Please list who you are and what you do.
As per my profile, I am an Infantry CWO and the current RSM of a Reserve Light Infantry Regiment, employed at NDHQ in a staff position. I have recent operational experience in an Infantry sub-unit.
Did you learn the C7 by the PAM drills?
Yes.
I was one of the orignial SARP instructors
Since learning them, have you used them entirely?
Yes. Never had a stoppage I couldn't clear.
Have you been taught this "new" method?
Yes.
A couple of times/places with both mil and civ "operators" wearing balaclavas and Oakleys. Most recently was a refresher shoot in December 2009 just west of Ottawa.
What is your opinion of both of them?
As I stated I have been taught both ways: as per the pam (B-GL-385-001/PT-001) and as per "Gunfighter". When it comes to safety, the pam way is the ONLY drills that should be accepted. This is particularly true at the BMQ, BMQ (L) and DP1 levels where "best practises", which will stay with the soldier for their careers, will be learned.
"Gunfighter" drills are faster and more efficient but not neccesarily safer. If a breech obstruction or mechanical problem is the cause of the stoppage, I don't care how many times you "Smack-Rack-GO", your stoppage isn't going to magically get cleared. In those instances, falling back to the pam drills is the only way to go.
As I stated earlier, I have been taught and have used both drills in training and in the real world. I can also "transition" from rifle to pistol more quickly that I can clear a stoppage or change a magazine.
To be honest, I really like the "Gunfighter" drills, particularly with the A2. The problem is that "Gunfighter", though effective, is not the CF standard and is rarely taught outside the communities of those who need it.
In the case of an ND (which in the majority of instances happens during a load or unload) an ammunition/weapon accident/malfunction, the test is to establish if the accused followed the published, accepted CF standard - the pam - for handling/manipulating the weapon.
My $0.02 on a Saturday morning (before taxes).