YOUNG men are arming themselves with illegal guns to fight petty disputes in a trend that is alarming police and has placed Sydney in the midst of another spike in public shootings.

The acting Police Commissioner, Nick Kaldas, has pleaded with young men to ''think about your family and loved ones and what this means'' after a spate of fatal and drive-by shootings already this year.

Deputy Commissioner Nick Kaldas. Credit:Jon Reid

Three men have been shot in Sydney since Sunday afternoon, including a 24-year-old father, Joshua George, who died from a single wound to the chest after a disagreement at a party the night before. He is the eighth man shot dead in five months.

''We are seeing guns used to settle the most trivial matters,'' Mr Kaldas told Fairfax Media. ''Small debts, arguments over women, domestic tensions, road rage and minor property disputes.