I try to dry fire every day, usually in the morning before I leave for work. That doesn’t always work with early starts and having to get my workout in as well. So, regardless of how much time I have, I always practice drawing my gun a few times before I walk out the door. This does a few things for me. It allows me to verify that my concealment clothing is working properly. Maybe it shrank over time, maybe there is a hole or tear I didn’t notice before, maybe that shirt is just not compatible with my belt or badge case or something. That last point is not much of an issue, as I test all my clothing before deciding to keep it, but things can change as noted above.
Drawing before leaving the house also allows me to warm up a bit. I usually do around 5 draws, all at full speed. This gives me essential cold practice drawing my gun but also allows me to leave the house no longer cold. If I need my gun, my first draw is no longer as cold as it might have been. Obviously, this depends on when in the day I need my gun, but some warmup is better than no warmup.
An appropriately scaled down for the distance B8 repair center is what I use for my target, though an appropriately sized IDPA or USPSA target will work well too. Usually, the head of those is a better size than the center zone.
When I was on SWAT, I had a similar pre-mission check that I went through once I was kitted up. I would check all my battery-operated devices on my gun (optic, flashlight, PEQ-15) to make sure they were good. I would set my red dot to the desired brightness. Then I would do a couple of dry “up drills”, followed by a couple of transitions to my pistol.
The final benefit of this ritual is to remind me that I am carrying my gun for a reason and that I may actually need to use it today. All of us, regardless of mental toughness, experience or Mindset! (an inside joke, sorry), sometimes need a reminder of what’s what. The gun is not a badge of office, it is not an inconvenience to be minimized, nor a burden to bear (Though it is that too. Part of the price of freedom). It is a tool that allows us to have a say in what happens to us and the people around us. It is a right and a privilege and should not be taken for granted. The gun will not help you by itself, but it will help you help yourself. That starts with outlook and training. I get a free reminder of that every morning. Some days, I definitely need the reminder.
Well said.
I’m going to try and get more “dry” reps in; shorter time span, more frequently.
Thank you. That sounds like a plan, let me know how it works out.
Excellent article, curious as to what you use for your safe direction with the dry fire practice?
Thank you. I have a few solutions to that issue. My preference is to remove my live gun and replace it with an identical but empty gun that I keep handy for dry-fire. Only takes a second to swap guns and verify condition. I have maintained this practice for many years now. My next choice is to simply use the gun I am carrying but to only draw, and not put my finger on the trigger. I don’t recommend this to others for obvious reasons. I either case, our bedroom is on the corner of our house and one of our windows opens up on our range, so I just point it that way. I also have spare body armor in the bedroom with a target on it so I can use that as needed (too lazy to open the window, cold outside, etc). Finally, though I don’t want to shoot my wall, the wall next to the range window looks out on nothing for a very long way and I have occasionally just propped targets up there. Better done when i am using my spare empty gun. I do this because I prefer to not be constantly loading and unloading my carry gun. I do also have a red gun with a repeating trigger, and I have used that for years as well. Especially useful when travelling in hotels, as the gun cannot go off.
Spare empty gun… I like it. Sounds like an excellent reason to buy another gun!!
Always!