I GOT IT!!! YEAH!!! Now.. I need some advice :)

[Compromise]

first.. thank you everyone who gave such amazing advice on buying my first gun with hopes of obtaining a CC permit.

I finally chose one last saturday, I ended up going with the Bersa Thunder .380 with the DS mag. I LOOVE it!
I took it to the range yesterday with my hubby and shot it for the first time, i need practice! I started shooting at 21ft and it was kinda spread out but all on paper! But this is only my 3rd time shooting in 15 years.
I also shot hubbys sig 9mm and was a much better shot with it but after shooting his (which I have shot once before) I went back to my .380 and did LOTS better!

I took photo's of my targets to include~ I obviously will have A TON of practicing to do but for my 3rd time EVER shooting a gun I think I did pretty darn good! so in the pictures, the target w/ 15 holes is my hubbies 9mm. after I shot this target I went back to my .380 and shot two mags on a new target and it was SOOO much better than the first target I shot with my .380.


So.. any advice on how to NOT close my eyes when I pull the trigger? I don't every time, but I did notice that when My eyes DID close, its when my wrist broke and I got the "stray" hits.... and training advice is appreciated!! obviously "PRACTICE" is the best answer and this I will be doing.. anything else what helped you?

[Sharkbite]

The key to good shooting is getting a surprise trigger break WHILE holding the sights on tgt

I would advise you begin a dry practice regime. And work on trigger control for about 15min a day

Doing this will allow you to concentrate on the fundamentals without the blast and recoil that are causing you to close your eyes and flinch

All in all, i think those tgts look pretty good for a first timer.

Any chance of you guys taking a quality training course? Front Sight, Gunsite. Something like that... Not billy bobs rootin tootin shootin school but someplace professional?

[Bowdog]

+1 and front sight, front sight, front sight

[Frank Ettin]

1. The first principle of accurate shooting is trigger control: a smooth press straight back on the trigger with only the trigger finger moving. Maintain your focus on the front sight as you press the trigger, increasing pressure on the trigger until the shot breaks. Don't try to predict exactly when the gun will go off nor try to cause the shot to break at a particular moment. This is what Jeff Cooper called the "surprise break."
   
   
2. By keeping focus on the front sight and increasing pressure on the trigger until the gun essentially shoots itself, you don’t anticipate the shot breaking. But if you try to make the shot break at that one instant in time when everything seem steady and aligned, you usually wind up jerking the trigger.
   
   
3. Of course the gun will wobble some on the target. Try not to worry about the wobble and don’t worry about trying to keep the sight aligned on a single point. Just let the front sight be somewhere in a small, imaginary box in the center of the target.
   
   
4. Practice deliberately, making every shot count, to program good habits and muscle memory. Dry practice is very helpful. You just want to triple check that the gun is not loaded, and there should be no ammunition anywhere around. When engaging in dry practice, religiously follow Rule 2 - Never Let Your Muzzle Cover Anything You Are Not Willing To Destroy." As you dry fire, you want to reach the point where you can't see any movement of the sight as the sear releases and the hammer/striker falls.
   
   
5. You'll want to be able to perform the fundamentals reflexively, on demand without conscious thought. You do that by practicing them slowly to develop smoothness. Then smooth becomes fast.
   
   
   1. I'll warn you that I'm a big proponent of good professional training. Among other things, there is really no good substitute for a qualified instructor watching what you are doing and coaching you based on what he sees. Remember that practice doesn't make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect.
      
      
   2. Practice also makes permanent. If you keep practicing doing something wrong, you will become an expert at doing it wrong. So some good training shows you what to practice and how to practice it. It thus helps you avoid bad habits which later on can be an awful hassle to try to correct.
   
   
6. It may help to understand the way humans learn a physical skill.
   
   
   1. In learning a physical skill, we all go through a four step process:
      
      
      1. unconscious incompetence, we can't do something and we don't even know how to do it;
         
         
      2. conscious incompetence, we can't physically do something even though we know in our mind how to do it;
         
         
      3. conscious competence, we know how to do something but can only do it right if we concentrate on doing it properly; and
         
         
      4. unconscious competence, at this final stage we know how to do something and can do it reflexively (as second nature) on demand without having to think about it.
      
      
   2. To get to the third stage, you need to think through the physical task consciously in order to do it perfectly. You need to start slow; one must walk before he can run. The key here is going slow so that you can perform each repetition properly and smoothly. Don't try to be fast. Try to be smooth. Now here's the kicker: slow is smooth and smooth is fast. You are trying to program your body to perform each of the components of the task properly and efficiently. As the programing takes, you get smoother; and as you get smoother you get more efficient and more sure, and therefore, faster.
      
      
   3. I have in fact seen this over and over, both in the classes I've been in and with students that I've helped train. Start slow, consciously doing the physical act smoothly. You start to get smooth, and as you get smooth your pace will start to pick up. And about now, you will have reached the stage of conscious competence. You can do something properly and well as long as you think about it.
      
      
   4. To go from conscious competence to the final stage, unconscious competence, is usually thought to take around 5,000 good repetitions. The good news is that dry practice will count. The bad news is that poor repetitions don't count and can set you back. You need to work at this to get good.
      
      
   5. If one has reached the stage of unconscious competence as far as trigger control is concerned, he will be able to consistently execute a proper, controlled trigger press quickly and without conscious thought. Of course one needs to practice regularly and properly to maintain proficiency, but it's easier to maintain it once achieved than it was to first achieve it.
   
   
7. Front sight, press, surprise.

[jmhyer]

That's good shooting. Congratulations and keep up the good work. Great advice already given.

[uradaisyifudo]

Excellent advice Frank, a solid combination of how to shoot well and how to shoot well quickly with muscle memory taking over. I am not all the way there yet, as I still see some variability from time to time and have to concentrate on principles, it is fun though when it all seems to gel.

[Buzzcook]

Have fun.

[jrothWA]

recommend if you need to improve wrist/ finger muscles, try squeezing a new tennis ball with all fingers and then thumb & one other finer at a time.

Recommend you go to the website: [url]www.thecorneredcat.com, it's run by one of TFL's moderator, PAX. VERY good information for ALL shooters.

Enjoy and welcome,enjoy yourself.