Life lessons you've learned from shooting

[9MMare]

Sadly, that gun owners are at least as likely as others, if not more so, to label people and judge them by those labels.

Is that politically incorrect? Heh, well I dont believe in 'politically correct/incorrect.'

 

[Zach S]

Ironicly, its gone the other way for me. I was working on cars long before I got into guns, and went to work in a plant shortly after I got into guns, so a lot of stuff was already second nature before I really got into shooting.

If it seems too loud, it is, and the simplest tasks are rather challenging when you cant see. Eyes and ears need protection.

If you drop a tool, let it fall!

You are responsible for your safety. Safeties, and machine guards, can and have failed in the past, dont rely on them.

Always have an escape plan.

If something seems wrong and/or you think you should be somewhere else, there probably is, and you should be somewhere else.

You forget about temporary repairs, until they fail. If you cant fix it right, let it sit broken.

If its worth doing, its worth overdoing but don't overdo it too much.

Listen to the man that learned the hard way.

Sometimes safety measures look stupid. Swallow your pride, look stupid, and be safe - says the man that wore his long hair in a bun, when he ran a lathe...

 

[J-Bar]

Someday you WILL have have an accidental discharge. NEVER ignore muzzle direction.

I am responsible for the consequences of my actions, good or bad.

 

[Mrcymstr]

Always be respectful and polite, because if someone knows your can fight back chances are they will test that.

Remember that maintenance costs (ammo and cleaning in this case) should be considered just as fervently as any other criteria in any purchase

Never trust a snickering relative when they say "trust me" ("that shotgun wont hurt as bad if you loosen it away from your shoulder... trust me")

Stress and lack of training will ALWAYS trump every bit of knowledge you've studied or been told

If children are taught to correctly respect but never fear any dangerous thing and raised to understand what it all sums up to they will hold that very closely in mind and be much safer than the "pretend it doesn't exist/wont happen" method (pretty sure there's a Bible verse that fits here Proverbs 22:6)

And most importantly... you can say stop or Alto or whatever you want but a large bore muzzle directed at the cranial area is pretty much a universal language

 

[General Geoff]

the concept of carrying a gun is a crucible for determining others' true opinion of personal liberty, and also demonstrates a profound level of trust not typically found in any other dynamic in modern society.

 

[RimfireChris]

Listening to old timers is good, but so is listening to newbies with no preconcieved ideas.

 

[9MMare]

It's weird Rimfire Chris, but as a newbie a couple of yrs ago (and still) with exposure to both anti and pro gun people I find I have some very different perspectives on a few things gun-related.

I sought out good instruction and was told that guns dont go bang without your finger on the trigger, that guns today do not go off if dropped, and that I should carry my chosen firearm with one in the chamber. So I did from the start with little or no nervousness about one in the pipe. I had no preconceived notions about it so accepted what my instructors and research told me.

I did my first Wally Walk because I had just picked up my gun, shot it at the range, and didnt want to leave it in my car while I shopped. I reloaded her up, put her in my purse holster, and off I went. Aside from heaviness, I wasnt particularly weirded out or self-conscious about being armed in public.

Also, from what I often read here, I think (and this is just my opinion) that gun people have been so exposed to anti-gun sentiments that they automatically see (perhaps it's unconscious) carrying guns as wrong, or socially negative. Again, having been raised and lived in a very gun-neutral environment, I do not see it as such.


I say this from reading many of the threads where people automatically assume their guns will be unwelcome. People seem to think they need to inform *or consider* people when they're carrying *even when not posted, covered under employer policies, or any other social or public restriction.* I dont get that. It's like it's socially assumed we're in the wrong or doing something unacceptable. Like we have some obligation to tell people we're armed when we dont even know their status on the issue. (Why is it an issue if it's unspoken or unsigned???)

I didnt grow up or feel that during my lifetime...and I'm 50. I guess I've probably been equally exposed to both anti- and pro-gun sentiments and I dont feel like I'm doing something 'unusual'.

 

[philpost]

Even if you SEE the other person unload the gun, check again yourself to make sure it was done right.
Don't point a barrel at anything you don't want to destroy.
There's more respect and less fear at the range than on the street, because everyone is armed.

 

[8654Maine]

Smooth is quick.

 

[content]

Hello friends and neighbors // Some good thoughts here.

1) Most folks are unconscious not malicious.
Sadly both can make you just as dead.

2) Slow is smooth
Smooth is fast
SO
Slow is Fast when reloading

 

[Tom Fury]

Gun life-lessons

1. Nobody has to die today; sometimes having a gun on me tempts me to stay in situations that I could just as easily walk away from; I have learned to appraise when a situation is likely to escalate into something unfortunate, and realize that it could be more unfortunate because I could have walked long before things went to condition Black; just because the other guy is escalating I don't have to go there. I don't have to prove I have a right to be there; no one has a right to remain in an escalating situation.

2. I live in the UK; responses from seemingly normal folk here to frank mentions of firearms as a normal thing just freak these people out; they really believe you must be some sort of lusting-for-violence monster and worse than a molester of schoolchildren; maintain your freedom at all costs; it will be harder to reverse the entrenched anti-gun mentality than to reverse the anti-gun laws.
B. Massad Ayoob was right about not scaring the horses; in spades, our freedoms are terribly linked to the perception of us in the minds of the larger communities in which we live; don't live one-dimensionally (gun owner; deal with it) this is an attitude we can do without. Guard the privileges of Liberty with wisdom.

3. Rifles were invented because no one in his right mind wants to shoot the wolf in the baby's room with a shorter range weapon; The farther out you can stop him, the better.
Believe it or not, I apply this to dealing with trouble in Church; it reminds me not to overextend grace to folks who spell (smell like) trouble; Jesus called it being wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

4. I recently had to teach on Fatherhood and used the very American idea of a Father giving his son a rifle for his birthday to explain it; I pointed out that the thing that kept it from being as irresponsible and evil a thing as my English brethren were horrified to imagine this was, was that the heart of a Father would be to trust the son with something like that because he intended to make it an occasion to love the son by also teaching him responsibility, respect, and to value something important; a true father would make it an occasion to be a real Father to his son.

5. You have no idea how much fun it is, when one of my British friends asks me "Why is it legal for all of you Americans to own and carry guns?" to tell him its' all their fault...

Cheers, TF

 

[Claude Clay]

on the back of my bus card:

Smooth is Good
Smooth is Fast

that situtional awreness works when driving, the last time i was unable to avoid an accident was 1980.

that guns are a specal item. they contain the ability to change or take life in an instant.
handle them with a clear mind in a deliberate mannor. cars are similiar though more forgiving: what with 7 air bags and list of assists. you can not call a bullet back.

 

[Hangingrock]

Just because you scored Expert doesn’t mean you’re an expert shot. The 45ACP is not a one shot show stopper.

 

[parsimonious_instead]

There is no such thing as being "too safe" with firearms
What commands respect on the range and in the clubhouse? Safe handling first, good shooting second, the quality/looks of your firearms a distant third.
If you are having a "bad day" at the range, calmly pack up and leave. Bad practice wastes time and ammo, and can ingrain bad habits.

 

[youngda9]

Someday you WILL have have an accidental discharge. NEVER ignore muzzle direction.

No, I will not. I abide by the 4 rules, always.

 

[Vyacheslav]

i've definitely learned to appreciate my relationship with my wife more after reading on gun forums. asking your wife permission to spend your money, i've never heard anything so ridiculous

 

[9mm+]

Lesson learned (observed): Don't be an obnoxious know-it-all in the shop or the range with newbies. They hate it and it makes you look like a horse's ass. There's no better way to turn someone off from the sport than to criticize their guns, their stance, etc., while simultaneously acting astounded that the newbies didn't know the history of the 1911 or who John Moses Browning was.

 

[CharlesT]

Breathe.

 

[MtnSpur]

Patience, practice and most importantly safe weapon handling all carry over to non-gun aspects of life.

 

[CoRoMo]

Make a list. Be thorough. Be careful. Have fun. Life is fragile and short. Don't take yourself too seriously. Take seriously your duties. Watch, listen, and learn. Objects/possessions won't fill that void in your heart. I'm not superior to anyone else. Take your time and get it right. Don't piddle around unproductively. Try hard. Forgive much. Forget nothing. Get up and do it. Stop making excuses. Stop lying to yourself and everyone else. Don't accept mediocrity. Nobody is perfect, we're all pretty jacked up. Save, stockpile, but don't hoard. Your not as great as you think you are. You are not a failure. Get up again. And again. Examine yourself.

 

[Jonah71]

Once the trigger is pulled it's a done deal. The same can be said for what comes out of our mouths.

 

[Rail Driver]

Patience pays. Don't be in a hurry to draw down on someone in every case. He may really just want to bum a smoke or panhandle some change. Not everyone is a goblin.

 

[Remo223]

No, I will not. I abide by the 4 rules, always.

Thats the kind of arrogance that will ensure you will.

 

[CoRoMo]

2. Be polite to everyone you meet but have a plan to kill them.

I can't seem to read that comment and agree with it. Help me out here; why should I put together a plan to end the life of everyone I meet?

 

[oldfool]

pretty much what post #19 and post #46 said... my version being..

"if you cannot or will not accept total responsibility for what comes out of the barrel, no matter the outcome, don't pull the trigger"

that applies to pretty much everything in life, but most things in life are not as immediately and irrevocably clear as shooting a firearm