MAGPUL Dynamics - Basic Handgun; Honolulu, HI

Dealers/ Manufacturers/ Regional/ Info Magpul CORE
1

This was the first structured shooting/fighting course I have ever attended and I don’t even know where to start.

It was a two day course instructed by Travis Haley. We shot in a small indoor range here in Honolulu (maybe 20 yards, max). As you can imagine, classes like this don’t happen often in Hawaii, nor are there places readily available to host something like this, but Travis did a great job of working in the tight confines of a solar-heated steel box with a dozen students packed in.

We spent the first part of day one going over what happens to our bodies and minds when we are threatened. I think this was one of the best portions of the class. I came away with the methodology of working WITH my body’s reaction to threats, instead of FORCING it to function against my natural tendencies.

Then it was off to the shooting area where we worked on fundamentals and physical manipulations of our weapons. We moved to instinctive shooting and the differences in sighted vs. unsighted fire. Malfunction drills, shooting and problem solving from different positions, and speed were the focus till the end of day one.

Day two was all about movement and the use of cover. We shot from chairs and tables and from some positions that my aching body really didn’t approve of :frowning: We did a little work in low light. We did alot of work with both the strong and reaction hand. The second day is where the pace really picked up, and you could see the effects of fatigue and the heat were affecting our focus and our problem solving skills.

All in all, I had a great time. I learned more about fighting with a pistol than in the 25 years that I’ve been behind a trigger and i learned alot about myself and my limits from these short two days. I’m attending any and all training that Travis is willing to teach here in Honolulu. Pistol, carbine, shotgun, I’m going to try to get to all of them.

Some things that I’ve taken from these two days with Travis:

Improvement - there’s always room for it, evaluating myself and coming up with ways to train for improvement is key.

Failure- It’s actually a good thing.

Mental Focus - there’s no such thing as enough. problem solving combined with physical manipulations under duress is paramount to being successful.

Success - Setting myself up for it doesn’t happen by itself

Accuracy & Speed - not accuracy or speed, nor accuracy vs. speed. being speedily accurate is my goal

Some things I noticed from my class and my fellow students

The quiet, focused ones improved the most.

Only one glock and my 32 year old 1911 ran without problems for the duration of the class. The only time my 45 didn’t fire was my fault. 2 or 3 times I didn’t get my mag seated in good. Others had mag catches break, magazines fail, tritiums fall out. Every serpa holster was covered in duct tape.

I’m too damn fat.

Kent

2

I’m new here and not an expert at anything, though I have taken a couple-few handgun classes with my 1911. I have had this issue in the past as well (nice and embarrassing on the line, eh?) and I’ve found that slam pads installed on my magazines help tremendously with this. It lets me get the meat of my palm on the magazine to seat it firmly without pinching my skin. My main carry magazine is flush-fitting without a pad, but the spare I carry and all magazines for training have pads now.

3

Actually… putting one of those flared out base plates on your carry mag isn’t a bad idea.

You should, ideally, be able to rip the carry mag out of the gun in the event of a double feed. With a flush mag, you’re somewhat fugged under stress.

4

I’m curious as to what you mean, demigod. My main carry magazine is a Metalform that fits flush in the gun but does have the tab in the front. Running my hand down the front strap gives me enough contact with the tab to strip. Is there a pad that adds more area to the magazine base without adding much length? As I exclusively carry concealed, I don’t want to add any more length to my grip. I have a bobtailed gun specifically for this reason.

My extra mags all use these base pads.

I hope this isn’t too much of a hijack, theJanitor!

5

i agree with demigod. stripping mags from the frontstrap side is pretty hard if you fingers are already there. and as i learned this weekend, you need to be able to reload from any and all body positions, especially from the floor. i found that in those positions, since you don’t have gravity to help drop the mag, stripping it might be your best bet. i’m sure clearing a double feed from the urban prone or some other awkward position won’t be pretty or easy either.

edit to note: i was running wilson 47d’s with the bumper but i have an ed brown magwell on and the mags barely protrude from the add-on well.

6

You can probably strip a flat based mag out from a double feed, but it’s going to be a bit harder when you need that mag out “NOW” and are under the stress of a confrontation.

The base pads I like are screw on and actually widen out from the width of the mag body. A few companies make them. And, No. There’s no getting around the additional bulk of them… It’s a trade off.

7

theJanitor,

Good review. Had to work so I couldn’t attend, but as you said, any class that Magpul/Travis offers, I’ll do what I can to attend. I learned a lot from the first class he offered and have been looking forward to this class.

8

I’ll try to keep this short and simple. If you ever have the opportunity to attend one of Magpul Dynamic’s training courses, do whatever it takes to attend, you won’t be sorry, a whole lot of sore for sure, but never sorry. My advice to anyone planning to attend is:

  1. Come prepared to learn.
    2)“Listen” as Travis first explains the drill.
    3)“Watch” his every move as he demonstrates the drill.
    4)Put yourself in a zone and try to execute the drill exactly as he did!
    If you do this, you will be successful, and if it’s a large class, definitely get in the second group, stand back and rehearse the drill as the first group performs it.
    I will now spend my time at the range in a whole new perspective. Being a beginner “hand gunner”, I believe this course should be mandatory! I am definitely more confident with my pistol now, and will continue to train and practice what I’ve learned these last two days. I would like to say thank you again to Waikiki Gun Club for hosting this class and another thank you to Travis, not only for sharing his knowledge and experience with the class, but for his past service to our country, and his continued service to the community. I enjoyed it very much.
    Wayne McKinnon
    Ko Olina, Hawaii
9

Travis, e-mailed ya :wink:

10

I would love to get into a AR-15 class. This kinda stuff never happens here in hawaii if you could give me some info on how to get in that would be awesome

11

Battlefront, contact Eugene Lee at the Waikiki Gun Club for course dates and information. Eugene can fill you in on future class dates and set you up with any equipment needed for the course. Their website - http://store.hawaiigunclub.com/en/training.html also has the information posted. Hope this helps.

12

awesome, I didnt know they had that kind of stuff here in hawaii. I pretty much have been going to the kokohead range but you cant really shoot how you want to. and I want to learn more about well I guess tactical shooting, thank’s for the info

13

I dont seen any Carbine training?

14

B,

PM sent…

15

Travis,

I’m really waiting for a carbine class too. i went to see Eugene a couple days ago about it. i’m trying those awkward shooting positions that you demonstrated on my carbine and i see your points.

maybe i can catch you at the range,

Kent

16

I hope you Hawaii guys treated Travis to Duke’s Canoe Club while he was there. :wink: