First Person Shooter – Point Shooting Made Easy

POINT SHOOTING vs. SIGHTED FIRE

One of our goals at iconcealed.com is to shine a light on effective shooting techniques. Let’s explore two.

Point shooting is indispensable for deadly encounters inside 12-15 yards…

… whereas sighted fire is better suited for 12-15 yards and beyond.

In a close combat situation — up close and personal — there’s no way you’ll have time to use sighted fire.

That’s when point shooting (a.k.a. target or threat-focused shooting or instinctive shooting) comes in handy. It’s a way to fire your weapon in a potentially life-threatening situation without using the firearm’s sights.

Not the ideal aiming method, but it might be all you have time for when your life is on the line and you’re in freakout mode! Remember, the natural response to a stressful threat is to zero-in on the threat, making it nearly impossible (unless you’re a trained pro) to focus on the sights at the same time.

HOW TO POINT SHOOT

Start in the “low ready” position by maintaining a two-handed grip but with the firearm pointed slightly down but still downrange. This traditional “ready” position lets you quickly and accurately raise your weapon.

Instead of raising the barrel to eye height to align the sights though, raise the weapon only a bit higher and try to hit the target. This type of shooting does not rely on the sights and, as a result, is typically not as accurate. But in most real-world situations, it’s highly unlikely you’ll have the time to line up all of your shots perfectly.

Practicing point shooting can help you develop a more instinctive accuracy. And we recommend the use of lasers and light aids to hone your abilities. Try aiming at a target and then switching on the laser to see how accurate you would have been had you actually pulled the trigger.

The trick is to make sure that when you pull the trigger, it doesn’t move the barrel off  target. At close quarter distance, the grip (wrists locked and high on the gun) and trigger manipulation are the most important elements to maintain accuracy.

This doesn’t create perfect shot groups, but it’s effective for lethal combat engagements, especially if shooters can sustain an acceptable rate of accurate fire.

Remember, practice makes perfect! So get to it…