How often do you train?

G

gaseousclay

New member
When the protests and rioting happened last Spring, I, like millions of other Americans, went out and purchased a firearm and ammo. My reasons were 1) genuine fear for my safety due to the increase in crime 2) not wanting to be defenseless if I ever were put into a life or death situation and 3) not wanting to miss out on acquiring a gun or ammo due to the surge in purchases from new gun owners, as well as the constant increase in ammo prices.

With that said, I also bought a gun with the intention of taking more safety courses and to train so that i'm more proficient at firearm use. I took one safety course but the lack of time basically kept me from continuing. So, here I am about 5 months later, still with zero time to resume safety training. I'm also trying to preserve whatever ammo i've purchased last Fall since it's all selling for a premium these days.

With ammo prices being what they are, how often do you train? I'm sure some of you are well insulated and probably have enough ammo on hand, but for those of you with a limited supply, what do you do? I was checking a local gun safety class and they recommend bringing 500 rifle rounds and 100 pistol rounds :eek:
 
personally, I try to shoot 50rnds per month minimum. If I can I shoot 100 every 2 weeks, but I'm in conservation mode right now.

Really unclear on why you would need that much ammo for a safety class.....

I have found this to be a good course of fire to keep my skills up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8MvKIiXC2M

In all honesty. Basic safety comes down to the 5 basic rules of firearms safety. most importantly IMHO keeping your finger off the trigger until your ready to shoot. With handguns it can been a touch more complicated due to holstering and un holstering. Thankfully that is easy to dry fire train with. Make sure the gun is clear. Practice drawing and firing. pick a lamp, or light switch. and just make sure your trigger finger goes out straight and to the frame of the gun when drawing while lining the sights up, before bringing it inside the trigger guard. then back to the frame while holstering. Practice for a few min per day, you will be there in no time.


Got to ask, you have been a member 10yrs, is this your first firearms purchase?
 
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Been shooting most of my life. For me everything is muscle memory now. If I didn't practice for a year I'd be fine for self defense but I enjoy shooting for fun and have 22s in addition to my centerfire pistols. All my 22 ammo cost less than $4 per 50. Think about it like throwing a swish from the 3 point line. Those who can do it consistently have done a lot of practice from repetition till it's a natural fluid motion when it counts. People just getting into it have a lot of bad habits to break and most can't or won't become expert shots like others they see at the range simply because they won't or can't put in the practice to break the bad habits. You should understand people develop skills over tens of thousands of trigger presses they have made in their life. Skills will peak at some point due to physical health and taper off in old age as people develop shakes and their eyes don't work so good anymore.

Newbies buy a gun and they don't master it to the point that everything is natural so they could do it blind in the dark.

50 rounds of centerfire a month is enough to maintain proficiency for an experienced shooter or if you are shooting a few hundred rounds of 22 pistol or pellet guns each month to develop mastery of basic skills. Only shooting 50 rounds of centerfire a month for a newbie with less than 500 rounds of total shooting experience just isn't enough practice to really develop predictable and consistent control of your weapon. 22 Conversion kits are a good tool to practice mastery of your primary defense gun because they allow you to experience the same sight alignment, grip, trigger squeeze, follow through, mag change, and slide stop but you can't shoot them in town at your residence. All are key skills for defensive pistol craft. Many people break at the wrist with each shot or dip the front sight when the gun goes off. Centerfire recoil makes it harder to understand what you are doing wrong but video of yourself shooting can help. Some people develop flinch and don't control the gun through the cycle so the shot goes wide. Pellet pistols shooting around 400fps are useful alternatives to a 22 pistol or conversion kit for training if you get an accurate one because they can help you figure out what you are doing wrong in the privacy of your own garage. All you will need is a clear lane of fire and a safe backstop made out of a big box with lots of crumpled paper 6 to 10 inches deep and a plywood or particle board backstop to stop any that punch through the crumpled paper or are misses. Pack the paper down regularly and add more as needed. It's best to get frequent feedback shooting as many times a week as possible. If shooting a pellet gun in your garage is the only way to practically do that, it is well worth a $100 investment to get started. Pellet pistols in .177 will shoot much better than bb guns with smooth bores.

Crossman Revolvers have good single action triggers.

https://ads.midwayusa.com/product/1...+-+Airgun+Rifles+&+Pistols&utm_content=590940

A pellet gun like this may be more like your self defense handgun.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1019760880?pid=685112
 
Got to ask, you have been a member 10yrs, is this your first firearms purchase?
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Not my first. Long story short, got into firearms 10 yrs ago, bought a couple of rifles, then went through a divorce and couldn't afford to keep them.
 
gaseous clay said:
I was checking a local gun safety class and they recommend bringing 500 rifle rounds and 100 pistol rounds
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That doesn't sound like a safety class. That sounds like a fairly advanced tactical class.
 
I train pretty much every week. I reload 9mm for my pistol and PCC but generally speaking there is no ammo crisis in the Czech Rep. That said I am very lucky to have a range nearby which is open because Covid19 pretty much closed all of them and you are not allowed to shoot anywhere else in the CZ - we have rather high density of population here so it would not be safe :)
 
I shoot every week, for the last 5 years or so I have fired only 22LR. The skills acquired, the muscle memory, etc. carry ove to larger calibers.
 
Before the riots and looting it was every week at a minimum. Sometime more. Now have gone down from around 1500-2000 rds of 9mm per month alone, to zero. Just Air Pistols/Rifles now, shotguns and Black Powder. And Laser's.
 
As Carl stated he has chalked up thousands of rounds of practice a month for years and years. I think given the current state of ammo and gun availability finding a highly accurate pellet pistol to train with at home could be just the thing you are looking for as a training aid to conserve your centerfire ammo. There are tons of reviews on youtube so you can preview the pros and cons of each model. Even a good single shot, single pump model that does not need CO2 like the Air Venturi V10 or Beeman P17 could be good training tool for centerfire handgun. You just need a gun with adjustable sights and a good trigger that can consistently produce very tight groups at 20 or 30 yards if you do your job correctly. Your goal should be keeping all of your shots in an inch or less at that distance. Consistently hitting a 1 inch sticky target out to 15 or 20 yards is a good goal and well within the capability of some of the better pellet guns.
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxv7Kv4uHKY
Handgun: twice a month. But how often is your Other training?:confused: How about your wife/girlfriend/ Daughter...? If a thug grabs her wrist (or Both Wrists - common)-- she must react Now--probably won't be able to reach under a jacket, or inside that purse.:( as he drags her towards his car.

>>>> What would you do if somebody literally hits you with a fist or something ;), from a Blindspot? Your hands will be far too busy, grappling, possibly protecting blows towards your head.... to reach for a handgun.
Jason Bourne superman skills are just fiction.

I began Krav Maga classes at age 64 (now 65). About to test for green belt (snow delayed it).
* Relying Only on a handgun is extremely risky:(. These words did not come from the school (based on police reports). Thugs mostly strike from blind spots, keeping outside your visual scan. Krav classes, normally using karate class buildings, will allow you to try a few classes for free :) ; they use plastic strike/kick pads--you body does Not actually get hit... and we move somewhat slowly when learning a new combination. Good luck out there!

Maybe the career felon will stand opposite, fifteen feet away at target distance, and announce his intentions.:D
 
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I've never "trained", but shot a USPSA match every weekend for fifteen years, and now shoot one or two IDPA matches a month.
Weather and covid restrictions are getting in the way of even that.
 
I don’t know if you would call it training, but I shoot at least twice a week. I shoot a couple of hundred rounds every range trip of 22lr with my understudy gun, a 617 model, and than shoot about 3 cylinders of my carry gun which is a .357 revolver. I also practice shoot off hand at a couple of hundred yards with my 22 rifles.
 
I try to fire 400 rounds per month. Some times more, some times less. Most of these are .22 LR. The basic fundamentals of pistol shooting are the same, be it a .44 Mag, a .38 Spcl, a .22 LR, or a pellet gun. If / when my ammo reaches a level of concern, my training will be dry fire.
 
gaseousclay said:
Not my first. Long story short, got into firearms 10 yrs ago, bought a couple of rifles, then went through a divorce and couldn't afford to keep them.
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Exes will go after yer guns just to spite you, even if they have no interest in firearms or if they have little value.

In my divorce, ex insisted she'd keep my 80 lbs draw weight compound bow.
 
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