Subject: Interesting Perspectives on Firearms in Close Combat...

Friend,

It's another random video Friday here at the Best Damned Martial Arts Business Newsletter. So here goes...

The first video I'm sending you today is another one from Funker Tactical. They always seem to produce interesting content, and while you may not always agree with the stuff they produce, it is guaranteed to make you think.

This video discusses deploying a sidearm from close contact with an attacker. If you teach defensive tactics or handgun disarms, this is one to watch from both a weapon retention and weapon disarm perspective:


Here's another Funker video showing how quickly a holstered firearm can be taken from a non-retention holster in the clinch:


Seems that the lesson between these two videos is, if you have to draw at close combat range, you want to stay out of the clinch until your weapon has cleared the holster. Of course, no plan survives contact with the enemy, but it's something to keep in mind in training.

Now, here's an interesting consideration both for the person deploying a sidearm at close quarters, and for a person who might be defending a gun draw at close quarters. 

Besides redirecting the muzzle, how do you prevent the shooter from emptying the magazine into you at close range?

Some systems teach the barrel grab, while others say you'll get your hand cut, the slide cycles too quickly, escaping gas will damage your hand, and so on. 

The bottom line is, it's preferable to only be shot once than shot six times or more at close range (and better to not be shot at all). And, I'd rather get a few cuts on my hand than be gut shot, even with a small caliber round.

Here's a video from some European trainers on what happens when you grab the barrel of an automatic as it's firing, preventing the side from cycling:

https://youtu.be/KVtXPIjM3jQ

I'll let you decide what the best tactic is in such a situation.

As a footnote to this discussion, as a young man I spent a year working nights as an ER tech in a hospital where we saw stabbings and gunshot wounds every single weekend.

You'd be surprised what a person can survive. A single gunshot wound to the torso, or even multiple gunshot wounds, won't always stop a person. Nor will a single stab wound or sometimes even multiple stab wounds to the torso. (At least, not immediately, unless it hits the spine, heart, or aorta—but let's not get into an anatomy discussion here).

What I'm saying is, teach your students to keep fighting, until their last breath. If you can instill that attitude in them, it's more likely to save their lives than any physical technique you can teach them.

Until next time,

Mike Massie
MartialArtsBusinessDaily.com

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P.S. - And for all you Mortal Combat fans out there, this is why you don't bring kung-fu to a gun fight: https://youtu.be/w1fG-nvKzWw

P.S.S. - If you teach womens' self-defense classes, here's a good one to share with your students: http://www.kiro7.com/news/local/survivor-of-golden-gardens-attack-shares-her-story/500950165
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