Great Firearms Training, No Ammo Needed
In June of 2017, I reviewed the original Mantis X Firearms Training System. I was impressed by many of the aspects of it, especially for new shooters, but it did have some drawbacks for experienced shooters. Here we are four years later and I had the opportunity to test the latest version, the Mantis X10 Elite, which I can happily report has resolved all of the shortcomings I noted from the original version. The beautiful aspect of this tool is that it does not even require live ammo to improve your shooting.
In addition to the Mantis X10 Elite and a firearm, you need a smart phone that has access to either the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store. Once the app is installed and you set up your account, connecting to the Mantis X10 via Bluetooth is easy. Once you are connected, in the settings you will choose the firearm you are using, whether it is live fire or dry, and whether you are right or left handed. You will likely be prompted to calibrate the first time you use it for each firearm, and then the app will want to run you through some basic training. I suggest doing the basic skills tests as it will also help you familiarize yourself with the app.
For those of you who are like me, and prefer to use a desktop computer as opposed to your phone, if you log into your account at train.mantisx.com using the same info you used to set up your app, you will find all your training records there. All of this information is available to you on your phone via the app, but I just prefer to use a desktop when I can. You can review all the training sessions, shot by shot, and you can look at examples of what the Mantis X10 says you are doing wrong so you can work on improving.
As with the original version, the Mantis X10 Elite is a great training tool for both dry fire and live fire. This tool is a fantastic option for new shooters who need more trigger time than they can get with an instructor, but are not sure what they are doing wrong in terms of shooting accuracy.
What my son and I found in using the original Mantis X at the range with live ammo was that, while the shooter can look at the target and can see that their accuracy is less than stellar, most of them have no idea what they are doing wrong. The original Mantis X, and now the Mantis X10 Elite, take all that guesswork out of the equation. All the drills I ran my son through with the original version four years ago are still here and function exactly the same. After just a couple hours of shooting with the Mantis X, his speed and accuracy increased significantly.
The shooter can either fire a number of rounds in a row and then check the Mantis software to see what it tells them, or they can fire one round and a time and check between rounds. Initially, we found it useful to check after each round because it made it easier to see where the round hit and then look at what the cause was for that placement. After only a few minutes of that, we moved him onto strings, and watched his groups improve with each string. It really was impressive watching how quickly it helped my son improve.
Besides using it at the range to determine what they are be doing wrong as they look at where their rounds are hitting the target, they can practice their trigger pull at home by using the dry fire mode. Many new shooters severely underestimate the value of dry fire trigger pactice, but the Mantis X10 will help drive that point home by showing them what they are doing wrong with every single trigger pull, and telling them how to improve. Additionally, dry fire practice costs nothing, and can be done almost anytime. I often will practice while sitting on the couch watching TV.
Mantis X10 Elite Improvements
The Mantis X10 takes your firearms training even further than the original model. One of the drawbacks I noted with the original Mantis X was that it did not function well from a holster. As an experienced shooter, I was hoping for that but the original Mantis X was not initially designed to be used that way. Well, I am happy to say that the Mantis X10 not only functions very well out of the holster, but they have even included a number of training exercises specifically with that in mind.
The “Holster Draw Analysis” drill will time your draw using its built in shot timer. Not only does it time the shot, but it tracks the movement of your gun during the draw so you can see what you are doing with it as you bring it out of the holster up until the moment you crank off the shot. There are other more advanced drills for use from the holster, which have increasing levels of difficulty.
With all that said, the holster you are going to use needs to be set up for a gun mounted light so there is room for the Mantis X10 in the holster. I tried a bunch of my holsters and found that any holster designed to accommodate a Streamlight TLR-7 or larger light should function fine. I checked numerous holsters from Kydex concealed carry designs from LAG Tactical, Bravo Concealment and C&G Holsters. In the duty type holster, several of my Safarilands, both old and new, worked fine as did two holsters I have from Dara Holsters and a competition holster from Comp-Tac. Granted, if the holster applies retention on the light body, realize it will not have the same retention with the Mantis X10 in place of the light, so you may not want to run around doing somersaults or SWAT rolls.
Besides the physical act of controlling the recoil, there are lots of other things that come into play in terms of shooting accuracy. The Mantis X10 does a great job of tracking all of those even in dry fire mode. The only thing it cannot track is your sight picture. It can tell when you are aiming, but it just can’t tell if you are aiming dead center on the target, or if you have the sights misaligned. That part is still on you.
If you take the training to heart, you will notice improvements when you do fire live ammo. With ammo prices like they are today, most of us are shooting less than we would like to. With the current price of $249, the Mantis X10 Elite offers you nearly all the benefits of actual range training from the comfort of your own home, with unlimited trigger pulls, and for what in today’s market is the cost of ammo for two days worth of training.
