Teaching New Shooters

One of the things I enjoy doing is taking new shooters to the range.

It's a thing that was common when I was a kid. Everyone had guns, everyone taught their kids. My Elementary school even had an indoor rifle range and every 6th grader was taught safety and target shooting.

If you want to give shooting a try I will be happy to take you for the first time. Memorize these before we go:

The Four Rules

1) Treat all guns as if they are always loaded
2) Never point a gun at anything you are not willing to destroy
3) Keep your finger OFF the trigger until your sights are on the target
4) Be sure of your target and what’s beyond it

The Two Disciplines

1) Muzzle Discipline:  Watch where you are pointing that damn thing!
2) Trigger Discipline: Keep your booger hook off

--Let's go shooting!

Repeat This Often

I have kids. I love them more than anything in the universe.

• If I didn't love them I'd never let them see a real gun.
• If I didn't love them I'd demonize guns.
• If I didn't love them I'd keep them from being safety trained.
• If I didn't love them I'd make sure they never touched a REAL one.

But I do Love them. So I demystified guns.  I let them handle all kinds of guns. Showed them how to tell a real one from a toy. I taught them the differences in the various types. I taught them lots of rules. More than the classic 4 Rules.

• If you see a gun, STOP! Don’t touch it.
• Leave the area.
• Tell an adult.
• If you see a gun and don’t know whether it’s a real gun or just a toy, treat it like it’s a real gun.
• Tell me. Even if it's days later.

Adapted and expanded from the NRA’s Eddie Eagle materials. Children should be taught rules as soon as they are old enough to talk. Rules should be added as soon as the child understands and can repeat the earlier rules.

--If you hate your kids support gun control.

I Love Seeing These

Yet another Groupon flooding Washington DC with positive messages regarding shooting.

At this time 110 people have already signed up.

$74 for Shooting-Range Package with Instruction, Handgun, Ammo, Target, and Range Fees for Up to Three People.

 

--We are winning.

Another Gun Groupon

Today there was another Gun related Groupon locally!

We are Winning

I got this in my email yesterday from Groupon! 

--I might have to buy one as a gift!

New Shooter Number 32

Jamie and the .357

I took my friend Jamie to the range today for her first time ever shooting handguns.

We sat  down for an hour in advance so I could answer her questions, give her a safety talk, memorize the Four Rules, and learn range procedures.

I took three guns for her to try.

• Glock 17 9mm
• S&W 539 9mm
• Ruger SP-101 .357

She did well with all three. She was always on the paper at 25 feet. The gun she liked the feel of the best and the one she actually shot the best was the .357 revolver.

She actually got 5 bulls eyes with the SP-101 shooting .38spl. She really liked the simplicity of the revolver. The loading and the function included. 

She doesn't flinch much at all.

Another guy was there with his girlfriend and he did not teach her proper thumb placement and she got a wicked bloody slide bite.

My friend Joe went along as well. His first time shooting in like 12 years! He wants to go way more often now!

--I love it when a plan comes together...

New Shooters

Took another girl to the NRA Range for the first time. She did great. She is going into the Coast Guard soon and wanted to get a little trigger time before she got there. We shot three different 9mm's plus my AR15.

Before we headed to the range we spent an hour talking about the Four Rules:

1) Treat every gun as if it is loaded.

2) Don't point a gun at anything you don't want destroyed.

3) Know your target and what's behind and around it.

4) Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire.

I also like to include the two disciplines:

1) Muzzle Discipline - Watch where you point that thing!
2) Trigger Discipline - Keep your booger hook off the bang switch.

We also talked about Range rules and basic functions of the guns before leaving the house. Big Fun!

--Best Quote, "I always thought guns were powerful. Now I know."

The Four Rule, The Two Disciplines, Plus...

I have been talking firearms safety with a lot of people lately. People have asked me to train their kids, wives, husbands and democrats. I think I will even be offering a safety course at my church. I will be covering the 4 Rules plus a lot more. I add my 2 Disciplines, Range Rules and Kid Rules.

Listed here for your reference:
 

Be a good shooting ambassador

The Four Rules:

• Treat every gun as if it is loaded.
• Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire.
• Don't point your gun at something you don't want destroyed.
• Know your target and what's behind and around it.

The Two Disciplines:

• Trigger Discipline. "Keep your booger hook off the bang switch!"
• Muzzle Discipline. "Watch where you're pointing that thing!"

The Range Rules:

• Casing and uncasing firearms safely
• Keeping breaches open
• Muzzles always pointing down range
• Target Placement
• How to avoid shooting the walls, floor and ceiling
• Casing ejection awarness
• Range Specific Rules

The Rules for Kids:

• If you see a real gun, don't touch it
• Leave the area immediatly
• Call me, right away

--There are a lot more rules that I have not listed here. Like "Call your mother, she misses you.".

Shooting Skills Enhancement Course

I have been considering taking the course detailed below. Has anyone ever taken this class? Any classes from the Silver Eagle Group?

Shooting Skills Enhancement Course

Course description: 

 
This will be a four week, 8-session pistol enhancement training course. The shooter will leave here both confident and proficient in handling and manipulating their weapon system, with the skillset to back that up. Our trainers will take shooters from all levels and turn them into smarter, well rounded practitioners.

The course is designed around the natural progression of each individual student. During the training, students will learn to develop the fundamentals of shooting and master the mechanical manipulation of their firearm. Students will learn safety, fundamental manipulation, ballistics, round placement, target acquisition and more.

Once grounded in the fundamentals, students will progress to more dynamic shooting techniques. They will be taught speed reloads, stress shooting, problem solving, dynamic movements and immediate action drills. Through this progression, the student will become a self-confident, knowledgeable shooter. By the end of our course, you will be capable of analyzing situations, solving problems and placing rounds where they need to go, in any situation.

Course dates & times: Tuesdays and Thursdays starting July 5 – July 28 from 5:45 PM – 7:45 PM

Instructor:Paul Sweeney

Paul retired as a Master Sergeant from the United States Marine Corps after twenty years of service as a Force Reconnaissance Marine. Through his extensive operational and training experience, Paul has achieved the ranks of Master Training Specialist, certified by the US Marine Corps. He has designed, implemented and instructed both tactics and firearms training programs for the Maine Corps, the Naval Expeditionary Combat Command, Federal and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, Special Operations Units and civilians.

Round Count: 400 total for the 4-week course

Required Materials: Handgun, ammo, holster, and two extra magazines with a magazine holster. You may bring your own. Items also available for rent or purchase at Silver Eagle Group.

This course includes eye & ear protection but you may bring your own.

Course Length: 16 Hours Total

Course Price: $199.00

Injuries

Ever since I turned 50 I have been trying to get into shade. A shape other than round.

Last year, I lost 40 pounds. I want to do the same this year. To that end I have started working out at the gym and got myself a personal trainer. I have been slowly pushing myself, with her help, harder and harder slowly. Recently I inflamed an old injury.

About ten years ago I slipped on the ice, landed on my elbow and dislocated my shoulder. I tore my rotater cuff. It took over a year before it was right after that. The loss of sleep is a huge hassle too. My wife and I even switched sides on the bed so I could more easily favor my right shoulder.

As it stands right now I would not dare shoot a rifle or shotgun with heavy recoil. Even hand guns will give me a thrill I'm sure. If it was an emergency and I was gunning and running from Zombies this would be damn inconvenient.

--Time to practice left hand shooting.

Trigger Discipline

I bought a new cordless drill. I needed one badly. My Makita lasted longer than my second marriage but finally gave up the ghost. I bought a new Hatachi 18 volt at Lowes that also came with an excellent flashlight that uses the same batteries.

The story is gun related! Be patient, sheesh...

Anyway, like every middle aged, homeowner, husband, father, new cordless drill owner, I was running around the house doing tons of little projects.

The daughter asks, "Dad, is something wrong with your finger?"

I immediately looked at the one with the hide scraped off from changing the battery in my van.

"No that one." pointing at my right index finger, my trigger finger, pointing straight along side the drill in stead of on the trigger.

I laughed and said, "Trigger discipline."

--She rolled her eyes in a perfect teen age daughter moment.

My Neice is Learning to Shoot

 
--She lives in Arizona and is finally learning to shoot!

Future Guns are not the Only Thing...

--That's the look for Breda! (PSA pic from Oleg!)

Fighting the Flinch

There are lots of methods people use to help them defeat the reflex to flinch. My method was so effective that now I don't even blink my eyes when I shoot my Glock 21.

It's not complicated. All it takes is time and money.

Just fire 500 rounds of .44 magnum.

I have a Smith & Wesson Model 629-2 Classic Hunter.

The violence conveyed on the user end of this gun is dramatic to say the least. Impressive may be a better word. The recoil combined with the fireball and the general concussion of the thing usually, literally, shakes the dust from the rafters.

When I put 50 rounds through this little beast and then shoot my .45acp, it feels like a .22lr.

--Plus it is HUGE bruising fun.

Firearms Rules for Kids

I have kids. I love them more than anything in the universe.

• If I didn't love them I'd never let them see a real gun.
• If I didn't love them I'd demonize guns.
• If I didn't love them I'd keep them from being safety trained.
• If I didn't love them I'd make sure they never touched a REAL one.

But I do Love them. So I demystified guns.  I let them handle all kinds of guns. Showed them how to tell a real one from a toy. I taught them the differences in the various types. I taught them lots of rules. More than the classic 4 Rules.

• If you see a gun, STOP! Don’t touch it.
• Leave the area.
• Tell an adult.
• If you see a gun and don’t know whether it’s a real gun or just a toy, treat it like it’s a real gun.
• Tell me. Even if it's days later.

Adapted and expanded from the NRA’s Eddie Eagle materials. Children should be taught rules as soon as they are old enough to talk. Rules should be added as soon as the child understands and can repeat the earlier rules.

--If you hate your kids support gun control.

Long Range Shooting Simulation

I found a long range shooting simulator on the interwebs. Granted any simulation cannot replicate actual training but some simple concepts can be learned.

This simulator can give you a basic understanding of estimating ranges using a mil or moa reticle and using a range card to set elevation and windage.

The main lesson this thing can show you is how to use the tics in the reticle to estimate the distance to the target based on the size of a known object, (like the poor schmuck in the sight picture).

Nothing can replace actual range time. Better yet, actual training with an experienced, professional instructor.

--Besides, actual range time is way more fun!

Lasers and Dry Firing

My Beretta 96D has an internal LASERMAX site installed inside the main body of the firearm. I Love the LASER and it is spot on when I use it.

One thing that it is great for is dry fire training.

First off, when dry fire training, recite the 4 Rules. Actually say them out loud. Clear your gun, twice. Dry fire targets should be something safe. Not your cat, not the bottles on your bar, not the neighbors tires out the window. THE 4 RULES!


My 96D has a very heavy trigger pull. Dry firing with it has really helped me with trigger control. The LASER is a great way too to show if you are staying on target as you are pulling the trigger. It should be a smooth pull all the way through with the LASER staying firm on the target.

LASERS make a great training tool. They give you feedback and help you establish muscular memory.

--Batteries are cheaper than ammo...