you train is going to be dissected. Its a major benefit in those circumstances to produce evidence that you didn't just decide to throw on a gun and call that good enough (like Kirsten touches on in other videos, you need to train. Just having a gun is not enough). And something to remember is that shooting is a perishable skill set; if you go weeks, months, or even years without shooting, there's going to be significant rust. Dry fire is a quick and easy way to make sure that doesn't happen.
I have a technique of not breathing right before a shoot , since breathing can cause a miss. Kris is that a good technique to use
Kirsten, do you ever plan on doing a video of you competing in one of your shooting matches? As always , love your vids!
Ms Wies.
I personally thank you for your tips, tricks, and techniques. You have proven that shooting is not only for men. my 11 year old daughter is enjoying shooting with daddy. She is only shooting a Redrider BB gun. But with safety first the fun and joy of shooting comes second nature. Thankyou again. One happy and proud dad. P.S. my great friend also came with my daughter and I and enjoyed every minute. On are next outing she is bring her two daughters ages seven and eleven.
+Bob DiNovo Wow, that's fantastic and so uplifting to hear! Let me know how it goes :) Really happy to be a tiny part of it all :)
Thank you for your kind words. I will most definitely keep you up to date. Thanks again and waiting for more of your videos. Take care.
I really like semi-dry firing using laser cartridges. I get to see where I am hitting and eliminate any flinch while pulling the trigger. The only cost is replacement batteries which actually seem to last a fairly long time. I also have laser targets which let me see my actual groups.
Oh wow ill try dry firing at the range next time i hadnt shot in a while went to range week ago and noticed i was doing weird stuff. Good way to get back into fundamentals without using rounds
Big fan of your channel! love it!
Thanks for the tip: an ex-Marine told me the same thing: he told me his trainers would take his unit out to the field and they would dry fire for two or three hours at a time.
It looks to me like the Savage rimfire bolt design makes it easy to take out the firing pin and extractor just by popping out that spring clamp around the bolt.
You are best sharp shooter 💐
Thanks Tim 😊
I like to use a laser mounted to the rifle or pistol when dry fire training. It’s a great tattle tale and works well at close distance where you can see the laser dot well. It has done wonders on my trigger control.
excellent, informative video. thanks for sharing.
Thank you. Simplicity 👌
Hi KJW I love watching your videos you are a great teacher in firearms keep up the fantastic job be safe out there love you later .
I thought drive firing every thing was bad, thank you for making this video.
Snap Caps. Great video
Great video
noted your cheek-weld adapter; good show !
Love that pretty lil SIG, It suits you well!
Excellent advice. Dry firing has helped me a lot. I used to shoot low, dry firing has helped me see that I was dipping down as I was pulling the trigger.
I have a couple of questions though.
1. Can you make a video of how to teach eyes to shoot with both open, I have tried and tried but I still see sets of sights.
2. I have always been told not to dry fire rim fires. But if that is the case, then why would the 10/22 not have a bolt hold open after the last shot?
John Rob That's awesome that you could self diagnose your shot process like that. Good!
1) I'm open to working more with it, but I'm not a fan of both eyes open without a cover unless it's maybe shotgun in the skeet/trap sense. If you notice in some of my videos I either close the eye entirely or leave it half open (my eye flutters a bit) just so the other eye doesn't interfere. I also have dominant eye switches so that could be a factor. That said, I AM a HUGE fan of both eyes open but with a blinder on your non-shooting eye. This way ,when shooting for long periods of time, the same amount of light enters both eyes AND you don't have that awkward eye fatigue that makes your vision blurry after trying to close the non-shooting eye/keep it half open. You will shoot far more relaxed in long shooting sessions with a blinder for rifle/pistol. A light colored one is best. Hope that helps a bit
2) I'm not sure. I think one or two occasional shots might not damage the gun (I've never had an issue). Some 10/22s are made to dry fire as well, but check the owners manual always. I would guess it simply has to do with design. The AR platforms are made it do it, while the 10/22s traditionally havent been. But someone with more insight, please feel free to chime in!! I am not a gunsmith....:)
Wow, thank you for the quick and informative reply. Love watching your videos and have learned a lot from them.
I've never done dry firing. I have used dummy rounds to check operation of the weapon and to get familiar with a new weapons cycle. I always use live ammo when shooting.
Interesting concept. Do you see a benefit of dry fire (with an empty chamber) versus using dummy rounds for practice?
Thanks for the tip.
emf4kv Cool, well you're half way there! A lot of people prefer dummy rounds for 1) extra firing pin protection just in case 2) Extra Safety - as dummy rounds are not easy to confuse with live rounds, like empty brass *could* . There's no advantage to empty chamber vs dummy rounds for pure fundamental dry firing. However, a lot of people enjoy practicing clearing a chamber with dummy rounds. So that is also beneficial.
Great video Kirsten! The goal of the shooter is to deliberately bring the trigger back, causing the gun to fire, such that you do not disturb sight alignment, and follow-through. When you combine this with perfecting your natural point of aim (NPA), you have a way to constantly check that you're NPA is correct. So you cause the gun to fire such that you don't disturb your sight alignment, or sight picture in the case of aperture sights, and then follow-through long enough to verify that your NPA is correct. Kirsten, why don't you do a video on finding your natural point of aim?
Your tip is very useful that one should not dry fire with actual gun/mechanism too often since it may cause deteoeration
Maybe mention about Snap Caps for guns not made to dry fire. Great advice.
Good video girl !
As marines we call this "snapping in"
Great video as always..
Kirsten, woulsd you make some videos on gun cleaning,maintenance; and, bluing for beginners? It would be very informative to beginners to know how to take care of their pistols and rifles.
Since you practice with both eyes open I assume you shoot that way too. I prefer both eyes open also. But when I shoot left handed I also use my left eye, now that makes it a little tougher. Great videos!
Kirsten!!!
good video and good info! --way back in the day an old mean NCO would make us balance a penny on the barrel and dry-fire . and if the penny fell off --you won a prize!!--
I tell my wife that these are great training aid vids and I need to watch them for the information. Its true!
Number 3 dry wall screw anchors make ideal and cheap snap caps for .22 lr.
Most attractive dry firer I've ever seen!
Dry fire at the range! Duh, good idea, will use it, thanks!
I remember hours of laying in the prone in front of the barracks doing dime drills with my m16 . for those that dont know . thats where you balance A dime on your muzzle or front sight and dry fire without knocking the dime off . it sounds silly but it works
Man your great really I also do shooting and I'm learning many things form you and I'm from India, my name is shikhar. I'm a big fan of yours I would like to meet you
My friend recommends just two minutes a day, ideally more would be better but that's enough to keep you sharp and not be too much of a time drain. Also doing it first thing in the morning, that way in case you find yourself in the need to actually defend yourself, that moment is not the first time you've touched your gun that day.
great vid! you look great also ;} sidenote, ALWAYS check your gun manual to see if dry fire is ok and/or if empty mag has to be in it (like my SR9c).
I really like my SR9c,very accurate too
Bravo Concealment holster works great
I know you said you shouldn't dry fire rim fire guns. What about center fire guns? Would the risk of damaging the firing pin just be not as great? Not existent? What about snap caps?
Kirsten do you use snap caps when dry firing.
As my old junior Olympic coach would say, "practice practice practice". Also while dry firing, take aim, close your eyes and take the shot. Open you're eyes and see if you're still on target. If you are, you've found your natural point of aim. If not, adjust.
Can you simulate recoil and how to get your sight picture back?
I dry fire almost daily. It really helps me with my trigger control.
bcbloc02 You are my hero. Quite candidly, I need to do more daily dry fire!
Kirsten Joy Weiss I unload my carry pistol, insert a laserlyte trainer and proceed to go around my bedroom shooting random targets, light switches make really nice small targets to hit. :-)
I suggest using snap caps. My Scar 17 firing pin broke because of excessive dry firing. I had after market Glock strikers break too.
bcbloc02 :D
GOD719 Good suggestion
Do I need to put a spent shell in my 9 mm while dry firing? Should I do the same with my Winchester 94? Nice video ...but you already knew that.
They make .22LR Snap Caps now. I would actually advise using Snap Caps when dry firing as not to damage your firing pin.
Kirsten, what kind of groups will your rifle shoot @ 50 yards from a rest?
search for "Anschutz 1807 + munition SK standard plus" . I don't know exactly Kirsten's rifle, but I guess it's an Anschütz 19xx .22lr.
Thank you very much. :)
Thank you Kirsten Sweet shooting lovely 😅Lady. All day long Yahoo 😅
Hi Kirsten, what do you recommend about dry-firing with an SKS? Is it good to dry fire that model? :-)
Some firearms retain the firing pins with the cartridges.
BE SURE that you're using spent cartridges or dummy rounds if dry firing that way.
Great video, saving bullets and gas. I actually have a small sticker on my wall at home, no need to drive to the range
Kirsten what do you use for rimfire dry firing?
michael westcott snap caps they come in sevral calibers!
We love that rifle
I inherited my grandpas winchester 69a recently. Since its apparently bad to dry fire rim fire guns how do i decock it; would you know if its even possible on this particular model. I would hate to damage the firing pin because finding a replacement will be very hard for me. My problem is it cant be cleaned with out cocking it. Any advice?
love you, like you, share you !!!
That is a beautiful pistol! Love the scroll work. We do a drill with a penny on the front sight post when we do our trigger press. We go until only one of us is left and he buys the soft drinks at dinner the next time we get together. Our record is 21.
RedTSquared Wouldn't you want to lose that so you get free soft drinks? :D
Kirsten Joy Weiss
What kind of pistol was that?
Kirsten Joy Weiss
In the Years we've been doing this, it has become known as the "Winner's Tax". Everyone takes it with a smile. It also is from us each wanting to better our friends bad enough, that we'd pay to make the point! 8p
And like rupert93r asked, what kind of pistol is that?