I’m not certain who came up with the Four Aces drill, but I first heard about it a few years back from Karl Rehn while he was recounting some training he did with Ben Stoeger as he was tuning up for some major matches. It’s a short drill that combines the draw, the reload, and controlled pairs which we covered in part 2, part 3, and part 5 of this series respectively. As such, I think it makes sense to introduce it in this post of the dry fire series.

Actually, I don’t think the timing could be any better. At least, for me. This is because the primary focus of my dry fire practice is currently visual focus and processing as I mentioned last week. It may not be obvious how visual focus and processing is related to draws, reloads, and controlled pairs, but I’ll explain that in a bit.

The Four Aces Drill

For this drill, one will need:

• One IDPA, USPSA, or IPSC target (any A-zone sized target will work in a pinch),
• a shot timer,
• a cleared gun,
• two unloaded magazines (I recommend using MagBlok or a Tap Rack Trainer for extra safety),
• a holster for the cleared gun,
• and, optionally, a magazine pouch that fits the unloaded magazines.

The drill can be done at really any distance, but I most commonly see it run from distances of three (3), five (5), and ten (10) yards. So we will cover those distances and add on twenty-five (25) yards for the overachievers.

Don’t forget to get the Dry Fire Dojo and head in order by clearing the practice area of all live ammunition and performing the verbal ceremony we covered in part 1 of this series.

Set up for this drill is straight forward:

1. Cock the cleared pistol and apply manual safeties as needed.
2. Insert one of the unloaded magazines into the pistol.
3. Holster the pistol.
4. Ensure the other unloaded magazine is where it needs to be for the reload.

The drill procedure is simple as well:

1. On the signal, draw
2. dry fire a controlled pair,
3. reload,
4. dry fire a controlled pair.

Then set it up again and repeat as desired.

What To Observe

Remember that being present in dry fire practice is critical. Focus on the process and be aware of everything. Observation and focus are key to getting the most out of each repetition. Intentional repetitions help us build or change habits that we want while minimizing the risk of bad habits developing. Mindless repetition is about as useful as a fart in a jacuzzi and farts are not to be trusted.

One thing to observe, or rather watch out for, is tension. This drill is quick and combines several tasks. It’s also designed to help us get faster. As one pushes to increase speed, tension has a tendency to join the fray. Tension, however, is an unwanted and uninvited guest who yields mistakes and errors.

The other thing to be mindful of is where our visual focus is as we work through the drill. At the start of the drill, our visual focus should be on a precise point on the target where we want the pistol to align with as quickly as possible when it comes out of the holster. That focus should remain fixed on the target and not shift to the aiming system while we dry fire the first controlled pair. An exception here can be made for the visual focus to start or completely shift to the front sight at longer distances. The goal here is to be deliberate with the visual focus in order to get the visual confirmation needed for an A-zone hit. During the reload, the visual focus should shift to the magazine well for a quick reload and should shift back to the precise spot on the target as soon as the magazine makes first contact with the magazine well. The sooner the visual focus is back on the precise spot on the target the sooner the gun will be aligned with the eye-target line. We finish the drill with visual focus doing exactly what it did during the first controlled pair.

It’s not possible to precisely prescribe the level of visual confirmation needed for each distance because the level of confirmation needed is going to be relative to the target difficulty which is a function of distance, size, and skill. However, we can generalize a bit.

At three yards, aligning a pistol with an 8″ circle is pretty easy for the average able-bodied person. At this distance, the only confirmation needed is a very quick “yeah that looks good” glance. There is no reason to wait for a flash of color from the optic or high visibility front sight.

At five yards, things get a little trickier. Those who have honed their gunslinging skills will find this distance easy enough to use that same “yeah that looks good” glance coupled with an indexed presentation. Others who have been leveling up might wait for a flash of color from the aiming system before sending it. Novices who are still working on their grip and trigger press might wait until they see a dot or out of focus iron sights superimposed over the precise spot on the target they visually focused on.

Backing up to ten yards gets very interesting. At this distance, grip and trigger issues that haven’t been completely sorted out start resulting in “flyers”. So unless one happens to be highly skilled or superhuman, most will probably at least wait for a dot or a fuzzy iron sights floating over the precise spot on the target before sending it. Others might also place mental focus on a more deliberate trigger press. Awareness of sight or dot movement during presses in practice sessions will indicate the presence of a grip or trigger issue in need of sorting just like flyers on a target do.

Twenty-five yards isn’t a walk in the park for anyone. It’s easier for some than others, but we are no longer in easy mode. Most folks will want to wait for a steady floating dot or confirming equal height and equal light on irons before sending it. Many will also place momentary mental focus on a deliberate and gentle trigger press.

As the distance increases, folks have a tendency to slow down their draw and reload speed. They take more time to get back on target. Be aware of draw and reload speeds decreasing as this is a trap. Refined visual confirmation like a stead floating dot or equal height and equal light will never be as fast as the “yeah that looks good” glance especially if micro adjustments to the pistol-target alignment are needed. As such, it is especially important not to waste time getting the pistol aligned with the eye-target line. Get the pistol to the eye-target line quickly, then make necessary micro adjustments until visual confirmation is received, and then send it with confidence. Not a moment sooner. Not a moment later.

There are many more things that one should notice during practice through mindful awareness. They should be aware of their draw path. Whether or not they formed a good master firing grip before pulling the pistol from the holster. When they disengaged the manual safety (assuming it was present and engaged). Extraneous movement. When, where, and how the support hand joins in the fun. Whether or not the first trigger press was made prior to or after proper visual confirmation. All the details surrounding the reload. And so on.

Executing each individual detail of each step consciously is not required. In fact, it should be avoided and we should allow the subconscious drive as much as possible. At the same time, mindful observation and focus must remain so we can recall details to help us improve and confirm the development of the skills that we are sharpening.

Par Times

Remember that par time goals are just that, goals. As one improves, the goals will be met and surpassed. Don’t get sucked into trying to beat them during practice. Focusing on the results rather than the process is another trap that hinders performance.

That said, here are some suggested par time goals. Feel free to add half a second to the goals if drawing and reloading from concealment.

Difficulty	3 Yards	5 Yards	10 Yards	25 Yards
Easy	5.3	5.9	7.2	10.8
Normal	3.5	4	4.8	7.2
Hard	2.8	3.2	3.9	5.7
Expert	2.1	2.4	2.9	4.3

Closing Thoughts

After writing out and rereading the “What To Observe” section I realized that it was heavily biased towards visual discipline. The bias here should be obvious. It’s my primary focus in practice while writing this. While being aware of what our vision is doing while doing dry fire practice, it doesn’t have to be the primary focus. The primary focus could be grip and attention can be paid to when and where it is formed during the draw, how it is maintained during the controlled pair using dot or sight movement as an indicator, how it is reformed after the reload, and so on. Any marksmanship fundamental can be the primary focus and it can even change during a singular practice session. After all, the purpose of dry fire practice is still maintenance and development.

I didn’t spend the time and energy detailing the difference between the dry fire version and live fire version of the drill since the only thing that changes is the location and the set up with live ammunition. Everything else is the same. I will encourage readers to verify their improvement with live fire and pay attention to what the target says. If the target is catching flyers outside of the A-zone and sight or dot movement wasn’t noticed in dry fire practice, then it’s worth putting some effort into being more aware of the sight or dot movement in practice. It’s an important feedback loop that confirms improvement and informs practice. The more we do it, the better we get at shooting and the better we get at practicing.