Target Index: The Vision Skill That Separates “Range Accurate” From “Fight Ready”

By focusing on target indexing, the shooters will enhance their marksmanship skills, leading to better performance in dynamic environments. Mastery of this skill is essential for any proficient shooter aiming to engage multiple targets efficiently.

The Skill You’re Missing Isn’t Speed—It’s Vision

A lot of shooters think target transitions are a “faster hands” problem. They chase a quicker swing, a snappier gun movement, a more aggressive turn at the waist… and then wonder why they keep clipping the edge of the next target or flat-out overshooting it.

That’s because target indexing, what most folks casually call “going from one target to another”, isn’t primarily a mechanical skill. It’s a vision-based skill. If your eyes don’t drive the process, your gun will arrive late, sloppy, and inconsistent.

At War HOGG Tactical, we call it target index because words matter. “Transition” gets used for too many different things, especially when people talk about moving from primary to secondary. So we keep the language clean: target index is going from one target to the next, and doing it with intent.

And if you want to be 1% better every day, you need a repeatable way to measure it, train it, and prove the improvement at the end of the month. That’s what this skill builder is for.

Why Target Index Matters in the Real World

Target index is critical for military service members and law enforcement officers, and yes, there are concealed carry contexts where it matters too. It’s also essential in competition, where stages are built around arrays and movement.

Here’s the truth: multiple target problems show up when the stakes go up.

Whether you’re clearing a structure, working a vehicle stop, moving through unknown space, or dealing with a dynamic threat environment, your ability to shift your focus and deliver accurate rounds to the next problem is not optional. Target index is a core skill.

But you can’t just “do it.” You’ve got to do it clean.

The Two Big Errors That Destroy Your Index

Most shooters fall into one of two traps:

First trap: they look at the whole target instead of choosing a specific impact point. Your eyes wander, your gun wanders, and the shot lands wherever it lands.

Second trap: they keep their eyes “in the sights” while moving to the next target. That usually causes one of two outcomes, either you shoot the far edge as you arrive, or you overpass the target completely because your eyes never went where they needed to go.

When you index correctly, your process is simple: eyes first, pick a point, drive the firearm to that point, confirm the sights, press. The gun follows the eyes, every time.

What This War HOGG Skill Builder Is Designed To Do

This War HOGG skill builder follows a simple cycle:

You shoot the drill at the start of the month and record the results. Then you build a dry-fire plan based on what the data tells you. Near the end of the month, you reshoot the same drill and confirm improvement.

That’s the difference between training and just burning ammo.

When your training is structured, your results stop being random.

Gear That Supports Honest Data

You don’t need a complicated setup. You need tools that let you see what’s real.

Bring your normal range gear. Use a shot timer, a recording device (and a tripod or holder), and a copy of The Firearms Training Notebook to track your work. For targets, simple 3×5 and 4×6 index cards are more than enough to expose your strengths and weaknesses.

When you can record your reps, video and timer, you stop guessing. You start diagnosing.

The Drill: How Many In 10 Target Index Reps, No Warm-Up

Here’s the drill: complete as many target indexes in 10 seconds with no warm-up, just shoot the drill. 

And before you treat that line like a throwaway, understand what “no warm-up” really means. It means you’re measuring where you are right now, this is performance on demand. The first rep counts. That’s closer to reality than the “five practice runs” most people rely on before they start timing.

As you run it, record two things that people love to ignore:

The distance between targets, and the type of targets used.

If you don’t track your setup, you can’t compare results month to month. Consistency matters, because improvement has to be proven, not assumed.

Choose a Setup That Fits Your Range and Your Goals

You can set this drill up in multiple ways. Use the War HOGG Self Eval target spacing. Use an El Presidente style layout. Or run two targets with a wider spread, up to a 10-meter spread if your range and your goal support that.

The point is not picking the “coolest” drill. The point is picking a setup you can repeat and measure.

And don’t get locked into one direction. If you practice left-to-right all month, you’ll be smooth left-to-right…and clumsy right-to-left when it matters. Practice both directions.

Start Position: Build on Past Skills Without Getting Stuck

There are multiple ways to start, depending on where you are in your firearms journey.

One option is starting presented on target with your finger on the trigger so you can evaluate reaction time, because reaction time is a skill that stacks with everything else. Another option is starting from ready and building pistol presentation. Another is drawing from the holster, depending on your training objectives.

My advice: don’t overthink it. Pick the start position that supports the skill you need most right now, and stick with it for the month so your data stays clean.

Target Index Is a Vision Skill - So Train It Like One

If you want to fix target indexing, stop trying to “move the gun faster” as your primary strategy.

Your process needs to look like this:

Move your eyes to the next target first. Choose a specific point you want to hit. Then drive the firearm to that point, and your eyes should see the sights arrive on that point.

That’s not just a technique. That’s a principle.

When you choose a precise point, your brain gets a clear destination. When you stare at “the whole target,” your brain has no destination, so your gun arrives messy and your shot breaks wherever it breaks.

Mechanics: Small Index vs Big Index

Not all indexing is created equal.

If the target shift is small, you can often run it efficiently with upper-body mechanics and a stable platform.

If the target shift is large, you need to bring your legs into the equation, not just your waist, so you can get on target faster and stop on target with control.

This is where shooters lose time without realizing it: they over-rotate the waist, the gun swings past, and now they’re correcting back. That “correction wobble” is wasted time and wasted accuracy.

Drive. Stop. Confirm. Press.

Live-Fire Coaching Cues That Clean Up Your Index

Here are the cues I use when I want a shooter to tighten up their target index without drowning them in technique:

Pick a dot-sized point on the next target, don’t just “go to the target.” Move your eyes first. The gun follows the eyes.Arrive hard, then settle soft, meaning you stop the gun with authority, then let your sight picture stabilize. Press the trigger when the sights are where they need to be, not when your ego wants the shot to break. Run both directions. Don’t live on your “easy side.”

Write down what happens. If you overpass the target, say that. If you kept your eyes in the sights and dragged the gun across, say that. Your notebook isn’t for compliments, it’s for corrections.

Dry Fire: Where the Skill Gets Built

I like to dry fire my techniques first because it gives me time to refine the skill. And before anything else: ensure there is no live ammo in your dry fire area.

Here’s the reality of dry fire: you only get one trigger press unless you’re using a reset tool (especially on carbine). If you don’t have a reset tool, save your real trigger press for the second target. You can still do a partial press on the first target, but the second target is where you want that true press to reinforce the timing and confirmation.

Dry fire isn’t pretending. Dry fire is programming.

Set up two aiming points. Start on one, then snap your eyes to the next, pick your point, drive the gun, confirm your sights, and press (or partial press + press, depending on your tool setup). Repeat it both directions.

Build Your Dry-Fire Plan With Par Times

This is where shooters either get better… or they stay the same and call it “training.”

Take your 10 target index times and calculate your average. Title a page in your notebook “Target Index – Pistol / Carbine.” Then take your average time and add 0.25 to 0.50 seconds depending on how wide your target spread is. That’s your starting par time.

When you can consistently land the sights on the target and get clean presses at or under par, lower your par time in 0.05 to 0.10 second increments until you reach the best time you can own without breaking down.

And don’t compare your times to other shooters. This is your firearms journey. You will get there if you put in the work.

Check Progress: Re-Shoot and Prove It

Near the end of the month, go back to the range and reshoot the same 10 target indexes with the same setup. If you put in the dry-fire work, you should see improvement.

This isn’t motivational talk. This is how skill is built:

Measure. Train. Re-measure.

Accountability: The Missing Ingredient for Most Shooters

You can improve alone, but accountability keeps you honest.

A shooting partner, a tribe, a group, someone who will call your performance like it is, makes a difference.

And if you don’t have that locally, build it online and make it real. Our On The Range Podcast "CREW"community doesn’t exist to cheerlead. It exists to help shooters get better through structured work, shared reps, and feedback.

Join our On The Range Podcast Patreon "CREW" for exclusive access, and our bi-monthly zoom calls where its all about you and your performance.

Put In The Work

If you want better target indexing, stop treating it like a “swing the gun faster” problem. It’s a vision problem first. Pick a point. Move your eyes. Drive the firearm. Confirm the sights. Press clean.

Run 10 reps at the start of the month, no warm-up. Track your setup. Build a par-time dry-fire plan. Then come back at month’s end and prove the improvement.

Train Hard, Stay Safe, and I’ll see you “On The Range” - Rick