White belt handgunning

[MasterPain]

Well, actually the belt and holster are black (white leather belts are for emo kids in skinny jeans.)

My appropriations committee (me, myself, and my wallet) has procured a Heritage Arms single action 22 revolver. Leave me alone, I'm poor. Basically I have 6 shots before it becomes a 3rd rate bludgeoning instrument.

Anyway, what is a Weaver or Isosceles stance? How do you hit anything with both eyes open? What basic questions do I not know enough to ask?

[bushido_man96]

Weaver would be the typical shotgun/rifle "hunter" stance you see. Isosceles would be with the body square to the target, two hands on the pistol grip, with the feet parallel or just a bit staggered. This is how LEOs learn to shoot, to keep a much of the vest presented forward as possible. Its also a very stable platform to shoot from.

I usually close one eye when I shoot. You can try to shoot with both open, and some people do it well; I just don't do practice it, really. Sometimes I'll open both eyes, but squint the non-dominant one so I can focus on the sights better.

[MasterPain]

Isosceles would be with the body square to the target, two hands on the pistol grip, with the feet parallel or just a bit staggered. This is how LEOs learn to shoot, to keep a much of the vest presented forward as possible.

With no vest, I'd just be presenting a lot of center mass, then?

[Groinstrike]

Isosceles would be with the body square to the target, two hands on the pistol grip, with the feet parallel or just a bit staggered. This is how LEOs learn to shoot, to keep a much of the vest presented forward as possible.

With no vest, I'd just be presenting a lot of center mass, then?

Correct, im not a huge fan of a true isosceles stance, I used to shoot from what would be called a "Modified Weaver Stance" with the strong side foot taken bake further than a weaver stance, but ive squared it up a bit recently.

I would recommend reading any book by Jeff Cooper that you could find, ive got some i will loan to you.

[ShoriKid]

Cooper. Read him, know him, love him.

The biggest thing about the isosceles is that it also puts your mass behind the gun and lets you "squeeze" the gun in your grip.

Both eyes open shooting isn't that hard for handguns. Your focus is on your front sight. Start shooting at 20-30 feet and you can get the hang of it.

[bushido_man96]

Isosceles would be with the body square to the target, two hands on the pistol grip, with the feet parallel or just a bit staggered. This is how LEOs learn to shoot, to keep a much of the vest presented forward as possible.

With no vest, I'd just be presenting a lot of center mass, then?

This is true, but ideally, if you are shooting in the conditions you are thinking of, you would want to be behind cover if you have no vest.

Also, if you are going to hold a pistol with two hands, which most people do, then its going to be tricky not to square up; at least it is for me, with my short, stubby arms.

You can try to present the gun standing side on, but again this is only with one hand to stabilize and aim; not as easy to do as movies and novels would have you believe.

I will also mention a few rounds of sims training will show you how much you can get shot in the hands and arms in gun fights. More food for thought.

I'm not familiar with Cooper, so I can't comment on the thoughts of others here.

[JusticeZero]

Isoceles is also more mobile. Weaver, you can only adjust your aim a small distance to one side; Isoceles gives you a much wider range of motion to cover and leaves you in a position that is easier to move out of. As far as i've been told and seen, mobility is probably more important than silhouette.

Plus, Isoceles is closer to where you will probably be at the moment immediately before you realize you need to pull out your gun and fire. I don't usually interact with people side-on to them.

[bushido_man96]

Isoceles is also more mobile. Weaver, you can only adjust your aim a small distance to one side; Isoceles gives you a much wider range of motion to cover and leaves you in a position that is easier to move out of. As far as i've been told and seen, mobility is probably more important than silhouette.

Plus, Isoceles is closer to where you will probably be at the moment immediately before you realize you need to pull out your gun and fire. I don't usually interact with people side-on to them.

Very good points as well, Justice. Also, the nice thing about the isosceles stance is that it translates nicely to rifle and shotgun; three weapons, same stance for all three. Since I've never hunted before, I didn't have to try to break the habit of shooting from Weaver.

[tallgeese]

An Isoceles or variant where you just keep the dominate hand foot back JUST a touch. I like arms pretty much locked out. One eye squinted down to bring the front sight into sharp focus. Don't get consumed with point shooting even at close range. That's the realm of an experienced shooter with tons of indexing over his front sight already.

The frontal posture needs to have knees bent and be athletic. It's aggressive, like a fighting posture. It should let you work pistol, rifle, knife and about anything else you want to pick up and go to work with.

Justice is right about the movement. It's easier from a squared up stance. But don't shuffle. Turret at the hips and move like a normal walking or running pattern.

Also, don't get enthralled by shooting on the move. While you want to have an idea of what it's like, you're WAY more accurate stationary. When you shoot you shoot, when you move you move (and usually fast as possible to the next piece of cover). I know there are other schools of thought out there, but that's the one I've come to after being at several different schools.

Get good shooting position, get used to staying off it and using the angles, when it's time to go. GO! Then shoot again when you can get posture and cover. There might be instances where you won't but this should be your bread and butter.

Good luck. We'll get some range time when I get down that way.