Shooting To Live [Paperback]

W.E. Fairbairn (Author), E.A. Sykes (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0873640276 | ISBN-13: 978-0873640275 | Publication Date: April 1987

Shooting to Live is the product of Fairbairn’s and Sykes’ practical experience with the handgun. Hundreds of incidents provided the basis for the first true book on life-or-death shootouts with the pistol. Shooting to Live teaches all concepts, considerations and applications of combat pistolcraft.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

W.E. Fairbairn taught unarmed combat to the famed British Commandos and the U.S. armed forces during World War II. Before the war he served as assistant commissioner of the Shanghai Police Force. He was the inventor of the Fairbairn Commando Knife and the author of the classics Get Tough and Shooting to Live.

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Paladin Press (April 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0873640276
• ISBN-13: 978-0873640275
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 4.6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,762,454 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best book on basic pistol self defense, July 30, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Shooting To Live (Paperback)

This book is easy to read. The lessons are simple, and the techniques are so easy that you will be able with one hour of practice to hit a target within 15 yards.(consider that FBI's statistics show that most shootings happen under 6 yards). You use your body's centerline to align your hand and fingers and the gun barrel and point and shoot at the target. No need to use your sights unless you have the time and space to do so. The authors were British policemen in Shanghai of the 1920's, a very crime ridden city. They later trained the British Commandos and the U.S.OSS (The original CIA). While the material is a bit old, it is from real life experience and the lessons are timeless. It is not the gun, but how you use it. The authors point out, in real stress situations, one can't focus, movements become exaggerated, and fine muscular control is difficult. This method uses these conditions to help one shoot in combat. Rex Applegate, who also wrote about gun usage, studied with the authors. He was the trainer for the OSS in personal combat during ww2. A highly recommended book.

44 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Matt temkin from NYC, June 19, 2001

By 

matthew temkin - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shooting To Live (Paperback)

I was a personal student of Rex Applegate and I consider this one of the most important shooting books ever written. This volume (written in 1942, but based on the authors experience with the SMP from 1907 to 1940) is as relevent today as the day it was written. From the descriptions of the typical gunfight(under 4 yards), to their dislike of competition/team shoots, to their theory of stopping power( we don't know what makes bullets effective so we recommend shooting until the threat drops), to shooting from behind cover, to using two hands for the ocasional long shot,to the use of the 'mystery house" for training, this volume was way ahead of its time. Why these ( and Rex Applegate's) methods fell out of favor for the nonsense being taught for the past 20 years is almost a sin. I've read this book dozens of times and I STILL learn something from it. Modern law enforcement/military instructors are finally praticing these methods and so should you. This book is a ten!

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best book on combat shooting that I have ever read!, September 29, 2000

By 

Peter J. Edlin (Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shooting To Live (Paperback)

Though this book is nearly 60 years old, and the techniques described in it were developed between the World Wars, this is still by far the best book I have ever read on combat pistol shooting. With only a few changes to reflect current pistol design and shooting doctrine, you could still use this as a manual for instruction today. In many ways the book is way ahead of its time as it recommends self-loading pistols over revolvers, discusses stopping power, body armour and suggests a layout for a tactical range that would be familiar to military/law-enforcement/IPSC shooters today. Thoroughly recommended to anyone who might have to use a pistol in a combat situation or who simply has an interest in the origins of modern tactical shooting techniques.