What's the advantage of shooting a gun out of a car while holding it sideways?

Question

I know this sounds like a stupid questions, but seriously. There has to be a reason why the "gangstas" shoot guns this way. We all know they use massive jam-o-matics such as Tec-9s, Cobray MAC-10s, and Hi-Points.

Is it because holding it sideways in a moving car will allow a more reliable feed from such crappy guns? Do they shoot in that manner because of the inaccuracy of those guns? Do they custom gunsmith their weapons (unlike the movies) to put the sights on the side of the slides? Does it give an advantage in point shooting?

It's a question that has baffled me for years, as I've always shot firearms that are reliable with proper technique while both feet are on the ground.

Another thing, in the movie "Behind Enemy Lines" I saw in one of the scenes where the soldiers shoot the civilians in the bombed-out store that one of the soldiers holds his AK-47 sideways, with the stock against his shoulder. Is there any advantage in using this technique?

Excellent answers, some are just common sense such as "dumb idiots"

However, I hanvn't received information on the cycling of the firearms while shooting sideways.

Answer 1

And when was shooting re-invented? There is a reason for holding a gun the way it was designed to be held. There is no room for theatrics in a serious shooting scenario. Your life depends on it. I am talking about a little thing called: Recoil.

There is no advantage ever to holding and shooting a gun 'gansta' style. It doesn't even look cool. It looks and is stupid. If the gun is a caliber that has any significant amount of recoil it is REALLY stupid. The shooter will have even more trouble holding on to his gun during recoil not to say anything about follow-up shots which is the real reason to not hold a gun 'gansta' style.

Really, when I see someone holding a gun 'gangsta' style I know that he/she doesn't know what they are doing. In fact, except for point-blank shots they won't hit anything except by accident and THAT is what makes them... Bad.

But you know what? LET those fools continue holding their guns 'gansta' style and keep right on telling them that they look 'Sooo cool!' That'll give the real pistolero the advantage in a true life confrontation.

Best.

H

Answer 2

tec9s, hi point, mac 10s, etc are not crap guns, its the idiots who use them. guns will jam if the operator is incompetent. I doubt many people know why the guns are held sideways for. no it's not to look cool. people may believe that now but I believe back when gangsters were intelligent criminals, they discovered hold hte gun sideways have certain special advantages. most gangster car windows are heavily tinted. criminals like their privacy. if you hold the pistol properly you'll have to open the window more than if you held it sideways, and by opening the window more, there's a higher chance the victims & bystanders will be able to see your face, perhaps enough to pick you out of a police picture book or describe your face well enough to the cops they cna build a suspect list to pin you down. by holding the gun sideways in that fashion they found there's less vertical muzzle climb, the gun's muzzle climbs sideways instead. which means you're more likely to hit that crowd of people on the sidewalk. this was also when criminals can actually shoot, know how to maintain their guns properly and use the proper terminology. the style of shooting has been passed down to younger and newer generations of criminals but the intelligence clearly has not. I discovered holding the gun sideways you have more control on recoil than if you hold it properly. or at least thats how it works with my hands/arm/wrist.

Answer 3

The only reason that someone shoots from a moving car is cowardice. I dread the day when gangbangers actually learn to shoot.....wait, no, that would be good. Innocent bystander deaths would drop and so would the gangbanger populations, hopefully to extinction.

Some director in Hollywood told an actor to hold it that way and since then it's become standard. These movie people employ gun wranglers, who are usually firearm experts, but it seems they never consult their own experts when making actors do stupid things with firearms.

Some friends and I actually tested the "90 degree counterclockwise" hold on a number of semi-autos to see if it didn't actually increase the jam probability.

Of course, you cannot aim worth a damn with your sights and barrel turned a quarter way around. That's the first thing we determined. Next, most of the powerful semi-auto pistols and rifles had no issues. It's when you got down to the blowback operated .380s, .32s and .22 that stuff starts jamming. If you understand how blowback guns operate and eject, this makes a lot of sense.

Answer 4

The only explaination even given that I paid any attention to( and it doesnt mean it's true) is as follows:

When throwing a fisted punch, the hand will end up in this position. If your target is very close, the act is similar to throwing a punch. If the target is that close, it is faster to " punch shoot". I can see this just a little,

However, the only way I would ever shoot , even when close, is with the gun in the correct, upright position.

Fast and close shooting would still be the same with me since I was trained that way except I might fire from the waist if real close.

Mostly BS theatrics. How many times have you seen a man blown back 20 feet from a shotgun or rifle hit? That never happens in real life. I have seen people "fall into" a hit but it isnt possible from a physics standpoint to be blown back 20 feet from a hit. More movie BS.

Answer 5

Gangbangers turn their handguns to the side because they are stupid, ignorant a$$holes who don't know how to use the sights, and have no knowledge of trigger control or accuracy.

Most ot those crapheads would have trouble hitting the windshield from inside the car. The only way they hit anyone at a range beyond powder burn range is a combination of blind dumb luck on their part, bad luck on the victim's part, and having four or five people sling a hundred or more rounds from a moving car, thereby saturating the air with bullets.

If I see some idiot pointing a gun at me, and turning it on the side, I'm gonna scare him half to death with a gigantic grin, and then finish the job with a properly handled revolver.

As for the AK-47 part of the question, there is some justification. When a full-automatic weapon is turned on its side like that, it causes the muzzle climb to be lateral rather than vertical and thus it sprays bullets over a widening arc. This is the ultimate spray and pray (i.e. spray an area with bullets and pray that one hits an intended target). It is also probably the reason gangbangers turn their weapons on their sides.

If you really want to learn point shooting, I suggest you find and diligently study a copy of the late Bill Jordan's NO SECOND PLACE WINNER. This is THE HANDBOOK on gunfighting. Be warned it is out of print, hugely popular, and not inexpensive. Expect to spend from $35.00 to $100.00 when you eventually find a copy. No, you can't have mine, even if it is dog-eared and held together with rubber bands. Turning the gun on its side is a definite hinderance to good point shootiing.

If you see an ad offering to put sights on the side of a pistol, it is a joke.

Doc

Answer 6

That is why so many innocent bystanders are killed during drive by shootings. Unless you are an expert trick shooter, there is NO way to accurately fire a weapon this way. They do it in the movies to look cool. That's it.
Just out of curiosity, I fired a GLOCK 22 .40 s&w sideways and I can tell you from experience--it does not work. Hollywood isn't exactly know for promoting responsible shooting.

Answer 7

I asked that question to one of my friends a while ago. He told me that it was because when using firearms for this type of stupid actions back in the day, they had the least expensive ones they could find. During rapid firing the magazine would fall out of the bottom of the weapon. They then tilted it on its side, the magazine would not fall out of the weapon gravity would hold it in the grip. After a while I believe it probably became second nature and looked cool to have it on its side. Now all the idiots do it. Monkey see monkey do!!!

Answer 8

The guns are held sideways because they are being held by idiots who don't know how to shoot guns.

Likewise, drive by shootings are only conducted by idiots who don't know how to shoot. The "jam-o-matics" are used to compensate for the lack of ability. You don't really need to have a good aim if you are spraying 50 bullets in a general area. The guns are held sideways in this situation simply because you can reach out of a window that is only partially down.

These are the very people who are responsible for all the stupid and ineffective gun control laws, not to mention the attempted raping of the 2nd Amendment.

It just goes to prove that guns don't kill people, morons with guns kill people.

Answer 9

Having seen this done in movies and on tv my curiosity was piqued; so I went to the my range beside my shop/garage and actually fired a pistol sideways with the following results. Found it almost impossible to hit what I wanted to hit; got a kink in my neck that bugged me for a week; and burned my leg with a hot casing that fell into the top of my boot. Other than looking cool on camera I can find no really useful purpose for this type of whatever you would call it.

Answer 10

Pistols are designed to eject to the side, and load from the bottom, holding them sideways increases the risk of the gun jamming.

The only benefit is like another poster stated, is the quick "punch shooting" deployment.

The inaccuracy and jam risk far out weigh the benefits for any but the most inept shooters.

Of course that explains why gangbangers use the sideways method.