What Are You Preparing For?

For quite some time, I have been thinking about the way training is approached in, for lack of a better phrase, the "tactical firearm community." In my opinion, there is an over emphasis on weapons training in the community.

You might say "Well, duh. The firearms community is going to have a heavy emphasis on firearms training over other subjects." This is certainly true. And I'm not suggesting that people who want to own and use semi automatic rifles or pistols for various purposes should not be intimately familiar with their operation. In fact, if you haven't received training from an objective and experienced third party, I highly recommend that you seek out at least one course.

However, pistol and carbine training courses – and shotgun courses, and precision rifle courses etc. – are all essentially based on, or grew from the concept of, providing law enforcement and military personnel with a greater ability to use their issued weapons. What we see now in the firearms community are essentially the same courses marketed to civilian shooters, perhaps with some limitations or restrictions. This is all well and good, but there is a major disconnect between the skills of a civilian shooter who has attended many carbine and pistol training courses and the skills of a Marine infantryman who has never attended training outside that which is provided by the military.

It is almost a foregone conclusion that the civilian shooter would be more proficient with the rifle/carbine and the pistol, at least within 50 to 100 yards. However, the Marine possesses skills that would make him much more valuable to an infantry unit, and, I daresay, more valuable in a firefight. Unfortunately, the skills that make him so valuable are not cool enough to draw dozens of paying clients.

Some – certainly not all – civilian training centers draw students by telling them how after only a few days of training, they will become as good a shooter as "a SWAT cop or a Navy SEAL." Yes, Front Sight, I'm looking at you. Even when this is not stated outright, it is implied – most often not by the instructors, but by the students. For some people who have never been in the military, and are seeking a little excitement, putting on all the gear and getting on line to practice shooting drills is a really fun way to spend a weekend. I certainly don't wish to put down what they have chosen to do too much, for as I said above, anyone who wants to own an AR-15 should know how to use it. However, while there is a massive jump in skills and proficiency after the first few training courses, the 5th, 10th, or 15th course is of relatively little value.

As I hinted previously, there are many other critical skills normally associated with people who carry guns for a living that are not taught at carbine or pistol training courses. From patrolling and room clearing for infantrymen to felony traffic stops and subduing a violent criminal resisting arrest for police officers, the number of skills required to perform these jobs simply cannot be covered in a weekend. Of course, some of these skills would be of little or no use to people who aren't performing these jobs on a daily basis. This brings me to my next point - actually, the overarching point of the article.

Why are you (this is a metaphorical "you") seeking out this training? Home defense? To score higher in competition shooting? Preparation for an end of the world scenario? While this type of training will prepare you for some of the possible things that might happen immediately before or during a gunfight, there are many other important things to learn. Being able to avoid the confrontation in the first place might be a better option.

For example, in the aforementioned end of world scenario, a complete lack of situational awareness, or an inability to move across terrain quietly, might funnel you into a fight you'll have a hard time winning. Beyond that – although this is a slightly different subject – being physically prepared for the rigors of carrying a rifle, ammunition, food and water, and other essential gear for days and miles at a time in a harsh environment is a far cry from being physically prepared for a carbine course that breaks for lunch.

In my opinion, a lot of people would be much better off if they attended a few quality courses from reputable instructors, then practiced regularly to maintain the skills they acquired during the course(s). This is as opposed to continually attending similar courses over the years, especially if regular practice in between courses is neglected.

Continually attending firearms training courses is an expensive proposition. How much more prepared are you - for whatever you are preparing for - by spending this much money and time on one thing? Would you be better off branching out in the training world and learning the basics of emergency medicine, or attending a high performance driving school? What about a wilderness survival course? Of course, all of these things cost money, too. Only you know exactly why you look to take carbine courses, and only you know if that money could be more productively spent elsewhere - or if it would be better to not spend it at all.

If you have 10 minutes to spare, watch this video.

Every month, MDTS puts out a short video. They've had good things to say in the other videos I've watched, but this month's video will help just about anyone.

I've tried to get across similar points in my blog posts - mainly, avoid confrontation whenever possible, and pay attention to your surroundings - but this is an excellent description of a thought process that might one day save your life.

Addressing Gun Store Myths

If you've been in a gun store at least once, you've probably heard an opinion about a firearm, good or bad. You've probably also heard some outlandish stories, too. I tried working in a gun store, and I could only take it for about six months. There's an incredible amount of misinformation out there, and if you're new to the world of shooting, it's going to be next to impossible for you to sort through the bad and find the good.

I wouldn't dream of trying to put every bit of information I could think of in one article, mainly because I don't have all the answers, and I'm not intending this to be some sort of reference for any particular firearm. I might mention brand or model names as being a good choice for one particular situation, but please, do more research before making a purchase.

Whether I'm in a gun store, at the range, or browsing forums online, I invariably find someone who's willing to explain to me how I've made the wrong choice in firearms, for a variety of reasons. I'll hear things such as, "Oh, that rifle isn't reliable," or "This is what (insert name of special operations unit here) uses, so I bought it." I'll also hear interesting observations on tactics from people who've never heard a shot fired in anger, such as "If you use a light at night, you'll get shot," or "You can just rack the action of the shotgun, and the bad guys will run away." We also hear that "All you need is one round of .40".

Well, reality begs to differ. For the most part, any quality name brand weapon is going to be reliable. This includes, but is not limited to, Beretta, Colt, Glock, Heckler & Koch, Remington, Sig Sauer, Springfield, etc. That doesn't mean you should blindly trust something out of the box - fire it thoroughly to ensure proper function. However, if a gun store employee tries to tell you that a Beretta 92FS is unreliable and will get you killed, or that AR-15s don't work unless they're clean enough to eat off of, just smile and nod.

We also hear about who uses what, but generally without the why, where, and when. Yes, US Navy SEALs use M4s with 10.3" barrels, among other rifles. They have the HK Mk 23 handgun, which doubles as a boat anchor. They use a lot of different weapons systems, but they have specific needs for those weapons. SEALs have many missions, one of which is called VBSS, Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure. This relates to merchant ships, warships, pirate vessels, etc. These are very confined spaces, requiring short rifles for maneuverability. In other words, unless you live on an oil tanker, maybe having the same rifle that the SEALs do isn't going to do you much good.

As for weapon mounted lights, that's a topic for another day, but suffice it to say that I know of no one who kills bad guys for a living that doesn't use a white light when appropriate. I know I just contradicted myself, with the discussion of "don't pay attention to what the cool guys use", but when everyone who does it agrees on one point...the importance of a light becomes obvious. It's as important for you as it is for them, or you'll end up like this guy and kill your fiancée because you didn't identify your target. Learn from this man's tragic mistake - don't shoot at dark shapes.

Shotguns can be very effective weapons, but with the increasing prevalence of home invaders wearing body armor, the shotgun has to take a backseat to the rifle or carbine. Many people fall into the trap of the shotgun being an easy to use, easy to hit with weapon that requires no training. You just pick up a shotgun and rack the action, causing the bad guys to poop themselves, then you fire in their general direction and a 12" hole appears in their chest, causing them to fly backwards through the nearest window, right? Unfortunately, this is just one of many cases where the movie industry has not done folks in the firearms training world any favors. In the right hands, a shotgun is a very effective weapon, with certain limitations. In the wrong hands, it's far from effective, as this wonderful video from the good folks at Adco Firearms shows. Just ignore the comments below the video - those people have spent too much time at gun stores.

Your first priority in the defensive use of a firearm has to be ensuring that you are justified in using deadly force against a potential threat. Next, you need to put rounds in the right place on that threat until it stops being a threat. Everything else is secondary. As Officer Soulis and Officer Borders discovered, having a .40 or .45 caliber handgun is by itself not sufficient to stop a threat. 9mm, despite being vilified mostly by folks who have little knowledge of terminal ballistics, is very effective when the proper load is selected. I was once informed by a gun store employee that 9mm was a bad choice for self defense because it would over penetrate the target. 10 minutes later, he was telling me how a Carhartt jacket "stopped a 9mm bullet fired at point blank range." If that was true, I'd buy more Carhartt jackets. As it was, I simply smiled and nodded.

The discussions between handgun, carbine and shotgun have been going on for a while, and will probably continue to go on for decades, or until the introduction of the phased plasma rifle in the 40 watt range. While handguns are easily concealed or, more importantly, kept out of reach of children, shotguns are more effective from a terminal ballistics standpoint. Handguns are more easily fired with one hand than a rifle, which might be important if one was trying to keep a panicked child out of the line of fire, but rifles and carbines are faster and more accurate at close range.

Each weapon has benefits and drawbacks, but the most important aspect of a weapon, in my opinion, is your willingness to practice with it. If you have an 8 gauge shotgun by your bed that you've only fired once because it dislocated your shoulder, you probably won't stand a chance against three or four determined home invaders who, despite popular belief,regularly train with their weapons. You need to be proficient with your firearm, or you might be found liable in either criminal or civil court should you miss your target - and that's if you survive the armed encounter. As many folks like to say, there's a lawyer attached to every round you fire.

Firearms Training for New Female Shooters

I enjoy teaching folks how to shoot, but in my experience, women make the best students. Besides being a welcome change from the grumpy old men I normally encounter at the range, women approach firearms differently than men. Even though a guy may have no hands-on firearms experience, he's probably seen action movies or gangster TV shows, and has incorrect ideas about weapons safety and handling. A lot of guys are out to show how cool they are at the range. Conversely, women don't have anything to prove. They know their limitations - that is, women are likely seek out advice and instruction without being told or asked to do so. They are excellent listeners. If I do my part and start them off with weapons that don't have a massive amount of recoil, they respond very well to basic instruction and are often shooting very accurate groups within an hour of first picking up a firearm.

If you're a woman and you want to learn how to shoot, there are several ways to do it. One way is to find a local firing range that rents handguns. Almost all such ranges offer instruction, or, at the very least, a safety briefing - and many offer reduced range fees for women. But take a look at the employees first - if you're not comfortable with them, or the weapons they recommend for a first time shooter include the word "Magnum", find another shop. If you are uncomfortable when you are being instructed or when you're shooting, you'll probably walk away from the store and never want to fire a gun again.

There are several women-oriented training courses available, such as the excellent Babes with Bullets. However, their courses are often booked for a year in advance. Don't get discouraged. Once you've had that initial safety training, check online for courses offered by shooting schools or traveling instructors. Do some research and see what others, especially women, have said about the course. Although such courses are often populated by military and law enforcement personnel, most instructors I have dealt with welcome women in their classes, because as I said before, women pay attention to important things like safety rules. Be sure to look for courses that offer loaner firearms.

As for handgun choices, that's another topic entirely, and one that I could go on forever about - so I'll try to keep it brief. Some women gravitate towards smaller guns, believing that they will kick less. This may not be true. A comparably larger weapon of the same caliber may be easier to hold and, due to increased weight, have less perceived recoil. I am a firm believer in the effectiveness of the 9mm round, and most 9mm semi auto pistols are relatively easy to shoot. A lot of folks recommend revolvers, and I think they have their merits. However, a small, lightweight revolver in 357 Magnum is a handful for the beefiest of men to control, and I seriously doubt that the majority of first-time shooters - male and female - would want fire more than one round from such a weapon. If you think a revolver is best for your needs, get one in .38 Special.

Shooting can be a fun and safe sport, and the confidence you gain from being proficient with a weapon that could be useful for self defense is invaluable. Whatever else you might have going on in your life, there's only one thing holding you back, and that's you. If you've thought about learning how to safely use a firearm, don't put it off any longer.