Let’s head to Maine, home of lobsters, Stephen King books, and the Maine Plainclothes Qualification Course. This course of fire popped up on my radar, and I knew I had to take it for a spin. As a plainclothes shoot, it has some merit for concealed carriers. It’s a simple course of fire that stresses concealment, drawing your weapon, and close- to moderate-range engagements.
There aren’t a ton of good concealed carry courses of fire, so this specific one helps a fair bit in providing a structured training plan and test of your overall skills. Plus, it’s not logistically demanding, and the course of fire is fairly expansive.
Gear for the Maine Plainclothes Qualification Course
You will need your handgun of choice, a concealment holster, and some form of cover garment. This can be as simple as your t-shirt and the gun. You will need 50 rounds of ammunition and you can squeak by with a single magazine. The target of choice is the FBI-Q, and you’ll need one target.
As usual, don’t forget your eyes and ears, as well as a shot timer. You’ll be shooting against the clock today. We will also need something to simulate a barricade. I used my favorite PTSB Lite for my barricade of choice. You can use a blue barrel, a board, a big trash can, or whatever. It helps to be creative.
Now, if we are all geared up, let’s go shoot the Maine Plainclothes Qualification Course.
Blasting Away With the Maine Plainclothes Qualification Course
This course of fire requires cover to be used at the 15 and 25-yard lines, so keep it handy. You’ll also need to draw from concealment for a good portion of the course of fire. There are no on-the-clock reloads, so ensure your magazine is properly loaded between each stage. This is designed for police officers, and there is a part of the stage that directs you to verbalize ID and make a command. I feel you can skip this part of the qual. It’s not relevant to most of us.
Stage One: Three Yards – Six Rounds
We are nice and close to the target at 3 yards but don’t get complacent. There are 3 strings to this stage.
String One: Draw from concealment, and fire one round on target in two seconds.
String Two: Draw from concealment, and fire two rounds on target in three seconds.
String Three: Draw from concealment, and fire three rounds on target in three seconds.
Those are tight times, so move fast and shoot straight.
Stage Two: Five Yards – Nine Rounds
This stage has four different strings that are a little repetitive.
String One: Draw from concealment, and fire two rounds on target in three seconds. Repeat this string two more times.
String Two: Draw from concealment, and fire a failure drill on target in three seconds.
Stage Three: Seven Yards – Nine Rounds
Stage three has four strings, but the 1st string is repetitive.
String One: Draw from concealment, step laterally, and fire two rounds on target in four seconds. Repeat this string two more times.
String Two: Draw from concealment, and fire a failure drill on target in three seconds.
Stage Four: 10 Yards – Six Rounds
At 10 yards, we are beginning to step out of a lot of people’s comfort zone, but this is just the beginning. This stage has two strings, and the holster is not utilized.
String One: From the low ready, fire three rounds from the standing in three seconds
String Two: From the low ready, move to a kneeling position and fire three rounds in four seconds.
Stage Five: 12 Yards – Four Rounds
At 12 yards, we are keeping things simple but repetitive.
String One: From concealment, draw and fire 2 rounds on target in 3 seconds. Repeat this string one time.
Stage Six: 15 Yards – Four Rounds
Ooh, now things are getting interesting. At 15 yards, have your cover set up and ready for this stage.
String One: From the ready, fire two rounds above the barricade, then immediately fire two rounds from the strong side of the barricade. You have 10 seconds.
Stage Seven: 18 Yards – Six Rounds
At 18 yards, we are out of most concealed carrier’s comfort zone. It’s a good distance and requires good fundamentals. This is a single string, but it’s complicated so pay attention. You will start outside of the cover with your weapon holstered. You will start at the 25-yard line, and the cover will be set up at the 18-yard line.
String One: At the beep, move to cover and draw your handgun. From here, fire two rounds standing over the barricade, then kneeling on the right side of the barrier, then finish it up with two rounds fired from the left-hand side of the barrier. You have 15 seconds total.
Stage Eight: 18 Yards – Six rounds
We are moving just a little here, so be prepared to giddy up a little bit as you do.
String One: From the ready position, begin advancing towards the target and fire 3three rounds. Repeat this string one time
That’s it, we are done, and our ammo is empty. Time to count your points. You need to have landed 40 hits with an 80% accuracy rating.
My Thoughts
I really like this course of fire. It’s impressive and fun. It’s not super hard, but the times are fairly tight, especially in the first few stages. If you waste time, you won’t make it. The Maine Plainclothes Qualification Course is one of the very few that offers you tight times. I like the use of movement and cover.
This course of fire is also very viable for all manner of small guns. You can shoot it with a J-Frame revolver with five rounds and not be undergunned or incapable of passing the course of fire. It also requires good shot placement, as well as the use of cover. There isn’t much I would change. Adding in a reload would be nice, but I can work that in fairly easily.
Maine has done a good job with their Plainclothes qual. What do you think? Share below and let us know your opinion of this undercover qual.
