Beretta Blog

If you’re one of many new gun owners who has bought their first gun these past few years, now is a great time to think about different ways to enjoy going to the range. Along with thousands of other people, I’ve found that practical pistol is a great way to have fun with a handgun and learn how to use it safely under the stress of competition.

Since I was a skinny, pimply faced kid behind a gun counter I’ve seen people check a gun for clear, look down the sights and check a gun’s trigger pull. Often the next statement is, “Nice trigger.” Gun companies are constantly upgrading their trigger systems, and sometimes offer competition triggers. I’ve certainly done the same thing thousands of times. I do like a crisp and light trigger pull, but does a light and precise trigger always result in better shooting?

Walk down the firing line of any public pistol range, and you'll see people having a grand ol' time throwing rounds downrange towards their target. Most of the targets will have a great many holes scattered about them with no visible rhyme or reason and no evidence of any marksmanship skills at all.

But yet, if you ask those people if they can shoot, to a person, they'll say "Yes," even though their targets are saying things to the contrary. So what is "being able to shoot," and how do you get better at it?

I live in a rural section of south Florida. I constantly see signs by the freeway exit ramps that advertise concealed carry permit classes for ridiculously low prices. On one hand, I understand how money (or the lack thereof) can affect buying decisions, but when you're choosing a firearms instructor, you are choosing someone to teach you how to potentially save your life and the lives of those close to you.

I think some issues, preferences, and beliefs just get passed around the gun community with few stopping to consider and evaluate what they really mean. You know, things like “The batteries will just run out of your laser or light when you need it most!” Or maybe, “It only takes one .45 ACP bullet to end a fight.” You know the drill and have probably heard dozens of such nuggets of wisdom passed down.

Laser sights get a bad rap from gun know-it-alls. You’ll hear pithy and condescending comments like these…

• Laser sights are a crutch.

• Lasers are only for people who can’t use iron sights properly.

• Laser sights are slower.

• What are you gonna do when you’re laser battery runs out in the middle of a gunfight?

• Lasers are delicate and will break at inopportune times.

• Serious shooters don’t need them.

Those folks are missing the point. Completely. Lasers add capabilities to your existing knowledge, skills, and equipment without taking anything away. Who wouldn’t want that type of tradeoff?

I visited a local gun shop this week and was glad to see that business was booming. I was happy for the shop owner, the people browsing and buying, and for the industry. But my brief moment of euphoria was rudely interrupted by three instances of sloppy gun handling - two by customers and one by an employee of the business. As an instructor, range safety officer, and former police firearms instructor, my instincts kicked in, and I wanted to grab the guns and point them in a safe direction before anyone got hurt. That was three instances of pointing a loaded gun at people within just a few moments.

If there was a way to let your body do more of the work of getting and staying on target, wouldn’t you want to take advantage of that? Of course, you would! It’s not so much about doing more of the work as it is about getting, and more importantly, staying on target. The bottom line is this. If you can allow your body to “naturally” assume more responsibility, then you can shoot more accurately and more consistently. Having to force your body, arms, and hands to make accurate hits leads to fatigue and therefore inconsistency.

Let’s clear something up. Hollywood does a lousy job of portraying the performance of handguns. Pistol shots cause villains to fly through windows, cars, and buildings to explode and nameless henchmen to surrender by the thousands. In other words, TV and movies show that handguns have serious “knockdown” power. Let’s talk about that for just a sec…

The loudest sound in the known universe is that of a “click” when your gun is supposed to fire. We’ll refer to that sound as a malfunction. Sometimes there’s not even a click and the gun still won’t fire. We’ll call that a malfunction too.

Fortunately, unless something physically broke on your gun between shots, malfunctions fall into a couple of common categories. Let’s take a look at how to deal with them.