Fifteen seconds of adrenaline…
(if your bandwidth and browser will accommodate, you really need to watch the HD full screen version to see the target)
Some of the pistol-forum.com regulars got together for a cookout in Culpeper, Virginia yesterday and someone brought along his new dueling tree. Over the course of three hours we each put about seven hundred rounds downrange and didn’t really do anything else all day long.
If you’re not familiar with a Dueling Tree, it works like this:
- There are six plates, usually 6″ or 8″ circles (these were 6″).
- The tree is set up so three plates are on the left and three are on the right.
- Every time a plate is hit, it swings over to the opposite side.
- The first shooter to get all the plates over to his opponent’s side wins.
Is it the most effective practice I’ve ever done? Of course not. But a dueling tree is a surprisingly effective tool for shooting under stress. You’re up against another live human being with a gun making lots of loud noises. Your success depends not just on your raw ability but actually being better than the other guy. The shooting problem is constantly changing. Your gun goes empty when you’re not expecting it to. You can be way ahead one second and losing the next. You’re always being pressured to go faster but you still need to hit a 6″ target 10+ yards away. The guy who maintains his calm and gets good, fast hits wins. What’s not to like?
Train hard & stay safe! ToddG
That looks like great fun.
I’d like to do that.. with shotguns!
It sure is a lot of fun. Too bad I didn’t have a better hit on that 2nd plate from the bottom (at the end).
Where do I sign up … I’m in!
Looks like fun.
I’ve had a .22lr dueling tree for well over a year and coincidentally just took it out to the range for the first time yesterday.
They really are fun …. especially when I (a civi) beat my buddy (a LEO, self proclaimed gun guy) like a drum … that was 1911 vs 1911 a couple of years ago on our local LEO range. That was even before I really started training seriously. I still hold that over his head. He’s in the FAMS Academy now so I suspect when he gets out he’ll really give me a run for my money.
I tried to start a duelling club once. Unfortunately the membership numbers halved every meeting.
Dueling trees are just big dirty fun. It’s like full-contact Tic Tac Toe…
The only thing I’ve done with a pistol that was anywhere near as fun as a dueling tree is head-to-head bowling pins.
I used to end my agency’s range qualification days with a duelling tree match between the officers. Great, great fun for all.
Good stuff. My wife loves shooting the dueling tree so I think I am going to have to build one.
Man, the draw and reload times are hot! That looks like great fun.