Question of the Day: What Were the Last Two Things You Learned at the Range?

It’s hard for left-eye dominant righties to shoot long guns. My buddy, formerly a pretty good shot, found out he was LED and can’t shoot straight anymore.

Also that a top-quality Tokarev is fun to shoot.

That my accuracy with the double action on my CZ SP01 sucks. The pull is long and heavy and I always get fliers. But I guess that is only one thing, and I have kind of known it all along.

1. Despite planning to, I don’t have the bandwidth available to move, shoot and yell at an attacker while he’s charging me with the intention of thumping me soundly with a rubber baton.

2. Glocks don’t have sights. Or at least I won’t see them in the aforementioned situation. But you’ll hit COM anyway at 3-5 yards.

3. My support hand takes ~4.65million years to reach the gun after it enters my peripheral vision from the draw. I had enough time to think quite clearly- “Where the $*^% is my hand? Should I just shoot him without it? Why isn’t he getting any closer? Oh, there it is. Come on, get up here I need to shoot this guy. Finally, stupid-slow-ass hand, at least it’s got a proper grip. bang, bang. bang”

1. I don’t like the M&P9.
2. I love the Beretta 92fs

1)That helping new shooters is more fun than I thought.
2) That I need to have a little more patience.

1) That when shooting with magnum buck you sometimes blow the clips that hold the paper clean off the rig and end up with a not fully worn paper 20 yards out on a live range.

2) That when shooting a handgun the above seldom happens.

1. That an Apex trigger kit has turned my M&P 40c into a thread-cutter;
2. That the little blonde range officer is kinda cute. If I was only 30 years younger . . . . I’d still be too old for her.

1. Owning a 1911 does not equal marksmanship.
2. I would like to own a 1911 AND develop better marksmanship.

1) Keep your thumb and all the fingers that you would like to keep away from the cylinder on the 500’s. 2)Never stand behind anyone shooting the 700 grain T-Rex round.

1. Kilts are not appropriate range attire (Sorry Iain Harrison, it’s true)

2. I love my new AKM

Press the trigger even slower than I thought I should.
Stop shooting when I loose focus.

1) always wear your safety glasses

2) inspect every case you reload for cracks and powder load before it ends up in your range ammo supply (failure to do so will remind you why you are wearing safety glasses)

Oh, I forgot something that the cute little range officer pointed out to me. I learned that my fly does not zip itself.

Who knew?

1) Just because someone has shot a lot doesn’t mean they won’t do something really stupid.

2) Shooting skeet is the most fun you can have with your clothes on.

1. That the good looking woman in the expensive suit can shoot the balls off a gnat.
2. That the guy with the coolest looking gear will probably end up shooting his own balls.

I have to preface this by saying that the last range I was at was an indoor range in a city in central Virginia. At this range, you can rent handguns and full autos to try out.

1) Choose the stall furthest from the mother who brings her 4 children to the range. This way, you are less likely to be hit by a stray bullet from the 6 year old when she tries to teach him how to fire a handgun while holding it horizontal to the ground.
2)Do not ever go back to this range. The safety officials did nothing about individuals carrying pistols at their side, with the finger on the trigger. Or the mother with the 6 year old. It felt like I was in a gang training facility. The mental strain/anguish/fear that I felt here may have shortened my life nearly as much as a stray bullet could.

My wife and I went with another couple, one of whom is a local officer. Both of us have grown up around firearms and are very safe and experienced with them. Both of our wives come from more liberal households which do not own guns(My mother in law still does not know the extent of my collection. She would probably loose it if she knew what I keep at home with her daughter). Both of us are attempting to get our wives to understand that firearms are not so evil as they have been taught that they are. This trip to the range set our efforts back tremendously. I could tell that my wife was actually enjoying the shooting, but was scared by the actions of some of the patrons. My friend’s wife left the range after about 10 minutes and waited outside for us to finish.

1. When handloading, your record-keeping can’t be too detailed.
2. When shooting handloads, your record-keeping can’t be too detailed.

Stand to the right of strangers on the pistol range, because most people are right handed and can’t resist turning the handgun sideways to rack the slide or to “look at it”.

I also learned that you need to be able to see both the front site and the target to shoot accurately.

Actually you don’t need to see them at all. It’s easier, but you don’t need to see the target or the sights. All you need to know is where the target is and where the bullets are hitting. I learned that in the Marines, didn’t believe it until I tried it. If you wear glasses and rely on them for your vision then you should learn to shoot without being able to see your target or the sights. There may be a need for “Kentucky windage” – figure out where the bullets are going and adjust towards the target.

Same thing is great as a philosophy if you are blinded by the sun while driving. Don’t worry about not being able to see the road, instead know where the road is and stay on it. Sounds harder than it is.

1. Bullet buttons are dangerous.

I just took my new Sig 516 to the range. There was a lot of fumbling around as I acquainted myself with this fine piece of machinery. I had to remove the magazine several times to ensure that it was clear while I resolved some initial cycling problems (all my fault; not the Sig’s). This was extremely stressful as the BB prevented me from easily ejecting the mag and clearing the rifle. A very dangerous situation for new gun owners such as myself.

2. The Sig 516 is very nice!