[BowStreetRunner]

I was talking to 3 girls in class about self protection rights and the subject came to guns and how I own several and these girls want me to take them shooting!
Only one has shot before, I do not know the extent of that experience
the other two are rank novices
i have never taught someone to shoot before from the ground up
and i only have 3 guns to do it with
Makarov
Nagant revolver
SKS
each of these has a particular disadvantage for new shooters

the Mak is blowback and has a heavy spring (hard to retract slide- well for the weaker of forearm)....some also think it has a snappy recoil that is uncomfortable although i like it, but for new shooter it might be hard

the nagant has an incredible heavy trigger pull but is low recoiling
also slow to reload

the sks is heavy and recoil is not light

it would be great to buy a little .22 but i cant really justify it right now

advice please :)

BSR

[jsalcedo]

You can buy a $10 slip on recoil boot for the SKS.

It will also fit on other firearms you may acquire later on.

Can the Nagant revolver be manually cocked to facilitate a lighter trigger pull?

[Epesiarch]

Got any friends with .22 rifles or pistols you can borrow?

If not, start with the Makarov. Pistols are fun no matter what, and a heavy slide is better than freaking them out with the SKS as their first shot. They'll like the semi-auto pistol, and then you can fire the others and ask if they'd like to try them after they hear the boom.

[Chipperman]

Can't justify it???
What better justification can there possibly be than taking three women shooting?
Drop $150 on a nice little used .22 bolt gun, and you're set.

Besides, a few rounds of Nagant ammo will add up to the cost of a .22 anyway. :uhoh:

I would not choose either of those pistols to introduce a new shooter to the sport.

Give them a good go with the .22 then try the SKS when they're ready.

[BowStreetRunner]

it can, and that might be the ticket
SA trigger pull is lighter than DA but not light by any strech
BSR

[Dave R]

Somewhere in your group of friends, you must know someone with a .22 revolver oe rifle who would like to meet 3 women who want to learn to shoot...

[BowStreetRunner]

unfortunately i dont have any shooting buddies with .22s in town yet

i moved to Macan GA not to long ago.....not to many of my peer group (students) spend money on guns, its usually beer

and while I can justify spending $ on a .22, it would be much harder to justify it to my betrothed, who does not like guns that much (but bought me two :D )....i love her anyways

[Chipperman]

Hmmm. She is not into guns, but you're taking three women shooting. This is getting more interesting by the minute.

Maybe she'll get more enthusiastic about guns if the outing goes well and the other three rave about how much fun it was.

[BowStreetRunner]

yeah maybe this way i can get her to go shooting :)
"come on love, dont you want to keep an eye on me with these 3 other girls?"
:)

[manwithoutahome]

BowStreetRunner,

Oh man, if I was still at Moody, I would gladly let you borrow my buckmark and my two single shot .22 rifles.

But, I left there long ago.

Know anyone at the AF Base in Warner Robins? Most Airmen have at least one .22 (well, they did back in "the day" but with some of the ones now days).

M

[BowStreetRunner]

I know a memeber of our board in Warner Robbins called GlockJeeper

[ocabj]

The girlfriend of a friend of mine asked me to take her out shooting. She wanted to learn the basics before she moved back up North (she graduated college last June) so I agreed to introduce her to safe gun handling and the shooting sports.

I think the biggest problem she had was 1) size of grip of pistol and 2) noise.

I don't have any pocket rocket handguns like a .25 or a .32. I brought a Beretta Brigadier Inox (9mm), Glock 23 (.40), and a Springfield 1911 Milspec (.45). Coincidently, the aforementioned guns allowed me to teach her about single, double, and double-only action handguns.

Anyway, we pretty much got everything down as far as stance, sight picture, follow through, and spent most of the time working the grip since she has very small hands. The Brigadier Inox has contoured wrap around grips so while the 9mm had very low recoil, she never got confortable with it. The Glock 23 was ok, but the snap of the .40 made shooting unconfortable. The 1911 actually was the best gun for her due to the thin grip handle and the fact that I use 200gr SWC 4.0gr Clays handloads which have a nice soft recoil.

As far as rifles go, I only brought my Colt Sporter Lightweight and a Ruger 10/22 (Volquartsen THM Barrel, Volquartsen Hammer, Mag Release, etc). She felt right at home with the 10/22 and was keeping them inside an 1" at 50yds. As far as the AR, the recoil wasn't bad at all, but the gunshots themselves frightened her (16" barrelled ARs tend to be loud). Good thing I didn't bring the Savage .308.

She had fun and now wants to get a 10/22 for herself when I told her how inexpensive they are and how they can be modified.

My recommendations (assuming you can get the appropriate equipment):

1. Double up their ear protection. Give them disposable plugs and show them how to use them. Then give them muffs to put over them.

2. Go with a .22 rifle to get them started off. It will teach them good shooting habits without them being 'scared' of the gun.

3. Teach them with a pistol with a slim enough frame that the 'students' can handle. Caliber shouldn't be too much of a problem (no magnums or 454s obviously) as long as they can grip the handgun properly.

You should be able to get away with using the SKS as long as you get past the noise factor and show them proper shouldering.

Good luck. Remember safety first. Make sure they understand the range rules and proper gun handling before letting them shoot.

[BowStreetRunner]

yeah i figure if there is anything i can teach them it is the 4 rules :)

[Standing Wolf]

Well done!

Personally, I prefer to introduce newcomers to shooting one newcomer at a time: there's just too much that could conceivably go wrong to divide my attention among several people.

Knowledge is meant to be shared, not hoarded.

[Ladybug]

Let me just add something from a "girl's" perspective... The first gun I ever shot was a .45. The first gun I owned was a Beretta .380, which some people have told me has a pretty decent recoil. The thing is, because those were the first guns I shot, I didn't really know that they were "loud," or had recoil, or the slide was hard to rack. I remember the first time I shot a .22 revolver, and definately the first time I shot a rifle - I thought "man, this is a piece of cake!"

Just a thought. I agree too that one at a time might be a little easier on everyone.

[DMK]

1. Double up their ear protection. Give them disposable plugs and show them how to use them. Then give them muffs to put over them.
I agree with that. That Mak will probably kick quite a bit, being so small. You don't want them to get intimidated right away.

Also, only load one round for the first one or two shots until you are sure they are safe. Once you know they are all right, load them up and let them rip!

Don't get all concerned about accuracy at first. If they shoot well, that's great! Provide encouragment. But if not, it's OK for them to just bang away and make noise. A lot of trust and comfort is established that first time.

1st priority is to show them that shooting can be fun and safe. This may encourage them to become regular shooters. Skill can come later with practice.

There was a guy at the range the other day critiquing every shot his apparent newbie girlfriend was making. It was clearly making her frustrated and uncomfortable with shooting. I wouldn't be surprised if she never took him up on an offer to go shooting again.

[Mastrogiacomo]

I'm a lady shooter and frankly any 9mm should be comfortable enough. My Berettas are a joy to shoot. I can't imagine who'd they'd scrare off except the bad guy on the wrong end....:evil:

[ocabj]

There was a guy at the range the other day critiquing every shot his apparent newbie girlfriend was making. It was clearly making her frustrated and uncomfortable with shooting. I wouldn't be surprised if she never took him up on an offer to go shooting again.
I see that happen a lot when I'm at the range. I understand how the 'teacher' wants the new shooter to do it right, but if you constantly badger them and tell how they're not doing this or doing that right, then they're not going to be having fun, and they're probably not going to want to participate in shooting sports again.

You need to be encouraging when teaching a new shooter. You should definitely tell them what they are doing wrong, but you should also praise them and tell them what they are doing right.

Also, only load one round for the first one or two shots until you are sure they are safe. Once you know they are all right, load them up and let them rip!
This is also good advice. One time I was at the range and a husband and wife take the bench right next to me. He busts out a nice looking M1A and starts shooting at targets while standing. He then locks and loads a 10 rounder and lets his wife shoot it and she also starts shooting standing. A few shots later while holding the gun at waist level but pointing horizontally she TURNS left towards me to talk to her husband. I take a dive behind the left side of the concrete bench the second I notice the muzzle sweep on to me. Of course, her husband jumps to action to correct her, but with her finger on the trigger and the second or two with the muzzle pointed at me was more than enough time for a possible disaster.

[Kaylee]

of all of what you have, I'd start with the SKS. Two reasons --

1 -- at any given range, it's easier to hit what you're aiming at with a rifle, hence they'll do better, hence they'll have more fun, hence they'll have a better experience to relate to their other friends.

2 -- you have a better chance of avoiding/deflecting the classic newbie mistake of covering you with the muzzle when they turn to ask you a question. :)


This is presuming you're outside. The added concussion of a rifle inside a closed range is not as likely to be fun to a newbie, I think.

borrowing a .22 still sounds an even better idea though.

-K

[ocabj]

*BTW* I should have mentioned this in my first post:

Take new shooters to the range when it is the least busiest. This usually means a weekday. I took the day off from work to take my friend's gf for the shooting lessons (I have way to much comp time on top of my vacation and sick leave). You will want to be giving lessons to a new shooter when there are a minimal number of other shooters around for many reasons.

The biggest reason is because there are less distractions. If you have a crowded firing line on the pistol range, there is no way you can effectively teach a new shooter the fundamentals. You are going to have lots of shooting, brass flying, and people walking around you to scoop it all up. Having less people around also makes the new shooter more comfortable and at ease.

[Ladybug]

Something else to consider... I *mostly* taught myself to shoot. I had a lot of friends who owned guns and I knew about safety and had gone shooting with them a few times. But when it came time to work on my accuracy, I went to the range - alone. That's how I built up confidence - knowing that no one saw how well or poorly I was hitting the target. I went to the range a lot, and got to be a pretty good shot. THEN when it came time for my retired Col. father-in-law to stand over me and give me a running commentary about my shooting, I learned how to shoot well under stress. Ha ha ha.

[BowStreetRunner]

im thinking i might try and track down a student at school who is a woman and a shooter and a friend of an acquaintance

if she would go along then she might be able to bring a more appropriate gun (?) and put another experienced shooter at the range

standing wolf
i like that idea but i think these girls want to go together, kind of a strength in numbers thing, i think they would have more fun as a group
my preference would be to teach one at a time but i dont think i can do that here

i like the advice about going when it is not busy....definitely less intimidating when there are no big boomers going off and fewer people to watch out for

the range i belong too is a fairly small private range that should be deserted most weekdays

[tex_n_cal]

I don't really care if it is a clunky old revolver, I'd still rather see a beginner with a revo than an auto.

I think you can likely teach three at once, as long as there is only one gun they're handling. Do not allow beginners to shoot unsupervised. Make a special point of warning them about sweeping around with the gun, be sure to emphasize that it's a common, and deadly mistake.

I have taught four women to shoot, and they all did fine. As long as they are told what to do, they almost always do it. If they make a mistake, immediately, but politely correct them and they won't get offended.

If you do decide to let them shoot an autoloader, tell them in advance to wear a high necked shirt, so no hot cases fall down into embarassing places.:what:

[Mastrogiacomo]

I went to the range last Sunday. God did I stink. The rules are you have to shoot at 50ft -- and that goes indoors and outdoors. You're not allowed to shoot closer but you can move up if no one is there at the range but you. I only shoot outside because I don't like to expose myself to the lead -- they only let you shoot lead, not FMJ. I'm not used to such a distance but was eager to try my new Beretta. Well, I hit the rope holding up everything and one of the guys had to put it back. Maybe it happened before if he came prepared? He was with a group of young boys who surely had a good chuckle about it at my expense. As I said, I was awful, so after an hour of this I couldn't take the embarrasment anymore and packed up. The only good thing was trying his Ruger 4" in blue which was sweet...:D He said I was improving over time but I wonder if he was just being nice. I wish I could have the range to myself to improve Ladybug....