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Out here in the Wild West there are sometimes groups of undisciplined shooters out in the forest as described above.
We have to fill out a Federal form #4473 to purchase a firearm, but sadly no one lifts the hood (bonnet) and checks for a functioning brain.

There are many, many disciplined shooters out in the Wild West as well.
These shooters can often be seen picking up the trash left behind by the un-schooled.
You can say hood. I'm not English. :)
 
1. Here in far-off and distinctly odd UK, poor gun handling can find you kicked off the range. The range rules are administered, just like they are in the USA, by trained and authorised NRA-qualified RCOs. They say jump - you ask how high, kinda thing. When they call 'stand clear of the guns', they mean just that. You have no option but to obey. Plus a whole bunch of other do's and don'ts that really do make sense.

2. However, depending on the severity of the mishandling event, you MIGHT be kicked out of the club for a period of time, or, shibber, permanently.

3. Getting kicked out of the club - and out-kicking HAS to be notified to the police authority that issued you with your Firearms certificate and maybe even a BP licence - means that you have no 'good reason'* to have a firearm.

4. Your Firearms certificate is then revoked by the issuing authority, leaving you a day or so to off-load your guns or face prosecution for illegal possession of a firearm or however many you have.

5. The kicking-out will be notified, first to other gun clubs in the county, and then nationally, so that club officials know who you are if you try and join another club.

6. The revocation can be rectified after, I bleeve, five years.

7. Mostly, that never happens.

*'good reason' here in UK, where firearms are concerned, is not a trite term. In order to acquire and possess any live-firing firearm, you must satisfy certain conditions, or 'good reasons' for owning them.

They are - target shooting on a range, game shooting on land where it it permitted or allowed [not the same in English], vermin/pest control, either amateur or professional, as an adjunct to keepering [that's gamekeeping as a profession] where there is a need to have a handgun for humane despatch. Obviously, large animal veterinarians also fall into this category, not those who look after doggies and gerbils, mind. Zookeepers also fit in here, for obvious reasons - gorillas pulling the arms off careless onlookers qualifies them for the attention of a zoo-keeper able to deal with them on a permanent basis.
 

Safety was on every time, was not at a range, out in the hills at a shooting location. They were on my bubblegum with advice and directions :)
It was safe enough. Just wanted to share my insights :)
Naw. It wasnt safe. Letting a newbie help himself to a table full of guns and wander around with a loaded gun before he was completely disciplined about fingers kept off triggers and other basics was not safe. Nor was having composition of target or backstop for shooting be such that you could be hit by a chunk of something ricocheting. Ideally everyone gets serious one on one training and have practiced handling and walking around with an empty gun with someone watching them full time before they handle or walk around with a loaded gun. But many have benefited from having parents or other family members that were very experienced shooters to learn from. And others learned from formal courses. And many of us had both. Not everyone does.

Your post was a useful contribution for this thread, which is aimed at helping the many people new to guns these days. And its certainly not the first less than ideal intro to guns I've ever heard. Quite a lot of people apparently actually start their kids by giving them BB guns and letting them out with no training at all to run around shooting whatever they want , including each other. And I note you joined NWFA in 2019, and presumably lived through your newbie stage without killing anyone. Could you tell us what happened after that episode you described and how you acquired additional training or experience? The thread is actually aimed at people who are beyond the basics but still relatively new to shooting.
 
TV shows and movies are NOT firearm training videos. . .
This here is huge -- I just read through this whole thread and was surprised I didn't see this broken down, so I'll join in:

ALMOST EVERYTHING YOU HAVE SEEN IN MOVIES ABOUT FIREARMS IS WRONG! ESPECIALLY ABOUT HANDGUNS!!!

1) Hitting what you're shooting at with a pistol, especially a small pistol, is actually very difficult for most people especially if you are under stress -- it doesn't happen with any regularity unless you spend a lot of time practicing. This is why new soldiers are issued rifles -- and then forced to train with them -- rifles are much easier to actually hit stuff with. Historically, only the officers got pistols, and in many countries they had to buy their own.

2) Guns, and especially handguns, are not death rays that instantly kill what you shoot! Most deaths from firearms are from exsanguination which is fancy medical terminology for bleeding to death, a process that takes a substantial amount of time depending on the size/depth/number of holes in the person who was shot, and can be affected by the shot person's size, health and whether they are drunk/high/insane/etc.

3) Concealed carry without obvious printing is actually pretty difficult -- even with small guns -- the whole standard movie thing of pulling a full-size combat pistol out of a shoulder-holster under a blazer which had previously been completely invisible is complete fiction. A J-frame in a shoulder holster of a fitted suit will make you look like a hunchback. if you plan to wear fashionable form-fitting clothes and don't want to have your gun in a purse or fanny pack, you're probably gonna need a new wardrobe and some creativity. . . better learn to love vests and bulky jackets. . .

4) Most of the things you see in movies re guns and the law are a fantasy. The laws around owning, carrying, transporting, storing, discharging, buying and selling a firearm -- especially in major cities, and in the PNW -- are pretty complicated and it is easy for a "good person" with "good intentions" to engage in activity which is criminal, and if detected by the authorities can derail and even ruin your whole life.You need to be willing to educate yourself about all this and then be ready to carefully toe the line or knowingly risk your legal-status and even your freedom.

5) and my personal pet-peeve: unnecessary slide racking and shotgun-pumping for dramatic effect. And never does a perfectly good unfired round pop out and land on the floor to make the hero look like a dumbass.

So, yeah, just remember Hollywood is in California, and California is pretty much having a contest with New York to see who can be the most anti-gun. It probably makes sense that most of what Hollywood movies show about firearms would be wrong. There are some newer films that have clearly hired competent educated folks -- the John Wick movies seem to have been funded by gun manufacturers -- but mostly, don't believe the movies.

melgibson.jpg
 
ALMOST EVERYTHING YOU HAVE SEEN IN MOVIES ABOUT FIREARMS IS WRONG! ESPECIALLY ABOUT HANDGUNS!!!

2) Guns, and especially handguns, are not death rays that instantly kill what you shoot! Most deaths from firearms are from exsanguination
Unlike TV where people are blown 8 feet backwards when shot

3) Concealed carry without obvious printing is actually pretty difficult -- even with small guns
Unlike TV where Charlie's Angles, wearing hot pants and a tube top suddenly pull a K frame revolver from somewhere???
4) Most of the things you see in movies re guns and the law are a fantasy.
I HATE when TV cops make statement such as "he was arrested in {Fill in the State}for possession of a unregistered handgun" When that State does not require registration. For some reason TV writers assume:
- Every State requires registration of guns
- Every gun shop sells illegal full auto firearms, C4 and clay-mores out of the back room
5) and my personal pet-peeve: unnecessary slide racking and shotgun-pumping for dramatic effect. And never does a perfectly good unfired round pop out and land on the floor to make the hero look like a dumbass.
Especially when the same person does it 2-3 time. . . .

OR a person is pointing a gun at someone and says "Time to die" and then chambers a round. REALLY? You were pointing a gun at someone with a gun that had a empty chamber?

Let's face it. . Hollywierd writers know nothing about guns.
 
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Don't engage in problems just because you have a gun. Stay clear of them. Run from them. Unless you have NO other choice.
This comment is huge. If you believe you need a gun to go somewhere/do something, you really should reconsider why you're going!
I used to be the first call on the alarm for the company I worked for. We were having false alarms and couldn't just have the alarm company call the cops each time it went off at 2am. The false alarms were always motion detectors with no doors or windows breached it didn't make sense that there was a real break in, but I'd have to go down to check. I'd bring my big dog and would check all of the outside points of entry on all sides of the building before entering, checking the shop and resetting the alarm. That's the only time I've ever strapped on my gun for a "reason" and if I'd had any inkling there were problems, I'da sat outside and called the police.
Also, if carrying concealed, no one else should know you're carrying. My wife does. My friends just assume I am, but I've mentioned to them all that I want them to NEVER say anything about it.
 
Tools like the roll pin punch, screwdriver, and file may appear to be very simple tools to operate, but gunsmithing is in-fact a complex and nuanced skill set requiring specific knowledge, care and a light touch -- probably best learned on firearms you aren't particularly attached to. . .
 
Hang fires and squib loads.

I was once out shooting at paper targets with a friend, me with a .357, friend with a 9mm. Friends gun failed to fire on one round. He ejected round and picked it up. "THROW IT AWAY! NOW!!!" I yelled. After he did I explained. He was not an inexperienced shooter. But he didn't know about hang fires.

Sometimes a round doesn't go off. Occasionally such rounds go off a second or more later. This is called called a "hang fire". So if a round fails to fire in a semi auto, wait a few seconds, then eject it and leave it alone for a while. Don't go bending over and peering at it or picking it up. With a revolver, if a round fails to fire, stop shooting and wait a bit. If its a hang fire in a revolver and you keep pulling the trigger, that's fine if the round is a dud. But if its a hang fire and goes off when bullet isn't aligned with the barrel it might damage the gun and possibly the shooter. I always wait a full minute after a round fails to fire before assuming its a failure to fire rather than a hang fire and examining it to see if there is a good clean primer strike, etc. In an emergency if I had a failure to fire I'd assume it was a failure to fire, as those are much more common than hang fires. That is, with a revolver I'd keep firing. With a semi auto I'd eject round and resume firing.

AnoTher emergency can come about when a bullet is underpowered and enters the barrel and sticks in there. If you shoot another bullet into that blocked barrel at the least you'll cause a bulge in the barrel and ruin it. But the barrel may blow up, which can injure the shooter. Squib loads usually make a noise that is different from ordinary. Squibs are usually caused by mistakes such as a primer but no powder in load, or too little powder.

Ive never had a squib load. Back when I was a kiddie, we experienced failures to fire including occasional hang fires because we were practicing with old WWII ammo. As an adult I experienced plenty of failures to fire when I owned a Charter Arms Pathfinder .22 revolver. Many of the primer marks were obviously too light. Ive read you can also sometimes cause a revolver to fail to fire reliably by replacing the springs to lighten the trigger pull. I experienced one failure to fire with a Colt Anaconda .44 mag. When I examined the round there was no primer strike. Examined gun. Broken firing pin.
Shooting my Colt Model 1903 (mfr 1906), I thought a round sounded funny when I pulled the trigger. Waited a while. Dropped the mag and cycled the action. An empty case came out. With the slide locked back Iooked down the barrel and could not see daylight. Took the gun home and disassembled it. Put the barrel in a padded vice and used a wooden dowl to push the obstruction out of the barrel. It was a perfect .32 acp slug. It was the only squib I've ever experienced.

The ammo was in a box marked with the price tag ($2.99) of a hardware store that went out of business 40 years prior. I junked the rest of that box of ammo.
 
More Advice:

Nowhere is using the exact proper tool more important than when working on a firearm. A roll pin punch, an armorer's wrench, a receiver block, and the correct size and shape screw driver blade will prevent major headaches, damage, lost parts, and unintended consequences when working on or cleaning your firearms.
 
More Advice:

Nowhere is using the exact proper tool more important than when working on a firearm. A roll pin punch, an armorer's wrench, a receiver block, and the correct size and shape screw driver blade will prevent major headaches, damage, lost parts, and unintended consequences when working on or cleaning your firearms.
This is true - but don't discount the homemade tools as well.

A dowel pin with a hole drilled in it works great for installing the detent in the pivot pin in ARs and a paperclip stuck up through the hole for the bolt catch pin helps keep the pin aligned for the first few hammer hits to get it installed.

Best tool for the job - definitely...though sometimes, the best tool is the one you make for the job at hand.
 
This is true - but don't discount the homemade tools as well.

A dowel pin with a hole drilled in it works great for installing the detent in the pivot pin in ARs and a paperclip stuck up through the hole for the bolt catch pin helps keep the pin aligned for the first few hammer hits to get it installed.

Best tool for the job - definitely...though sometimes, the best tool is the one you make for the job at hand.
Absolutely! Sometimes you can make a better tool than is available anywhere else for your particular job. That's especially true with race cars, boat engines, and old tractors. :)

tempImageAG5nZF.png

What I was trying to get across to folks is that it may be tempting to use the almost right tool that you have on hand, rather than ordering or making the exact right tool. That very often results in unexpected headaches and a job that takes 5 times as much labor.
 
It occured to me some of you old veterans could help us newbies along by passing some wisdom related to common firearm mistakes people might make. There is the ones that are drilled into you (only point at something you plan to kill, always treat a weapon like it's loaded) but there must be less common ones as well.

I made an absolute bonehead move of not reading the manual on my new gun and dry fired my single aciton revolver. Ugh. Doesn't look like it sustained any damage but thats what I get for going by word of mouth, a friend had said it should just fire when ytou pull the trigger with a heavy pull. He must have been thinking double action, because while it works it made a nasty sound and I know it can't have been good for the gun. Hopefully a single dry fire won't do too much damage.

So, what are some common mistakes and pitfalls new owners might run into ? Share a story if it's not too embarrasing.
Anytime i clear my firearm i 1 drop the mag 2 rack the slide 5 times and inspect the chamber 3 make sure its pointed in a safe direction at all times (dont flag your buddy).
 
Here in UK it takes six months of provisional membership of a club and club mentoring [plus a few tests] to give people confidence around a wide range of firearms. Noobs are encouraged to shoot everything offered to them - and of course they all do. How else would they know what they like, or like to do? That way they don't make goofs. Being in a club environment means they are watched, too, especially with regard to firearms safety - the responsibility of ALL of us.

Only after the six months are up, and they become full members of the club, are they able to apply for their Firearms Certificate. The first referee is always the club secretary - two more, unconnected with the club in any way, and not a relative - are also required to vouch for their general attitude. These people must be persons of 'standing' in the community, but not police officers, as the issuance of the FAC is actually a police matter, authorised and administered by the county police force.

As a result, firearms 'accidents' are passing rare here, and, naturally, attract a whole lot of unwelcome comments from the 'great unwashed' in the bathroom press. I personally do not know of ANY firearms-related accidents and hope never to have one myself.
 
Absolutely! Sometimes you can make a better tool than is available anywhere else for your particular job. That's especially true with race cars, boat engines, and old tractors. :)

View attachment 1060075

What I was trying to get across to folks is that it may be tempting to use the almost right tool that you have on hand, rather than ordering or making the exact right tool. That very often results in unexpected headaches and a job that takes 5 times as much labor.
Love that tractor, me!
 
This is true - but don't discount the homemade tools as well.

A dowel pin with a hole drilled in it works great for installing the detent in the pivot pin in ARs and a paperclip stuck up through the hole for the bolt catch pin helps keep the pin aligned for the first few hammer hits to get it installed.

Best tool for the job - definitely...though sometimes, the best tool is the one you make for the job at hand.
Or the one you bubba with... ;)
 

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