One-handed shooting—whether with your non-dominant or dominant hand—can come into play for many reasons: for example, an injury or the need to use one hand for tasks such as opening doors or using a flashlight. (Photo submitted by the author)
October 01, 2024
By Richard Nance
While a two-handed grip with your dominant hand pressing the trigger is going to feel most natural, injury or having to fight, fend, open a door, move someone aside or operate a flashlight with one hand could require you to shoot one-handed—maybe even with your non-dominant hand. While you may never shoot as well with one hand as with two, being proficient at shooting with either hand could save the day in a defensive scenario.
If shooting with just your dominant hand, you should grip the pistol exactly as you would if your support hand was involved. Contrary to how I was taught, you don’t have to step forward with your dominant-side leg. This motion is often exaggerated to the point where the shooter resembles a fencer lunging forward with the gun as if it were a sword. It’s grip, not stance, that matters when shooting one-handed.
If you’re not gripping with sufficient pressure, you’re likely to “limp wrist” the pistol and induce a malfunction. Grip as tightly as you can, and tense your shooting arm to help provide a solid base, so the gun remains still as the slide reciprocates. Focus on squeezing the pistol’s grip as if it were a pair of pliers. This is actually how you should grip the pistol with your dominant hand even when shooting two-handed.
There’s no need to cant the pistol inward as though you were punching. There’s nothing wrong with canting the gun if it feels more comfortable, but it’s not necessary and it results in a different sight picture, which can make aiming more difficult. Just think of shooting with a two-handed grip minus the second hand.
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Foreign Feeling Shooting with your non-dominant hand is even more challenging. The gun feels different than when it’s in your dominant hand, but that’s not the worst part. The real issue becomes pressing the trigger with your less-dexterous index finger. It takes practice to exert steady rearward pressure on the trigger without disturbing the pistol’s alignment. It’s easy to miss with your non-dominant hand, even at close distance.
Once you get the hang of shooting one-handed, you can incorporate more realistic applications like shooting while using a flashlight. Again, it’s best to start with a non-firing training pistol because when you add a flashlight to the mix, you might inadvertently get your non-shooting hand or arm in front of the muzzle. A training gun will enable you to learn proper flashlight shooting technique without risk of injury.
Once you’re confident you won’t sweep yourself with the muzzle, you’re ready for live fire. You need to experience what it’s like to shoot using the various flashlight techniques. In the beginning, adding a light to the mix can be a distraction that compromises marksmanship. It also takes practice to develop the coordination required to illuminate both the target and the sights on your gun.
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In close quarters, you may need to shoot one-handed because your other hand is striking, shoving or posting on an assailant to create or maintain distance. You can run into safety issues because one hand may be forward of the muzzle. Again, break out the training gun.
Train, Train, Train A good way to maintain a safe firing lane is to keep your non-shooting hand and arm at roughly head height while orienting the muzzle downward with the shooting hand. To ensure safe and consistent muzzle alignment, draw the elbow of your shooting arm as far back as possible while maintaining a locked wrist.
Flag your thumb and place it against your pectoral muscle. This serves as a physical index and ensures your muzzle is oriented downward. It also creates a gap between the pistol and your body, so the slide won’t snag on your clothing when you fire. Shots fired from here will likely impact the pelvic region of an assailant at arm’s length.
Shooting a pistol two-handed is preferred for accuracy and recoil control. However, circumstances may call for you to shoot while one hand is injured or occupied. As such, being skilled at one-handed shooting is a valuable ability for the defensive handgunner.
Other Considerations Before you can shoot, you will probably need to draw your gun from its holster. This is no big deal with your dominant hand, but depending on where your holster is situated and your flexibility, drawing with your other hand can be next to impossible. The closer your gun is worn to your centerline, the easier it will be to draw with your non-dominant hand.
In any event, it’s a good idea to train with an inert training gun or an unloaded pistol (check and double-check) until you become proficient at drawing with a sure grip, without allowing the muzzle of your gun to cover any part of your body.
As you can guess, clearing a malfunction with only one hand—especially when it’s your non-dominant hand—can take more time than you can spare in a self-defense situation. Both of these topics require more space than we have room for here, but it’s something to consider.
