New Shooter

[BrokenolMarine]

A friend of ours we met through a service call a few years ago asked me a firearms question on his last visit and I was happy to do some research and try and help him out. He had purchased a used .45 from a friend but not had an opportunity to shoot it. He had, however, shot one similar and NOT enjoyed shooting that 1911 style handgun. He found the recoil offputting and the accuracy missing. He admitted that they had just handed him the gun with a "Here try this" kind of thing. Point that way and pull the trigger. He admitted he was NOT a gun person and had never really had any shooting instruction. He had shot a shotgun a few times but never handguns. I told him his friends had done him no favors.

I told him that perhaps he could come over one day when he had the time and I'd teach him a proper stance, grip, and basic shooting skills and he might like his new firearm. If not, he might seriously consider a revolver if he wasn't going to shoot often or practice. We could go over the why when he came over again.

Today was the day. Although we didn't do a real "Class," following my standard 4 hour lesson plan, I did spend some time going over the differences between Single Action and Double action, Immediate Action Drills for Semi-autos and Revolvers, and Sight Alignment / Sight Picture, and Trigger Control. Then went over range safety and range rules.

On the range we loaded one round at a time and he fired his 45. He was surprised to learn the difference the proper stance and grip made in the control of the handgun, and that he could keep the shots in a group, even hitting the center several times. Then we changed over to the .38 Revolver so he could see how it shot and he shot both double and single action. He was really fond of the revolver and after putting away the target frames and cleaning up the range we went back to the house to chat about what he had learned.

He was honest about his lack of time to really practice and master the .45; and thought the revolver was going to be a much better choice for him. He was very happy with the way my Smith Model 64 and wanted to get a price on that. I told him I was really sorry but MINE was not for sale. I told him since he doesn't intend to carry concealed but is mostly looking for a house gun and something for plinking... MY recommendation is a 4" 38 or 357 since he could shoot 38s in the 357 for practice and load 357 for home defense (After firing some for familiarization.) However there are decent 38 defense loads on the market. He will look at both. He was very pleased with the way the day went and really enjoyed the range time. Next visit we will shoot the reactive steel targets. Loads of fun.

I think we have a new handgunner in our mix.

[markiver54]

Glad to hear of a new shooter. He is lucky to have an expert instructor.

[daytime dave]

Congratulations on being a good guy.
Not much beats a model 64 with some good loads for the average person.
It was nice of you to show him properly.

[BrokenolMarine]

Thanks guys, I am happy to have a friend to shoot with. I told him I would be happy to shoot with him anytime, but in the future, he would need to provide his own ammo. He said next time he would try and find some 223, AND some 38. I told him to make sure he bought practice ammo and not to let them con him into self defense or hunting ammo. Not what he needed to shoot on the range. He is a good guy, and I don't mind shooting with someone who listens, and follows directions. I have been known to ban someone immediately and permanently if they ignore the range rules and violate safety.