Mike Coffin Mike Coffin

Part 1 - Introduction to Advanced Pistol Disarming

Part 1 - Introduction to Advanced Pistol Disarming

Welcome to Advanced Pistol Disarming! I hope you have watched Basic Part 1 & 2 prior to these videos. We are going to substantially build on those, and they are considered required watching prior to these lessons.

Read More
Mike Coffin Mike Coffin

Part 5 - Disarming a Pistol in Motion

Part 5 - Disarming a Pistol in Motion

Static positions are one thing, but when the pistol is in motion it makes for a very difficult grab. Here we offer some options when the pistol is being waved or used to push you.

Read More
Mike Coffin Mike Coffin

Part 6 - Using Pistol As Blunt Instrument

Part 6 - Using Pistol As Blunt Instrument

After disarming a pistol we now (hopefully) have it in our hands, however, we cannot assume it is usable. If it discharged during the conflict, it is jammed. It is also likely to not be loaded, fake, broken, jammed or otherwise not ready for use.

It is important to train on how to use the weapon as a blunt instrument because we do not often train how to fight with blunt objects in our hands, meaning we are less effective, and even less so with a pistol.

Read More
Mike Coffin Mike Coffin

Part 9 - Third Party Protection

Part 9 - Third Party Protection

One of the most unique aspects of Krav Maga is that we are not really a “self defense” program, but one that equally focuses on defense of others. The two big buckets are Third Party Protection and Bystander Intervention.

Third Party Protection is roughly defined as “protecting others that you know or care for.” While Bystander Intervention is roughly defined as “protecting others you do not know.” The distinction is important because you are much more likely to find yourself protecting someone you care for, while protecting others in bystander intervention scenarios are much less likely. Research the bystander effect for more information on that.

Read More
Mike Coffin Mike Coffin

Part 10 - When things go wrong

Part 10 - When things go wrong

In this section we cover something that is so important, that it is actually a core concept of Krav Maga in general. What to do when things go wrong.

Some background - In Krav Maga some of the principals of the system are a) enabling the Fight switch in our brains b) understanding tactically how to adapt to situations quickly c) that we are fighting people d) that not being in front of the weapon/tool makes it safer for us - and there are many more. All of these come together in this lesson, which is more of a big picture lesson and a technique.

When things go wrong you must adapt and attack. By “adapt” I mean that you must almost instantly recognize that something has gone wrong and that you need to adjust. And by “instantly” I mean that you do not have time, not when dealing with pistols, to mess around and think your way out or freeze. And by “attack” I mean there are few other options other than attacking the person as directly as possible, and that usually means taking them to the ground.

Why do we “recommend” taking the opponent to the ground? First, this is not a hard and fast rule, but it is something that is quite likely to be your best option. In almost all cases we do not recommend taking your opponent to the ground, but pistols and guns are unique issues, and when attempting to fight a person with a gun the problem is even more unique. When someone is thrown off balance, or falls towards the ground, or impacts the ground they almost all have a universal instinct to try and break their fall with their hands. Go look at videos of people falling and you see their hands reach for the ground. Even more relevant is to watch people in gun fights fall to the ground. You will see them very often drop their weapons.

Guns are also unique in their ability to make distance less of a factor than other fixed weapons, so running becomes a negative. If you are running away a persons predator instinct might kick in and they will try to kill you. Especially if you have just tried to fight with them.

And lastly, in these cases you usually want to have possession of the weapons.

Read More