Double Tap Speed

[Ganderite]

When shooting a double tap, the second shot is aimed. It takes time to get the gun back onto target.

I was curious to know how much and how each pistol reacted to recoil, so I shot ten different pistols with the both shots fired as fast as I could pull the trigger. Only the first shot was aimed.

The illusion to the shooter is that the second shot was fired when the gun was still tilted up and right from the recoil.

According to all ten targets, NOT ONE OF THE SECOND SHOTS WENT HIGH. For most of the pistols the second shots went low or closer to the aiming mark. Some were better than others.

The pictures show the best and worst pistols.

I think this test only relates to how the gun reacts in my hands, with my trigger speed, with these loads. Results in your hands might be quite different.

In practice my second shot of a double tap is aimed, so at best this gives me an idea of what the gun is doing. Probably not very relevant. Aimed double taps with a timer would be better data. Next time.

The Glock is a 40 cal with a 9mm ported barrel. The ports seem to make a difference.

The second best pistol was my M&P40

 

[alpining]

The illusion to the shooter is that the second shot was fired when the gun was still tilted up and right from the recoil.

Illusion, exactly. It's the inertia of the slide returning to battery that causes the muzzle to dip, contributing to low follow-up shots. This is precisely why autoloaders tuned for speed tend to use the lightest recoil springs possible, and the lightest slides possible.

Revolvers, however...