If your New Year’s resolution was to improve your marksmanship but you are still procrastinating, there are ways to easily step up your training routine. Check out what RE Factor Tactical has to offer with its line of targets and accompanying materials.
The Essential Shooting Guide and Target 
Jam-packed with drills, the "Essential Shooting Guide" gives recreational and competitive shooters concrete methods to improve aspects such as precision, target transitions, shooting under stress, shooting on the move and much more. Based on a 150-round warm-up drill that comprehensively covers these skills, the "Essential Guide" offers targeted improvement based on how you score during various sections of this primary drill. Is precision your issue? Turn to chapter two for some drills aimed at helping you stack dimes in record time. Could your draw be cleaner? Chapter four has you covered. And so on and so forth through 10 chapters of dedicated training aids, the final two of which even cover rifles and pistol/rifle transitions. All these drills, of course, correspond directly with the Essentials Target (with the exception of several that use their “Kill Zone” target), which provides a number of various target types and sizes against a solitary white backdrop.
Once you’ve “mastered” these essentials, don’t assume you’re finished. RE Factor has devised one final proving ground for those wishing to test their mettle. Once again utilizing the Essentials Target, the RE Factor Challenge tests your pistol shooting abilities to the limit, requiring quick, precise shooting and reloading. The challenge requires that you video your entire run, providing proof of distance, time and hits throughout. Should all included drills be completed to the satisfaction of the standard (under seven seconds with no misses), the successful shooter will receive an RE Factor Tactical Challenge patch, and have his or her name published on the website unless otherwise requested. (Let me assure you that the absence of my name on that website is NOT because I requested it be withheld.)
Dead Man’s Hand Shooting Deck and IQ Target
Looking for additional ways to improve target recognition and transitions? With an endless combination of possible drills, try the Dead Man’s Hand Shooting Deck and IQ Target. In a truly innovative move, RE Factor Tactical has produced a deck of cards with a different set of shooting instructions on each, which correspond to the various shapes, colors, letters and numbers on the IQ target. Examples range from “Press and fire 1 round to red circle B, then repeat the drill for every other red shape,” to “draw and fire 4 rounds to every yellow triangle with a letter,” to even more complex mental gymnastics, such as “Draw and fire one round to blue triangle B, 2 rounds to blue square 2, 3 rounds to yellow circle A, 4 rounds to red circle B, 3 rounds to yellow circle A, 2 rounds to blue square 2, 1 round to blue triangle B.” The difficulty of the drill is determined by the denomination of each particular card, starting at 2s (“Warm-Ups”) and moving up through the usual progression to Aces (“Advanced Drills with Movement”).
To make things even more interesting, RE Factor Tactical actually sells two distinct Dead Man’s Hand Shooting Decks. The one quoted above is geared toward pistols; a separate deck focuses on rifle manipulation. The rifle deck brings even more factors into play, such as yardage, different starting positions, and different shooting positions. Examples include: “25 yd line: 2 rounds to yellow triangle A … repeat from … standing; squatting; kneeling; sitting; prone” and “7 yd line: from relaxed, fire 1 round to green circle B, run to the 50 yard line. Fire 2 rounds to blue square A. Run to the 7 yard line. Fire 5 rounds to red square B.” As you’ve probably already guessed, that last one is an “Ace.”
While all these drills can be done solo, to speed reaction time it is useful to have a partner along to pull your card (no pun intended.) Depending on your range or shooting area, some may also have to be modified to better fit range rules and requirement. However you conduct them, these drills are fun and undeniably useful skill builders.
For more information on these products, as well as the vast array of other materials, from targets to survival gear, that RE Factor Tactical has to offer, please visit refactortactical.com.
