Posted on 10/04/2012 8:21:47 PM PDT by DogByte6RER
So why do gangsters aim their guns sideways? Marine marksman sheds light on how gunmen from the 'hood unwittingly use a well-known aiming technique
It's an iconic image immortalised in dozens of Hollywood gangster films: the gangster aiming down the side of his pistol before pumping a volley of bullets into his victim.
But with most people knowing that the aiming sights are found on the top of a gun barrel, it's also a counter-intuitive way to accurately fire a weapon.
So why is it that gangsters are always shown using their guns in this way? According to Jon Davis, a former marksmanship instructor with the U.S. Marine Corp, there is a good reason, at least in theory.
As a specialist in pistol marksmanship and a veteran of the war in Iraq, Mr Davis has fired these kinds of weapons thousands of times.
He explains that when aiming a handgun in the conventional, barrel-up manner the rear sites must line up with the front sight in the horizontal and vertical planes to make sure the bullet travels a straight line.
This important technique, known as 'building the castle' since the gunman has to line up the three 'turrets' into an even position, ensures that the barrel of the gun is aligned perfectly along the trajectory he wants the bullet to travel.
The problem with 'building the castle' each time you want to fire your gun is that it takes time. Time you might not have in a combat situation - or alternatively when you want to quickly execute your victim and make a fast getaway.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Yep.
Point-and-shoot shooting can be very accurate. It's the essence of shotgunning.
“If you need a quick shit that is very effective practice punching your target.”
The “I” and “O” really are close together on a key board aren’t they?
OOhhh, way cool
Having been unwittingly caught up in a gang-banger, dual-pistol execution field-of-fire (New Orleans, 2006), I can tell you that there are so many bullets, pieces of brick, cars, and everything else flying around, the shooter is bound to hit something. I was flat on the ground. My partner got part of a round in the top of the skull, but he’s a marine, so it didn’t hurt much. There were two others wounded, one fatality. These guys don’t aim, and they don’t get usually get caught, either. They don’t expect to live long, and they most interested in speed and volume.
Doubtful that any of the gangsters have any concept of aiming, it’s point and shoot, that’s why so many innocent bystanders get shot.
And I'm OK with that because when the SHTF it gives me a tactical advantage.
Not a hand gun shooter, but wonder if holding it like that would interfere with ejection of spent shells.
Being left handed, and given the ejection pattern of my 1911, I'd wind up having the hot cases hit me in the knees or shins.
For a righty, my guess is that it would launch them over his head.
Mark
No Shot!
Lol. Depends. One of my guns seemed to *always* give me a hot shell down my shirt front :). Whatever way it was aimed.
The real fasties use wheelguns. Slide can’t cycle fast enough to keep up with an expert revolver shooter.
They think that’s the way you shoot it because that’s how it comes out of the box.
Sorry, but they do it to look cool (which they don’t). Some even hold it up too high to even pretend to be aiming.
Thank you both.
” First, they are called “sights”, not sites.”
Really? Cite?
;)
The problem with tilt style shooting is that it is almost impossible to acquire a reliable sight alignment.
and... ...you have absolutely no way of knowing if the weapon is tilted down below your field of vision from the back of the weapon.
and......you never actually take the same shot twice since you are never actually aiming the same way.
Then, from all those negatives, he somehow ends up with this...
This, Mr Davis adds, shows that there is in fact a rational method behind why gangsters aim their weapon side on.
Thanks anyway, but I think I'll stay away from both the method and the twisted nonsensical logic.
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