This year makes 36 years of me using the 1911 exclusively. Yea I have shot a wide variety of handguns. You know this is you are a long time reader. But I don’t consider myself a “user” of those guns. A few rounds from a friends gun or a hundred or so for some pistol I was testing for review. I never carried them or used them much beyond that. My interest in them never really existed. My first love is my only love, The Model of 1911.

You have all heard the “beware the man with only one guns blah blah blah” There is something to that no doubt. If you only use one model and forsaking all others, you can pull off some pretty neat tricks after a few decades.

I’m no world class pistol shooter but I consider myself pretty good. Not as good as I was when I was 17 and certainly not as fast, but I don’t worry about hitting what I’m aiming with. You can see my 1 second draw and hip shot on a small human sized target from 21 feet. I picked that distance because of the famous distance quoted in self defense. If the target was 10 feet away I can cut that time in half.

Another neat trick that is the result of 6 million rounds and endless wasted time is a real people pleaser. My local friends hound me constantly do demonstrate this in front of people.

Yea, that’s me tossing skeet in the air and busting them with 230 grain ball.

The reason I bring this up is because of a recent thread on B-ARFCOM about top shooters and if they really use the sights or not. I don’t know. I’m not Jerry or Todd or Rob. I do know that I use the sights to hit skeet but I obviously do not for hip shooting. I have made long range shots using sight and snap shots on moving targets without. I have no practical advice on that and I apologize if you expected some Buddha level wisdom on it. I’m not trying to sell you on my method or training class so I can be honest and say one thing for sure. Over 3 decades of using the same model handgun lets you get away with a lot of stuff.

My Dad always told me that I had a natural ability with a handgun. Some say there is no such thing as a natural with shooting. That training is all that matters. I think that is maybe true. All I know is that it was never really hard for me and its the only skill I have that I consider myself truly good at. If I was going to have something I did put on my gravestone it would be ” He was really good with a Colt.”

One thing I can say with mathematical certitude. Spend 36 years shooting only one type of handgun and you can do about anything with it. Maybe that will also provide some insight for you on why I obsess over the1911 so much.