Why is it so hard to shoot one-handed? But why do you need to learn this skill? And why is the Taurus GX2 the perfect gun to use to practice? Here is my experience.
Raise your hand if you hate shooting one-handed. I know I sure do. It pushes my comfort zone and my confidence level. Of course, that confidence improves as I practice.
Raise your hand if you really-really hate shooting with your non-dominant hand. Yep, me too. Right-handed, I’m OK. But left-handed? I always say my left arm is just there for balance and decoration, it doesn’t do much work.
But honestly, that’s just because I don’t work it. It can do the work if I let it, if I make it. How do I know for sure? Because in 2010 I had an issue with my right shoulder and it was determined I needed surgery. Surgery was scheduled, then had to be rescheduled for a month later when I got sick after going to the state fair.
During that following month my shoulder hurt worse and worse, so I used it less and less. I had to make myself use my left arm because I could barely use my right. By the time I had surgery, I could use my left arm quite well. I could even write legibly with it, which I didn’t even know was possible.
Recovery was easy, by then I had full use of my left arm. But once I could use my right arm again, I slacked back off my left arm and it became “decoration” again.
At this time, it was early on in my journey into learning to shoot. I started taking classes and learning a lot – like what would happen if my right arm was injured and I needed to shoot with my left to save my life. Yikes. Could I do it if my left arm wasn’t trained and strengthened? That was a scary thought, and I certainly didn’t want to find out in the moment.
This is when it became painfully obvious that training ourselves to shoot one-handed could literally be lifesaving. That is why we need to regularly practice shooting one-handed and to also practice with our non-dominant hand. It’s easy to forget and get out of the habit.
It can be scary to shoot one-handed if you’ve never done it. It can feel very intimidating shooting with a larger size gun that you are used to controlling with both hands. But this is where the Taurus GX2 comes in. It’s a great size, one that you can feel more like you are in control with just one hand. It has a comfortable grip with a nice curve that feels great in almost any size of hand.
You don’t need to buy any new products or gadgets to practice with your Taurus GX2 and become more comfortable and proficient in one-handed shooting. The easiest way to start is to use an empty gun and dry fire to build your strength, stamina and comfort. Simply use the dry-fire drills or systems that you already use two-handed, such as putting the penny on the front sight to practice trigger control. You may think that is too simple, you’ve done it a million times and have it down pat. But have you ever tried it with your non-dominant hand? It’s more challenging than you think.
Choose Your Stance
You can shoot one-handed either in the Bullseye stance, where you are turned sideways with your non-shooting hand down at your side or tucked into your pants pocket, or the personal defense stance – where your body is facing forward with your non-shooting arm bent and your fist held tightly to your chest. I use the personal defense stance because I am much better at it than the Bullseye stance. That could be because when you make a fist, the theory is that your gun hand will respond to the tension from your fist and help you maintain a better grip with your shooting hand. Also, it puts more bones between your heart area and the trajectory of a bullet. Experiment and see which works best for you.
After you get comfortable dry firing, take out your Taurus GX2 for regular one-handed shooting drills and you will become confident and competent in no time at all. You’ll no longer worry whether you will have the dexterity and skill to save your life if you only have the use of one arm.
MSRP: $309.00.
Nancy Keaton is the Facilitator for the Waco Chapter of A Girl and A Gun Women’s Shooting League. She formerly shot in IDPA, ASI and 3 Gun matches, was the president of Centralia Rifle Club in Centralia, WA, and is a retired college administrator. Her work has appeared in multiple publications and online. Check them out on her website and on Muckrack. View all posts by Nancy Keaton
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