Took another young person shooting for his first time out.

A

aarondhgraham

New member
Another college student,,,
A server at my favorite watering hole.

He had only shot a .22 rifle before,,,
And that only twice.

I told him I would give him a handgun tour.

For single action revolvers I took,,,
Colt Frontier Scout in .22 LR / Dakota SAA clone in .357 Magnum.

For double action revolvers I took,,,
S&W Model 18 in .22 LR / S&W Model 15 in .38 Special.

For single action semi-auto I took,,,
Ruger 22/45 & Beretta NEOS in .22 LR / I borrowed a 1911 in .45 ACP.

For SA/DA semi-auto (with decocker) I took,,,
Bersa Thunder .22 / Bersa Thunder .380.

For SA/DA semi-auto (with manual safety) I took,,,
CZ-75B Kadet in .22 LR / CZ-75B in 9mm.

And just so he could say he has fired one,,,
S&W Model 629 in .44 Magnum.

We went early to beat the heat here in Oklahoma,,,
Luckily we had the 25 yard range and table to ourselves.

My goal was for him to have experienced most major gun types and calibers,,,
He shot two cylinders of .38, .357 Magnum, & .44 Magnum,,,
Along with 2 magazines of .380, 9mm, and .45 ACP,,,
I took him up in a natural progression,,,
Explaining about each gun type.

He did fine as far as I am concerned,,,
I did throw a lot of info at him.

We have been talking about guns for months now,,,
He did say that actually shooting the guns,,,
Made the past talks make sense.

Then we proceeded to burn our way through a bulk pack of Federal .22 LR.

He didn't think much of the 22/45,,,
But he fell in love with the NEOS.

I put him in a modified (one foot back) isosceles stance,,,
He started terrorizing clay pigeons laid on the berm.

He shot several mags through all of the .22 pistols,,,
But the one he kept coming back to was that NEOS.

We're going gun shopping in two weeks.

All in all it was a fine morning at the pistol range,,,
Another young person hooked on shooting.

Aarond
 
You sound like an awesome teacher, there should be more like yourself!

Someone taught to shoot handguns me in a similarly conscientious manner . . . I fell immediately in love with 1911's.
 
Thanks for the compliment,,,

Not certain I'm a great firearms teacher,,,
But I do own a few handguns,,,
And I'm eager to share. :)

It's fun taking these young kids shooting,,,
Except for when their young eyes spank my old eyes.

We found an unopened can of soda someone had left,,,
So I put it out at the 50 yard berm,,,
I said whoever hits it first,,,
Gets an adult beverage.

He smacked it with that NEOS on the first shot.

Damn his young eyes!

I fell immediately in love with 1911's,,,
Click to expand...

I was very surprised that he didn't like it very much,,,
Of the centerfire pistols he liked the CZ-75B best,,,
Of the rimfire pistols he liked the CZ-75B Kadet,,,
Until I told him that it was a $600.00 pistol,,,
Then he drifted over towards the NEOS.

Aarond
 
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Hello C0untZer0,,,

Move to Stillwater, Oklahoma,,,
Enroll in classes at Oklahoma State University,,,
And most importantly get a job serving tables at Joseppi's Italian Kitchen.

After you've brought me several barrels worth of Blue Moon,,,
We'll load the pick-em-up truck full of handguns,,,
And go to the shootin' range. :D

Aarond
 
Aarond, you are a fine ambassador for handgunning, but we gotta switch you over to Dos Equis Amber. Blue Moon is for girls! ;)
 
A Haiku for my beer,,,

Hello Tailgator,,,

Blue Moon Belgium White,,,
A girly beer it is not,,,
Tickles my taste buds. :D

Okay,,,
My haiku sucks,,,
But it's only my second one ever.

Aarond the (oh-so-bad) poet.
 
I would very much like to have a crack at a CZ75 myself . . . regardless of the fact that at this point I would in no way be able to take advantage of all that lovely riding-inside-the-frame accuracy, it still sounds like a brilliant gun, particularly the ones that allow SA! The only other 9mm I have shot was a boring, soulless (if functional) Glock.

Well, I can't do any of this in my country anyway, sigh, gotta get myself back to Tennessee!
 
aarondhgraham said:
After you've brought me several barrels worth of Blue Moon,,,
We'll load the pick-em-up truck full of handguns,,,
And go to the shootin' range.
Click to expand...
You're going to drive out to the shooting range after several barrels of Blue Moon . . . ?

That doesn't sound like a great idea. ;)

Seriously, though, it sounds like the range trip was a success. Well done!
 
That sounds like the best first handgun shooting trip ever. I really wish that the guys who taught me had such a fine and varied collection. In fact, I don't think ANY of my friends who are in the shooting sports have that nice a collection:(. Looks like I need some new friends who have more money and/or have been shooting for longer:D
 
shooting

Your doing a great job Aarond. Sounds like he had fun. Dont kmow if the weather or the guns must of been hotter from all that shooting. Stay hydrated and cool at Joseppi's!!! Makes me want some cheese fries and Joe's, but it's too hot.
 
good job ....and keep it up ... and set a goal of 5 new shooters a year ....

You know this already ....but a lot of people are curious about guns / and intimidated about going to a range without knowing anyone there or what to ask for / or what to expect in terms of expense.
 
Nice job... We need to teach all the people we can about firearms. Ignorance needs to be turned to knowledge so people dont fear what they dont understand. I believe everyone in this great United States of America should know how to shoot.
 
Five new shooters a year?,,,

I'm almost there,,,
He was my 4th this year.

Another young man who is a student worker in my computer lab,,,
Just ordered a Hi-Point .45 from Buds Gun Shop,,,
His roommate reloads .45 ACP ammo.

I would have pointed out a few alternatives had I known beforehand,,,
But what the heck, it'll probably work just fine for him.

Aarond
 
Despite their reputation, you must admit that for their price, Hi-Points are quite reliable and the universal warantee is great for people who won't be able to afford another handgun for a while.

I've shot several, and while they are a tad heavy and uncomfortable, and ugly as sin, they have been, by and large, quite functional and durable. I would advise any starting handgunner to pick up a 9mm Hi-Point, learn to shoot it, and shoot it well, and then move on to a more elegant firearm. Also, after learning how to shoot a brick like the hi-point, they will cherish the finer quality gun all the more.
 
Thanks gentlemen,,,

I truly enjoy taking newbies to the range,,,
A lot of the fun is debunking Hollywood myths they have absorbed.

But the true fun is getting them involved in hand-gunning.

And I generate new shooting buddies.

Aarond
 
Aarond,

Nice work! It's great to see someone who is brave enough to invite others to the range and patient enough to show them the ropes. You're a good man.

pax
 
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