How I learned to shoot.....

[bobwright]

As a youngster, I had my share of cap pistols, and, watching western movies, just assumed shooting the handgun just came natural to a man. (Or boy) When my older brother returned from World War II, he brought back a little German pistol. (I learned later that this was a Mauser M1910 in .25 ACP.) Shortly after his return, my Dad took the pistol to a gunshop to determine what cartridges it took. The caliber was marked on the side, 6.35mm, which meant nothing to us. He learned that was .25 ACP and he bought two boxes. That weekend we went to my uncle's farm in Mississippi and dug some cans out of the trash pile. We set one atop a fence post and each in turn tried out hand with that little pistol. We divided up that box of cartridges three ways, and Dad and my brother took their turns. After exhausting their allotted ammo supply, the can stood unscathed. I smugly took my stance ready to show up my Dad and brother. Incredible! I missed every shot!

Later I read up on shooting, using my Daisy Red Ryder Handbook as my instruction manual. Learning the basics, trigger squeeze and sight picture, I practiced at the fair where there was a shooting gallery that had a S&W K-22 revolver, twelve shots for a quarter. Close to busting my meager funds at the time. But I learned to shoot, and learned how to handle, load, clear and fire nearly every type of firearm there was.

That was seventy five years ago, and I'm still learning. Fortunately, safety was the first lessons learned, ant that has stood me in good stead ever since. I have shot nearly every type of firearm I could get my hands on.

Bob Wright

[shaner]

Thanks , very good read

[45dragoon]

That's a rather familiar story Bob!! When
I was a kid, my dad had a small Beretta 25acp and he would attempt to show mom how to sink a floating can in the lake. He would do a great job of scaring the fool out of the can but nonetheless, the can would still be floating!! My mom would sink it first shot and hand the gun back to him with a smile . . . smug as it was !!!
I'd just giggle . . .

Mike

[bula]

A little Colt 25acp fell into my lap years ago too. From an Uncle. It left my care in the mid-80's I guess. Just couldn't love it. Thanks for sharing Bob.

[drycreek]

The first handgun I ever shot was also a small auto, either a .25 ACP or a .32. My uncle had it and evidently didn’t know any more than I did about shooting. He let me hold the thing close enough to my eye that when the slide came back it smacked me hard enough to black my eye ! My Daddy wound that shooting session up pretty quickly and I was a teenager when I shot my next handgun, an H&R one of my friend’s Dad owned. At 16 I bought my own and have never been without multiple since. 

[cas]

I think about when I first started to occasionally shoot a pistol, I didn't like it.

Which looking back seems odd.

But I recall I didn't like it because of all the blast and that it was too close to my face.

Because my arms were so short.

Because I was so young.

[magnumwheelman]

This look familiar... one in 25, one in 32...



this Guy got a little custom work... still in 25 ACP

[gnappi]

When I was around 10 my dad asked me to sit down for a chat. I thought it was going to be a birds and the bees talk and I told him I already had a pretty good idea about that subject but dad said we needed to talk about my "handicap".

I said I'm NOT handicapped in any way, what was he thinking? "Well he said, you're not a big guy, AND you're left handed so in a man's world, you're F'ked! So with that in mind if you want to get involved in sports with me, you'll have to learn to use the tools of a bigger right handed man that or stay at home with mom when I go hunting, golfing, or fishing".

So I learned to shoot, golf, fish, shoot a bow, and play guitar right handed and have never been sorry I did. As it happens I'm right eyed dominant (something few ever thought about in the 60's) so my learning to shoot with my "weak right hand" was a plus in pistol competition when I had to shoot with my strong (also well trained) left hand :-)

Ultimately I wound up more comfortable fishing left handed as I cast better and further with the rod in my left hand and despite the nuns whacking my left hand when I wrote I also reverted to writing lefty better than right so BOTH of my hemispheres are put to good use!

[sixshot]

gnappi, we must be distant relatives because I'm left handed but shoot right handed, I shoot a bow right handed, throw a football or rock lefthanded, I'm left eye dominate so I have to close my left eye when I shoot, or at least squint so I can use my right eye.Truth is, I'm about 50/50 left & right in the things that I do, I just tell people I'm amphibious When I shot USPSA competition for several years it came in pretty handy.

Dick

[gnappi]

Feb 14, 2023 13:09:09 GMT -5 sixshot said:

gnappi, we must be distant relatives because I'm left handed but shoot right handed, I shoot a bow right handed, throw a football or rock lefthanded, I'm left eye dominate so I have to close my left eye when I shoot, or at least squint so I can use my right eye.Truth is, I'm about 50/50 left & right in the things that I do, I just tell people I'm amphibious When I shot USPSA competition for several years it came in pretty handy.

Dick

Yeah, shooting IPSC was a hoot when they said to shoot strong hand and I said left handed, OK. They said no WEAK hand, and I said I'm lefty I just shoot with my right / weak hand, ultimately they said something like, just shoot  one stage with one hand the next with the other. 

[callshot]

I’m right handed so not a problem for me. I had a Ruger 357 and a Ruger single six 22. I couldn’t hit much of anything. Along came sixshot and a borrowed revolver. I learned from the best revolver instructor on the planet. We both shot some 22 competition against a clock. Learning with a 22 was cheaper than the bigger ones. I worked up and now have plenty of the bigger handguns and sixshot taught me more about casting and powder coat painting the bullets. He taught me that the more sunflower seeds you chew the better you shoot. I’ve had his gun smith son do trigger jobs on almost all of my shooters. That’s how it worked for me.

[45MAN]

Feb 16, 2023 11:50:14 GMT -5 callshot said:

I’m right handed so not a problem for me. I had a Ruger 357 and a Ruger single six 22. I couldn’t hit much of anything. Along came sixshot and a borrowed revolver. I learned from the best revolver instructor on the planet. We both shot some 22 competition against a clock. Learning with a 22 was cheaper than the bigger ones. I worked up and now have plenty of the bigger handguns and sixshot taught me more about casting and powder coat painting the bullets. He taught me that the more sunflower seeds you chew the better you shoot. I’ve had his gun smith son do trigger jobs on almost all of my shooters. That’s how it worked for me.

YEP, AN OFT FORGOTTEN TRUTH, YOU CAN LEARN A LOT, AND BETTER, SHOOTING A 22.

[lah]

Feb 14, 2023 13:09:09 GMT -5 sixshot said:

gnappi, we must be distant relatives because I'm left handed but shoot right handed, I shoot a bow right handed, throw a football or rock lefthanded, I'm left eye dominate so I have to close my left eye when I shoot, or at least squint so I can use my right eye.Truth is, I'm about 50/50 left & right in the things that I do, I just tell people I'm amphibious When I shot USPSA competition for several years it came in pretty handy.

Dick

I'm right handed & left eye dominate. I close my left eye mostly to shoot. I shoot pool & a bow left handed. I throw right handed. I shot a long gun left handed in my youth & through the military days. I switched to shooting a long gun right handed after the Army because bolt guns were for right hand use but can & do shoot a rifle left handed just fine when I need to which comes in handy in the deer woods.

[bobwright]

"YEP, AN OFT FORGOTTEN TRUTH, YOU CAN LEARN A LOT, AND BETTER, SHOOTING A 22."

That depends on how firm you are in learning to shoot. As I pointed out, my first shooting was with a .25 ACP. But my first revolver was a .45 Colt. Fortunately, the recoil of the .45 Colt was not too much to discourage me form learning to shoot. As a youngster my income was pretty limited but I managed to put up enough to keep me in ammunition and I became pretty fair with the handgun.

As a matter of interest, maybe humorous interest, I rebuilt that .45 into a .44 Special. One of my high school girl friends gave me a Lyman 310 tool and got me into reloading. Her words as she gave it to me were, "Don't blow yourself up."

Bob Wright

[bigbore5]

I started with an old model Blackhawk 357. Thousands of rounds through that gun before my first 22 revolver came to my hands.

Still have the Blackhawk, but don't own a single 22 shooter now. I've got a rare 1971 SS6 4-5/8", but it's mint and just too rare to shoot. I'll have to get one when I can find a decent deal on one. I'm thinking about a 4" sp101 and a S6 convertible 5-1/2" to cover my needs.