Hi all,
I'm in search of a dry fire style training gun.

Some suggested the "Coolfire Trainer" and others suggested an Airsoft gun.

Anyone have an opinion, some advice, or an alternative?

Well I started with a laserlyte cartridge trainer and as much fun as that was, I sold it to fund a SIRT pistol and still use the SIRT around the house today. It’s pretty robust and I love that it models my G17 competition gun. The green laser is also nice as you can use it outdoors and it shows up well. Not cheap, but for me it’s a great tool. My GSSF scores went up after using the SIRT. YMMV.

I have been very happy with the Surestrike laser ammo. I have the kit you can setup for for 9/40/45.

I have used it with IPHONE programs as well as dedicated laser targets and have been very happy and it absolutely has helped my shooting.

That said any laser cartridge “ammo” may or may not be dead on “accurate” so something like a SIRT pistol may be a better choice if you are running Glock.

I run DA/SA so laser cartridges are great for me especially for that first DA shot. (Yes I am a caveman and have never thrown my first DA shot into the dirt....which I always found silly.)

The cool fire trainer is intriguing to me as is the Mantis type systems but the reality is, IMO, simple dryfire and sight alignment is really all you need. What the other things offer you is more fun to your dryfire routine and therefore more actual dryfire.

I have the SIRT that I used for CCW classes to teach trigger control for new students. It worked really well, but most people tend to look for where the laser hits instead of focusing on the front sight. And the Glock 17 format didn’t fit my hand well.

Since I now mainly use the Sig P320 pistols, I was looking for a trainer. The SIRT is now available in the P 320 format, but I went with the Coolfire system for the Full size P320. This way I can use it on the regular slide with fixed sights, as well as the RX slide with the DPP. Unlike the SIRT, the Coolfire will cycle the slide, and you are using the same trigger as when you are shooting real ammo. I ordered it last week, and I am still waiting for delivery. When it comes in, I will post an update for everyone.

While you can use your firearm for dry fire practice(make sure the gun is empty, and then check it again!), and you are using the same trigger action, it will not simulate the recoil.

I would love to hear your thoughts about the cool fire as well as any pictures you could post when you get it.

I’m also curious as to it’s sound signature. Will it be as loud as a c02 air pistol.

I would say either a SIRT pistol, or just dryfire with a regular gun.

Just me, but I prefer using the real pistol with a laser training cartridge. I try to do maybe 100 dry fires a week and I use target on the wall or it could be just about anything - a door knob, light switch, etc.

I use the same pistol I intend to shoot, with either an empty chamber (most of the time), or a snap-cap.

A SIRT would be my suggestion. Instant feedback with the laser and unlimited shooting. The only drawback is there's no recoil. But, it's a really good substitute for firing!!

If you have a Glock then take a look at DryFireMag (magazine) for it. I know it is kind of expensive, but it works as advertised.

https://www.dryfiremag.com

no affiliation with the product

I tried the Dryfire mag and although it does technically allow the trigger to reset it doesn’t really replicate the trigger pull of the gun because it’s not dropping the striker and you lose all of that mechanical feel. YMMV of course but it just sort of felt like a clicker to me.

If you dry fire a Glock excessively you can damage the breech face from the firing pin hitting the back of it. I have seen some pictures of this.

At least the DryFireMag eliminates that issue.

My dryfire is done on one of three systems:

For hammer fired with restrike capability, the Laserlyte cartridge works very well. Available in a variety of calibers, you can use it with a variety of target systems which provide instant feedback on your accuracy. Moving the target closer or further can modify the challenge faced.

For Glocks, and some other strikers, the SIRT pistol is my choice. The issue with the Laserlyte in a striker is you need to rack the slide after each trigger press. With the SIRT, releasing the trigger gives you a reset, allowing repeated firing without racking.

I've been toying around with a variety of airsoft pistols and recently found a decent Glock 19 replica. With the airsoft, you get the feedback of a projectile actually leaving the barrel and hitting your target. If I am in the house, I don't want the pellets scattering all around and the need to find them all. Cutting a hole into a large box and using this as a target helps contain the pellets, allowing for easy retrieval. Outside, using biodegradable pellets, a metal trash can provides an audible ting each time you hit it.

The Glock 19 I mention is from Elite Force, they do have a variety of weapons available. My choice is the green gas, but they do have various propulsion methods to choose from. And you can use your current holsters and or carry methods to practice your draw.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/prod..._title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.eliteforceairsoft.com/airsoft-pistols-ef

quote:

Originally posted by domino:
If you dry fire a Glock excessively you can damage the breech face from the firing pin hitting the back of it. I have seen some pictures of this.

At least the DryFireMag eliminates that issue.

I really don't think you can. If it's something that worries you, then snap caps are the answer.

I have Glocks that probably have well over a hundred thousand dry-fire presses of the trigger. I don't recall ever removing the striker and checking for damage, though I do remove the striker to clean the channel from time to time. I've never seen any signs of damage on the striker itself. Getting a photo inside that little channel of the end of the chamber, would take a borescope.

I used snap caps and similar devices, religiously, for a long time. I still do if it's a .22. Otherwise, on most modern firearms, I don't think you're going to have much possibility of huring the firearm by dry firing. It's an effective training practice, and in a present time when getting to the range could prove more difficult, it's a great way to train at home.

For the record I have heard of the occasional Glock that had damage from dry firing. I have never seen one and I suspect it’s fairly rare. That said I have always been a snap cap/laser cartridge user so I RARELY drop a hammer/striker on an empty chamber.

sns3guppy,

Look here:

https://www.glocktalk.com/thre...70314/#post-24446481

search the internet on "Glock breech face failure"

There's a lot of misinformation in that thread. The pictures, too, do not show what they purport.

The separation in the breech face is the diameter and outline of a cartridge base; the firing pin channel is not. It is unreasonable to think that the stress of a lightweight striker under low spring tension would cause the metal face to crack well beyond the limits of the striker channel bore. Ridiculous, really.

I think you're seeing a lot of misinformation, confirmation bias, and pictures not telling you what you think they depict. There's a lot of information missing, not the least of which is a legitimate explanation that covers the considerable disconnnect between what's suggested, and what is.

Do you actually know anyone that has experienced this failure, or is it internet conjecture and pictures?

That slide has been exposed to considerable overpressure at some point, and most likely, a number of points. That damage did NOT occur as the result of dry firing, despite the claim of the poster.

If, and is a mighty big if, that is true, the amount of dry fire and live fire that would take........I’ll just buy another pistol.

It’s not an “issue”.

I’m fairly sure that this is an “issue” that is talked about more than it happens. It’s like the “shooting steel case ammo is bad for the chamber” on steroids.

I don’t know what you carry but I’ll Tesla you what direction I went.
I mainly carry an xcarry with an rmr so I found a metal slide full blow back airsoft gun That was functionality similar and mounted an rmr copy.
I built two moveable target stands that accept large paper targets and catch and collect the BBS. I wasn’t interested if finding out what the wife would say about hundreds of BBS rolling around the garage floor.
A cheap holster, mag carrier and spare mag and I can do shoot and Move, multi target, mag change and malfunction drills with the feel of a real firearm and it’s FUN. A phone app with a shot timer and drills helped here too.
You may want to check out The Smokeless Range also. It if a pretty inexpensive interactive video shooting gallery. The base program is $299 if I remember correctly and you can either purchase an IR laser equipped blow back airsoft gun from them or buy the laser cartridge and use it in your own AS gun. I suggest you pick your own AS gun. I bought theirs and although it is nice the FNS clone I got for the garage targets os really much more realistic as far as function and feel. You can also get the Coolfire system and use that with this program which ultimately is what I would like to do.
The program allows you to project basically a video game on a tv or screen that registers your shot impact points, think about those old arcade games with the guns.

quote:

Coolfire

The coolfire thing looks good. If I'm reading their site right, they've got it compatible for the 229. Looks like a good thing to get.