Gangsta Style?

[JDG]

A friend of mine took a part time job as a reserve, in a local sheriff dept. The training officer told him to shoot one handed with the gun sideways. I dont know if he's putting me on, or what. I've heard to slightly cant the gun towards center, but not compleatly sideways. I am to embarrased to try this method in public, so I will try it out some where alone. I tend to push my one hand shots off to the side opposite of which hand I'm using, we'll see if this helps.

[brickeyee]

BS. Pure and simple.

[threefivesevenmag]

When shooting weak-hand-only, it can sometimes help to cant the gun slightly so your dominant eye can get a decent sight picture. Canting does not make the holding position turn into "gangsta" style. It is only slight.

Stay safe, shoot straight. No gangsta style.

[JoshB]

If you were supposed to shoot "gansta style" the sights would be on the side.
Has anyone ever seen that advertisement for Glock side mounted sights? It was hilarious.

[RoscoeC]

I was taught a slight cant - about 45 degrees. The instructor described it as straight up being normal, 90 degrees being "homey style", and the 45 degree cant as "half homey". When shooting one handed (which I practice with both hands at every range session), I use the "half homey". Works for me. I can shoot Almost as well one handed as I can in the normal isosceles stance. As my friend puts it, not exactly minute of angle ... more like minute of bad guy.

[Lucky 7]

Erick has it right on the money. The wrist will take a natural cant in order to support the act of firing a handgun. We were taught that when we (briefly) went over it in BSG. Anywhere btween 5 and 20 degrees based on the weapon and the size of the operators hand. It shouldnt feel UNnatural at all so play around with until it DOES feel right.

Regards and Semper Fi!
-L7

[OneInTheChamber]

The slight cant can help with controlling recoil. But, we all know that gangsta style isn't worth anything.

Picture is not exactly politically correct, but doesn't make fun of anything that isn't true.

[Topthis]

I thought that the Gansta Style was not just that the gun is sideways, but also the wrist is broken at a 90 degree angle as well! In fact, I had seen an older Israeli shooting video that showed these commando's racking the slide of their handguns by twisting wrist so that the gun would be sideways, and then they would fire from this sideways position.

[Glock 31]

I've heard that the full cant 90 degrees to the side is for shooting from behind, and around a corner while trying to expose as little as possible to the opponent. It's supposed to ensure that brass doesn't eject in a hindering way. Or something like that, maybe that was for only a .45 degree cant. Been awhile since I took the self defense course.

[Silvanus]

And from behind ballistic shields. I've seen that on pictures from a report about GIGN.

[Para Bellum]

Two good comments (not mine, I admit):

The origin of this style of shooting is Israeli intelligence Mossad. In the mid 1970s they sent an assassination squad to Europe to avenge the murders of their Olympic wrestling team, They were armed with mdl 70 Berretta 22lr pistols with special low powered ammo, just enough to RELIABLY cycle.. They shot from point blank range, carried the pistols with an empty chamber and at the last second, pulled back the slide to chamber a round. this is more easily done with the pistol held horizontally (try it). since no aiming was required, they simply shot from this position. They never failed to kill, (although they did get a wrong guy in Norway once).

[Edited by TABING on 06-06-2001 at 06:36 PM]

From TABING in http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/...hlight=gangsta

but marv800 said it best at
http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/...22#post1495843

The real reason and history the "gangsta grip" was originally developed was because the crackheads who used the weapons often confused the mag release with the trigger. By holding the gun sideways, they would save themselves the embarassment of dropping the clip out of the gun. Its sort of a "darwin thing" in the hood. Only those that learned the gangsta grip survived to pass their genes on.

[JDG]

OneInTheChamber, that pic is a hoot!

[Chris Cullen]

I rotate my firearm when using single hand shooting. I normally shoot from an isoceles position because I am left eye dominant. I have more control and accuracy in this position. I had always had difficulty in shooting single handed as it was never accurate and uncontrolable in specific situations.
A firearms instructor introduced me to this new single hand rotation method a few months back and I love it. It is so much more suited to my shooting style and I have more control over the firearm.
I use this position while in the isoceles stance with your left arm across onto your right shoulder pulling downwards to provide support. The arm position is more agressive like throwing a punch and provides strength down the entire arm.

I used to get the "Gangsta" comments at the range, but my target scores reveal all and I'm slowly seeing a lot more people adopting this technique.

It works for me.

Chris C

[silicon wolverine]

Another "canted gun" position is if you are wounded in your dominant arm and are shooting with teh weak hand, canting the gun 30-45 deg inward reduces the muzzle jump and allows you to get back on target quicker. Ive tried it and for some reason it onyl works with the weak hand. i shoot poorer doing this with my strong hand.

SW

[SrtDog]

No Field Training Officer ever told him to shoot sideways. Sounds like someone making up an excuse to shoot like a jackass.

[BlueTrain]

Don't forget to practice shooting with your left hand while driving and also shooting at fleeing cars while standing on the running board.

[skeeter1]

At my range, the range officer will come in and chastise those (they usually have a baseball cap on backwards) and shooting "gangsta style." We refer to them as "fools." There's nothing like being sprayed with hot 9mm shells on the head by somebody in the next stall trying to look cool, just like the last rap video he saw.

[Capt. Charlie]

While a slight cant has its advantages, I suspect that in this case, the rookie was the victim of cop shop locker room humor.

Remember your service days? In the Navy, we sent new guys all over the ship looking for 5 pounds of "relative bearing grease" or a spool of "water line" . I'm guessing this was something similar, and the vets on his department are probably laughing their backsides off .

[BigO01]

Gangsta Style ? LOL

News flash ! There's this realy Cool and effective shooting style Called the Weaver , you guys should try it sometime !

[Mannlicher]

I am not so sure that any cant is helpful. Those with a lot more experience than I have seem to think it is, but I have my doubts. I personally don't cant my pistols or revolvers off center, and I have never had a problem with 'gun control'.

[gonz]

Agreed on the cant to limit exposure around a corner/obstacle- gonz

[MISFIRE]

True story. Homeboy decided to rob a gun store in Dellwod Mo. Owner and every employee in the store carries in plain sight. Two armed employees and owner in front and two local cops visiting with employee in back. Panicked robber started shooting, 90 degree tilt, gangsta style, randomly spraying bullets mostly right to left not even coming close to hitting anyone, before he suffered multiple hits. Reportedly, not one miss by the gun shop occupants and would be robber expired in minutes on front lawn. Owner was at his desk just inside front door maybe 8 feet from the shooter and said the guy just held the pistol out and pulled the trigger as fast as he could. When I went in about two days later the owner and employees were still talking about the dumb robber incident. As I glanced around I noticed a bullet hole about in a door frame about six feet up from floor , looked closer and found one of the robbers 9 mm bullets still lodged there. Owner has it now as conversation piece and poignant reminder to be vigilant.

[Glockamolie]

Capt. Charlie -

Reminds me of when I was a rookie LEO, along with 2 other new recruits. Lucky for me, I knew the phoenetic alphabet as used by police. They printed up a "fake" phoenetic alphabet for us to study. It started off normally: Adam, Boy, Charles, but then went to an "alternate", like Dad, Emu, Flyswatter... I knew it was bogus, but I didn't tell anyone. I think they may have used an alternate alphabet in one of the Naked Gun movies, too.

[Blackwater OPS]

There ARE situations where a 90 degree cant is beneficial, for example when clearing a room if you need to fire at target to your extreme left(almost behind you) or when kneeling and shooting over a barricade. Bottom line is you MIGHT need to shoot that way in a tense situation. So it could not hurt to train that way every once in a while, to be able to point shoot with a 90 degree cant, if you had to.

[BADMAN400]

I have noticed that a slight cant with weak hand only, helps some to strengthen control and get back on target a little quicker.