“Old Painless” from The Box O’ Truth took his 8 year old grandson to the range for the first time.

Not only do I think it’s great to see some great grandfather-grandson time together, but I like what Old Painless had to say about how to make a first range trip successful. He said these are good for taking a kid to the range, but I think it’s good advice the first time you take anyone to the range:

1. Stress Safety, first thing and constantly.
2. Have ear and eye protection for the kid.
3. Let them shoot a gun that doesn’t have heavy recoil.
4. Let them get really close to the target so that they hit something.
5. Give them praise for doing well.
6. Let them help load the firearms if they would like to.
7. Watch them very carefully, stay very close to them, and never let them break any Safety rule.
8. Help them hold the firearm if it is heavy for them.
9. Let them shoot until they are tired and then quit.
10. Make sure it is fun, so that they will want to go shooting again.

Most of it is about being safe and having fun, as it should be. And I think most people understand those aspects. But there are a few that sometimes get overlooked.

#3 – please people, we have enough YouTube videos of assholes (often “boyfriends”) giving guns with massive recoil to little people (often girlfriends) that have never shot a gun before, and while it gives the asshole filming the video a good laugh, it leaves a horrible impression in the mind of the shooter… not to mention some horrible pain. Please don’t do this. Let people start with something like a .22 LR and work up from there.

#4 and #5 – these are very important. Shooting a gun isn’t hard, but it isn’t easy either. Do you want this person to foster a love and enjoyment of the activity? Then do what you can to foster their success, because people like doing things they can succeed at. People understand the notion is to point the gun at something (target, tin can, steel plate, etc.) and try to hit that something. Imagine someone trying over and over and over and over and never hitting the target; they’re going to get discouraged. Move them as close as is safe (e.g. I wouldn’t go closer than 10 yards with steel targets), and let them shoot from there. They know being close is easier, so once they succeed at that distance, they’ll probably want to try making it a little harder, so you step back a few yards and try again. They’ll get it. They’ll understand. And when they do start missing, they’ll have enough success already under their belt that the misses won’t be discouragement but rather revelation that there’s something to learn and to come back again to try later. That’s good.

#6 is one I’m guilty of not always doing. I often will load the magazines and load the firearm for them. I do this because there’s enough stuff for a new shooter to have to deal with, so I try to ensure they focus on the critical things and let me handle the extra stuff.  But once they get the hang of things yes, you should let them load the magazine, insert the magazine, load the cylinder, and unload things too. Whatever the firearm’s mechanism is for loading and unloading, yes you should eventually let them do it. Not only do they learn how to do that, but there’s something about loading and unloading that makes for a more complete and satisfying experience.

The bottom line is, again, ensuring it’s safe and fun. You want them to smile. You want them to laugh. You want them to succeed. You want them to enjoy it. Doesn’t matter if it’s a kid or an adult, this is what you want to sow a seed that can grow and flourish.

AGirlAndHerGun is doing a Give-A-Way.

No strings, no nothing. A true give-a-way.

The prize:

I will pay $300 towards any reputable beginning self defense shooting course in the United States.

Who Can Enter:

Any female who is interested in taking the next step in learning how to defend herself in the event that she may need to. I would really prefer it be a new shooter that hasn’t had any formal training to this point.

How to enter? Go read her blog post and find out. It’s not hard.

SAN DIEGO – A 22-year-old Navy SEAL was gravely wounded early today when he shot himself in the head at his Pacific Beach home while trying to convince a companion that the pistol he was showing off was safe to handle, authorities said.

[…]

The serviceman, who had been drinking with a woman at a bar before they returned to his residence, was showing her his 9 mm handgun when the accident occurred, SDPD Officer Frank Cali said.

The man offered to let his friend hold the weapon, which he mistakenly believed was unloaded, according to Cali. When she declined, he tried to demonstrate how safe it was by putting it to his head and pulling the trigger.

*sigh*

That is NOT the way to verify the state of a gun.

Never point a gun at anything you are not willing to destroy. I would suspect for most people their own head is something they don’t wish to destroy.

Alcohol of course degrades your ability to make proper judgments. Guns and alcohol don’t mix.

How to verify a gun is unloaded?

Pick it up. Point it in a safe direction. Ensure your finger is off the trigger the entire time you perform this procedure. With a semi-automatic handgun, remove the magazine from the gun. Fully retract the slide and lock it in the open position. Visually inspect the chamber to ensure no round is in the chamber. Visually inspect the magazine well to ensure there is no magazine in the gun. Use your finger to tactilely verify the same (both chamber and magazine). Check again. Check a third time. If it builds your confidence in ensuring it’s unloaded, check a fourth or fifth time. If you have someone with you, have them check as well. Once you have verified it is unloaded, you can release the slide.

If you are handing the gun to someone else, first you verify the gun is unloaded. Keep the action locked open. Hand the gun to the other person. If the other person doesn’t verify the gun is unloaded on their own accord, have them verify the gun is unloaded.

If you ever set the gun down or have it otherwise out of your control for even a moment, when you pick it back up, verify the state of the gun. Gremlins exist.

We are human. We are prone to make mistakes. But we can also work to minimize our chances of making tragic mistakes by following rules.

Please do your best to avoid making the same mistake this man made.

The next chapter in my investigation of the Smith & Wesson M&P.

For reference, here’s first, here’s second.

The focus now is accuracy. The factory barrel is pretty bad, with 6-8″ groups at 25 yards. But, it seemed to vary with ammo, such as Gold Dot 124 grain +P was about 3-4″ at 25 yards. I installed my KKM barrel and off to the local indoor range I went. I didn’t want to go to the indoor range (more on it shortly), but it would allow me the easiest means of benchrest shooting at various distances. Plus it’s the closest range to the house and time matters right now.

Also note from the first round of shooting tests, I discovered the rear sight was off in the dovetail. A few days ago I went to my workbench and did my best to center the rear sight, measuring as best I could with calipers (it was difficult to get a flat surface given the cuts in the slide back there). FWIW, the sights seemed to be reasonably “on” during today’s tests. More later.

So given the ammo issue, I took 3 types of ammo with me: my 115 grain plinking handloads, which shoot pretty well (generally better than factory target loads); 124 grain American Eagle target loads; 124 grain +P Gold Dot. I asked at the gun counter if they had any 147 grain ammo but alas they had none. Since both the Gold Dot and the AE seemed to shoot better in the factory barrel, I was just curious what sort of results I’d get with 147 in the KKM.

My general plan was to shoot 5 shot groups from benchrest at 3, 7, 15, and 25 yards. Shoot each type of ammo at the same distance, compare and contrast results, tape the target, go to the next distance.

General results? Everything shot low. Exactly how low varied based upon distance and ammo, with the 124 AE generally shooting lowest of the 3 (makes sense) and the Gold Dot shooting highest of the 3 (makes sense). Still, every ammo at every distance had point of impact (POI) below the point of aim (POA). Interesting was that the Gold Dot tended to shoot towards the middle, the reloads slightly to the left, and the AE slight to the right. For the most part, the reloads and the AE shot to similar behavior in terms of grouping, and the Gold Dot of course shot a bit tighter.

I started having a rough time shooting at 15 and 25 yards. My eyes were blurring. I’m sure part of it is age. I’m sure part is just eyes getting tired from all that squinting. But I also know part of it is range-induced. The lighting there has improved, but it’s still a lot darker than being outdoors. Furthermore, the range was rather busy so there was a lot of smoke and such floating around. I find myself not wanting to breathe when I’m there — totally subconscious, but I realized how shallow my breathing was. A few times I set my gun down on the bench and went into the store area just to take 10 deep breath of clean(er) air. When I went back in, my eyes were a lot happier, but it just delayed the inevitable need to stop because my eyes and lungs couldn’t take it any more. Like I said, I really don’t like going to the indoor range, but sometimes you have to make compromises.

I’m still disappointed with the group sizes. It’s not the KKM itself, but that I have to get a replacement semi-match barrel in order to get similar accuracy that I get out of my factory barrel in my Springfield XD-9. Overall the KKM’s accuracy and grouping was acceptable and I am pleased with its results, but I don’t think it’s right that I should have to get an aftermarket barrel in order to get acceptable accuracy.

I should also caveat that due to my eyes, I just couldn’t shoot very well at 15 and 25 yards, so in my mind the final verdict is still out on performance at those ranges. Even still, the groupings I did get were still better than I got the first time with the factory barrel.

After I did the benchrest shooting, I put up a fresh target at 7 yards and just did some two-hand “freestyle” shooting. Couldn’t do anything fast or fancy due to range restrictions, just put the gun out there and pressed off a shot every second. Drilled a nice hole in the middle of the target, just a little low. Acceptable. I’d say about 150 or so rounds went through the gun today. So the barrel still isn’t broken in, but so far so good. Of those, 45 were Gold Dots (5 GD’s shot at the first range session), so I feel comfortable that this barrel will feed my carry ammo.

So far I’m pleased. Annoyed at the factory barrel. Annoyed about auto-forward. But I’ve been dry-firing the gun every day, it’s feeling more comfortable, and it felt more natural today (need to do some “real” shooting tho). The KKM is certainly a keeper, but if that rumored Apex-designed BarSto happens I’m likely to upgrade to it. From here, I need to find new sights because I have to do something about the low POI vs. the POA.

Off to Dawson Precision’s website I go!

One of the most popular pages on my blog is this one about correcting handgun shooting problems.

The page is popular due to the targets, but I’m not sure how well the targets actually work for folk. Sure it tells you what you’re doing wrong, but it doesn’t tell you how to fix it.

Based upon what I see in my stats, I don’t think many are clicking through to the Rangemaster 2009 Newsletter article that has not just “here’s what you’re doing wrong” information, but also suggestions on how to fix those things you’re doing wrong!

If you still don’t want to click, here’s a few suggestions to help you hit the bullseye:

• Slow down. Don’t take forever to get off the shot (fatigue, oxygen deprivation if you’re holding your breath, eye strain, etc. can all set in and make it harder to get the shot), but don’t rush. Don’t go faster than you can get good, successful hits. No unacceptable hits allowed!
• Think about your grip. While there are better and worse ways to grip a gun, most people will generally do better by ensuring whatever grip they use it is consistent in terms of hand placement and grip pressure (both the crush of the grip and any lateral forces your grip places on the gun AND that your 2 hands place against each other). For some more grip tips, watch this video with champion pistol shooter Todd Jarrett.
• Slow, smooth trigger press. This goes along with point #1 – slow down.
• Follow through. Don’t worry about checking the hole in the target — it will be there 5 seconds from now, it will be there 5 minutes from now. Finish the shot all the way through. You have sight picture, slow smooth trigger press, gun goes bang, your eyes don’t move, gun recoils and comes back to where it started, and you regain your sight picture as if to take a second shot. To take a second shot doesn’t matter, follow through on the first shot as if you will take another. Once you have that second sight picture, THEN you can set the gun down and look at your target.
• Slow down. Seriously.
• Have you slowed down yet?
• If you’re still having problems, make sure it isn’t the gun. Are the sights loose? are the sights properly zeroed/aligned? Is the gun not too big nor too difficult for you to handle, either in terms of things like improper gun fit thus reaching/pressing the trigger are difficult, or perhaps too much recoil and it causes you to flinch. Here’s a great article on gun fit. If you’re still working to master fundamentals, try shooting a handgun chambered in .22 LR. It has minimal recoil, not a lot of noise (relatively speaking, for a gun), and can help you master fundamentals. Sometimes it’s better to take a step back so you can later take two steps forward.
• If you’re still having problems, consider seeking formal training. Having an knowledgable eye watching you could shed more light on and do more towards correcting problems and helping you succeed.

The bottom line? It’s all about fundamentals of sight alignment, trigger control, and follow-through. Even the top shooters in the world still have to practice and apply these fundamentals.

Want to win a Leupold Tactical Patrol 3-9×40 illuminated TMR reticle scope?

Trust me, it’s a sweet scope. I have it’s brother, the VX-R 3-9×50, and it’s a fantastic scope.

You can win it. Easily.

How?

Submit reviews in the TacticalGunReview.com submission contest!

You’ve got guns, you’ve got gear. You’ve used stuff. You’ve probably had some things that sucked and you wish to tell everyone to avoid. Good or bad, it’s all good and useful information for people. Heck, you probably go and research things on the Internet before you buy, don’t you? Why not contribute to the pool of information out there!

Join in and submit some info. Every submission is a chance to win that scope.

‘Tis the season for making commitments to do things better than we did last year.

How much did you dry fire? Probably not as much as you should have. I know I didn’t do it as much as I should have.

We all prefer to do live fire, but live fire only takes you so far. Plus, live fire is costly in both time, resources (e.g. ammo), and money (range costs, gas to get there). Dry fire costs you little more than a few minutes of your time. And yes, it really doesn’t have to take long. The key is to not dry fire for lengthy sessions but for frequent sessions. It’s better to dry fire 10 minutes every day than it is to dry fire for 1 hour once a week. Your skills will be fresher in your mind and body.

The trouble can be, what to practice? Or, how to keep practice interesting.

ToddG has a nice dry practice routine, from both a basic routine to something more comprehensive over the course of a month.

Rangemaster has some fun dry fire targets running in Flash that can add a little variety.

Rangemaster’s October 2009 newsletter (on page 3) also has a good dry routine more oriented towards defensive pistol skills. I have that printed out and is one of the routines I frequently run.

Software solutions, such as the DR Performance Practice Deck for iOS (which I wrote) can be another useful tool for helping you with ideas about what to practice today.

The key factor is to look at what you need work on and focus on it. Don’t just practice what you like, practice what you need to improve on. And by keeping the sessions short but frequent, it can help stave off boredom.

Don’t forget to practice other things too. Do you sometimes have to carry in an alternative method? Has the weather changed and now with more or less clothing on affected how you have to draw? Do you use different guns at different times? do you have a backup gun? Don’t forget these things.

I’m not sure how successful I’ll be, but I’d like to dry practice 6-7 days a week (I’ll allow myself 1 day off because I’ll either want the break or may just miss due to life circumstances). I’d want the majority of that practice to be with my carry gun. But at least 1-2 days should be sure to practice other things. For instance, with my snub and transitioning to it from my primary; with the home defense shotgun; with the home defense AR. Keep it short, keep it sweet and to the point. But just be sure to do it.

As I said, that factory M&P barrel just isn’t cutting it for me.

Now note: some M&P barrels come out of the factory just fine. Others not so much, and it seems I got a “not so much”. Tho again, it seemed to prefer different ammo. At 25 yards, the Gold Dot 124 gr. +P was grouping acceptably, still a little big, but FAR better than the 115 grain was grouping (6-8″).

So, I’m going to now try the KKM barrel.

Upon Tom’s suggestion, I applied Militec-1 to the barrel. Coated inside and out, 20 minutes in the oven (170º is the lowest my oven will go), another coating, another 20 minutes, then wiped it off, let it cool. Put it into the gun and ran some A-Zoom Snap Caps through it to see how things would chamber and work. Worked fine, so I reckon I’ll be alright. I’ve used Militec-1 as a lubricant for a long time and it’s good stuff, but I’ve never done the oven-treatment until now. Should make things slicker than snot.

Not sure when I’ll get to the range to actually try it out (hopefully soon). But the desired goal will be to do some general blasting just to ensure it runs. Then do some group shooting both off the rest and offhand, at distances like 3, 7, 10, 15, and 25 yards. As well, I’m going to shoot different ammo: my 115 grain reloads, that 124 grain American Eagle, and the Gold Dot 124 grain +P. I think I may have some PMC 115 grain, and will see what else I have. I’m guessing tho that it won’t be the ammo brand but more the bullet weight (tho brand could matter if say they load a little hotter). To that end, I might see about running some 147 grain ammo through if I can get a hold of some. The point is, run it all and see how accuracy does.

Oh yeah… I need to go drift that rear sight. Going to go do that now.