360 Performance Shooting Shotgun 360 Berryville VA 8/4-8/5/2018
I got to attend the debut class of Shotgun 360 in Berryville, Virginia last weekend. The course was held on a private facility. Instructors were: Ashton Ray, owner and lead instructor, and Tim Chandler of FPF Training. Ashton and Tim are both long time serious defensive practitioners who have been training for decades with some of the best in the industry. They have seen the good, the bad and the ugly. Their experience is relevant and beneficial to you. They have developed a solid program, and both are highly skilled shooters and effective instructors.
Class consisted of approximately 12 student shooters. The composition varied from experienced to very experienced shooters with many shotgun enthusiasts. There were law enforcement and military both active and former, some training junkies, and some law-abiding citizens attending. I ran a Remington 870 Police Shotgun for the weekend, one with a Surefire handguard light for the low light portions and one without for the rest of the training. My gauges and my light ran great. My guns are a little older at least 25 to 30 years old, before Big Green started turning out crap. If you are looking for a good 870, go older, preferably older police buy back. They usually have low mileage and are of better quality then what Remington is putting out today.
It was hot and humid all weekend long. But, that did not slow the pace of training. Ashton and Tim are serious shotgun enthusiast, who have been on the Haj for a while. On their journey they have spent time with the Masters: Rob Haught and Tom Givens to name a few. Ashton and Tim have put in the work, they know their stuff and it shows. Besides that, these two just really dig scatter guns and their enthusiasm is encouraging.
Medical contingency plans and safety led out of the gate. We then got into fundamentals particularly stance and mount. How to mitigate recoil is a large part of this instruction. If your shotgun beats you up, you are probably doing it wrong. To tame that recoil, you must know how to stretch the gun. I’m pretty sure Rob Haught pioneered this technique. However, Ashton and Tim also have it down and can help you master it also.
Throughout the course the terminal ballistic effectiveness of the shotgun was highlighted. It is one of the platforms’ biggest advantages. Additionally, some disadvantages were discussed also, particularly the limited ammunition capacity of the platform. Spare ammunition carriage and placement was a large portion of the instruction, especially where to place Vang Comp Side Saddles or Aridus Industries Quick Detach Carriers. Frankly, folks besides stock cuffs (especially for you South Paws) any other side saddle or carrier and you are barking up the wrong tree. The importance of consistent skillful manipulation for tactically reloading or speed reloading was presented, stressed and tested.
We mostly shot Buck Shot or Bird Shot on steel. We did target transitions, even ones with innocents between threats where muzzle discipline was demanded. Day One was the long day and included a night shoot. People got to see what lights worked and which lights could be better. Surefire handguard lights are heavy. But in my book are still king for low light operations.
Day 2 included movement through doorways particularly opening a door with a big old scattergun in your hand. We patterned with Buck Shot. Folks if you are not running Federal Flight Control for your 00 Buck as your defensive load of choice you may be a little behind the times. We engaged crossing and charging threats. We also did some myth busting.
Ashton had previously built and brought some portions of interior and exterior walls with him for ballistic testing. He also brought a vehicle door from a Chevrolet sedan. We shot these and folks learnt what pistol ammo, rifle ammo and shotgun ammo does when traveling through sheet metal and typical residential construction.
One thing became evident to me throughout the weekend, the time of the Remington 870 as the defensive shotgun king is starting to wane. The new kid in town is the Beretta 1301. It was without a doubt the most prevalent gun in the class. It runs like a beast and spits out lead with incredibly fast split times. I think it is the next firearm that I want to acquire. It is a bad azz platform.
So here is my full disclosure: Ashton and Tim are personal friends of mine. Even so, I attended this course as a paid customer, for several reasons, but mainly because I knew it would be worth it. It certainly is worth it. If you are a serious defensive practitioner and a shotgun is part of your home defense or defensive preparations, then you want to check Ashton’s and Tim’s schedules and plan to spend a little time with them. Highly recommended!
