Your CCW Class Experiences

[Hangingrock]

As I recall in the North Carolina CHP Class that is mandated several attendees had been concealed carry permit holders in other states of their previous residence that required no training class and I being one of those. What was of value, explanation of the NC law in detail.

 

[Al Thompson]

What was of value, explanation of the NC law in detail.

Agree, the "Legals" portion is really the key portion of the class here as well. I see a few too many folks get wrapped around the axle about the hardware (handgun, holster, etc.) when it's the software that counts.

 

[Kuyong_Chuin]

Agree, the "Legals" portion is really the key portion of the class here as well. I see a few too many folks get wrapped around the axle about the hardware (handgun, holster, etc.) when it's the software that counts.

We should always keep up with the laws concerning carrying a firearm in the state in which you live as well as any state you will be traveling while carrying.

 

[WestKentucky]

The class I took in Hopkinsville ky was a good class. Instructor showed us a little, went through legal in depth, then night#2 was qualifying. I qualified with a drum mag on a ruger charger which was fun, but the lady behind me qualified on a 2 lane, concrete walled basement range with an xframe 500 because it's what she could find ammo for during the scare. Everybody both upstairs and down had ears on and it shook the whole building. After 1 cylinder full she was handed a jframe 22 and a box of ammo to finish with.

 

[mrdeltoid]

The training one gets for their CWP should be the start of formal training, not the end.

That is correct. And it is what most (if not all) NRA courses are built around. You have to take the things you've learned in class and go practice them.

People in Idaho can get a carry permit with a hunters safety course or any NRA handgun course from First Steps on up. Some of those are at the discretion of the Sheriff in terms of whether they satisfy the training requirement.

The new Idaho enhanced permit requires an upper-level NRA course or its equivalent. The law states that a sheriff must accept Personal Protection in the Home OR Personal Protection Outside the Home. Equivalent courses may be accepted at the sheriff's discretion.

Of late in my area there are NRA courses offered. There also is one outfit that is skirting the boundaries of ethics and doing an "enhanced" class that is just the Utah class plus magazine dumps. The courses are supposed to include all sorts of shooting exercises (with a minimum of 98 rounds) and draw exercises plus legal instruction. The local group I am mentioning is just doing magazine dumps to get the round count up.

Its legal, but not cool in my opinion. Even with the law specifying training minimums you still have people finding ways around the rules to make money off people who think they're getting training.

Personally, I prefer the NRA courses. Say what you will about the NRA, but their courses are tight if they are taught correctly.

 

[Kuyong_Chuin]

That is correct. And it is what most (if not all) NRA courses are built around. You have to take the things you've learned in class and go practice them.

People in Idaho can get a carry permit with a hunters safety course or any NRA handgun course from First Steps on up. Some of those are at the discretion of the Sheriff in terms of whether they satisfy the training requirement.

The new Idaho enhanced permit requires an upper-level NRA course or its equivalent. The law states that a sheriff must accept Personal Protection in the Home OR Personal Protection Outside the Home. Equivalent courses may be accepted at the sheriff's discretion.

Of late in my area there are NRA courses offered. There also is one outfit that is skirting the boundaries of ethics and doing an "enhanced" class that is just the Utah class plus magazine dumps. The courses are supposed to include all sorts of shooting exercises (with a minimum of 98 rounds) and draw exercises plus legal instruction. The local group I am mentioning is just doing magazine dumps to get the round count up.

Its legal, but not cool in my opinion. Even with the law specifying training minimums you still have people finding ways around the rules to make money off people who think they're getting training.

Personally, I prefer the NRA courses. Say what you will about the NRA, but their courses are tight if they are taught correctly.

I would love to take some of the NRA courses and I am lucky that I have had prior training before applying for a permit here in Tennessee. Bad for me is being disabled and on a fixed income funds are tight and I have to save up for anything I want to pay for. I also have my health issues that prevents me from doing too much of anything. Hopefully the physical therapy they are doing on my back and the gel they are going to inject in my knees to stay off knee replacement surgery for a few more years will work well enough to let me do more outdoors.

 

[medalguy]

I've taken 2 classes in Texas, one in Utah and one in New Mexico. The Texas classes were both 10 hours and one class was far superior because the instructor spent quite a bit of time discussing how to defuse a potential situation so it would not be necessary to use a weapon. Good class.

The second class had more emphasis on when it was legal to shoot, and much less on situations that could be de-escalated. The range time was about the same for both.

I took a New Mexico class and it was OK not exceptional. The instructor spent most of the time on when and why to use a weapon. The range portion included several people who had probably never picked up a pistol before. Not good. They should have been to a basic firearms safety class first but that's not required. I was a bit nervous in that class on the range.

Then I took a Utah class in another state, and when the instructor found out I already held both a Texas and a New Mexico card, he told me to come in for a one-on-one class. We sat down for about half an hour and discussed some of the peculiarities of Utah law, and the most important thing I learned from the class was not to carry in a Mormon temple. Never even went to the range.

Overall I do believe every student should have to show a minimum level of proficiency with a firearm PRIOR to taking a CHL class. Frankly I was a little bit afraid of some of the people I was shooting with, just as I'm nervous of some of the people around me at an indoor range. That's why I prefer to shoot alone out in the desert.