How Many Guns Do I Need?

On By Tom LindsayIn Gun Rights, Self Defense, Training2 Comments

Michael over at the RKBArms Blog asked the same question recently. You can see his personal answers there.

First, let me say that I really think the question is almost invalid, especially to a law abiding American. On the one hand, the anti-gun crown will answer “zero,” which just leads to a pointless discussion.

On the other hand, it’s almost like asking how much money I need, or how many pages long should a resume be*. There is no real answer, or at best, any answers depend strongly on the assumptions that are made.

Here are the five essential guns Michael identified, which, given the nature of his blog, apply to a defense situation:

1. Every Day Carry
2. BUG (Back Up Gun)
3. Home Defense Sidearm
4. Home Defense Carbine
5. Home Defense Shotgun

I can’t disagree with any of these from a defensive standpoint.

All I would add would be the caveat that there should be enough additions for each able bodied shooter in the household. In a SHTF situation, having a carbine and/or handgun for each person would make survival a lot more likely.

It also occurs to me that, depending on the size and layout of the house or area being defended, the number of Back-up Guns may need to increase.

For me, my guns are

1. Glock 21SF
2. Glock 19
3. Glock 17
4. SKS with detachable magazines
5. Mossberg 500

Admittedly, I sometimes carry the Glock 19 in lieu of the Glock 21, depending on my clothing choices.

In a SHTF situation, I would carry the G21 and SKS, my wife would carry the G17, and my son would carry a Ruger 10/22 with 4 – 30 round magazines.

The key here is making sure everyone is proficient with their assigned guns, and knows where spare ammo, holsters, etc. are stored. Then train, train, train.

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On the gripping had, this list touches addresses defense needs only. One could make any number of lists based on the category in question:

Competition: One for each competition type and class. Skeet gun, trap gun. 3-gun rifle, Camp Perry rifle. SASS: 2 pistols, a rifle in pistol caliber, and a shotgun. (That’s by far the easiest. Maybe.)

Hunting: Big game, small game, medium game.

Then there is collecting.

* On the issue of how many pages a resume should be, most people will respond one of two ways: either the resume should be all one page to make it easier to read, or the resume should be as many pages as it takes to convey the amount of information to get an interview.

But, in fact, this is a trick question: there is no answer any more, and here’s why. Most resumes will never be printed on paper, they will only be viewed and read on a computer screen. So, since there are no pages, the question is invalid.

I suppose I would go with the second answer at that point – include everything you need to include so you get the interview. Remember, no one hires your resume, they hire the person, after an interview.

Disclosure: I work as an engineering recruiter, to pay for ammo and match fees.

The Safety Rules in Depth – Part 3

On By Tom LindsayIn Safety

Rule 2: Never let the muzzle cover anything which you are not willing to destroy.

If there was a single gun rule that, when violated, resulted in the most damage, injury, and death, it would have to be Rule 2.

After all, the direction a gun is pointed determines where the bullet goes when the gun fires. While Rules 1 and 3 are devoted to preventing the gun from going off unintentionally, with Rule 2, it doesn’t matter whether the gun is fired intentionally or unintentionally (or, as the anti-gun crowd believe, it goes off by itself). This Rule must be followed, or bad things happen.

Rule 1 is a philosophical rule. It takes a change in the shooter’s thinking to make it work. You need to have a change in your attitude, so that you always treat the gun as if it were always loaded, even if it isn’t. Which it is – see Rule 1.

Rule 2 is a concrete rule. It doesn’t matter how you think about the Rule, what your attitude is. The gun is pointing where the gun is pointing, regardless of how you think about it.

In my experience, Rule 2 is the most violated of all the safety rules. The main reason for this is ignorance and inexperience. New shooters may be used to playing with a toy gun, or not having a gun around at all.

And then there are the thousands of very bad examples on TV and in movies.

Wow. Not only did Vincent violate Rule 2, he violated Rule 3. Bad things happened. Sorry, Marvin.

Almost as bad are the hundreds of images where an actor points the gun in the air as they move around. No one tells viewers that this isn’t for good safety practice, this is so the gun is in the shot with the actor’s face.

This Rule takes concentration. Nothing about Rule 2 can be left to attitude or thinking or philosophy. You must be aware where your gun is pointed at all times, or bad things can happen.

So, what works when teaching Rule 2? Zealous enforcement and repetition. When you find someone waving a gun around, call them on it. Whether you are polite about it or not depends on the situation and the violator, I suppose, but you should be firm and unequivocal in any case. In my family, we are all allowed to call “MUZZLE!” and push the gun downrange or toward the ground if it’s safe to do so.

A search of most gun forums will also find many accounts of violation of this rule at gun ranges, gun shows, and gun stores. When a polite but firm reminder not to point the gun at something they aren’t willing to destroy goes unheeded, the only recourse then is to leave. I know I’ve done it.

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Rule 2 is the failsafe of the gun rules. Follow it – make sure the gun isn’t pointed at anything you aren’t willing to destroy – and even if someone violates the other rules, you will be safe.

Got It On Camera

On By Tom LindsayIn My Quest for C Class, Training2 Comments

My Quest for C Class

Note: I thought about delaying this post until I found some good video editing software that I like, so I could illustrate my points. But I think the points need to be made. When I finally settle on editing software I will post a follow-up.

When I first took up golf, one of the best tools I found to help my swing was to watch myself on video. While most people have no problem pointing out my faults, I tend to politely dismiss their help. But, on video, the good parts and bad parts of my swing stand out clearly, without comment or advice. The camera doesn’t lie, and it isn’t trying to get in my head and mess me up to make that $5 Nassau.

This past weekend I was using some software to capture individual frames of my shooting videos as photos. In the process, I got to look at my shooting stance, grip, and follow through in slow motion, and I found out that video works the same way with my shooting as it did for golf.

When I shot video of my golf, I would tape my practice sessions as well as my play, so I could compare what I did when I concentrated on it, versus what I did when I wasn’t concentrating as much as relying on muscle memory and training.

For my shooting, I reviewed match footage, but I don’t have video of any practice sessions. I am focusing on the match, and on making good shots, not on the mechanics. So, what I am seeing on video is my ingrained habits, my training.

Here’s what I found out:

> My draw is smooth, and it does what I think I have been practicing for it to do. The gun comes out and up smoothly, and I press straight out while the support hand takes a grip. It also goes straight to the target, without any oscillation at the top. That’s good.

> I control recoil a lot better than I think I do. From the beginning of my shooting career, I’ve always thought that I did a poor job of recoil control, almost like I was shooting one of those .500 Magnums you see on Youtube. It turns out, however, that my muzzle rise is actually on par with some of the best shooters I’ve seen. It goes up just a little and settles right down. This proves that not only do I have a bad image of myself as a shooter, I’m also focused well on the target such that muzzle flip isn’t even noticeable. That’s good.

> I do a decent job of positioning my body as I shoot. But, as I suspected, I move a lot like a sea lion. That will improve as I lose weight. I full imagine to be moving like a penguin in no time.

> On close up targets, I lack the confidence to make double taps. I will instead take two measured shots. It’s not that I can’t do double taps, so it has to be confidence. That should come with practice.

> I do a decent job keeping the muzzle down range when I move. I’ve never been warned or DQ’ed by a Range Officer, so that confirms it.

> I need to pay a little more attention to my trigger finger when I draw or move. I have been warned about this, so this is something to pay attention to and practice.

> Compared to someone like Dave Sevigny, my magazine changes look like I’m trying to force a live snake into a coke bottle. I think I can make this better by practicing. But it’s not because of the direction the bullets face in my magazine pouch. (Yes, I had someone point this out to me, again.)

> My Glock 17 Bruce runs flawlessly in every video I’ve shot. This jives with the fact that I’ve never had a malfunction of any kind in a match. In fact, apart from a broken extractor and a couple of limp-wristing incidents with my son, Bruce has had exactly 2 failures to extract in the 19 years I’ve had him.

At my next match, I’m going to try to get video of me on every stage. By then I will have some better editing video, and I’ll make another report showing what I’ve found.

I’m also planning a range trip on a week day in a couple of weeks. If the range is clear enough, I will get some video of some standard drills like El Presidente and the Mozambique. I can then compare my results to those I find on line.

Be Prepared, Part 9 – Stay Prepared

On By Tom LindsayIn Planning

So, three years ago you did your part and put together a set of emergency supplies that you could carry in your car. Then comes the big snow, and you’re stuck. So, you get out the bag, and you find those batteries are dead, and the emergency food is gone, because your kids snacked on it a few times without telling you. Bummer.

A few months ago I wrote about my Get Home Bag that I carry with me in the car. Like just about everything in life, even a Get Home Bag takes maintenance. So, with winter approaching, I took some time to unpack the bag and make sure the perishable items were fresh.

You can see the contents of my bag above. I listed them in the previous post, and all was there except the granola bars, which I had commandeered for the most recent USPSA match.

I ended up replacing the water bottles, but everything else was good. I also shook out the blanket and bedroll and re-folded them, and I will wash and dry the towel, too.

I also checked out the compass (it was fine), and tried the lighter (it lit fine). Another change I made was replacing the two AA batteries with three AAA batteries, since I changed my every day carry flashlight to one that takes AAA.

For sure, repacking it all was a pain. I should have taken some pictures of what went where. But, in the end, it all went back.

You put good effort into planning. Take a few minutes now, and periodically, to make sure your work wasn’t in vain.