Shooting the New Jersey State Police Pistol Qualification HQC1

I stumbled across the New Jersey State Police Firearms Qualification Document which outlines the various weapons qualification courses used within the state of New Jersey.  I decided to give shooting the pistol qualification, HQC1 a chance.  For reference purposes, the complete 89 page document can be found here.

Shot on a FBI Q target, the 60 round course of fire begins with the target at 25 yards and ends with the shooter 1 yard away.  48/60 hits in the scoring zone are required to pass.

The source document is incredibly detailed, with the description of the HQC1 taking place over 5 pages.   To make viewing the entire course of fire easier, I created the table below summarizing what is required.

NJSP HQC1 Table

I shot a Generation 4 Glock 19 with Winchester 147 JHP from an Safariland ALS paddle holster. The gun is equipped with Trijicon HD tritium night sights.

Times were recorded using a PACT Club Timer III.

The NJSP specifies using a FBI Q target for the qualification.  I selected a QIT-99 Reverse (countershaded target).  The QIT-99 adds a two scoring boxes and a dashed line, however, the entire white part of the target counts for score.

HQC1 NJSP scored target

I shot a 59/60.  I dropped one round at the 25 yard line.

Overall the course of fire is a good entry level qualification course.  Some of the drills under 10 yards seem redundant, and not having the shooter draw and fire at the 10 yard line doesn’t make a lot of sense.  The first part of the 15 yard line is the most challenging.  I don’t understand some of the redundancy at short range.  Qualification courses should test a skill set, not provide easy stages to earn points.

I would recommend giving the NJSP HQC1 a try, I had a good time shooting it.