expected accuracy from carry pistol at 15 yrd

[homestead67]

Watch hickok45 on YouTube watch what he does with a glock27 at 230 yards.

[UpTheIrons]

Watch hickok45 on YouTube watch what he does with a glock27 at 230 yards.

Yeah, and not just the Glock 27, he takes loooooooooong shots with just about every gun in his inventory.

(Did I mention I subscribed to his videos? Oh, look! Today's gun is a Taurus 94, .22 wheel gun!)

[homestead67]

I wish I could shoot half as good as he does

[UpTheIrons]

I wish I could shoot half as good as he does

Yeah, you and me both!

[RECIT]

It takes lots of practice and familiarity with the range/target/distance. That is his personal range so I'm sure he has a lot of practice there.

[Zoomie]

Three cheers for personal ranges.

[G.C.Montgomery]

Lots of good comments have already been made. My opinion is that the accuracy you can expect depends almost entirely on you. Nearly all reputable handguns on the market today are mechanically capable of shooting well under an inch at fifteen yards. Many, including most modern 1911's, are capable of shooting inside 2 inches at 25 yards with some pistols shooting that well all the way out to 50 yards. That's accuracy that can be demonstrated with the gun in a Ransom rest or supported position from a bench. Practical accuracy is an entirely different issue.

So the real answer to you question I suppose is that practical accuracy of the gun depends mostly on the shooter and the conditions in which he shoots. If you have the time to get into a stable and aggressive stance, using two hands in good light with no distractions and all the time in the world, you might very well be able to hit a 2 inch bullseye at fifteen yards with the carry gun of your choice. I generally don't spend a lot of time doing that sort of thing except when I'm working on basic shooting fundamentals. Six and eight inch steel plates are a little more reasonable and practical at fifteen yards but, even that requires that you let the margin of error and your perception of the cost of a miss, regulate the speed at which you pull the trigger. The gun itself makes little difference. As my first shooting coach told me, if you can put your front sight on it, you can hit it. Distance is irrelevant except to the extent it affects the elevation of the front sight. I've got friends who will read that last statement and laugh out loud because I'm not known for being one to take my time to shoot anything, let alone look at my sights. They don't realize I have a solid grasp of the concepts, I just fail to apply them.

On movement and accuracy while moving; I certainly advocate movement and the ability to shoot on the move but, there is only so much accuracy to be had if you are trying to move quickly enough to avoid being shot. If you really are moving fast enough to avoid getting shot, shooting well enough to consistently six and eight inch targets might be asking a bit much unless your are shooting at distances much shorter than fifteen yards. It might even require that targets be close enough to use little more than gross sight alignment and/or indexing (point shooting) to aim the gun. That's usually at distances a little closer to two or three yards where most real defensive shooting happen and a distance at which simply standing still is almost guaranteed to get you shot. There may be times that you need to be still, if only for a moment, to make a distant shot but, you need to be ready to haul butt as soon as that shot breaks.

[WildBill]

Lots of good comments have already been made. My opinion is that the accuracy you can expect depends almost entirely on you. Nearly all reputable handguns on the market today are mechanically capable of shooting well under an inch at fifteen yards ...

Very well stated G.C. Every gun that I have ever owned was more accurate than I could shoot.

Caveat: I have never owned a POJ (Piece of Junk) gun.

[homestead67]

I have owned one poj gun. It was a Jennings 32 caliber shot it 3 times on the 3 rd shot the slide flew off the gun the clip fell on the ground I'm standing there with a stupid look on my face my buddy is laughing saying I told you not to buy it and yes I bought it new.

[Blinking Dog]

Standing on a static range shooting a paper target 15 yards away with no time pressure is no way to figure out what your "combat accuracy" is.

Trying some IDPA will give you a little taste of what your accuracy really is, as you'll likely be drawing from cover, shooting on the move and you'll be on the clock (plus your friends will be watching!) so your anxiety level will be raised somewhat. But of course, the bullets are only going one way...

Train on the fundamentals, and don't let "good enough" be good enough for you. A highly respected BTDT instructor's point of view is that your accuracy will degrage by 1/2 under true shooting stress. So if you are ok with hitting 8 inch groups in practice, you'll likely degrade to 16 inch groups in real life. If that is your accuracy level, then you need to re-think pulling your weapon. You're likely to miss, and don't forget each bullet you put down range has consequences.

As previuosly stated, our firearms are far more accurate than we the shooters using them are. So please train hard, and set high goals for your shooting capabilities, and don't let good enough be good enough.

[RiverRat]

A natural point of aim, training and comfort with the platform. A paper plate sized pattern at 15-20 yards under stress would be considered good shooting.