tkoglman
02-25-08, 20:15
I decided to start this thread from what I was reading in the Green Eyes Black Rifles thread.
This became a "hot button" issue for me at the last police academy range and last in-service pistol qual.. When we did our Glock transition I attempted to formalize two specific reloads in our shooting program. The main reason was because of the lack of common terminology. One man's "tactical reload" was another man's "speed reload" etc. etc.
I decided on two reloads and named them each according to their function. I have to admit that I blatantly stole the terms from IDPA. I went with the "Slide Lock Reload" and the "Reload with Retention"
The "Slide Lock Reload" is exactly what it sounds like. The weapon is shot dry and the slide is locked to the rear. I teach it in a step-by-step manner:
1. Reach for your spare magazine
2. Depress mag release and discard the magazine. Even if it needs to be ripped out for some reason, the magazine is discarded.
3. Bring weapon into "work space"
(Note: I found that thinking of the steps in this specific sequence results in a faster reload. The part that takes the longest is retrieving the fresh magazine. That is the movement that should be started first. There is plenty of time for steps 2&3 while you are still working on step 1. The natural tendency, I have seen, is to do steps 2&3 before even beginning step 1. Much slower.)
4. Insert fresh magazine
5. Release slide as you present weapon.
(Note: I show both slide release techniques. I don't buy into the whole fine/gross motor skills thing. The whole technique of reloading a pistol is a pretty fine motor skill if you ask me. I see pro's and con's with both. I've seen people try to load pinkies into ejection ports, milk the slide, miss the slide stop, etc.)
The "Reload with Retention" is presented as a voluntary reload. I teach this technique:
1. Remove magazine from the pistol and retain
2. Attempt to stow partial magazine. If you begin to fumble with it - consider discarding it based on the situation
3. Retrieve fresh magazine
4. Load fresh magazine.
I think the two magazines in one hand technique is garbage. It is difficult to perform under ideal circumstances and saves no time. I have seen, in competition, numerous shooters accidentally reinsert the partial magazine they just withdrew. The biggest problem I have seen with the execution of the Reload with Retention is finding a place to stow the partial magazine. Most LEO's duty belts are so crammed with gear that pants pockets are virtually inaccessible.
The big problem I had with these reloads was in the understanding of the concept by my Senior Range Officer. He liked the idea of not discarding ammunition, but still believes in round counting and thought that shooting a gun dry was a cardinal sin and that little time should be devoted to my "Slide Lock Reload". The biggest problem was that he began to demand Reloads with Retention while "on the clock" in the middle of firing strings.
This created a furor. We had a very good firearms instructor and retired FBI SWAT member working with the students with us. He got into a huge argument with my Senior Range Officer over the matter. The shooters (both academy students and my own officers) also saw the problems trying to conduct the Reload with Retention in the middle of firing strings.
My Senior Range Officer's problem, I believe, is that he approached the strings of fire from the perspective that he knows exactly how many rounds he needs to fire to complete it, and can pre-plan when to conduct a reload. This has no "real world" applicability. My offered solution was to download magazines to a set number of rounds (or randomly)to force Slide Lock Reloads in the middle of firing strings (if that's what he wanted or the State Qual. called for) and we would mandate Reloads with Retention after strings of fire were complete.
Thanks for reading. Now I need to order Kyle Lamb's book so I can get into the original thread.
This became a "hot button" issue for me at the last police academy range and last in-service pistol qual.. When we did our Glock transition I attempted to formalize two specific reloads in our shooting program. The main reason was because of the lack of common terminology. One man's "tactical reload" was another man's "speed reload" etc. etc.
I decided on two reloads and named them each according to their function. I have to admit that I blatantly stole the terms from IDPA. I went with the "Slide Lock Reload" and the "Reload with Retention"
The "Slide Lock Reload" is exactly what it sounds like. The weapon is shot dry and the slide is locked to the rear. I teach it in a step-by-step manner:
1. Reach for your spare magazine
2. Depress mag release and discard the magazine. Even if it needs to be ripped out for some reason, the magazine is discarded.
3. Bring weapon into "work space"
(Note: I found that thinking of the steps in this specific sequence results in a faster reload. The part that takes the longest is retrieving the fresh magazine. That is the movement that should be started first. There is plenty of time for steps 2&3 while you are still working on step 1. The natural tendency, I have seen, is to do steps 2&3 before even beginning step 1. Much slower.)
4. Insert fresh magazine
5. Release slide as you present weapon.
(Note: I show both slide release techniques. I don't buy into the whole fine/gross motor skills thing. The whole technique of reloading a pistol is a pretty fine motor skill if you ask me. I see pro's and con's with both. I've seen people try to load pinkies into ejection ports, milk the slide, miss the slide stop, etc.)
The "Reload with Retention" is presented as a voluntary reload. I teach this technique:
1. Remove magazine from the pistol and retain
2. Attempt to stow partial magazine. If you begin to fumble with it - consider discarding it based on the situation
3. Retrieve fresh magazine
4. Load fresh magazine.
I think the two magazines in one hand technique is garbage. It is difficult to perform under ideal circumstances and saves no time. I have seen, in competition, numerous shooters accidentally reinsert the partial magazine they just withdrew. The biggest problem I have seen with the execution of the Reload with Retention is finding a place to stow the partial magazine. Most LEO's duty belts are so crammed with gear that pants pockets are virtually inaccessible.
The big problem I had with these reloads was in the understanding of the concept by my Senior Range Officer. He liked the idea of not discarding ammunition, but still believes in round counting and thought that shooting a gun dry was a cardinal sin and that little time should be devoted to my "Slide Lock Reload". The biggest problem was that he began to demand Reloads with Retention while "on the clock" in the middle of firing strings.
This created a furor. We had a very good firearms instructor and retired FBI SWAT member working with the students with us. He got into a huge argument with my Senior Range Officer over the matter. The shooters (both academy students and my own officers) also saw the problems trying to conduct the Reload with Retention in the middle of firing strings.
My Senior Range Officer's problem, I believe, is that he approached the strings of fire from the perspective that he knows exactly how many rounds he needs to fire to complete it, and can pre-plan when to conduct a reload. This has no "real world" applicability. My offered solution was to download magazines to a set number of rounds (or randomly)to force Slide Lock Reloads in the middle of firing strings (if that's what he wanted or the State Qual. called for) and we would mandate Reloads with Retention after strings of fire were complete.
Thanks for reading. Now I need to order Kyle Lamb's book so I can get into the original thread.