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(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the two-part article.)

Firing from a Rest

When comparing the accuracy of various ammo, it was usually helpful to fire from rest rather than offhand. This involved putting a couple of dense foam blocks on a table, and resting the frame of the gun just in front of the trigger guard on the blocks. It helped to have my arms extended in front of me just like I was firing offhand, but with the gun resting on the foam blocks for extra stability.

At first, I sat by the table in a chair while firing from rest. Leaning forward over the table made it difficult for me to tilt my head back far enough to focus on the front sight through my bifocals. Kneeling by the table rather than sitting in a chair gave me a better angle for acquiring the sights.

CLP and Hoppe’s No. 9

Decades ago when I took my hunter safety course in junior high, military surplus ammo using corrosive primers was still in common use. As a result, our instructors recommended cleaning our firearms after every outing. Old habits die hard, so I still clean my guns after every range session. Growing up, I always used the Outers gun oil that my Father used. Later on, my father-in-law, who had served in the military, gave me some Break-Free CLP. For a while I used that exclusively. Then I discovered that Hoppe’s #9 bore cleaning solvent was more effective than CLP at cutting through carbon deposits and other dirt during the early stages of cleaning. Hoppe’s No. 9 is also less expensive per ounce than CLP, making it a less expensive solution for the preliminary stages of cleaning. I continue to use CLP for the final stages of coating the bore and other parts that need lubrication and/or protection from rust.

Dry Fire Practice

Although many people shoot the Hi-Point C9 well, I found its gritty double action trigger difficult to master. In retrospect, I should have invested more time in dry fire practice. Dry fire practice involves holding the unloaded gun steadily on target (on a safe backstop) while pulling the trigger.

Note: Dry firing is not recommended with most rimfire firearms, since the firing pin may eventually damage the edge of the chamber. With a centerfire gun, it may be wise to use a snap cap during dry fire practice in order to reduce stress on the firing pin.

One way to test whether or not you are holding the gun steady during dry fire practice is to balance something like an empty cartridge case on the top of the frame while you pull the trigger. The goal is to pull the trigger smoothly enough that the balanced object does not fall off.

Since I did not do enough dry fire practice, I was not able to shoot the C9 as well as I should have. If my goal had been simply to hit man sized targets at home defense ranges, my skill with the C9 would have been sufficient. But I wanted to do better than that.Continue reading“A Beginner’s Handgun Journey, Part 2 by The Novice”