Hazards of Firearms Instruction:

All Outdoors recently posted "The First Rule Of Firearms instruction - Don't Shoot your Students."

- Well, yes - that's fine as far as it goes - but maybe you need to add - "Don't let the student shoot you - or anyone else". - And also "Don't shoot yourself either."

I doubt there is anyone around who hasn't already seen this clip of the unfortunate officer having a very public 'accidental discharge'. - I used the word "unfortunate" to describe him because he unfortunately was poorly trained and trying to do a critical function that he had not been properly mentally conditioned for.

He ignored the basic Safety Rules:

 TREAT EVERY FIREARM AS IF IT IS LOADED

NEVER POINT A GUN AT ANYTHING YOU DO NOT INTEND TO DESTROY

KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOU ARE READY TO SHOOT

If you stick to all those rules all the time - any 'accidental' breech of one of them will not result in an "accident" - as the other rules will have prevented it.

I say 'accidental' because it isn't - what it truly is, - is 'negligent'.

For sure - "accidents happen" - but they always have a series of causal factors that happen one after the other. - A chain of events that leads to the incident.

Such as:  A 'safety' device that is de-activated, a rule broken, a danger not seen, something critical not checked, an unfortunate timing, and so on. - Result - Disaster.

I once saw here in New Zealand a retiring long service expert Police Armed Offender Squad Officer (SWAT) - interviewed on camera for TV - on his last day of duty - open the rear door of a patrol car - grasp a rifle by the muzzle - and pull it out of the car towards himself !

That truly might have been his last day.

- And never rely on a 'safety' on a gun - faith in such switches have caused so many accidental shootings.

Marty K.

Law Enforcement Handgun Latest FBI Calibre Choice:

This issue will never be resolved to suite everyone - but this latest 'release' from the FBI at Quantico:  looserounds.com/2014/09/21/fbi-9mm-justification-fbi-training-division/  states that current 9mm JHP ammunition performs as well as .40 S&W in every way - but is better in shot-to-shot time and wear & tear etc. It makes this point in multiple ways - over and over.

But of-course there will be those who will never accept that a "wimpy mouse gun" is the better choice for law enforcement. - I find the 7th X pointed statement most fascinating:

" X: LEOs miss between 70-80 percent of the shots fired during a shooting incident."

I found this report on the 'Active Response Training' web-site and it was originally 'posted' by looserounds.com - it certainly is well worth reading if only to confirm what you already think - or maybe to raise your blood-pressure high enough to justify another 'cold-one'.

looserounds.com also posted this picture of permanent wound channels that, to me, seems to totally 'say it all.' 

Handgun Gel Comparison.

 

This picture seems to show that 'all things being equal' it makes sense to deploy the calibre that is easier and fastest to use.

 

If your team members are missing up-to 80 percent of shots taken in armed incidents - their skill at arms must surely be a far greater issue than the stopping effectiveness of the weapon.

 

HITS with a .22 RF will work better than misses with what-ever.

 

Or - as IPSC shooters like to say - " You can't miss fast enough to win!"

 

Marty K.

 

 

 

 

Range Rat Comedy Clip Plus Hard Service in Chad:

- You don't really get nuts like these on US ranges surely eh.?

Well I have seen the odd dodgy performance here in New Zealand - particularly with 'newby' shooters turning around with the gun in hand - muzzle-sweeping everyone in sight! - but our licencing system weeds-out the absolute nutters (when it's used correctly).

- I've also had one new shooter (failed) who insisted on having his finger(s -Two !) on the trigger all the time.

- A very good reason to start all new shooters with a single shot firearm.

Marty K.

PS:  Last night I watched on TV ("Baz's Extreme Worlds?") the Irish Defence Forces unit operating in Chad, Africa as part of The United Nations deployment there. - I should say that I was very impressed by their performance in third-world conditions, - very high temperatures, 45-50 degrees Selsius - and in close contact with heavily armed and mobile groups. - Interesting to see them using the Steyr AUGs etc..

-I felt it was like watching family in action - as my Dad came from Co. Wicklow.

Marty K

Queen fires opening Shot at London Competition:

Royal Patronage for the shooting sports continues to this day - but is kept low-profile by anti-gun media.

Her Majesty the Queen fired the opening shot at Wimbledon on July 1st, 1860.

Queen Victoria fired the first shot in the National Rifle Association Competition - using a Whitworth rifle mounted in a machine rest and struck a bulls-eye at 400 yards.

The muzzle-loading Whitworth rifle won most of the important prizes at the competition - indeed it won most of the prizes in the next eleven years up to 1871 - being the rifle competitors were required to use through-out most of those years.

Whitworth Rifle (muzzle loader)

Note: This was 12 years before the American NRA was formed.

Following the Boer War - British society became very aware that security of that nation relied on its military fighting skills - leading to the establishment of many rifle ranges and the subsequent development of shooting technology aimed at constantly improving performance.

The 1800s were a critical time in development of firearm technology with much new science being successfully applied. From black-powder to nitro, (white powder or smokeless), - breech loading systems, - refinement of barrel rifling, development of choke-boring, metallic cartridges, and longer bullets - and improved sighting systems all came from this era.

Often the peak developments of the old technology managed to out-perform the new - until the new was also refined and perfected to the extent that it dominated.

- Smokeless powder caused the projectiles to come-down in calibre from the lead ball above half-an-inch in diameter to under .4" - and the black-powder .303" became the British military calibre (1888) in the Lee-Metford rifle.

Lee-Metford 1888

 

.303" British Cartridge (1945)

The fast growing cities eventually pushed-out the big outdoor ranges from their localities and forced the building of many smaller indoor ranges - often using the new .22 Rim-fire cartridges in various lengths for bulls-eye target shooting - 'Miniature Rifle'. - The Bisley complex survives to this day as the shooting centre of Britain.

Anti-Gun sentiment currently dominates the hysterical Media rants while ignoring that skill with arms is what maintains our modern western society's standard of living. - Without the use of firearms by our military and law-enforcement forces we'd be rapidly thrown into the chaotic dark-ages again.

- Never mind, - mustn't grumble eh!

Marty K

Cartridges - .22"RF. Effectiveness on Windscreen:

The .22" RF is way down on power and bullet weight - but can still perform well if used sensibly.

So much depends on the angle of impact - but penetration  isn't an issue in this experiment.

- Not for one minute am I saying that a 22 Rim Fire is good for everything .. but If it's all that you have to hand and you know its limitations - you can do a lot of useful work with one.

Further more, 'two-twos' are the cheapest to run and can be used by just about everyone - making training developed skills available to all. - You've got to have a couple of them in every gun-safe together with a few bricks of ammunition.

- My Ruger 10-22 "Shiny-thing" has proved to be reliable and accurate - while not at all fussy about what brands it will accept. - Here in New Zealand you have to remember that if you want to use a higher capacity magazine such as a 25 or 30 round 'banana' - you'll need to first register the rifle as a restricted category 'E-Cat' weapon - and install a higher police approved grade of security in your home first. -

The cost and delays in registration are a pain - but the enhanced (and approved) certified security is very expensive to buy and install. - Still once you've been down that path - you can buy further 'E-Cats' without too much hassle.

Marty K.

Precision Target Shooting Not Best Training For Serious Social Work:

Way back in 1896 - a Mr Walter Winans shooting at Bisley England won 10 of twelve Revolver competitions (drew one -lost one) - using a Service Revolver.(- No I wasn't there)

Talking about "When a revolver is used practically, either in war or self-defence .." Winans stated - "It therefore seems to me that deliberate shooting at the revolver clubs and at Bisley is worse than useless, because it teaches a man to shoot in the wrong way."

He goes on to describe how rapid-fire and 'snap shooting' are more suitable training for 'serious' use - and suggests that large bore revolvers should be replaced by the .38" as being more practical.

- This year - 118 years later - I am seeing very similar urgings from Greg Ellefritz on his Web-site 'Active Response Training' - the idea is that training can be made more relevant by using simple close range targets with circles drawn (around cups or cans with a felt pen) and numbered 1,2,3 and A, B, C etc. and firing one or two shots only at called selected marks.

'Surprise' called marks.

 

Grant Cunningham in his 2013 book 'Defensive Revolver Fundamentals" urges similar training for anyone who's life may depend on effective fast shooting.

 

His system involves training with a friend using targets at short range. These home-made targets use circles or squares numbered and lettered and also maybe coloured differently - perhaps drawn on more than one IPSC target - and are used by your shooting mate calling-out "TWO" or "C" or even "GREEN" etc. to give a surprise target for the shooter to hit - maybe also instructing something like "TWO SHOTS - BLUE"

 

- The aim is not competing for highest score - but to improve ones stress performance.

 

Paper (disposable) Plates make Good Targets for 'Action' Shooting

 

I saw a quote some time ago (US Marines?) that said something like " Train to fight as if you mean it - because you'll fight the way you train."

 

- Seems to make sense to me - If you only use your target shooting to focus carefully on getting an X ring score - that should be how your reflexes eventually lead you to shoot always. - That's what training is meant to achieve.

 

This same idea about 'surprise snap shooting' can also be tried when dry firing or using 'soft-air' guns.
 

 - Their 'self-defence' training advice is aimed at overseas readers in free nations - while I fully know that here in New Zealand we are not permitted to have firearms for self-defence purposes - it does strike me that practical shooting competition for licenced shooters might be made more fun and testing by introducing a greater element of surprise somehow.. reactive targets, turning targets timed to only a couple of seconds - targets called to be shot in changing sequence, etc.

'Bulls-eye' ISSF shooting is a testing set of worthwhile precision skills of a whole different nature & challenge to 'speed shooting' against a shot-timer. - Both are challenging personal skills.

Grant Cunninghams "Defensive Revolver Fundamentals" is a good read with some very different ideas that I've not read elsewhere. - It is almost a "Vol.2" to his earlier "Book of The Revolver' - I had expected the earlier book to be more about revolver mechanicals and tuning work rather than usage but even one decent idea picked-up from a book is a bonus..

 

-Life is good.

 

Marty K.

W (&WW) GREENER - Historic Gunmakers:

I'm not much of a shotgunner - well - to be frank - I'm bloody useless. But I can hit a stationary large target -say the size of an IPSC target at close range.

 - Well you've only got to check with my fellow competitors and they'll confirm that it was me that put a 12 gauge slug through the A zone of a steel boiler-plate target that was meant to be shot with buck-shot.

 - Well it's easy to do if you forget that you need to load the tube magazine in reverse order for the 3-Gun Match course of fire - Sorry Mr PSI.NZ Director (Jim - mate).

Mossberg Drills a neat hole in Steel Plate.

That aint no Greener.

But even I am sure that I'd heard the "Greener" name in connection with quality collectible shotguns.  W Greener of Newcastle and Birmingham served his time with another (should be familiar) name 'Manton' in London and Greener made excellent quality muzzle-loading guns - but refused to make breech-loaders maintaining that they were inferior performers - so much so that his son WW Greener left him and started up his own factory (The two concerns were united later).

William Greener 'Damascus' 7 Bore Pigeon Gun Detail.

But dad, W Greener also invented lots of other useful stuff - for example his was the first British patent for the electric light (1846), He improved the Miners safety lamp, Invented a self-righting lifeboat that used water ballast, and won a prize for machinery that opened all four gates at a railway crossing simultaneously.

WW GREENER Shotgun.

He may not have been an easy man to get along with - but in all fairness - many of the early breech-loaders were not very good gas sealers and may well have justified being called "trash" - as he said!

The WW Greener gun-making business became 'legend' to collectors. - I'm sure that my short barrelled "Tupara" would deserve to be called 'trash' in such company - but I  never did have good taste (in clothing etc. - I once owned a treasured orange day-glow tie as a teenager 'Ted'.)

I know - But I like it!

 

That Harp cap-badge is a reproduction badge for the New York Irish Brigade.(Union Army Volunteers).

 

Marty K.