"I think my gun is off, can you shoot it and tell me?"

[mvelimir]

Students will always come up with all kinds of questions. What makes a good instructor is the ability to show them where they are in the wrong and help them correct that. It's not about you 'feeling good' because you know so much more than them or to prove that you're s good shooter. You can teach a class without firing a single shot yourself and you don't have to shoot their gun to prove or demonstrate anything. But that's just me. YMMW.

[innocuous_username]

I'm guilty of this one.

Only did it once, and not all that long ago. I had just switched from a 1911 to a G19, so first things first, I swapped out the sights. I did the sight install myself, and went to the range. I was still adapting to a real trigger pull, after being spoiled by the 1911 for far too long, and all of my rounds were heading left. I assumed it was me, but I just didn't know. Having a more experienced shooter fire it was really just part of my troubleshooting process and it let me concentrate on what I needed to do (work trigger control).

[Wiggity]

When I read the title I thought it meant the gun was turned off.

[Shadow1198]

The saddest thing I ever saw at the range I used to work, a local campus LEO came in to practice with his duty shotgun. At 3 yards (no joke), with slugs, he missed 3 out of 5 shots on a B27 target. He wasn't shouldering the gun properly and was basically resting it on his bicep and holding it to the side of him in some abortion of an attempt to point shoot or something. WOW.

[Mr. Smith]

I get this at almost every class it is always the same answer.
The truth is I love to help them out I get a great deal of satisfaction from helping others.

[C4IGrant]

Students will always come up with all kinds of questions. What makes a good instructor is the ability to show them where they are in the wrong and help them correct that. It's not about you 'feeling good' because you know so much more than them or to prove that you're s good shooter. You can teach a class without firing a single shot yourself and you don't have to shoot their gun to prove or demonstrate anything. But that's just me. YMMW.

You may have mistaken my post. It was meant to be funny and the fact that it you get to shoot a lot of guns that you most likely would either never own or shoot. We ALWAYS answer students questions and do our best to fix their issues. In fact, we care so much about this that we offer FREE pistol and carbine classes.

Shooting guns you are not familiar with stretches you as a shooter. Meaning that if you are a 1911 shooter with a 4LBS triggger and now have to shoot a DA revolver with a 12LBS trigger, you will have to work at it. This is a great way to make sure that your ability to manipulate the trigger straight to the rear is there.

IMHO, once a student gets a mental block that there is something mechanically wrong with their pistol, they will shut down and not learn any more. If you can show them the kind of accuracy that their gun is capable of, their confidence will go through the roof.

Personally, I never shoot a student’s gun UNLESS they ask. Prior to that, we are working on all the fundamentals to get them going in the right direct.

All good instructors shoot drills in front of their students. Many people are visual leaners so it is a very important for them to see how it is done. So if you are at a SHOOTING class and the instructor does not shoot any of the drills, run away.


C4

[C4IGrant]

I'm guilty of this one.

Only did it once, and not all that long ago. I had just switched from a 1911 to a G19, so first things first, I swapped out the sights. I did the sight install myself, and went to the range. I was still adapting to a real trigger pull, after being spoiled by the 1911 for far too long, and all of my rounds were heading left. I assumed it was me, but I just didn't know. Having a more experienced shooter fire it was really just part of my troubleshooting process and it let me concentrate on what I needed to do (work trigger control).

The 1911 trigger can be a "crutch" for many and hinder them from shooting other guns (like Glock's, M&P, etc). No other pistol has as nice of a trigger as a 1911.

IMHO, one of the mistakes people make is to learn to shoot on a 1911. If they would have learned to shoot on say a Glock, then they can shoot anything with ease. Not the case if you come from a 1911.


C4

[C4IGrant]

I get this at almost every class it is always the same answer.
The truth is I love to help them out I get a great deal of satisfaction from helping others.

Agree. Instructors that don't like being around students and seeing them grow are in the wrong business.



C4

[bp7178]

IMHO, once a student gets a mental block that there is something mechanically wrong with their pistol, they will shut down and not learn any more. If you can show them the kind of accuracy that their gun is capable of, their confidence will go through the roof.

So true....

All good instructors shoot drills in front of their students. Many people are visual leaners so it is a very important for them to see how it is down. So if you are at a SHOOTING class and the instructor does not shoot any of the drills, run away.

Yup. The last thing I want is to have an instructor who can't do what they are attempting to teach.

[Dachs]

It all depends on the individual and how honest they decide to be with themselves...

There are more than a few people where I work that blame our duty pistol for their piss poor shooting. It happens so frequently that it has almost become an "acceptable" excuse to blame 'the trigger pull' to explain god awful shooting habits.

"If I had my old glock I would be shooting expert every time!"

BULLLLLSHIT.

I have exponentially more respect for the guy that says, "Man I just suck at pistol shooting. I am jerking the trigger or something." Than the asshat that claims its the pistol. Usually, the honest types are the ones that actually improve their shooting--because they dont hide behind their guns "shitty trigger pull."

It's not the wand, its the magician.