Practical Pistol Reloaded

I've been shooting for a long time and was one of those guys that thought I was a good shooter (and wasn't bad) until I started shooting competitively (USPSA production). It was quite a humbling experience but I was open minded to correcting all the wrong and getting better. Hence the Practical Pistol Reloaded purchase.Ben's suggested techniques have made me an infinitely better shooter in just a few months (with focused nightly dry-fire practice and weekly live-fire) compared to the many "tactical" based classes I've attended and years of applying those kinds of techniques.Also, Ben has referenced other top shooter's techniques that add some contrast to his methods so his material and suggestions aren't dogmatic at all (unlike the typical tac/NRA mindset).Instead of a normal review, here's a couple of examples of the differences between your typical, dogmatic tactical/NRA class and Stoeger's methods that really changed my game. I specify these as I feel they could easily be used within a tactical and self-defense context.Grip:STOEGER: grip the s**t out of the gun with the non-dominant handTAC CLASS: "lock" the wrist and roll the shoulders forward and finish by making the coolest looking "is-someone-trying-to-give-me-a-reach-around?" scan possibleGripping the gun extremely hard with my non-dominant hand drastically improved my shooting very quickly. It is easily the most effective thing I've done throughout my years of shooting. Right up there with shooting with both eyes open. I think some of the tac/NRA classes "locking of the wrist" method is an attempt to explain gripping hard but one explanation makes clear, logical sense rooted in results and one is more of a regurgitated misnomer that stays alive via the internet.Muscle tension:STOEGER: Relax muscle tension but still grip hardTAC CLASS: Roll shoulders forward (which takes more time) and induce muscle tension to help control recoilBeing relaxed and gripping hard controls recoil, the other doesn't. Try it.Sight picture:STOEGER: target focus on close targets (<15yds) i.e. sights are on target but blurred. Front sight focus on slightly harder targets. Sharp front sight focus and confirmed alignment on difficult targets like a mini-popper at 25 yards.TACTICAL CLASS: same sight picture for EVERY scenario.Shooting target focused has really sped up my transitions and split times. Never thought or heard of that before as I was always focused on my sights.Trigger control:STOEGER: slap the trigger or pin the reset but don't affect the sight picture and do it quicklyTAC CLASS: pull the trigger back and release until reset, rinse and repeat, but NEVER slap the trigger and for the love of all holy, never ignore reset.Do a google search about the importance of trigger reset. Then read what Ben and most other top level pros think about it.Shot calling:STOEGER: Is knowing where you hit on the target at ignitionTAC CLASS: Usually not approached or misinterpreted with shooting accuratelyThis one has taken the most time as I had to fix a a proper but weak grip, not great trigger control, slow/hesitant index and some subconscious blinking or flinching issues. But I've gotten a lot better at this.Great book! Highly recommended.I added a photo of my USPSA gun (CZ Shadow 2) so my review looks cooler.

I have all the Stoeger books because they make you a GM by just reading them (although I haven't figured out how yet)... All kidding aside I grabbed this more so to see what was different from the first iteration, and I wasn't disappointed. The rewrite is pretty fantastic actually. I love reading materials that are current to the times (there are a lot decent books out there that should follow suite) Stoeger has reworked and updated this book to make it relevant. The competition is different now that it was 10 - 5 - even a few years ago and Reloaded improves on all of that and actually offers some great information on it. If you are just starting out in Practical shooting this book is a literal GOLDMINE for you. If you are a seasoned shooter this book still offers a ton of great content. I will say this though - Don't go in to reading this book with the premise is that all you need to do is read it and you will get better - it may help a bit, but you need to actually APPLY what you are reading and get out there and practice. When you do that, the $20 bucks you spend on this book is damn well worth it.

The new, reloaded version is well worth the cost. It's a no brainer for anyone starting to shoot USPSA matches. But it's also useful for experienced shooters. I read the first version when it came out three years ago. I also attended one of Ben's classes. At the time I was an A class shooter. Since then I've moved into M class. But I've discovered that making progress now is all about the "little" things, especially marksmanship fundamentals. Reading through the updated book has helped me re-focus on what I need to improve on in order to shoot with the accuracy and consistency necessary for winning stages and matches. So even though I'm been shooting USPSA for a while now, I've highlighted at least one or two things in each chapter to work on in dry-fire and live-fire training. A lot of the books on shooting have either too much "philosophy" in them or they just don't give the kind of practical down-to-earth advice someone needs to make real improvements in one's performance in matches. Anyone who wants to improve his competition pistol shooting and is willing to train at home and on the range with some regularity will find the advice in this book extremely valuable.

First off this is a great book. Probably one of the best on pistol shooting fundamentals. It’s great if you’re a new or casual gun owner, or if you’re looking to get into USPSA or IDPA competition shooting. This book is very comprehensive. My one issue is there’s very little emphasis on pistol optics, as this edition is from 2016. In 2024, almost everyone who competes uses an optic (including Ben). Most law enforcement officers and many casual gun owners have also moved to optics as well. The vast majority of the techniques in this book are important fundamentals no matter what sighting system you use, so it’s still a very valuable book even if you use a dot. However, I would like to see a new edition of this book with a greater discussion of using optics.

A lot of information. Laid out well for the reader. I’m going to read his other books.

It is embarresing to me the amount of time and money I have spent (WASTED) on other live training classes, books, online coures, and viedo courses.Believe me, this book contains more useful trainining information than all the others I have tried combined.Do yourself a favor and try this one first. Then after you have worked, I mean really worked with this one a few months and boredom, or couorisity gets the best of you, go ahead and blow some of your hard earned cash on some ot the other junk out there. It won't take you very long to understand what I am saying if you have really applied yourself to Ben's Book.Thank You Ben Stoeger

A book that breaks down the fundamental skills for someone who has just entered the sport and is hungry to learn it well.

O livro aborda todos os pontos importantes do tiro, sendo assim, começa bem do básico e, caso você já seja um atirador experiente, só vai aproveitar mesmo os 35,40% finais do livro. Porém, ainda assim, vale muito a pena, ainda mais pelo fato de não termos literatura deste nível em português. Além disso, é mais barato aprender nesta leitura do que em um curso de 600,00 que não tem metade do aproveitamento deste livro.

Jak w nagłówku. Kupiłem kilka jego książek i sporo z nich skorzystałem choć ewidentnie pisane pod rynek amerykański

Peccato solo che non esiste un traduzione il lingua italiana. Per il resto il libro è il massimo per chi comincia. Nonostante sia scritto in lingua inglese, basta avere un minimo di famigliarità per leggerlo e capirlo. Il libro tratta di fondamenti del tiro in movimento e speiga perché si fanno determinati movimenti e non. In questo libro si parla anche di tematiche come grip, postura e trigger control.

Good book for practical shooters. All you need is inside this book. Not only marksmanships fundamentals. Read it if you like to improve.