If you’ve been shooting 20 years or more, what advice do you wish someone told you early on?

[Alan]

If you've been shooting for 20+ years, what tips would you give new shooters? Let’s hear the wisdom from the veterans of the range.

 

[Landon]

I'll jump in here, why do people skip safety refreshers like they’re optional? Getting too comfortable can stop you from getting better.

 

[hivel37]

Start hand loading, if you’re not already doing so.

 

[Drycreek]

Buy good single actions and don’t sell them. They only appreciate !

 

[Shane]

Don't over-clean your gun barrel. That first shot might miss, just clean it for upkeep. A bit of gunk can help accuracy

 

[Urban_Warrior]

Forget the rear sight...focus on keeping the front sight sharp

 

[Alan]

I'll jump in here, why do people skip safety refreshers like they’re optional? Getting too comfortable can stop you from getting better.

Exactly! safety refreshers aren’t optional, they keep fundamentals sharp and prevent bad habits from creeping in over time

 

[Alan]

Start hand loading, if you’re not already doing so.

yeahh, once you learn it, handloading saves money and becomes a satisfying hobby

 

[Alan]

Buy good single actions and don’t sell them. They only appreciate !

Good advice! Quality single actions are heirlooms.

 

[Alan]

Don't over-clean your gun barrel. That first shot might miss, just clean it for upkeep. A bit of gunk can help accuracy

Thanks for sharing

 

[Wendell Reich]

I see guys chasing velocity like it’s the end all be all. Find your accuracy, learn your dope and be happy.

Accuracy is king. I’d rather have a 1/2” group over 200fps increase and a bigger group.

 

[Alan]

I see guys chasing velocity like it’s the end all be all. Find your accuracy, learn your dope and be happy.

Accuracy is king. I’d rather have a 1/2” group over 200fps increase and a bigger group.

Absolutely, speed doesn’t replace precision

 

[Drycreek]

Absolutely, speed doesn’t replace precision

Exactly ! My .280 Remington Archaic Cartridge just loafs along at around 2750 fps but kills every deer I aim it at.

 

[hivel37]

The “magic” is in the 6.5/7mm bullets.
I use a 7x57 140 gr. Very effective.

 

[Brian VDW]

When the gun fires, it should be a surprise. If you don't see the flame come out the end of the barrel at discharge, you are flinching.

 

[DonD]

The “magic” is in the 6.5/7mm bullets.
I use a 7x57 140 gr. Very effective.

What's so special? You think your old school 7x57 can challenge my 300 Win Mag? Not hardly.

 

[DonD]

When the gun fires, it should be a surprise. If you don't see the flame come out the end of the barrel at discharge, you are flinching.

More BS today. I've been shooting effectively for 70 yrs and don't see flames out the muzzle. What is this, crazy day on the forum?

 

[Drycreek]

More BS today. I've been shooting effectively for 70 yrs and don't see flames out the muzzle. What is this, crazy day on the forum?

What's so special? You think your old school 7x57 can challenge my 300 Win Mag? Not hardly.

Depends on what you’re trying to kill. If It’s a brown bear, elk, moose, or similar size quarry, then the .300 Mag definitely has the edge. If it’s whitetails there is no edge under 300/350 yards if you can shoot. You can only kill them so dead you know.

Jack O’Connor hunted all over North America with a 270 Winchester, his wife with him on many of his hunts using either a 7x57 or a .257 Roberts. Bullet construction and shot placement will beat speed any day. Of course if you like to beat the hell out of yourself with the 300 loudenboomer, that’s your prerogative.

 

[JLA956]

Wear Hearing Protection. I started shooting when I was a kid in the 60s, and no one wore hearing protection back then. We lived on a farm and hunted birds throughout the year, along with regular target shooting with a .22. Once I got older and entered L.E., then hearing protection became more prevalent. However, the damage was done, and I'm paying the price now.

 

[Drycreek]

Wear Hearing Protection. I started shooting when I was a kid in the 60s, and no one wore hearing protection back then. We lived on a farm and hunted birds throughout the year, along with regular target shooting with a .22. Once I got older and entered L.E., then hearing protection became more prevalent. However, the damage was done, and I'm paying the price now.

I second this !

 

[Raven]

Spend more money on your optics.

 

[MSR_Gal]

Don't out shoot your boyfriend, even if you can ;-)

 

[Drycreek]

Don't out shoot your boyfriend, even if you can ;-)

Ha ! If my wife had put her mind to it, she could have been Jane Wick ! When we first married, over forty years ago, she had never shot a handgun and only a .22 rifle a few times. One day I was shooting my then carry gun, a Randall Raider .45 ACP, and she asked to shoot it. For those that don’t know that’s basically a Colt Commander clone. So, I set some soda cans on the ground about 20/25 feet in front of us, loaded the gun, showed her the safety, and stood back. I had admonished her that it was a self loader, “so don’t be pointing that thing anywhere but at those cans” !

She missed the first one but knocked it over anyway. She hit five in a row and knocked the last one over with dirt (as she did the first one). I determined that I did not want her shooting at me !

Another couple of stories about women shooting. I once built a drill site right behind a police academy shooting range. One Saturday morning a couple of guys came over to see what was going on and we started talking about our respective jobs. Long story as short as I can make it, I was invited over to watch a rookie class of state jail guards shoot. I got to stand right behind them as they shot, being careful to watch for unsafe gun handling. I got to looking at targets and noticed one that looked like buckshot at close range, I mean a lot better group than most of them. It was a young lady in her twenties, tall and, well…..a farm girl look about her. I ask her if she had done this before and she smiled and said, “My daddy taught me to shoot”. Yes, he did !

I had a lady that worked for me in the office. Fifty something would be my guess on her age. She said she needed a gun and someone to teach her to shoot it. She had never shot a gun in her life. I had a Taurus .38 snub that I sold her at a bargain and we went to the range one afternoon after work. Nobody at the pistol range and I hung a target at 3 yards, on the back of another target I drew a picture of what her sights needed to look like superimposed on the target. I loaded the gun and let her blaze away for 20 rounds. Being impressed, I put up another target at 7 yards and she shot another 20 rounds. Still impressed, I hung another one at 15 yards. It was late in the day, the sun was behind us, and I could see her bullets going down range. It was surreal the way I knew where they were gonna hit before they did. I’ve only seen that a few times in my life ! She could have passed the shooting part of our concealed handgun class on her first try.

Yeah, just because they’re girls doesn’t mean they can’t shoot !