Do you remember your first crush? Maybe it was in elementary school, maybe it was in high school. That person made your heart race, you felt like you were walking on air. Maybe you were nervous talking to them, but you couldn’t wait to see them walk into the room?
Well, the same thing can happen with a gun. I am not talking about that gun that was handed down from your grandfather or father; I am not talking about your very first gun or the duck gun that has seen many a battle on the salt marsh. I am talking about that new gun in the showcase of the gun store that is just waiting to be held.
It’s carried by some law enforcement department, some government agency, or an elite military group that you always imagined that you would be a part of. You ask the salesperson to hold it. Once in your hand, the romance starts. Visions of you on some clandestine missions run through your head. It feels so good in your hand. You put it up and align the sites and you picture squeezing a few rounds off at the bad guy.
You lay your hard-earned cash down and make the purchase. You buy a box of ammo and head to the range, all giddy and excited. You staple a new target on the backer and load your mags. You put your mag in the gun and slam the slide shut. You take your stance and let your first mag loose on the unsuspecting target. Wow, that was Awesome! You quickly head to the target only to find that it looks like you shot the target with a shotgun. You justify your poor marksmanship and head back to fire another magazine. Then another, and another. Your grouping gets slightly better but it’s still not the best. No matter how hard you try, you just can’t seem to hit anything with this gun.
There can be many reasons for this:
· geometry of the gun
· size of your hand
· caliber of the gun
· felt recoil
· poor sight picture
· alignment
I see this over and over with people qualifying for the CCW. They fell in love with the gun before they ever shot it. And now, they can’t shoot it to save their life. It takes a mature person to say “Hey, this isn’t the gun for me” and put that gun in the safe, or even sell it. I heard tell of a story of a guy who went to an indoor range to buy a gun. He laid three guns out and was able to shoot all three. Which one did he choose? The one that he could not hit the target with. Why? Because he fell in love with the gun because of what it looked like and who shot it.
If you have the opportunity, borrow or rent a handgun before you make the purchase. Put a box or two of ammo down range before you make the purchase. Choose wisely. You owe it to yourself and loved ones if you are going to carry concealed. You need to properly and accurately shoot the handgun you are going to carry. Remember, don’t just fall in love.