Cousin Mike
Member
Took the fiance to the range today. She's been considering a number of guns in .45, and I thought that might be a little too much for a beginner. She's shot my 1911, and even though she liked the kick, her accuracy was less than impressive, even as close as 10-15 feet. I think her constantly hearing me talk to my friends about my faith in the .45 soured her to 9mm as a SD round. Hearing my description of the 9mm kick as 'quick and snappy' probably didn't help too much either. I tried telling her that what I like isn't necessarily what she will like, but she wasn't buying it.
So, I ask her to go to the range with me, and try a 9mm for herself. She agrees, and we head off to my favorite place for a little target fun. The salesman insists on a .22 - she refuses. The salesman insists on a revolver, she refuses once more. Finally, he gives in, and let's her start taking a look at a few 9's.
I tried to stay out of it as much as possible and let her speak for herself.
She picks the Springfield XD in 9mm. An ugly little thing with a green frame, akward handle and ugly slide (not to start anything, it just wouldn't have been my choice). I silently prayed she would pick the Glock 17, but the gods were not to smile upon me today. She said she liked the grip of the XD, and I really wanted her to enjoy herself, so I kept my opinions to myself. We rent it, buy 100 rounds, and I let her have at it.
Now with my 1911 and a 7 round mag, she might hit the target 5 times at 15 feet or less. Usually, it's more like 2 or 3 out of 7. This is only counting shots that hit the silhouette on the target. She's not a bad shot with it when she can focus, but more often than not, her anticipation of the recoil gets in the way and ruins the shot. As a result she tends to get frustrated. Today I wanted to build her confidence. I remind her of how to stand, aim, line up the sights, control her breathing and wait for the shot. I send her target downrange @ 15 feet.
8 out of 15.
Not that bad for someone who has only shot 3 times in her life. I let off a few rounds, and find the sights are off a little. My shots are low and to the left. No biggie. I tell her about the sights, and how to adjust, and send another target downrange.
12 out of 15 I'm impressed. She's excited. We send another target downrange for her.
14 out of 15 She's ecstatic. I'm amazed. I take a few more shots, but I wont bother with my results. We send her last target downrange, and have 16 shots left. I show her how to top feed, and load the last 15 rounds in the magazine. She's got this huge grin on her face, a look I've never seen when she shoots my .45 - I send her target 20 feet downrange, and tell her to go for it.
16 out of 16!
She trailed off a little to the left towards the end of the mag, but she kept all 16 shots within the silhouette. She kept her target, and a big ol' smile on her face the whole way home. I was truly impressed! Couldn't have had a much better experience.
I'm posting all of this, and I'm sure by now you good folks are saying
"But, Cousin Mike, why should we give a damn?"
Well, good people of THR, I need some advice. On the way out, our friend at the register asked how she liked the gun. She told him she loved it, but he still recommended a .22 for her to learn with. I think she did just fine on the 9mm, especially for someone so new to the sport, but I am no expert. I taught myself how to shoot, and I learned with a 9mm and a friends .38 (2" barrel). The more guns I got, the more I practiced. I do plan on taking some marksmanship classes in the future, but I am a pretty accurate shot up to around 40 feet or so (the pistol range I go to is a 50ft. range).
I have heard many people say that a .22 is a good weapon to learn to shoot with - I have never fired one. But if she did that well with a 9mm, should she really have to use a .22 to learn properly? She doesn't want one. In fact, she wants a CZ75 B in 9mm from Santa this year. I'm not sure what to think. I want her to be happy, and I accomplished my mission of turning her on to the 9mm round. She doesn't want anything else right now, but I want her to learn shot placement as best as possible. She agrees that's the most important thing, but whenever the word "twenty two" comes into play, her little smile goes away. Her preference is also important, so what should I do?
Thank you all for putting up with my rantings Any advice you could give on this subject would be very greatly appreciated and heavily considered. Thanks again in advance for any and all opinions on the subject!
So, I ask her to go to the range with me, and try a 9mm for herself. She agrees, and we head off to my favorite place for a little target fun. The salesman insists on a .22 - she refuses. The salesman insists on a revolver, she refuses once more. Finally, he gives in, and let's her start taking a look at a few 9's.
I tried to stay out of it as much as possible and let her speak for herself. She picks the Springfield XD in 9mm. An ugly little thing with a green frame, akward handle and ugly slide (not to start anything, it just wouldn't have been my choice). I silently prayed she would pick the Glock 17, but the gods were not to smile upon me today. She said she liked the grip of the XD, and I really wanted her to enjoy herself, so I kept my opinions to myself. We rent it, buy 100 rounds, and I let her have at it.
Now with my 1911 and a 7 round mag, she might hit the target 5 times at 15 feet or less. Usually, it's more like 2 or 3 out of 7. This is only counting shots that hit the silhouette on the target. She's not a bad shot with it when she can focus, but more often than not, her anticipation of the recoil gets in the way and ruins the shot. As a result she tends to get frustrated. Today I wanted to build her confidence. I remind her of how to stand, aim, line up the sights, control her breathing and wait for the shot. I send her target downrange @ 15 feet.
8 out of 15.
Not that bad for someone who has only shot 3 times in her life. I let off a few rounds, and find the sights are off a little. My shots are low and to the left. No biggie. I tell her about the sights, and how to adjust, and send another target downrange.
12 out of 15
I'm impressed. She's excited. We send another target downrange for her.14 out of 15
She's ecstatic. I'm amazed. I take a few more shots, but I wont bother with my results. We send her last target downrange, and have 16 shots left. I show her how to top feed, and load the last 15 rounds in the magazine. She's got this huge grin on her face, a look I've never seen when she shoots my .45 - I send her target 20 feet downrange, and tell her to go for it. 16 out of 16!
She trailed off a little to the left towards the end of the mag, but she kept all 16 shots within the silhouette. She kept her target, and a big ol' smile on her face the whole way home. I was truly impressed! Couldn't have had a much better experience.I'm posting all of this, and I'm sure by now you good folks are saying
"But, Cousin Mike, why should we give a damn?"
Well, good people of THR, I need some advice. On the way out, our friend at the register asked how she liked the gun. She told him she loved it, but he still recommended a .22 for her to learn with. I think she did just fine on the 9mm, especially for someone so new to the sport, but I am no expert. I taught myself how to shoot, and I learned with a 9mm and a friends .38 (2" barrel). The more guns I got, the more I practiced. I do plan on taking some marksmanship classes in the future, but I am a pretty accurate shot up to around 40 feet or so (the pistol range I go to is a 50ft. range).
I have heard many people say that a .22 is a good weapon to learn to shoot with - I have never fired one. But if she did that well with a 9mm, should she really have to use a .22 to learn properly? She doesn't want one. In fact, she wants a CZ75 B in 9mm from Santa this year. I'm not sure what to think. I want her to be happy, and I accomplished my mission of turning her on to the 9mm round. She doesn't want anything else right now, but I want her to learn shot placement as best as possible. She agrees that's the most important thing, but whenever the word "twenty two" comes into play, her little smile goes away. Her preference is also important, so what should I do?
Thank you all for putting up with my rantings
Any advice you could give on this subject would be very greatly appreciated and heavily considered. Thanks again in advance for any and all opinions on the subject!
