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1. Unless you've made prior arrangements to use one of Paladin's loaner guns, you'll need to bring a handgun.
In South Carolina, you can legally qualify with anything right down to a .22LR, and if you intend to carry a .22 then by all means bring it, but I recommend a caliber no smaller than 9mm in semi-automatics and .38 Special in revolvers. If you are new to the defensive handgun scene, please call me at 618. 1381 before you go out and buy a new gun just for the class. I have good friends in the retail firearms business, but I do not recommend you blindly follow their recommendations when choosing a firearm for defensive purposes. What is important to them may not be what should be important to you. Also, a quality firearm truly is an investment... an investment in money and maybe your life. Do not buy cheap. Do not buy 'off-brand'. What good is a concealable handgun if it's so uncommon none of the quality holster makers makes a holster to fit it?
2. A good quality holster. A concealment holster must have the following attributes:
a. It should stay put on your body. It is important that the gun always be where you expect it to be when you reach for it. You do NOT want to be looking or feeling for it when you are in a fight for your life. It must be where you expect it.
b. It should stays open when the gun is removed. This enables you to re-holster the handgun with one hand. This is extremely important. Cheaper nylon holsters generally collapse as soon as the gun is removed. This means you have to hold the holster with your weak hand as you re-holster. It greatly increases the chances of you pointing the gun at yourself as you re-holster, and it also adds to the probability you will have to look at the holster while you are putting the gun in. These are BAD THINGS.
c. It should retain the handgun against loss. You do not want to the gun flying out of the holster as you go about your daily activities... or while running for cover, etc. A good test for a concealment holster that does not employ a thumb-snap is to insert an UNLOADED handgun into the holster, hold the holster upside down, and give it several good shakes over a bed or other soft surface. If the handgun does not fall out, the holster passes the retention test. NOTE: Concealment and Situational Awareness are your primary retention devices.
d. It should allow a firing grip on the gun while it is still secured in the holster. If the design of the holster will not allow you to obtain a full firing grip on your handgun while the gun is still completely seated, reject it.
e. It should cover the trigger.
You can see from the above that the cheaper nylon holsters generally found at your local gunshop or hardware store do not make any of the above five requirements and I cannot recommend them. Again, if that is all you have for the class, bring it and we will work around it.
3. Holster recommendations:
I do recommend a name brand leather or kydex/injection molded holster. Galco is a good brand or leather holster and reasonably priced. Most of my leather holsters are made by C. Rusty Sherrick. He does great work at a reasonable price.
4. Eye and ear protection:
Wrap around lenses are preferred. They should meet ANSI Stardards for ballistic protection.
Earmuffs are better than ear plugs for two reasons.
1. Earmuffs are quicker to put on and take off. I will be talking a lot between shooting drills and plugs take time to correctly insert.2. Earmuffs provide a higher level of hearing protection.
When you are buying hearing protection, look for a model that meets EPA Regulation 40 DFR Part 211, B guidelines. There should be a Noise Reduction Rating (ERR) on the package in the form of a number. The higher the number, the better. Anything in the low to mid 20's is sufficient. Any number of manufacturers made good hearing muffs and they can be found at hardware stores and Walmart for around $10 to $20.
If money is not an object, then an electronic hearing protector is recommended. These allow normal conversation to be heard and can even amplify your hearing. They automatically shut down, or dampen the sound of a gunshot, however. The beauty of these is you can leave these on and hear range commands, but still enjoy good hearing protection against the noise of gunfire. Peltor makes excellent electronic hearing protectors which you can expect to pay $125 to $200 for.
5. Ammunition:
Let's divide ammunition into two types:
a. Carry: Carry ammunition is what you have in your gun when you are on the street - the load you are betting you life on.b. Practice: Practice ammunition is just that.Carry ammunition is generally loaded with some sort of hollow-point or expanding bullet (which drives the cost up) and practice ammo is usually loaded with a 'full metal' or 'total metal' jacketed bullet. Carry ammunition can cost twice as much as practice ammunition. In revolvers, practice ammunition is commonly loaded with a lead bullet. There's also a big difference in recoil and noise associated with practice ammunition and that designed for carry purposes in revolvers...not so much difference in the two categories for semi-auto use.
How much ammo? The amount depends on the class. In an 8 hour CWP class we can shoot anywhere from 200 to 250 rounds. That is either four or five boxes so we want quality, but we also want to keep costs down as much as possible. So, my recommendation is to bring four boxes of the cheapest US made factory ammunition you can find (not reloads), and one box (50 rounds) of whatever defensive load you intend to carry to qualify with. There is a caveat to that in the note below. Beginning shooters should not bring all full-power loads for training. I think it is best to learn the fundamentals of marksmanship with lower-powered practice ammunition. The statutes do not say you have to qualify with the ammunition you intend to carry in your defensive handgun, but it is an excellent idea to thoroughly test that ammunition before you stake your life on it. Some semi-autos are finicky about the ammunition they will function with and there is no guarantee your duty and practice ammunition will hit to the same point of aim. Test your ammunition before you hit the street with it. NOTE: I highly recommend a new, untested, gun - especially a semi-auto - be fired at least 250 rounds with duty ammunition before depending on it to save your life. There should be ZERO malfunctions in that 250 rounds in order for that combination of gun and ammunition to qualify for defensive use. Change ammo? Do the test again. Trust me on this.
6. Water:
Bring water with you to class, especially in summertime. You can get dehydrated before you know it on the range. Stay ahead of your water loss.
7. Billed ball cap:
Wear a billed ball cap to class. In addition to the obvious protection from the sun, this helps keep ejected cases from the shooter to your left from lodging behind your eye-wear. A freshly ejected case is very hot and one stuck on your eyelid can do serious damage.
8. Shirt or blouse:
Wear a shirt or blouse that fits snug against your skin. This could be anything from a T-shirt to a casual shirt buttoned up to the neck. Ladies, anything low-cut does NOT fit into this category and is unsafe. The reason is that a hot case going down your shirt can cause a serious burn and possibly a dangerous distraction on the Firing Line.
9. Personal Items:
Bring to class any medications you might need in an 8 hour day, also, sunscreen is recommended, as is insect repellent, during insect season.
10. Lunch:
Bring a light lunch to class, as well as an occasional high-energy snack.
We have tried to answer any questions that you may have, but if you have a question or concern that we have overlooked please do not hesitate to contact Steve Cooper by phone at 843.618.1381, e-mail: paladintraining@sc.rr.com. Thank you for visiting Paladin Training.com!