Advancing the Dry Fire Device

I got to test the TitanX, the latest dry fire training tool from Mantis. Mantis products use a data-driven approach to improve shooting ability. From an instructor’s viewpoint, their products augment and compliment live fire training without real bullets. The new TitanX training tool is a radical improvement in their training line, and something law enforcement agencies can use for many scenarios.

The TitanX is an inert dry fire device that looks like and shares the same dimensions of the real gun. It has Bluetooth connected sensors and emits a laser pulse when the trigger is pulled. The sensors connect to the Mantis shooting analysis app. The laser emitter will trigger the more popular sensors in dry fire ranges, including the Mantis Laser Academy.

I have been using the Mantis X10. This is a small sensor attaches to a pistol rail. It can be mounted to the front of a gun, or an accessory rail can be placed on the bottom of a magazine. Using Bluetooth, the Mantis X10 differs from all other dry fire devices because of the comprehensive analysis it produces. It has sensors that detect the exact movement of the gun. Not only does it give a trigger pull analysis, but it can look at holster draw efficiency, target tracking, and even measure accuracy.

I also use the MantisX Mantis Laser Academy. This is a virtual target range that uses real targets, a laser emitter in the barrel of the gun, and the camera system of the cell phone. Combined with the Mantis X10, a shooter can get real time analysis of the shot itself, and some dynamic shooting training. The shooter can measure their trigger break, holster draw, and even magazine reloads.

MantisX uses apps that connect to the devices. These apps track training and give the user usable metrics about their shooting. This is the same stuff I teach when I get students on the range, and I know that MantisX uses a network of experts to improve their training output. Just so you know, every instructor in my network has told me that they have never found an analysis or metric that MantisX has produced that disagrees with their training. That’s a lot of eyes on their products, and all of us find it effective.

Since MantisX has been doing all these things already, does this mean the TitanX is just an improvement on existing training tools? Not really. Although the integration of all these features makes the TitanX worth it, this design made it one of the best law enforcement tools in the business.

If you wanted to practice close contact response that includes force decision-making and drawing, it’s much better to do this several (hundred) times before going to live fire. It is a powerful thing indeed to reinforce these skills with complementary dry fire and live fire training. For example, with a dry fire trainer and a dummy Mobile Traffic Enforcement Tablet, one can practice close quarter drills one wouldn’t ordinarily do on the range. With the proliferation of victim mentality attitudes who won’t just “Press hard, you are making 3 copies,” training for traffic stops gone bad is not a bad idea.

All of the Mantis products are portable. They run off of apps, not sophisticated computer systems or plug ins. Your training record travels with you. The Mantis Laser Academy can be set up in the briefing/training room and the entire shift can train on a specific task. Because it can use traditional style targets, force decision-making can be reinforced. This is not only practical, it is legally defensible. If individual officers are issued a Mantis product, then training records for the Training Unit are easier to maintain.

To be even clearer, some of the instructors I know are also MantisX retailers and strongly recommend that students do a train up before live training with them as a suggested prerequisite. In other words, “Let’s use our range time wisely.”

The X10 app connects training to their own version of social networking. My firearm instructor friends connect their students in a networking environment with MantisX. They “train up” before a live fire session.

Every once in a while, MantisX sends out an app update. The ones I have seen lately are geared at “gaming your training”

Why the TitanX?

If the Mantis X10 already exists, what’s all the excitement over the TitanX? It’s pretty simple: As the products get better, they get closer to actually drilling with the duty gun.

MantisX put all of this into the same package with the TitanX. The TitanX comes in a EVA carry case with two weighted magazines and a USB-c cable. As I understand it, the TitanX is available in three models for now. These models share the dimensions of the Glock 17, 19, and 45. I am currently using the one that mimics the Glock 19.

When I say “mimic,” I mean it almost duplicates the size and feel of the Glock 19. It fits in my Glock 19 holsters, mounts the same lights, and will work with most of the popular optics. The trigger is very much like my Glock, except it does not need slide manipulation to reset. It feels like my Glock. It swaps mags like my Glock. It doesn’t require racking the slide for a trigger reset.

We can call it dry-fire training, but we can’t compare it to traditional dry-fire systems. I have talked to several firearms instructors who use this tool regularly. They all reported the same thing: The TitanX gets shooters to the next level.

MantisX has taken shooting from “This is where your shot went” to “This is why your shot is going here.” Their guided training and focused practice has helped tens of thousands of shooters to faster shooting progress.

I am unabashed about this. I have used MantisX to fix some of my own shooting problems, saving me ammo and, more importantly, the scrutiny of my shooting buddies.

One of the issues I always have to correct is my draw technique. I was using the MantisX X10 Elite to extinguish bad habits. The problem I had with the X10 Elite was that I had to either mount the thing on the front rails of my handgun or at the base of a dummy magazine. It was good, but resetting the trigger and having the unit attached to the gun makes it feel like a training tool.

I guess I have to confess this again, painfully. I have a tendency to let my muzzle go below the mouth of my holster during the draw stroke. Inefficiency means time. The MantisX X10 Elite helped extinguish that.

Before we dismiss the MantisX X10 Elite, remember that this tool can be used for live fire too. In fact, it gives instant feedback on recoil recovery and follow up shots. I’ve tried similar products, but the X10 Elite is the best in my experience. Imagine getting draw and recoil data in the same training session.

The Mantis TitanX is completely inert. Because it can’t be made to fire real cartridges, it is ideal for drills where critical movement is on the menu. For example, let’s say your Critical Response Team is doing dynamic entry drills. If everyone uses a TitanX for it, there already is a margin of safety. First of all, my TitanX is bright red. It won’t be mistaken for a real gun. The set up can use every piece of equipment except the actual firearm. Now the team can record an analysis of the activity leading up to the shot. The rehearsal can be much more realistic, but safe.

There is something to be said about not having recoil too. Using the TitanX properly can result in a steadier muzzle when switching to the real thing.

What didn’t I like about the TitanX? I would like to have dovetailed sights, so I can add my sights on it. It should completely mimic what I have on my gun. Somehow, either through a gas device, or similar, I would add recoil.

What was the best thing about the TitanX? Of all the dry fire devices one can use, the TitanX was designed for realistic training scenarios. Users can move and shoot, train in tandem, incorporate moving to cover, analyze their magazine management, and improve their shot break. That’s exactly what I do with my TitanX. I tell it to analyze, then train on a skill. I isolate skills like drawing from a holster and firing controlled pairs, and gauge improvement.

As a police firearms instructor, I would advocate issuing one to each officer in my agency. The MSRP is $200, which is cheaper than a single component of some dry fire systems. Individual officers can use it for skill building, then use the same unit for a consolidated team training. For pre-shift training, it is the perfect rehearsal tool, especially for building clearing training. For PIO use (Yes, PIO), it can be a way to communicate to the public the dynamics of active shooter response.

The TitanX is a product that may change your agency’s approach to training and training management.