Holding a S/A

On another form a question was asked how we held a single action sixgun. I do the 4th finger under the grip frame. How about you guys? The first video is my Ruger Liberty 4 5/8" 45 ACP & the second a Ruger 7 1/2" 45 Colt. The recoil of the latter is close to twice the former. [Hillbilly Ciphering Here]

https://youtu.be/2lVYLl_YSdI

https://youtu.be/4-P843VOPz8

LAH said:

On another form a question was asked how we held a single action sixgun. I do the 4th finger under the grip frame. How about you guys? The first video is my Ruger Liberty 4 5/8" 45 ACP & the second a Ruger 7 1/2" 45 Colt. The recoil of the latter is close to twice the former. [Hillbilly Ciphering Here]

https://youtu.be/2lVYLl_YSdI

https://youtu.be/4-P843VOPz8

Click to expand...

This largely depends on the grips you have on the gun. My NMBH has Hogue grips with finger grooves, so completely different than with the stock grips.

"Pinky under the grip" works for me and always has.

DGW

I shoot Bisley so I can keep em all on the handle ;-)

I use flat bottom grips.
That adds just enough to get all fingers up there where they outta be.

I recently (within the last couple months) read an article, maybe two, on how to hold and shoot SAs. I'd never seen the writer's name before but he sounded like someone who had been shooting SAs for a long, LONG time. I don't remember where I read it. Firearms News, maybe? I'm pretty sure it wasn't Guns & Ammo, American Handgunner, or GUNS, but I could be wrong....

Now that I actually own a SA after all these years, I'd love to read that story again and try some of his ideas. Does the article sound familiar to anyone?

I shoot with fingers all on the grip. My hands are not that large, so no problem. I tried the pinky under but doesn't work for me...and don't try it while resting hand on a surface such as a post... After shooting hundreds, if not thousands of rounds, I think everyone comes up with the method that works for them and what grips are preferred, I know I did.

If I'm close with a 9/10mm I just draw and shoot. If I'm trying for a sight picture or have a heavy gun (44mag or 460s&w) I use the Chapman stance. I'm left eye dominant and ambidextrous (no that doesn't mean that I can't make up my mind), I use it with either hand. I don't have a problem with turning to the offside although I find changing feet can be good.
BTW all my fingers fit on the grip even on my 938 SIG. My NAA is a two finger revolver!

Snake45 said:

I recently (within the last couple months) read an article, maybe two, on how to hold and shoot SAs. I'd never seen the writer's name before but he sounded like someone who had been shooting SAs for a long, LONG time. I don't remember where I read it. Firearms News, maybe? I'm pretty sure it wasn't Guns & Ammo, American Handgunner, or GUNS, but I could be wrong....

Now that I actually own a SA after all these years, I'd love to read that story again and try some of his ideas. Does the article sound familiar to anyone?

Click to expand...

https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2017/4/5/sheriffs-tips-is-the-single-action-revolver-a-valid-defense-gun/
Possibly this?

coach said:

Snake45 said:

I recently (within the last couple months) read an article, maybe two, on how to hold and shoot SAs. I'd never seen the writer's name before but he sounded like someone who had been shooting SAs for a long, LONG time. I don't remember where I read it. Firearms News, maybe? I'm pretty sure it wasn't Guns & Ammo, American Handgunner, or GUNS, but I could be wrong....

Now that I actually own a SA after all these years, I'd love to read that story again and try some of his ideas. Does the article sound familiar to anyone?

Click to expand...

https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2017/4/5/sheriffs-tips-is-the-single-action-revolver-a-valid-defense-gun/
Possibly this?

Click to expand...

No, that wasn't it. I know the Jim Wilson name, and that's over a year ago. But thanks for trying. :wink:

Snake45 said:

I recently (within the last couple months) read an article, maybe two, on how to hold and shoot SAs. I'd never seen the writer's name before but he sounded like someone who had been shooting SAs for a long, LONG time. I don't remember where I read it. Firearms News, maybe? I'm pretty sure it wasn't Guns & Ammo, American Handgunner, or GUNS, but I could be wrong....

Now that I actually own a SA after all these years, I'd love to read that story again and try some of his ideas. Does the article sound familiar to anyone?

Click to expand...

Was cleaning up today and I found the article. It's by Jim Dickson in the January Issue 1 2018 issue of Firearms News. Better yet, it's available to read online, here. I'd be interested to hear others' opinions of this firing grip and technique.

http://www.firearmsnews.com/editorial/saga-of-the-colt-single-action-army-45/77695#

I shoot Bisleys and hold on with both hands.

The article says:

Point shooting is much more accurate than any sights, so the sights on the early guns remained more rudimentary affairs, intended only to help you see where a new gun was pointing on your first shooting outing. Today's shooter seems to think he needs sights, but David didn't have a sight on his sling when he killed Goliath with it, and Robin Hood had no sights on his bow and arrow. Hand-and-eye coordination is far more accurate and natural than sights and a whole lot faster in a gun battle.

Click to expand...

I really thought my sixgun needed good sights. My bullseye buddies need to rethink their guns & technique if they want real accuracy.

Thanks for the article! When I first learned combat shooting we were taught the point method. I've migrated to using sights and need to go back to point for less than long ranges. Will take some work and lots of practice, luckily 9mm is cheap.

LAH said:

The article says:

Point shooting is much more accurate than any sights, so the sights on the early guns remained more rudimentary affairs, intended only to help you see where a new gun was pointing on your first shooting outing. Today's shooter seems to think he needs sights, but David didn't have a sight on his sling when he killed Goliath with it, and Robin Hood had no sights on his bow and arrow. Hand-and-eye coordination is far more accurate and natural than sights and a whole lot faster in a gun battle.

Click to expand...

I really thought my sixgun needed good sights. My bullseye buddies need to rethink their guns & technique if they want real accuracy.

Click to expand...

Yah, the guy writes some real out-of-the-box stuff sometimes. He's done articles on "Chief AJ" and his semiauto "scout rifles" in .22LR and .223. Of course there is no such thing as a "scout rifle" in .22LR or .223 regardless of action type, by definition. It's interesting to get alternative viewpoints sometimes, though. :wink:

He's also done some VERY nice articles on other historical guns of various types. Interesting writer whom I'd never heard of (or wasn't on my radar) a year ago.

I'm finding a whole lot wrong with that article. Some of his history is off and I disagree with the bits about point shooting, sights, his grip technique, cocking technique and the stuff about cryogenic treatment is utter nonsense.

This is how I grip:



This is how I initiate the hammer grab:



These are how I cock the hammer with the strong thumb:







Here's how I do it with both hands:

And if he thinks a 255gr at 900fps in a 36oz (not 40oz) Colt produces no felt recoil, he needs to see a neurologist.

Beginning to sound like there's a reason I'd never heard of this guy or this technique before. :wink:

I've not had a problem keeping my pinkie on an XR3RED grip. All my early pistol shooting was NRA one-hand "bullseye" shooting and this grip served me well.

I did try the "pinky under" grip but found that caused me to grip the gun too low making recoil control more difficult as well as complicating cocking the hammer.

I have since moved to a classic two-hand hold by merely wrapping my support hand around the established one-hander. I have yet to decide which thumb is the most advantageous to use for cocking.

JMHO

PS I got thru about two-and-a-half paragraphs of that link and decided I had better things to do. Talk about makin' it up as you go . . .

:roll:

Cryogenic treatment's value is highly dependent on the alloy used and the previous heat treatment.

In something with high carbon content that is quenched in, like a blade, it's possible it has some effect. Certainly it's possible that it could affect the percentage of retained austenite, though the thermodynamics diagrams say that it probably has negligible effect.

On something with medium or low carbon that is not quenched for hardness, like, say, a handgun barrel and action, the main effect would be separating a fool from his or her money.