Gun Culture Exhibit G: Live Firing Range Etiquette

Gun ammunition is not cheap, but the non-practice of self-defense encourages terrible consequences within the foreseeable future.

If we own guns, we all must do some live firing gun practice. At home snap cap use, or dummy round practice, is important too. Yet, live fire does not hide our flaws when shooting, and we all have them.

Live fire also exposes our deficiencies in gun safety, the handling of firearms and the proper cleaning of weapons. Even when our weapons jam, live fire will put our knowledge of tap, rack, reload, and if that doesn’t work: safety, lock, release, into action. The only way we can zero in our rifle sights for better shooting accuracy is with live firing.

An important truth to live firing is that it is better to go alone, then join a group of unknown shooters, even if the live fire outing was the idea of a friend of a friend. Doing live fire with annoying ‘gun dudes,’ and a lot of them are out there, can make a fun day of shooting into an experience of pure suffering.

You are still shooting live rounds – which can destroy human life within seconds. Do not risk your personal safety, nor your personal freedom, by visiting a live fire range with other unknown shooters. Even good friendships can strain when going out for a day of live fire shooting.

One time in the distant past, I remember going out live fire shooting in the desert with a bunch of guys who I did not know beforehand. While it was my turn to fire, a good shooter commented to me on my lack of hitting the target, and he showed me some good gun handling pointers, which made my accuracy a lot better.

Live fire shooting at the range is necessary for becoming a better marksman. It is expensive, loud and messy, but all shooters must practice at the range. The well-practiced range shooter will also know how to deal with gun jams, misfires, using good ammunition versus the cheap crap loads, and how to parlay cover tactics when firing shots at the enemy. Live firing is also the ideal spot to test out newly purchased rifles and pistols.

Live firing is basically a solo practice in order to improve accuracy and gun handling. The range should not become a social event however, nor should any alcohol or drug use enter into the activities.

Live fire shooting must adhere to the strictest practices within gun safety protocols.

Before driving to the range, the shooter needs to purchase lots of ammunition for the weapons. Regular ammunition loads are sufficient. Shooters should avoid unknown ammunition or bullets recently reloaded from untrusted shooters. Reloaded rounds work well when offered from proven experts who use reloading procedures, or when purchased from experienced gunsmiths.

The shooter must possess both ear plugs and ear headphones. Another time I went shooting, I remember having to cover my ears every time this guy shot his 308. I was only wearing cheap ear plugs.

The other required safety equipment includes safety glasses, and if it is a very sunny day, sun glasses. All shooters must wear hats, (baseball caps are good), for when the bullet brass or steel kicks back to the head – which it always does.

When at the shooting bays, shooters always point their weapons’ barrels down range, or when not shooting, the weapon barrels lie either facing up or down on the rifle racks. Remember, all guns are loaded.

The most important safety procedure at the range is never firing until every person at the bay says it is OK. Before live firing, each shooter has to make sure that the others are also shooting their weapons. Once a shooter signals to the other range people that he needs to post, check or remove a target, then all the other shooters must stop shooting and remove their weapons facing down range.

Shooters should also remember that firing hundreds of rounds of ammunition can lead to overheating of the barrel and the chamber bore. It is important to rest one rifle or pistol after shooting many rounds, and then practice with other weapons. Most shooters bring at least the majority of their weapons to the range in order to practice as much as possible.

Marksmen can also practice ducking for cover and then shooting, moving and shooting, and shooting from the hip, kneeling, or standing, or even lying in the prone shooter position. All of these tactics make for better gun handling. Regular practice and good effort work. The most important part is actually getting to the place for gun shooting. Whether it is target practice, the indoor pistol range, or just plinking in the desert destroying old televisions, practicing increases gun skill.

After live fire shooting, the gun practitioners need to take a shower, wash their clothes and clean their firearms. One of the negatives of live firing is the amount of lead residues on the clothes, body and hair, after all of the gunpowder found inside the rounds.

Some shooters like to clean their weapons while on the range right after shooting. I do not like this method because disassembly and reassembly of weapons can turn into a messy assignment. What if that small pin of my rifle falls into the sand or dust? What if I try to remove a gun piece and there is still a round in the chamber, or I had forgotten to remove the magazine? I do not want to risk any negligent discharges at the gun range.

Live fire range shooting represents the finality of practice transformed into the role of action. Every time we live fire our weapons, they become more familiar and more personal to our hands, bodies and minds. Eventually, our weapons will become extensions of our arms, hand, eyes – and our minds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gun Culture Exhibit F: Gun Store Etiquette

Buying a gun represents a one-time purchasing process. You are literally buying a gun for life. The buying of firearms is very different from purchasing the common, GMO crap found at the local supermarket – no matter what the Amerikan hack politicians say. And, the buying of firearms in the United States is not easier than buying regular garden equipment, or any other important supplies for daily living. The purchase of a metal shooting piece is a long drawn-out process. The reason for all of this process is permanence. Once you buy that gun, it should stay with you forever – unless you find yourself in a tight legal situation where you have to relinquish your firearm.

Out west, my first forays into the gun store world revolved around checking for the weapons that the sellers had in stock. I would later revisit the store, browsing for the right weapons that fit my medium to small hands. I always had an idea beforehand about the type of weapon I had originally wanted to purchase, whether a long gun or a pistol.

Unfortunately, I have also experienced gun store bullies that push particular weapons on certain customers – such as women, or just people that don’t have the ‘gun guy’ look, such as myself. There are those few gun stores that throw out spurious information to the customers – often personal opinions mixed with aggressive salesmanship. As we say in the States: buyer beware.

There are also those naive customers that don’t know how to act inside a gun store. They want to rant on politics, or show-off their shoddy knowledge about guns and gun culture – rather than buy anything. There also exist the indiscreet ones who commit some bad faux-pas, like handle weapons and point them in the direction of everyone around them, or they try to take apart the guns to find out if they have any issues from previous users.

A few potential buyers will just say some dumb things to the sellers. They use inflammatory vocabulary or express hatreds, which puts the gun store employee in a bad position. The gun seller has to then deny the sale of a weapon to the client. There are even foolish buyers who forget that they still have unsealed felonies or very recent misdemeanors on their records. Even a recent divorce with one’s wife or a DUI can get a rejected background check for owning a weapon.

Before going into a gun store, the buyer must first understand why they truly need a weapon, and then really think it over. If they know how to safely handle a weapon, then there is particular firearm that will fit their hand and lifestyle

Does the buyer need a long rifle for hunting game, and does he or she know how to skin a buck in the wild? Or does the person own a business in a part of town that often gets dodgy late at night. There is also the question about home protection, and the even more important question concerning the people that reside inside of the house – and especially if there are kids around. Do the kids know the safety protocols and how to handle shooting?

Maybe the individual would like to carry full-time, take a CCW course, and then receive a state permit for concealed carry. Where a person lives also matters. One particular weapon works better in an urban environment over a rural one. The home owner living in the mountains might encounter angry bears or a pack of coyotes that wouldn’t mind making a dinner with the household pets.

The potential gun buyer also has to consider the deeper reasons for owning a firearm. Is it truly for personal protection, or does he or she just want to show off to friends about being a part of the American gun culture, intimidate the local ‘g fellas,’ or ‘gangstas’ down the street, or even play around at home with something really dangerous. All of the latter reasons negate owning a firearm. If the person feels comfortable learning the basic safety protocols with owning a firearm and truly understands the responsibility in owning a weapon, which also has the potential for exterminating life, then he or she is ready to purchase one.

Final considerations for owning a gun also consider the mental states of the owners. Does he or she frequently lapse into deep depressions, or they cannot control their intake of alcohol and other drugs – then the world of firearms is not for them.

Now the hard part comes along. The buyer has to find the right gun store in order to buy the right type of weapon. Living out in the western US, there are a bunch of gun stores to choose from in the region. Getting recommendations and warnings from other gun owners is a good first method. Finding the right store and avoiding the bad ones is also important – and the bad gun stores do unfortunately exist.

How do you know if you are in a bad one? If you enter a gun store and immediately the gun seller, employee, or another customer chatting with the seller, start pressuring a type of weapon on you, then you have entered a scam operation. Stop the conversation by thanking the people for their information, and walk out – never to return.

When you enter the gun shop for the first time, act the gentleman, with a good morning or good afternoon, and state what type of weapon you are looking for and the reasons. A decent gun seller will know what type of weapon would fit you, while he or she is aware about what the actual gun store has in stock.

A well-versed gun seller will show you some guns on display and will then ask you about your shooting experience, where and how you will store the gun, and will check your hand size. The seller will also factor in the size of the ammo rounds, gun locks, or in the case of pistols, the size of the holster.

The buyer should ask permission from the seller to hold the weapon. When the buyer handles the weapon, the barrel must face either up to the ceiling or down to the ground. Remember, all guns are potentially loaded –  even when on display.

The buyer needs to feel if the stock of the gun fits his or her hand well and if the weapon feels comfortable for firing. If the stock is too big, or the weapon feels too heavy, then firing the weapon will create greater hardships. The gun needs to feel comfortable and secure around one’s arms and hands.

The next questions towards the seller ought to concern the ammunition for the firearm. Is the ammunition hard to find, expensive, or does it give a heavy kickback, which makes shooting the weapon a dangerous exercise? A good gun seller will explain all the variables with each weapon on display.

The buyer has to ask the seller on how to disassemble, clean the weapon, and the safety protocols for handling such a weapon. All firearms have some type of safety mechanism near the trigger guard. A good gun seller will clearly show the general disassembly, cleaning operation and safety protocols.

Other important variables regard the weapon itself, is it new, or is it a second-hand one purchased from a private party. The buyer should inspect the barrel, action and bore for any noticeable discrepancies and check for any excessive dirtiness.

Are there any particular legal consequences within a certain state for possessing such a weapon? Is the rifle cumbersome to carry around, or does the gun safety seem too weak with a possible chance of a negligent discharge? Would a semi-automatic version of a similar model work better, or is a revolver, or even a pump-action better? Buying the right gun for the right person takes time.

Sometimes it is good to visit various gun shops and then come to a conclusion at home on how to purchase the best weapon. The decision includes pricing, quality, reviews on-line, personal fit, ease of disassembly, cleaning, and safety mechanisms.

During the handling of the firearm with the multiple questions that arise concerning the firearm, the buyer should focus solely on the weapon and its fit. Using tyrannical anti-gun vocabulary, such as ‘assault weapon,’ ‘cop killer rounds,’ or ‘mass shooting clip,’ will put the seller on the defensive, and it might make him or her stop talking to you completely and end the sale.

With each passing year, the US Federal Government, under its ATF gang, harasses more and more gun shops. Recently, under its Operation Choke Point, the US Federal Government has forced banks to stop doing business with gun shops.

All gun stores have to retain a federal license to sell weapons, called a FFL. When you use the corporate media’s gun control words inside the store, the gun store owner might think that you are either a rogue government agent, a provocateur from an anti-gun group, or more than likely, a mentally unstable individual. If a seller feels that the potential buyer would possibly act violent with the weapon, then the seller by law cannot sell the firearm to that person.

Once the buyer decides to purchase a firearm, then he or she must show their state ID, usually a driver’s license, and afterwards, fill out the firearm application form. The form asks for the general personal information of the buyer, including date of birth, race, marriage status, ID number, physical address and social security number. By law, all gun buyers must buy from a store within their own states. A person living in Wyoming cannot buy weapons in Montana.

The form also asks about any past mental imprisonment, drug-alcohol issues, criminal history, or any issues regarding divorce-visitation-child custody. If you answer yes to any of those questions, then the state background check will probably reject your application. If you have any past felonies, then ask your attorney to seal the cases, so the felonies do not show up on your check. Do this before you fill out the application. If you are nervous about filling out the application due to some past issues, or for any reason, then talk to your attorney before venturing into a gun store and filling out the application.

Once you pass your state background check and fully pay for your gun, you are now an official gun owner. Buy the right ammunition for the weapon, and any necessary accessories, such as snap caps or dummy rounds in order to practice at home.

You must also have a case to carry the gun inside, a gun lock, cleaning materials, or if necessary, a sling for a rifle, or a holster for a pistol. When you arrive home with your weapon, open the case, find the user’s guide and manual, read all of it, and put the gun away. You own a singular tool that with regular safety, practice and cleaning, will both accompany you and protect you for the rest of your life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gun Culture Exhibit D: Practice Dry Firing with Snap Caps

Reaching goals and finishing the work that we had originally organized for ourselves are all marvelous accomplishments. But regular practice matters too, and even when it seems to fall into redundancy and repetitive boredom. The art of regular practice also brings its future rewards and adds a nice structure to our lives.

Within the martial arts of guns, one great practice represents the use of snap caps. They are hard polymer plastic, bullet lookalikes, and they are often of burgundy red color. Gun stores usually sell them in all pistol, shotgun and rifle gauges: from .22 rounds to .45 rounds, from 10 gauge to 30 gauge, and from .17 rounds to .308 rounds.

In the Wild West Days of the States, about a hundred and forty years ago, cowboys, farmers, ranchers, soldiers, warriors, outlaws, bandidos, circus performers, cooks, miners, sheriffs, posses, and all sorts of other types, regularly practiced their dry firing techniques in order to become proficient shooters. They practiced their stances, draw, reach, deholstering, aim, sights, breath, trigger squeeze and holstering their weapons. They didn’t have snap caps in those days, so they had to dry fire without live ammo, or they used live ammo out in the desert, which could get expensive.

The problem with dry firing weapons like the Colt Six Gun Shooter and the Winchester Lever Action Repeating Rifle was that dry firing eventually dulled the firing pin and the trigger mechanism. The hard metal on metal hits, and without any live ammo to give some type of cushion, weakened the weapons’ performance. Imagine going into real combat with some real live ammo – and not having your weapon work properly. This was one of the real and terrible fears of gunslingers back in those days.

Live firing with snap caps is a safe and effective technique for acquiring the martial arts of firearm use.

Now we shooters are lucky in that snap caps allow us to practice in our homes without worrying about severe noise or destroying our weapons through dry firing without anything between the firing pin and the trigger mechanism or bolt-action area. The snap cap has the same shape of the real bullet, except it doesn’t explode and it is perfect for receiving the force of the firing mechanism.

These days, visiting the live fire gun range is expensive, unless you have access to someone’s land for shooting or live near a free use shooting range. But even the amount of ammo normally used in one day of shooting is not cheap. Many shooters go through hundreds of rounds, firing most of their weapons, such as rifles, shotguns and pistols.

The dry firing technique at home with snap caps allows the shooter the ability to practice in private and not have to spend a great deal of money during one day of live fire. Nothing beats the actual practice and skill building of live firing however. But snap caps allow that reinforcement of good skills, which can eventually help produce a good shooting day at the range.

At home, I often practice with snap caps in particular situations. For example, I will use snap caps for dealing with potential jams, malfunctions or stovepipes in my weapons, then practicing safety drills, clearing the jams, and return firing.

I use the snap caps for stance, holstering, drawing the weapons, sight alignment, aim, breathing, proper trigger squeezing and holstering my weapon once again. I will often practice shooting the weapon with one hand, and then with two hands. With my pistols, I like to switch back and forth between left and right hands. Sometimes, while I was live firing, I have heeled, anticipated or flinched when shooting my weapons. I use the dry firing of snap caps to help correct such bad shooting habits.

At home, I also practice imaginary self-defense scenarios, where I move out of cover and try shooting back at a target, or reaching for a weapon nearby when doing another task, such as Internet surfing, and then facing a serious threat, and immediately afterwards, returning quick succession of dry fire. Dry firing with snap caps is not that loud, except for the movement of bolt metal in the chamber. I still use ear plugs with my dry fire practice however.

Snap caps are very simple to use because the shooter simply loads the snap caps like normal live bullets into the chamber or magazine. The racking and ejecting of the snap caps is often the same as live firing with brass, steel and shotgun casings. Instead of a used casing flying out, the snap cap ejects completely.

Before going to your weapons for dry firing snap caps, use the safety protocols. The number one protocol is to check the weapon for any live cartridges in the chambers and in the magazines. I like to leave green zip ties in the chamber-bore area after doing a dry firing round.

The main safety concerns with snap caps refer to keeping the caps in a completely separate place from the live ammo. All live ammo should have its special place for storage in your private abode. Nothing could be worse than to have your snap caps lying around near the live ammo, and then mistakenly loading a live cartridge or cartridges with the snap caps.

The sound and damage of a live round going off in your home could ruin your life forever. These terrible negligent discharges do happen. Keep all snap caps in a particular site for regular dry firing practice. Store the live ammo in a completely different area of your house.

The other safety concern is just getting finger tired, bored or lazy. After dry firing repeatedly, the mind can start to lose its awareness. This is the time to stop the snap cap practice and return to it for another day.

With the amount of money spent driving out to the range and going through lots of ammunition, the dry firing of snap caps allows gun owners to practice the martial arts of firearms within a place of residence.