Originally Posted By: Pablo
Ever shot a death star, aka Texas Star?
Yes.
And I love them.
Not because I'm good at shooting them, but because they help prove a point I often try to make about defensive shooting.
Texas Stars will show up at some IPSC and IPSC 3-gun matches around here a few times a year, and they can be humbling. Even shooters who are ordinarily wizards at anything will sometimes get whipped by them. They might have even mowed down the Star the last three matches it was used, but then it will bite them. Likewise, mediocre shooters get lucky sometimes. I have watched really good guys empty their guns on that thing, and I'm talking 20-shot guns.
You never know how it's going to go for somebody.
All of which helps prove the point I was talking about.
I often hear people put off the idea of carrying anything but the absolute bare minimum for self-defense (a small gun they don't shoot all that well and/or no spare magazines) because the small gun with no reload is "all they need". Really? How does anyone know what they will need? Even if you were to get attacked by only one person, the bare minimum might not be enough.
I think the Texas Star helps demonstrate this.
The plates are roughly the size of the vital zone on a lot of targets.
You are shooting it at a known distance, which is usually a reasonable gunfight distance.
You know it's coming, so you have time to prepare.
You aren't occupied with something else, so can dedicate your attention to the problem before you have to deal with it.
You have usually been shooting already, so are "warmed up".
You know more or less how it will move, and the targets will move around one path.
It's usually in the open, with no "cover" or concealment.
It's daylight, and usually OK weather.
And the Star isn't shooting back.
Yet it gives people fits. For being a known entity, it sure hands out a lot of unknowns. The same people who have cleared it easily have walked up to it and fired off 15 rounds to clear the plates.
Will a gunfight be easier or harder?
It could be easier, but will probably be harder.
You might clear that situation easily or you might not, so carry what gives you the best chance in the worst case.
Ever shot a death star, aka Texas Star?
Yes.
And I love them.
Not because I'm good at shooting them, but because they help prove a point I often try to make about defensive shooting.
Texas Stars will show up at some IPSC and IPSC 3-gun matches around here a few times a year, and they can be humbling. Even shooters who are ordinarily wizards at anything will sometimes get whipped by them. They might have even mowed down the Star the last three matches it was used, but then it will bite them. Likewise, mediocre shooters get lucky sometimes. I have watched really good guys empty their guns on that thing, and I'm talking 20-shot guns.
You never know how it's going to go for somebody.
All of which helps prove the point I was talking about.
I often hear people put off the idea of carrying anything but the absolute bare minimum for self-defense (a small gun they don't shoot all that well and/or no spare magazines) because the small gun with no reload is "all they need". Really? How does anyone know what they will need? Even if you were to get attacked by only one person, the bare minimum might not be enough.
I think the Texas Star helps demonstrate this.
The plates are roughly the size of the vital zone on a lot of targets.
You are shooting it at a known distance, which is usually a reasonable gunfight distance.
You know it's coming, so you have time to prepare.
You aren't occupied with something else, so can dedicate your attention to the problem before you have to deal with it.
You have usually been shooting already, so are "warmed up".
You know more or less how it will move, and the targets will move around one path.
It's usually in the open, with no "cover" or concealment.
It's daylight, and usually OK weather.
And the Star isn't shooting back.
Yet it gives people fits. For being a known entity, it sure hands out a lot of unknowns. The same people who have cleared it easily have walked up to it and fired off 15 rounds to clear the plates.
Will a gunfight be easier or harder?
It could be easier, but will probably be harder.
You might clear that situation easily or you might not, so carry what gives you the best chance in the worst case.
