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Thread: Training priorities for new shooter.

  1. #1
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    Missouri

    Training priorities for new shooter.

    Hi all,

    While I've always been interested in firearms from afar, my branch of the family had no history with guns. Acquiring and becoming proficient with a handgun has been a "sometime in the future" goal for me, rather than something immediate.

    Well, suffice it to say that a few months ago, the priority dramatically increased. I did not consider myself to have an optimistic assessment of humanity, but I still found my expectations much disappointed by reality.

    So I went to the local gun store and aimed for a handgun that was reliable, had a good reputation, and was available. I walked out with a Glock 34 gen 5, feeling lucky to have it.

    I took a basic pistol course at a local range a few years ago, but that's basically the extent of my experience. From reading, there's a wide range of skills important for using a firearm in a defensive setting, including (but not limited to):

    Marksmanship
    Manual of arms for pistol
    Safety
    Firing quickly with accuracy
    Establishing weapon reliability with defensive ammunition
    Decision to shoot (threat analysis)
    Drawing
    Movement
    Tactics
    Weapon retention
    Maintenance of firearm

    (Sorry, I'm a scientist, I start most projects by reviewing literature).

    In an ideal world, I could take all the time in the world to learn all this stuff, but being a scientist during a pandemic (with a family), I don't have an excess of free time. So what I'm trying to figure out is what the training priority should be for pistol for use in a home defense scenario.

    It seems to me that safety, manual of arms, and establishing a reliable defensive load are the most important basic priorities, and I hope that starting with a Glock will simplify some things.

    Beyond that, however, I'm curious where I focus my time? For example, while marksmanship is obviously important, working to group 5 shots on a post-it note at 25 yards might be less important than weapon retention in close quarters or low light training for a home defense.

    I hope I'm being clear, apologies if I'm not.

    Another way to state the question: What are the skills that are the highest priority for application I've described?

    Thanks in advance for any help. I've perused a handful of firearms related forums, and while I'm obviously new to this, from what I've seen, this forum seems like it's got a tremendous reserve of expertise, so I'm hopeful my question can be answered. Failing that, I'm still very appreciative if anybody who can help me understand if I'm not even asking the wrong questions to start with.

  2. #2
    Site Supporter rob_s's Avatar
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Location
    SE FL
    So your primary interest in handguns is self-, family-, and home-defense, correct?

    Do you intend to carry this pistol, or another, concealed outside the home?
    Does the above offend? If you have paid to be here, you can click here to put it in context.

  3. #3
    Deadeye Dick Clusterfrack's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2013
    Location
    Wokelandia
    @Bio, welcome to Pistol-Forum and gun ownership. You wrote that training for "using a firearm in a defensive setting" is your priority, and you have identified a very solid list of things to work on.

    One missing item is the legal aspects of use of deadly force. I belong to the ACLDN, that provides some excellent training material in this area.

    As you know from your career training, it is much better to learn from true experts than to try to learn something on your own. So, I suggest investing in well-vetted defensive handgun training.

    I like what you wrote about priorities. It's common for people to focus on chasing tight 25yd groups or super fast par times on the draw, but as you point out, a well-rounded skillset is much more important for defensive purposes.

    The first thing to focus on is safety--both for yourself and those around you. You must be able to prevent a ND, friendly fire, or a child accessing your gun.
    "You can never have too many knives." --Joe Ambercrombie
    Shabbat shalom, motherf***ers! --Mordechai Jefferson Carver

  4. #4
    Site Supporter
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Canton GA
    I suggest it is important to recognize this is a lifetime journey of continuous improvement. I find it helpful to find shooting partners with similar interests and hopefully better skills than me who challenge me to improve. Classes and instruction are helpful along the journey.

  5. #5
    Site Supporter
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    Jun 2020
    Location
    Missouri
    @rob_s

    Carrying is possible in the future, although it is a secondary application right now.

    @Clusterfrack

    Thanks for the link. Safety is definitely the highest priority. Do you (or anybody) have any tips for identifying good trainers? With the exception of big national names (which are probably off the table right now), what do I look for in an instructor? It seems sort of like a thing that you don't know until you try it, and if you're starting without any expertise, you might not understand deficiencies in an instructor for a while. I guess looking at it from my own world, there are good professors, bad professors, and good professors who are bad at teaching. Letters after a name don't necessarily tell you a lot.

    @ranger

    That's the mindset I'm trying to take. I don't mean to suggest I'm just trying to rush through to talk basic level of competence and stop.

    Thank you all for the responses.

  6. #6
    Chasing the Horizon RJ's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Welcome to pistol-forum. I joined this site in 2014, basically knowing nothing about guns. I'm also pretty analytical by nature, but didn't know what I didn't know. I still don't know a lot.

    I would suggest three things to think about, in terms of where to spend time as a new shooter. The first might surprise you, but it has to do with Mindset. I read somewhere Whenever you unholster a gun, you are making potentially life-altering decisions. It's true, if you think about it. So, I would familiarize myself with the laws of the state in which you reside, and do some reading on considerations for being armed. An excellent overview of that is in Andrew Branca's book, The Law of Self Defense:

    https://www.amazon.com/Law-Self-Defe.../dp/1943809143

    Mr. Branca's book will go into the legal aspects of using lethal force in self-defence. The point here is to have thought about the aftermath of a self-defense shooting, before it happens. A second book I highly recommend is by Mr. Tom Givens, which will give you an even broader overview of being armed, including many specific suggestions:

    https://www.amazon.com/Concealed-Car...s=books&sr=1-1

    Next, I would focus on Skillset. This would include a good, solid, introductory foundational pistol class with a regional instructor. There are many here who can suggest one in your area, if you post your zip code. You can also look up classes available, here, using this handy web search tool:

    http://www.firearmstraininghub.com/

    Your local gun store likely also has class options. Your Glock 34 will be fine in such a class. The instructor can advise what additional equipment (holster, belt, ammunition, etc.) you can expect to need for the class. Then (or while waiting for the class), I would focus on

    Toolset

    Safety is number one, of course. Your Glock is a very reliable, accurate, easy to shoot pistol. It's also fairly large, relatively speaking. It would be a good idea to get a solidly constructed Kydex holster designed specifically for it. Several site sponsors make good holsters, among them Dark Star Gear (www.darkstargear.com) and JM Custom Kydex (www.jmcustomkydex.com).

    As far as using your Glock at the range, absent specific instruction, an initial metric I would suggest for a first time shooter would be to consistently hit inside an 8" circle at 7 yards. If you can meet that standard, you'll be better than 80% of the shooters I typically see at my public shooting range of a weekend. If that seems easy, there are many other standards that you can strive to meet. If this is difficult, it would be best to get some in person instruction, as diagnosing shooting issues over the internet is pretty hard. So for your case, what you can currently achieve now, kind of drives where you can go and what you need to work on.

    Hope this helps. This is a great forum; I'm looking forward to reading the responses you get from the more experienced folks (which is most of them!) here.

    Rich
    Last edited by RJ; 06-22-2020 at 11:34 AM.

  7. #7
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    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    Central Front Range, CO
    @RJ

    Bio-
    The journey and goals that you describe, as well as your “want to learn it right” mindset remind me of RJ’s process over the last few years.
    Maybe he will chime and and offer his experiences as someone with a similar type of brain and desired end goals.

    I’m far from an expert, but I applaud your goals and methodology so far.

    I hope someone local to you can chime in here, and opera suggestions for training available in your area.

    Good Luck, and welcome to Pistol-Forum!


    ETA- Ha! Looks like RJ was typing at the same time I was.
    Quote Originally Posted by Bio View Post
    Hi all,

    While I've always been interested in firearms from afar, my branch of the family had no history with guns. Acquiring and becoming proficient with a handgun has been a "sometime in the future" goal for me, rather than something immediate.

    Well, suffice it to say that a few months ago, the priority dramatically increased. I did not consider myself to have an optimistic assessment of humanity, but I still found my expectations much disappointed by reality.

    So I went to the local gun store and aimed for a handgun that was reliable, had a good reputation, and was available. I walked out with a Glock 34 gen 5, feeling lucky to have it.

    I took a basic pistol course at a local range a few years ago, but that's basically the extent of my experience. From reading, there's a wide range of skills important for using a firearm in a defensive setting, including (but not limited to):

    Marksmanship
    Manual of arms for pistol
    Safety
    Firing quickly with accuracy
    Establishing weapon reliability with defensive ammunition
    Decision to shoot (threat analysis)
    Drawing
    Movement
    Tactics
    Weapon retention
    Maintenance of firearm

    (Sorry, I'm a scientist, I start most projects by reviewing literature).

    In an ideal world, I could take all the time in the world to learn all this stuff, but being a scientist during a pandemic (with a family), I don't have an excess of free time. So what I'm trying to figure out is what the training priority should be for pistol for use in a home defense scenario.

    It seems to me that safety, manual of arms, and establishing a reliable defensive load are the most important basic priorities, and I hope that starting with a Glock will simplify some things.

    Beyond that, however, I'm curious where I focus my time? For example, while marksmanship is obviously important, working to group 5 shots on a post-it note at 25 yards might be less important than weapon retention in close quarters or low light training for a home defense.

    I hope I'm being clear, apologies if I'm not.

    Another way to state the question: What are the skills that are the highest priority for application I've described?

    Thanks in advance for any help. I've perused a handful of firearms related forums, and while I'm obviously new to this, from what I've seen, this forum seems like it's got a tremendous reserve of expertise, so I'm hopeful my question can be answered. Failing that, I'm still very appreciative if anybody who can help me understand if I'm not even asking the wrong questions to start with.

  8. #8
    Site Supporter
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Erie County, NY
    Nothing wrong with being a scientist, there a quite a few here - welcome.

    I don't know your area but I agree with the legal aspects. I would also add a course on relevant first aid for critical incidents.

    The final part of the equation is when you feel comfortable and have basic skills, find a friendly competitive venue to practice technique. Matches are not training but skills practice.

    The gun, can be carried, but it's a touch large. If you want to stay in the roughly the same grip size, a G26 is fine.

    Books:

    https://www.amazon.com/Strategies-St.../dp/B07PGLGZFR

    Strategies and Standards for Defensive Handgun Training Kindle Edition
    by Karl Rehn (Author), John Daub (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

  9. #9
    Welcome to the site. Some excellent advice to be found here, as there are many serious practitioners (and some instructors as well) here.
    First, you’re to be commended for beginning your education. Like many others, I have worked and studied for years and found it worthwhile.
    All good advice in the previous posts. I’m also going to suggest you search for the “Tactical Professor” blog/website. I’ve had contact off and on with (“professor”)Claude Werner. He has excellent experience, e.g., being Chief Instructor for years at the Rogers School of Shooting, honorable military service, etc. And, the past few years has been thinking and writing on the many aspects of gun ownership and use. Highly recommended.
    I’m also going to recommend Jeff Cooper’s “Principles of Personal Defense” as a starting point for your mental preparation.
    Best wishes

  10. #10
    Three other items to consider:
    1) You’ve got a GLOCK, so hardware seems fine. Sounds trite, but read the manual.
    2) Decide on how to secure it when it’s not in your immediate control, and
    3) Consider applying for a carry permit now. If you do decide to carry, that’s out of the way...

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