Jessica - First time shooter,,,

[aarondhgraham]

Saturday morning I took another of my Watering Hole friends shooting,,,
Jessica is 28 and had never fired a gun of any type.

So, after a safety lesson we got down to it.

The first gun she fired was my Model 18,,,
She sent 6 shots downrange at 7 yards,,,
Missed a 24" by 30" target altogether.

So we kept with that pistol for a while,,,
It wasn't long before she was hitting an 8.5" by 11" paper.

Jessica sort of liked the Model 18 but wasn't enamored with it,,,
So I hauled out my Model 63 thinking she might like it,,,
She has small hands so I thought J-frame would fit.

She did like it a bit better so we stayed with it for a while.

I had brought several guns for her to try,,,
I loaded and handed her my Bersa Thunder 22,,,
She thought it was pretty but didn't fall in love with it.

Same with the Bersa Thunder 380,,,
Same with the Beretta Model 87 Cheetah in .22,,,
Same with the Beretta Model 85 Cheetah in .380 ACP,,,
She thought they were nice guns but got no love from any of the three.

We discovered that even though she's a girly girl,,,
The girly handguns did nothing for her.

So I handed her a 4" Model 67 in .38 Special,,,
She liked the feel of it so I shot a cylinder for her to watch,,,
She then fired 12 rounds through it and was happier with it than the others.

"Hhmmm" I said.

I loaded and fired my 6" Model 686 with 158 grain loads,,,
She fired six rounds and was grinning hugely,,,
She put 12 more rounds downrange,,,
She was smiling the entire time.

I fired 6 rounds through my 6" Model 629,,,
She didn't hesitate at all to pick this gun up from the table,,,
But after three rounds she decided the recoil was just a bit too much for comfort.

So I asked her, "Which gun do you like best?",,,
I expected her to choose the Model 63,,,
She grinned and picked up the 686,,,
"Can I shoot this some more?"

"Sure." I said.



She ended up putting almost two boxes of 158 grain downrange,,,
Her last six rounds she hit a 4" spinner 5 out of 6 shots,,,
Granted this was only at 21 feet distance,,,
But personally, I think she did great!

She said she liked the Model 63 because it was small and quick,,,
But she liked the Model 686 because in her words "it meant business".

On the way back to town she couldn't stop talking about the shoot,,,
I do believe I've created another new shooter in Oklahoma.

Aarond

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[KMAX]

Sounds like you are doing a great job of promoting our sport, hobby, or whatever you want to call it. Keep it up. I don't blame her for liking the 686, I had a 586 I really liked.

[aarondhgraham]

Sport, hobby, it's not a big deal,,,
In my case I like to think I'm a Sportsman.

I really enjoy taking newbies out for their first shoots,,,
Jessica is one of my favorite bartenders at my watering hole.

She's been threatening to go shoot with me for a long time,,,
Last Friday we found she had Saturday morning off,,,
We decided no time like the present and went.

These young kids at the watering hole and on campus keep me young.

Aarond

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[berettaprofessor]

Nice job Aaron. I'm thinking it so I might as well say it..."see, size does matter."

[sigcurious]

"We accept her! We accept her! One of us! One of us!"
Glad to see you're still bringing in new converts.

Gooblegobble!

[KMAX]

OSU?

I try to point young folks with an interest in the right direction also, if I feel they are interested for the right reasons.There are some that should be discouraged, but most are okay.

[aarondhgraham]

There are some that should be discouraged,

I've only met up with two,,,
Both of them had a Y chromosome,,,
I simply didn't invite them to go shooting again.

OSU?

Yeppers,,,
Oklahoma State University.

I am a full-time staff member,,,
After getting a BS and a MS here.

Go Pokes!

Aarond

[Stressfire]

Well done, Aaron

Both of them had a Y chromosome,,,
I simply didn't invite them to go shooting again.

That's because the Y chromosome inspires a greater degree of risk-taking and a lack of ability to follow instructions that are for that chromosome-owner's own health and well-being

[markj]

Just look at that smile. Tells the whole story right there

[vostracker]

Another well done!!! Looks like the weather is going to be nice to start shooting again.

[aarondhgraham]

Hello markj:

Yep, the lady was grinnin'.

I think the reason was because,,,
She started hitting her targets.

Hello vostracker:

I went to the range Monday right after work,,,
By the time I got off campus and down the road,,,
It was 5:40 at the range so I had a good two hours of time.

This will be the norm for awhile,,,
At least until daylight savings time hits.

Aarond

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[markj]

Every gal comes out to my place and shoots a handgun gets that grin. Cant explain it cause I got it too.

Good to get the younger folks on board. You doing a good thing there, very good thing.

[m_liebst]

The more choices to shoot from, the bigger the grin. That's page "1" in her book a shootin.

Mike

[tekarra]

Well done Aarond. I remember a girl from some years back weighing about 90 pounds soaking wet that sure liked to shoot a S&W 29 - and she was better with it than most guys.

[LockedBreech]

It is a truly great feeling taking out a new shooter. I took out a classmate pal of mine, and since he's 28 married with a kid and I'm 24 and single it felt odd mentoring him.

The odd feeling turned to total happiness when I watched him absolutely murder clay pigeons and pop cans with his new Ruger SR9. Right out of the box he was a better shooter than me (I know a good bit and have a bit of trigger time on a lot of different guns, but with my middling eyesight and small amount of time to practice I'm only functionally skilled).

Watching someone catch on, love it, and start talking about their next gun is a good stuff.

[jfrey]

A while back I took my youngest son and his girlfriend to the range. Her name is also Jessica. She works for a local paper so I sort of figured she might have a little liberal slant to the whole idea. Well, she shot the .22 and that was OK. She shot the .38 Special and that was a little more but not a big thrill. I finally put my G19 in her hand and that did it. She ran about 50 rounds and now she wants to go do it again. She and my DIL are both little skinny girls but they both hammer the targets with the G19. I finally let my DIL shoot my Briley 1911 one trip and she was in hog heaven. She even called her dad to tell him all about it. The fact is: women like to shot if we will just take them and let them try. My wife isn't a big shooter but you put that Hi-Power in her hand and you better watch out.

Good for you. Take her back and let her do it again.

[DragonDog]

Great report and Well Done. The 686 and 586 are smooth shooters, even with full house loads. Congrats to Jessica.

[aarondhgraham]

There's only one problem with her loving the 686,,,
Ammo is a bit pricey for that gun.

The kids I take to the range are for the most part,,,
Poor-but-honest-college-students,,,
I cover their ammo costs.

Why oh why couldn't she have fallen in love,,,
With one of my oh-so-fine .22 handguns.

But it's all for the good,,,
It's a small investment in the long run,,,
I just need to order more of that cheap Blazer aluminum stuff.

Aarond

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[bikerbill]

Excellent work, I like the way you stepped her up to more firepower ... and my 4-inch 686+ is one of my all-time faves ... now get her to join the NRA and she's in business ...

As for the price of ammo for the 686, at the range I shoot cheap Wally World White Box .38s and have a ball ... the guy's too heavy for me to carry and doesn't have night sights so it's not an HD gun ... I just love the look and feel and the accuracy ... it's fun to touch off a few .357 rounds, but if you're not using the gun for defensive purposes, no need to run though several boxes of pricy ammo ...

[aarondhgraham]

You are correct,,,
.38's are a lot cheaper.

I think she liked the "whang" of the .357,,,
She did fire .38 Special in a Model 67 on her way to the 686,,,
But when I said "Which did you like best?" she did not hesitate to grab the 686.

Maybe it was just the long barrel,,,
But she sure was grinning at the .357 experience.

I suspect that if I handed her a box of .38's in a .357 box,,,
She probably wouldn't notice the difference.

Right now SGAMMO has Blazer .357 for $18.95 a box,,,
I need to make an order for myself anyways,,,
I think I'll stock up on this as well.

Later my friend,,,

Aarond

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[Sevens]

This is a cool thread, Aarond.

Probably been addressed before and I missed it -- but why aren't you handloading? It's obvious that you are an enthusiast.

You could get rolling in handloading for low dough...just avoid evil pawnshop guy for like 3-4 weeks. Over in the H&R area of this site, we'd be more than happy to help.

.38 Special is the single best caliber to start with of all of them.

[aarondhgraham]

...but why aren't you handloading? It's obvious that you are an enthusiast.

Well, it's because I've already got so many things I do,,,
To tell the truth I just never wanted to fire up one more thing to do.

It's just so much "easier" to say "dang the cost" order ammo on-line.

I did a small bit of .38 special reloading when I was a kid,,,
I had a Lee Classic Loader kit (the one where you do it with a mallet),,,
But the man who gave me the kit had it all set up and I bought what he told me to,,,
And followed his instructions to the letter and made cheap low velocity plinking loads.

I'll get back into it someday,,,
But right now it's one iron on the fire too many.

Thanks for the offer of help though,,,
Believe me, when I do decide to take up reloading,,,
I will contact you and the other TFL reloader's for lots of help.

Aarond

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[Sevens]

I understand that thought process, it's a big part of my argument about why I am not casting my own bullets.

And while I respect your thinking on this, I can only leave you with this:

Handloading is a hobby that is, to me, every bit as important and enjoyable to me as shooting and owning firearms. I have little doubt that it's increased my knowledge and awareness of how they work. But more than anything -- handloading is a way for me to do "gun stuff" any time I wish, right at home.

For shooting, I've got to pack up some guns, some ammo and my gear. Got to get it all in the car and drive out to the range. Unpack, set up and get to shooting...then pack it all up and haul it back home and unload it.

Not that it's overwhelming or difficult, it just means that it's a process and I have to schedule opportunities to do that.

With handloading... I just go down in the cave and work on whatever little part of the process I'd like to do. I can work on it for 20 minutes or 5 hours. I can work at the bench while killing time waiting for something else or I can plan a day around it, but it's always there and always ready to work.

I enjoy it immensely.

[ltc444]

It is a good thing that you did not have a 44 mag with you. she would have fallen in love with it.

Reminds me of a AR Trooper who took his wife shooting. She was a petite lass and he started her out with "girly guns" Toward the end of the session she demanded to shoot his Dirty Harry gun. He loaded it up and she emptied it and Promptly informed that he no longer owned the 29 as it was now her property.

Be careful when you teach ladies to shoot your favorite guns. They tend to confiscate them.

[aarondhgraham]

Actually, she did fire 3 rounds through my S&W Model 629.

I fired 6 rounds through my 6" Model 629,,,
She didn't hesitate at all to pick this gun up from the table,,,
But after three rounds she decided the recoil was just a bit too much for comfort.

She did fine and did hit the target with all 3 rounds,,,
But that .44 Magnum hand cannon just wasn't fun for her.

Aarond

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