Range Report...My Wife's First

V

vega

New member
So, we went to the range this morning and let my wife try my Dad's snubbie 22. After 3 rounds she gave up. Not that she doesn't like guns but she's afraid of the sparks. I told her that's normal and sparks wouldn't hurt her and just imagine a lighter or a match. I didn't push her and let her take her time. She promised she'll do better next time.


The good part of it is my son's shot found all their marks. I think he's better than I am. I am proud of it because he could boast that his father was the one who taught him.

After the session we went to a fine restaurant to eat. I think that's what my wife is looking forward to.

Any suggestions how my wife could overcome her fear of those 'sparks'.

Thanks,

vega
 
Vega,
I would be willing to bet there is more of a fear there then just the sparks(?),,,,try a bigger 22 then a snubbie, try a ruger semi, or browning or maybe a single six, or any of the double actions with a bigger barrel....and throw in a lightweight rifle, she wont see the "sparks"...Id let her progress at her own pace and wouldnt push it, and you might have to do a lot of "dinners" and some of her chores to keep encouraging her to go to the range, eventually try some reactive targets,,, ballons, eggs, plastic soda bottles filled with colored water, anything that could be different and be careful of how you instruct....good luck fubsy.
 
vega,
Atta boy! :)
Here's hoping that this won't be your last range report, either.
Sounds like fubsy is right on the mark re the short vs. long barrel 'sparks' situation.
As long as she wasn't intimidated or self-conscious by nearby shooters.
BTW how old is your son?
So as long as you can afford the trips to the restaurants... :)




------------------
...defend the 2nd., it protects us all.
No fate but what we make...
 
Yes, try the rifle it's never failed me with a first timer. A snubbie anything is probably the worst choice you could have made for a first timer. If you are dead set on the pistol thing, the advice to go with a ruger single six of heavier pistol is an excellent suggestion. I've been shooting for years and will gladly shoot anything over a snubbie. The report alone is enough to scare a newbie. good luck but you should listen to our advice about the .22 rifle. ddt
 
Bought my wife a Bowning Bckmark and she loves it. But then again she also loves my HK .40C, Sig P239 in .357sig, and my Ruger P-89 in 9mm. :) I wonder how she would like a Desert Eagle in .50AE. ;)
 
How about some motivational psychology? Give her a point system, where every hit in the 10-ring is ten bucks toward that bread machine or bracelet or whatever she wants.

Just make sure you can cover your prize money. She might turn into Annie Oakley and start asking about a Porsche.


------------------
Dave
Deep in the Florida Swamps
 
foxfire - My son is twelve yrs old.

David - She's been eyeing that new fridge we saw at the dept. store.

vega
 
I agree, a full size .22 or a rifle is the best choice to start with. Or even a pellet gun. Fortunatly my wife was fond of my .40 cal guns, but I made her go back to the .22 till I get some shooting skills in her. I don't want her to develope bad habits because of the recoil. Had a buddy learn on a .45 and couldn't hit paper 10 feet in front of him because of the flinch.
 
If you must use a .22 subbie, get a box of CB shorts or 22 shorts -- those ought to cut down on the sparks and the muzzle blast...and keep that target close (5 ft).
 
Dave,

I made the mistake of using the "insentive" system with my wife as well. She started off with my Ruger MKII .22 she did ok but nothing extraordinary. Well she sees my buddies S&W model 66 4"inch .357 mag and says...."I want that gun" so after some bargaining I lost a rifle and owned the 66. Well to make a long story short she is now wearing a $3,500 diamond ring. Seems that 66 just agrees with her. Moral: the insentive system sucks....but at least she looks forward to going to the range now. Has her sights on a nice rolex watch now....hahaha

------------------
Compromise is not an option
 
Vega,
The rifle and full-size .22 are both good suggestions, but I've got a question. Was she wearing the amber tinted shooting glasses? I notice the sparks when I'm wearing clear lenses, but not when I've got the amber ones on. Just thought I'd put in my $.02.
Eric

------------------
Teach a kid to shoot. It annoys the antis.
 
DEFINITELY the rifle. A member (maybe more of a lurker) on the forums offered to help me introduce my girlfriend to shooting (he knew I lived on campus and so had no guns nearby or a place to shoot, so he let us come with him to his club and use his firearms--great guy.)
Anyway, he started her off at 10 feet with a scoped .22 rifle, two rounds at time. By the end of the night she wanted to try his 6" .44 (but with .44 spl loads, thank God.) Had a great time.
 
Oleg - Aint that too near (5 feet) ? I'll try the shorts next time. I used Remmington LR. Or better yet, I'll rent the Ruger Rifle they have at the range. Could I use short for this?

Puddle - She wore clean lenses.

Thanks,

Vega
 
5ft and a big target is not too close. .22 short may hit lower than POA and it will help to be able to see holes appear somewhere in the target zone. A silhouette rather than a bullseye would be better -- gives shooter a sense of success.
 
Can I get adopted by someone who will willing to use the incentive program? On Saturday I put about 1/7 of my shots in the 10 ring of a 25 yrd taget set out at 50 yrds. with my BM 16" AR. I like to teach people on the AR, cuz it looks scary but is tame as heck and very simple to operate. So far, I have gotten 4 people to enjoy shooting the first time they went out. With my ARs. The have been good little rifles. Although, my friend 686 6" 357 mag made a girl want to buy a revolver with only 1 shot. I think if you let them have a good time and don't push them, anything works. They first time some goes out and shoots with me, its free. I figure if it works for drug dealers, it can work for shooters also.

------------------
It ain't mah fault. did I do dat?
 
Yea Vega

God forbid the women get any ideas.
Speaking of women shooters......
Is it just me or are women better shooters naturally than men?

See I am USMC trained , been shooting all my life, have shot competitively for over 15 years. My wife picks up a gun that she feels comfortable with and shoots near as good as most of the people I shoot matches with....myself included. I like to think that she had a good teacher, but what did I really teach her? I showed her proper sight picture, breathing, etc etc. but when it comes down to it she just has a really good shooters instinct. By the way since that last post I let her shoot my Browning HiPower....well guess what I dont have a HiPower anymore....she kinda took it. Oh well now I can justify that new .357 sig Glock. :)

------------------
Compromise is not an option
 
Hey SgtGunrunner, I think it's because they don't have ego's. They actually listen and pay attention. Usually guys just want to pop off. My sister doesn't shoot much anymore, but when she does people watch her because she can make clovers at ten to fifteen yards with anything up to a .45. If you get your wives/girl to enjoy shooting the first time, you may have someone sympathetic to your gun addiction. Get a used bolt action .22, they're safe and cheap.
 
In this anti 2nd amendment climate it is more important than ever to bring women into the fold. This is sexist, but the last time I checked, women still do most of the work raising kids. Where did all of the anti gunners come from? I would guess that alot of em had anti/indifferent gun mommies. I feel good that if I died today that my significant other would carry on in the finest tradition bringing up the children to respect, enjoy and safely use firearms. If we want to leave a legacy of freedom after this era of persecution, we must break down barriers of sex, age, and race and stand together. Right now, I don't care what party or what planet a person is from if we can get em on our side we gotta do it. If we can just get through this bs, we can all go back to hateing each other later. Besides, Chicks with Guns are COOL! -ddt

PS. I probably shouldn't have written this in this forum but what the hell.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top