Define Handgun accuracy?

[roadrunner681]

This brings up a couple of good points. There is mechanical accuracy, which is what the gun is capable of shooting without regards to the operator. There is shootability. That would be the things that give the shooter aid in shooting the pistol, i.e. good sights, good trigger mechanism and well fitting grips, etc. Of course we can have everything locked up on the first two factors of accuracy, but unless the ammo is up to snuff, none of the other two things matter.

this is my thinking from my own experince ive played around at 50 yards with my hi power and i cant hit a paper plate consistently at that range with cheap ammo like tula or agila ammo, but with good ammo like fiocchi or some very picky handloads i can hit the paper plate at a rate of 8/10 and this is using a bench and sand bags. so my conclusion is that very consistent ammo makes a noticeable difference even in a pistol. i think i had 10 inch groups at 50 yards and for 9mm thats fine for me.

 

[D-Ric902]

I have shot at an 8 1/2 by 11 sheet of white paper with a 357 sig at 100 yards just for fun. Hit 8 out of 10

 

[rob63]

Another factor that a lot of people have kind of talked around but haven't mentioned directly is confidence. If a gun "fits" you well, or if you like the sights, or you know the slide to frame fit is great, you love the trigger, or whatever it is that gives you confidence that you can shoot it well, then that there is a big reason why you can shoot it well. If everything clicks at the range one day and you do well with a particular gun then there is a much greater chance you will be able to repeat the performance with that particular gun because you now have confidence in it. Thus, my definition of handgun accuracy would be having the confidence that I can hit whatever I am aiming at.

 

[AllenM]

I did nothing but rifle shooting growing up and when I took up pistol it was frustrating, 1. learning how to shoot a pistol but 2. accepting you are not going to get tiny groups at any significant distance. But for me handgun accuracy is 3" or less unsupported shooting at 25 yards. I consider 5" acceptable but I know with a good gun and ammo I can do 3" very consistently and that is the distance I test at.
If i know I have good ammo anything outside 5" at 25 yards I do not consider an accurate gun. My personal quirk is I will not keep a 1911 that will not hold 5" at 25.
Trigger pull is a factor but correct controlled trigger pull can still account for good accuracy, not trying to be snarky but I shoot alot of different guns so I do practice with a lot of different setups. It's hard to beat the 1911 trigger but accuracy can be had with less then perfect trigger. Not that I want a gun with a crappy trigger
On a side note I wish I had access to a ransom rest to do some true comparison of several different handguns. Shooting a handgun accurately at long distance, beyond 25 yards is a challenge I enjoy trying to do.

 

[Vamptepes]

the farthest i have shot any of my hand guns was about 65 yards at 10"steel. Took a bit to learn where to hold but got it to where i could hit it. But in a practical situation i would never shoot that far with my edc's. I practice drawing and rapid fire anywhere from 0-15yards. As long as i can keep my shots within a torso target center mass i'm happy for self defense situations. I mainly target shoot with rifles so that goes from 0 out to my max i've taken of 300yards.

Long story short. If can get a tight group center mass almost everytime anywhere from 0-15yards from a holster draw i consider that accurate enough for me. Target shooting is a whole other thing that i'm just getting into with pistol so have no opinion on it other then good fit/trigger are a plus and so are sights you can see well.

 

[Birds Away]

If you bench rest any modern handgun of even moderate quality at 25 yards it will produce groups that a shooter, freehand, will not be able to duplicate. Having said that, each individual shooter must try to find the gun he/she shoots best under varying conditions. The answer, obviously, will not be the same for everyone.

 

[CLowe]

I would define handgun accuracy as being able to hit what you are aiming at .
But hey that's just me

 

[churchmouse]

I did nothing but rifle shooting growing up and when I took up pistol it was frustrating, 1. learning how to shoot a pistol but 2. accepting you are not going to get tiny groups at any significant distance. But for me handgun accuracy is 3" or less unsupported shooting at 25 yards. I consider 5" acceptable but I know with a good gun and ammo I can do 3" very consistently and that is the distance I test at.
If i know I have good ammo anything outside 5" at 25 yards I do not consider an accurate gun. My personal quirk is I will not keep a 1911 that will not hold 5" at 25.
Trigger pull is a factor but correct controlled trigger pull can still account for good accuracy, not trying to be snarky but I shoot alot of different guns so I do practice with a lot of different setups. It's hard to beat the 1911 trigger but accuracy can be had with less then perfect trigger. Not that I want a gun with a crappy trigger
On a side note I wish I had access to a ransom rest to do some true comparison of several different handguns. Shooting a handgun accurately at long distance, beyond 25 yards is a challenge I enjoy trying to do.

To here the steel ring at 50 always brings a smile. To hear it at 100 makes me giggle.
We practice at 25. It is so much easier to be battle/combat accurate if you are efficient at 25 yds.

 

[bwframe]

Nearly every weekend, there are one, two, three gun games out there to test and put a number to your "handgun accuracy" questions.

 

[hotcorner5]

I like to step back to 10 yards. I shoot for everything to be within the 10 ring for a full size target. With my concealed carry gun, it has a 3 inch barrel so I drop into 7 yards for that 9mm. This is for handguns only.

 

[BE Mike]

One point touched on is what kind of handgun and what is the purpose? Hunting would depend on the type of game one is seeking. Formal target shooting would depend on the type of competition and self-defense would depend on the type of handgun of choice for carry.

 

[output]

Most handguns are more much more accurate than the person who is shooting it. I have a hard time believing that a $3,500+ Wilson with a hand fitted match barrel isn't more accurate than a stock Glock. I have read articles in gun magazines where writers are getting better accuracy out of lone wolf match Glock barrels. The real question is, do you need more accuracy from a stock Glock? I would say, no...because most people can't master a stock service pistol.

 

[bwframe]

Most handguns are more much more accurate than the person who is shooting it. I have a hard time believing that a $3,500+ Wilson with a hand fitted match barrel isn't more accurate than a stock Glock. I have read articles in gun magazines where writers are getting better accuracy out of lone wolf match Glock barrels. The real question is, do you need more accuracy from a stock Glock? I would say, no...because most people can't master a stock service pistol.

In competition shooting we often see newbs attempting to spend their way into shooting well. Thousands of dollars thrown at equipment to eventually learn, as we all do, that skills are developed through training and practice, not your high $ gun. The old arrow/indian thing is well publicized, yet still a fair amount of folks cannot wrap their head around the fact that they suck, it's not the gun.

A smart merchandising training company ran a class here a few years back;
https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...-suck-its-not-gun-brown-county-12-5-09-a.html

 

[BE Mike]

Every once in a while, I see a question from a new shooter, getting into competitive shooting, that goes something like this, "What is the most accurate gun I can get and that will function with ____________ (fill in the blank with the cheapest ammo you can get)." If you aren't willing to buy top quality ammo or learn to reload top quality ammo, you are just spitting into the wind. As has been stressed. Save your money you were going to spend on an expensive gun and just learn to shoot. BTW, I think this happens more with men than women. Many men just can't deal with the idea that they can't shoot well.

 

[churchmouse]

Every once in a while, I see a question from a new shooter, getting into competitive shooting, that goes something like this, "What is the most accurate gun I can get and that will function with ____________ (fill in the blank with the cheapest ammo you can get)." If you aren't willing to buy top quality ammo or learn to reload top quality ammo, you are just spitting into the wind. As has been stressed. Save your money you were going to spend on an expensive gun and just learn to shoot. BTW, I think this happens more with men than women. Many men just can't deal with the idea that they can't shoot well.

As with most folks they want to get into the game on the cheap. They want a nice toy but will not or can not afford to support it.
It kills me to see a post or hear a comment on "Where can I get "X" cheap. Or how cheap can I get by with this.
A hobby has a price tag. If you buy a fast street bike/car and run crap fuel in it it will not be as fast as intended and will not run for long.
Put the good stuff in it. Treat your guns like you love them. Learn to use and care for them.

 

[6mm Shoot]

I am a very practical person. I ask myself what I want to use the gun for when I go to buy a new one. If it is for defense I want it to keep all shots on a 50 yard rifle target from 25 yards. My Browning High Power will do it in 9mm and my Glocks in 45 ACP will do it. How and why did I come up with that speck for me. The target is about the size of a persons chest. The farthest I would be defending my self from a shooter would most likely be in a parking lot or around the yard of my house. 25 yards with out a rest is as far as I want to shoot to defend my self or family.

Now if it is a woods gun. Such as a back up gun for hunting or back packing I want a 4" barrel or longer and I want to be able to keep 5 shots in a six inch circle at 100 yards. All my 44 mags will do that with a rest from a tree or off my pack. To draw and fire I shorten the distance to fifty yards with no rest and increase to a 12" circle. My 44 mags are still good. Reasoning is that you may have to use the gun to take down game out to 100 yards. You may also have to use it to stop a charging animal or put a wounded one down. Example. You take a shot at a big pig with your rifle and hit him in the gut. Bad shot, yes, but you still have to take him down. You can't find him in your scope. You set your rifle down and see where the pig is and pull the hand gun to finish him off.

You are getting water from a stream and hear a grow. You look down the stream and see a wolf on the other side of the stream. You stand up slowly and see two more wolves. You draw your gun and fire into the bank below the wolves to scare them off. They may run off or come at you. It don't matter you have the power and accuracy to take them out and unlike the rifle leaning on the tree the hand gun was with you.

Accuracy is very personal. It has to do with what you need the gun to do. If you shoot in competition you need more accuracy than a hunter. If you are shooting bench rest you need more accuracy than a PPC shooter. Do you need a $3000 1911 to defend your self? No. Would it hurt? Some will say yes that the specks are to close and it isn't as reliable as say a government model 1911. I personally don't know, but if I put out that much money for a hand gun I would expect it to be very reliable.

 

[d30carls]

I have 2 xd 40's 1 4" service and one sub compact i can take both of them to the range and at 10-15 yds my 4" i can keep groups size of a silver dollar with 12 rounds my sc with same ammo i can put 12 rounds in my target the size of a small dessert plate to me that is where the accuracy comes into play same variables same distance different results not saying my sc wont get the job done but defintely not as accurate