My historical handgun research team sent me this article from a 1945 issue of the American Rifleman. Credited to J. Edgar Hoover, it gives an overview of all the guns and shooting drills the FBI was using in that era. In the article, Hoover shares the qualification courses for the .38 special revolver, Thompson submachine gun and 12 gauge shotgun, and also explains how the FBI uses the .357 magnum revolver and .30 caliber rifle as special purpose weapons. Most of these drills were shot on the old Fitzgerald target designed in the 1920’s, also known as the Colt Silhouette target or the NRA B-21. I wrote about the history of that target in this older blog post.

Target Evolution: B-21, B-21X, to B-27 and beyond

I’ve written a lot about the FBI’s Practical Pistol course, which became the course of fire for PPC (Practical Pistol Combat) competition. Several of those articles are linked below.

Historical Handgun – more on the 1945 FBI course of fire

Historical Handgun – even more on the 1945 FBI course of fire

FBI Practical Pistol Course (1946)

Here’s some vintage film clips of FBI shooting practice from the 1930’s and 1940’s.