How many of you practice dry firing?

[Cymro]

I've gotten started on a daily routine of dry fire practice, mostly focused on trigger control and then drawing/presentation.

I'm curious to know how many of you do the same, what weapons and routines you've used, and what you found most helpful. Having run a search, it's been a while since this came up directly, so I thought I'd open a thread.

Cheers!

[kraigwy]

I'm a huge fan of dry firing.

I think the best tool for dry firing is the laser sight, it shows you where you would be hitting when the hammer falls, otherwise your just guessing.

Years ago, I was shooting a 1000 yard match in Ft Lewis WA. I was walking to the pits with one on my (AK NG Rifle Team) shooters. We had been discussing dry firing and I was trying to convince her the importance of dry firing. She thought it was silly.

We just happen to be walking behind two ladies discussing the same subject. One was telling the other that she had been neglecting her dry firing and her scores were going south. The other asked how much she dry fired, and she said 3 hours a week but needs to get back to a min. of .5 - 1 hour a day.

I knew the ladies, they shot for the Army Reserve. When we got back to Alaska I dug up he history of the AR Shooter and showed my team member. She normally shot the high end of high master scores.

My team mate decided she would give dry firing a try, and she worked hard at it. Jumped two classifications post haste.

[boatdoc173]

when I dry fire , I use a laser cartridge--the feedback helps me . no more flinching for me--lol!

[Sharkbite]

I disagree about the laser for dry practice. Watch the front sight. It will tell you everything you need to know. A dip or wobble in it will correspond with poor hit.

I would much rather practice my "draw stroke" and aligning the sights at speed, then looking downrange at a laser dot.

At conversational distances (under ~5yds) im not going to use the sights, but if ive trained myself to look for them at speed...the hits are better.

[PawPaw]

We dry fire quite a bit, but we've been involved in a new (to us) discipline for the past year.

Practice makes perfect and working the trigger to make a consistent break helps the shot. It really doesn't matter what the discipline is, dry fire helps.

[Skeets]

Dailey dry fire does keep me familiar with my triggers and break points.

[Footslogger]

Yes with the price of ammo not matching up to my finances i am dry firing alot more.

Getting better with my S&W shield is my focus right now and i have been dry firing it every evening.

[Toney]

Yep......

[g.willikers]

Dry firing practice works, plain and simple.
But these days, I tend to use airguns more.
The instant feed back seems to be plenty effective and lots more fun.
The more fun it is, the more I'm likely to do.

[gunnre]

Dry fire daily. Mostly a Shield 9mm. Trigger control has been improving. NIB trigger was very jerky early on. Jerked right. I don't use a laser, more concerned about front sight position staying put on the follow through. Some 500 or so rounds later I'm pleased with my placement at 10 meters. I'd love this gun thro and thro if the trigger was as smooth as my HK P30. Having said this I need to spend more time dry firing my Vaquero and Blackhawk 357's as the first few rounds get sprayed around.

[Mike38]

I dry fire about 30-40 times per week. Back when I shot Bullseye competitively, it was 30-40 times a day.

[Jim243]

Always with a snap cap. Very often, at least daily.


Stay safe.
Jim

[JohnKSa]

I dryfire a good deal. It's not necessarily as good as live fire, but it sure beats not practicing at all.

[45Gunner]

Yup, I dry practice nearly every day that I am not live firing. I dry practice with my EDC gun and some times I practice with my SIRT laser gun.

As an added bonus when dry practicing, I also do it from concealment, something that not a lot of people do, but should include into a session.

[TailGator]

I'm on this train, too. I dry fire almost every day. I own snap caps for every center fire caliber I own, and use them, whether I need them or not. Interesting to read the positive reports on the laser devices, might need to try one. Dry fire allows one to practice presentation, sight alignment, trigger control - pretty much everything except recoil control and rapid fire.

The handgun that I dry fire the most is an old Taurus revolver that I got from my dad. I figure if I can keep that one steady the others will look easy.

[K_Mac]

I do at least a couple of days each week, for 15-20 minutes. It makes a big difference in trigger control and consistent grip. Not as good as live firing, but great practice that can be done most anytime.

[Dufus]

In 60 years of shooting, I have never found a need for dry firing, unless it was while doing some work on the action. Just never saw the need to create any extra wear on the firearm.

[g.willikers]

It's hard to imagine the idea not engaging in the useful practice of dry firing, just for preserving firearms.
At the very least they are sporting equipment.
Does anyone care of they preserve their ball bat or tennis racket?
At the very most, our guns are life saving gear meant to serve us, not the other way 'round.
Besides, dry firing is less wear and tear than actual firing.
Unless ya' have a shootin' range in the back yard that can be used whenever, dry firing is a decent substitute for regular practice.
Just a thought.

[cc-hangfire]

Yes, & for two purposes. I use an older handgun with a horribly heavy trigger (+/-19#) for hand strength, and I use my carry guns (with snap caps) to be intimately familiar with their break and reset. About 5 or 6 days a week, a couple hundred fires each time. I'm getting older & it keeps my grip strong and my trigger squeeze steady.

[SIGSHR]

Just about every day, I use snap caps.

[ms6852]

I have shot every single thing in my house hundreds of times. I practice with a laser all the time , heck the dog automatically plays dead anytime it sees the red dot, the cat on the other hand is another story.

[boondocker385]

All the Tim for 30 years...from concealment and while practicing clearing rooms

[Ricklin]

Every bad guy on the TV is deader than a doornail.

[Fade2Grey]

Dry fire has proven to be beneficial to far better marksman than I.

I dry fire for a number of reasons. It helps me practice trigger control, is fun, in the budget, allows me to become more intimately familiar with my firearms manual of arms, etc.

I incorporate drawing, presentation, grip, trigger control, sight alignment sight picture, stance, even reaction time. I "dry" practice magazine changes, why not practice pulling the trigger?

It should be said to not dry fire rimfire firearms, as the strike can peen the chamber.

It should also be said that dry fire should be done as safely as live fire. I leave live ammunition completely out of the room and still keep my firearm pointed towards a safe backstop.

The TV has served me well for target acquisition and reaction time. From the holster, I wait for the scene to change, or the camera to cut to another one, etc, then I perceive the first actor that appears as the threat, draw and fire. Repetition.

I don't use an expensive carry gun that has collector value in its original parts. As for wearing parts, I find the dry firing practice I do to be minimally invasive. Replacing springs should be a regular interval anyway. I don't have plastic sheeting on my couch either. Having said that, I am not the most financially responsible.

If I had the time and money, I would live fire every day. I don't, so I can't, so I dry fire.

[AZ-Quailhunter]

Yes.....at least 3 times a week for an hour or so....keep a snap cap in the chamber and just keep cocking the hammer.