The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Gunset Training Group or its affiliates.
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This was the second of three Gunset class I’m taking this spring and it didn’t disappoint. My AAR for the Shotgun Foundations class is here. Since I hosted the class, I was comped a spot. I didn’t really pay attention to the course description until the night before the class, so I didn’t realize what the class was all about until then. Gunset calls this the “Pistol Applications” class, but what it really should be called is the “we’re gonna push you way outta your comfort zone and make you work” class. It was a good day.
Let’s talk about the students and their gear real quick before moving on. Including me, there were 6 students in the class from a varied background. I don’t think anyone was a first time student based on the conversations we had throughout the day. Five of us were shooting some flavor of optic equipped Glock. The sixth student was shooting an iron-sighted Taurus GX4XL T.O.R.O. Optics included RMRs, DP Pros and Holosuns. Holsters included JM Custom Kydex, Tier 1 Concealment, a Safariland duty rig and one more that I can’t recall. I don’t recall any gun problems, but I did see a few ammo issues (mostly primers that didn’t go bang when hit hard enough that they should). I was shooting MaxxTech 115gr and had two that didn’t go bang when struck. Not sure what the other brands were. I was shooting a GritGrips G19 size clone – GG frame, Brownells windowed slide, Glock internals, Monsoon Tactical Lucky 7 ported barrel with a Holosun 507c. I’ll do some sort of review on the GG frame later, but it’s one of my favorite aftermarket frames.
The course description from the Gunset Eventbrite website says: “In this course, you will employ your firearm from various positions of postural instability, and work through problem solving in the context of armed conflict. There will be a lot of getting down on the ground and getting back up, so please keep that in mind if you have any physical limitations. This is not an entry level course.” And they weren’t lying. Of the 300+ rounds that each student shot, I’d say less than a 1/3 were from the “conventional” position of standing with both hands on the gun.
Teaching the class was Scott Cronin, owner and founder of Gunset. Assisting him was Bobby P. The day started with a discussion about the OODA loop, skill, task loading/bandwidth, automaticity, shot placement, speed vs. accuracy, efficiency, cover and a few other things. After that there was a safety brief. During the safety brief, muzzle direction was of course discussed and Scott used a term that I plan to steal – “direction of least consequence”. It was a very thorough brief and everyone understood what role they played in an emergency.
After the safety brief we hit the line. For most of the day we shot at Gunset’s Standards target (see pic) and we started with single shots, using both hands, from the low ready into the 3×5” heart box. After maybe 30 rounds we switched to strong hand only (SHO). Before we started shooting SHO, Scott talked about the different methods/theories of gripping the pistol, controlling recoil and getting the dot/sights back on target quickly. One of the things I appreciate about Scott’s method of instruction in that he’s not a “this is the only way to do things” kind of instructor. He presents options, but also tells you which he prefers and why. This is one of those areas where he and I have different preferred methods. I tried out his preferred method, but in the end decided that it didn’t work well for me. Single shots were replaced with three round strings and then we did the same thing with weak hand only (WHO).
After SHO and WHO, we started working on the SHO draw. Scott discussed it at length and then demonstrated some different methods of getting our pistols out. Then we tried the different methods with unloaded guns and when everyone was comfortable with the technique they preferred we started drawing SHO and shooting.
After we got through the SHO and WHO portions, we moved on to those “positions of postural instability” referenced earlier. Fights often end up with the victim off their feet and on their butt, back, side, whatever. If you’ve never drawn/shot from those positions it can be a little disconcerting the first time you have to do it. For safety reasons, finger guns were used to get students comfortable with the techniques Scott showed them.
Once everyone (especially Scott) was comfortable with the techniques, we moved to the line and repeated the techniques with unloaded guns and then we went live. None of these techniques were new to me since we’ve been doing them at work for years. I have to say I was impressed with how well the students performed. Running a line of shooters through these drills can get tricky if it isn’t done right and Scott did a fantastic job of keeping things moving in a safe manner.
The capstone drill for this section involved a 9 port barricade at 25 yards. Each student had to shoot a 10×12” steel plate 7 times, but each hit had to be from a different port. All done while all the other students watched.
Next we moved on to malfunction clearing using SHO or WHO. This was all done using dummy rounds for safety reasons. I think I was the only student who had any experience with these techniques, but the rest of the class picked up the techniques quickly.
Throughout the day there were various unplanned conversations about weapon mounted lights vs. hand held lights, the dynamics of bullet performance into cars and who knows what else. Although each conversation took a little bit of time off the range, I think everyone benefited from them.
And to finish the day, Scott ran everyone through the Gunset Pistol Standards. The standards (times listed are for the advanced/master rating) include:
⁃ 1 from the low ready (1 second or less)
⁃ 1 from the holster (2 seconds or less)
⁃ Malfunction clearance then 2 shots (3 seconds or less)
⁃ 1 reload 1 (4 seconds or less)
⁃ 5 from the holster (5 seconds or less)
To get a master rating and accompanying Gunset patch, all the hits needed to be within the 3×5 heart box. Hitting the times, but being on the paper gives you an advanced rating. Basic rating is on the paper but gives you an extra second for each standard. I was able to hit all the master standards on the first run with my GG19.
Since I hit all the standards on my first run, I asked Scott if I could try again with a revolver. He agreed, so I switched to my iron sighted 3” Model 67. For the malfunction drill standard, we decided that I’d load the revolver with 2 and run through the 4 empty chambers before firing the last 2. He didn’t give me any break for the reloading standard. I was able to nail all the standards but the reload. First attempt was a 4.49. Second attempt was a 6 something. I think it’s doable, I’m just gonna have to put the work in. In the end, two of us shot master level standards and won our patches.
Scott and Bobby did a great job keeping everything safe and offering individual attention where it was needed. Scott got to demo all the exercises we shot, but I think Bobby felt left out. He stepped up to the line when we shot the standards and shot them cold, absolutely crushing them with master level hits and times.
If you’re looking for a class that pushes you out of your comfort zone and teaches you some critical skills that you may need down the road, you owe it to yourself to take this class.
