Dennis DeChant

Home Defense Ammunition: Test It Like Your Life Depends On It

The first thing I want to start off by saying is that there is no “magic bullet”. What I mean by that is you can have the sexiest hollow point projectile on the market running through your gun but if you don’t hit what you are aiming at or your weapon doesn’t feed or shoot the ammo you are running in it you might as well pick up a baseball bat instead.

Many of us when we train with our personal defense weapons we utilize the cheapest ball ammunition we can find and for good reason. We do this because it allows us to hone our skills in an affordable manner. If you are shopping for defensive ammunition you will notice that a 25 round box of ammo is extremely expensive in comparison to the ball ammo we utilize for training. With that being said do not make the mistake of buying that single box of “Defensive ammunition” and not running it in your gun until you absolutely need it. If you are planning on using a certain type of ammunition specifically to save your life or the life of someone else you need to make sure it functions properly in your weapon. Bite the bullet and shoot a few mags of the high dollar ammo so you know without a reasonable doubt that it will perform when you need it.

I know this sounds like common sense to some of you but I can assure you that I have witnessed seasoned shooters make this mistake. This type of mistake can be an unforgiveable one. It’s well worth the extra 25 dollars to absolutely know your weapon is going to work properly in that high stress situation. I will tell you that if I was faced with that high stressed defensive situation I would choose my ball training ammo that I know functions over a high dollar hollow point round I have never fired before.

Photo courtesy of Sig Sauer

Shotgun Patterning Important For Personal Defense

For years I never really understood the importance of patterning a shotgun. I always just figured for close in work I would use 00 Buckshot and if I had to take a longer shot I would use a slug. Well that theory will work for you if your not concerned with unaccountable rounds down range.

Now that I am a professional shooter I look at this theory a lot differently. The truth is every round that comes out of my weapon I am accountable for. I now see every round that goes downrange as a potential liability.

In the case of your typical 00 buckshot round I am accountable for nine .33 caliber rounds going downrange every time a pull the trigger. That means every time I pull the trigger there are nine possible liabilities going downrange that I can’t take back so I better know where they are going. The last thing I want to do is mistakenly shoot an innocent by standard because my shotgun patterns wider than my target at 15 yards.

Patterning is extremely important in the role of a personal defense shotgun. There are many things to take into consideration. We need to look at all of those considerations before we decide on what type of ammo we are going to be sending down hallways and across rooms in our home. We also need to know exactly where innocent by standards are located in and around our homes.

Patterning a shotgun is fairly simple. I typically will fire my shotgun from a bench rest position at a body silhouette target holding at the same aiming point each time. I will engage the target three times. I will then repeat this process at 10, 15, 20, and 25 yards. I keep track of the type of ammo I am using and the shot data in a logbook. It’s important to keep track of the ammo type, manufacturer, and lot number because your patterns will differ when these things change.

By Patterning your shotgun you will now realize the limitations of the weapon and the ammo being utilized. This will greatly enhance your effectiveness with this tool. It will also allow you to make an educated decision to modify your shotgun with chokes, and other aftermarket mods to improve your weapons performance.

Gun Fighting with the Correct Sights

A question I often get asked by my students is what type of sights should on my handgun. The answer to that question is it all depends on what the application of your handgun is. The classes I teach are all about surviving a dynamic situation that involves life and limb. So that is what I am going to concentrate on here.

There are all sorts of fancy whiz-bang sight options on the market. Some of them will greatly enhance speed and accuracy. Most of the high-end sight packages are easily adjustable with screws and turrets. Yes these sights are nice when you’re shooting on a range or on the competition scene. However they do have some major downfalls when it comes to a dynamic environment where you are running into obstacles and fighting one or multiple assailants. The bottom line is most of these sight options when smacked against something can and will break.

The ones that are adjustable when smacked into a wall or dropped accidentally will lose their zero. Make no mistake if you find yourself in situations like the one described above those mishaps will happen. When you have to defend yourself and take down an assailant you will have to do it aggressively. That is the big problem with the adjustable and fiber optic sight options on the market.

I tell my students to run a basic sight like the one on a stock Glock. This type of sight is extremely rugged and it can be adjusted if you have the right tools. They can also be adjusted with rudimentary tools if you choose to do so. For example a rock and a leatherman. Don’t laugh I have done it before and it does work. I have been known to pull out some backwoods methods in the past. I am also a Marine and adapting and overcoming runs in the blood.

There is one more additional reason other than what I mentioned earlier that I prefer to run a basic sight option. This type of sight with a square shoulder makes it very easy to conduct a single-handed reload. I know we all like to think we aren’t going to be shot or injured in a confrontation but that is simply not always the case.

We as professional gunfighters, or CCW holders, need to have the mindset of survival and adapting to the dynamic violent conditions that we might find ourselves in. I’ve always said that if you play with snakes long enough you are going to get bit. It is important that we are prepared to the best of our abilities to succeed and overcome our enemy. To do that we must train for the worst-case scenario.

To do a one handed reload or malfunction drill you have to have the ability to clear and charge the weapon with one hand. You can do this type of function fairly easily and efficiently if you have a square shouldered rear sight. If you utilize the rear sight of your handgun correctly you can hook the sight on your belt, pocket or magazine holder. You can also utilize a desk or some other flat surface to charge the weapon. You would be hard pressed to do this type of maneuver with an adjustable or fiber optic sight without the risk of damage.

I hope this article gives you all something to chew on before you choose your next sight option for your gun-fighting handgun.

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