# Range training



## HOPELESS (Sep 1, 2012)

I take two or three guns to the range one reason be a good boy scout something go wrong be prepared don't have a bad day shoot a different gun. But that is not what I am asking, I been told shooting one gun is the best way to get better, then shoot a different gun the next day. So now I will ask you guys what do you think ? Shoot safe and have fun


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## NGIB (Jun 28, 2008)

Conventional wisdom says train with a single gun to reach your peak. Me personally, I bring different guns and shoot whatever I feel like shooting. I will never be a bullseye competition shooter anyway so "minute of bad guy" is all I try to achieve...


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## HOPELESS (Sep 1, 2012)

Thanks we will see how many guys agree


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## GCBHM (Mar 24, 2014)

Well, I believe it depends on your skill level. When you're starting out, I would recomment findind and sticking with one gun until you become a proficient shooter, whether it be working toward competition style shooting or just defensive shooting. Some subscribe to the school of thought that one gun is the way to go. The old saying is beware of the man who has only one gun b/c he is probably very good with it. 

Others, and I think most, shooters like too many guns to have only one. I would fall into this category. I may carry anywhere from 1-4 guns to the range depending on what my objective is. My last several visits I took two; my Glock 19 and the HK VP9. I was working to compare the two side by side to see if the VP9 was able to compete with the Glock in my hands. I had definite parameters I was working with, and was alone so I could concentrate on what I wanted to accomplish. Other times, if I'm just shooting for the fun of it, I may take a few people and several guns. 

I almost always take my EDC gun with me just to get a few shots in so that I don't lose my rating with it. Shooting is a perishable skill, so it is good to shoot your carry gun often, and with the ammo you carry for defense. I try to get to the range at least a couple times per month, but at least once a month. Sometimes more.


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## TAPnRACK (Jan 30, 2013)

Once you get the fundamentals down and your proficient (meaning you can reliably and repeatedly hit what your aiming at)... shooting 1 or 10 guns dosen't matter. At that point, you should be able to pick up any gun and be able to hit what your aiming at.... the fundamentals haven't changed, only the gun has. You still have to focus on sight alignment, sight picture, grip, stance, trigger control, natural point of aim (NPA) and breathing.

I will usually bring 2 to 3 guns at a time and rotate which ones based on mood and which ones I haven't shot in a while... or which one is new. I'll always make my EDC one of the guns that make the trip.

That said, when starting out and working on proficiency... one gun would be a good idea. I learned on my Beretta 92G-SD for a couple years before buying my second, third, fourth...etc, etc. I think that helped me become a more skilled shooter.


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## slayer61 (Aug 4, 2014)

I come to pistol shooting from motorcycle racing. When I raced I sometimes rode more than 1 motorcycle. If I became proficient at one bike at the expense of the other, it would cost me points. In order to be good with more than one motorcycle/pistol, I need to practice with more than one motorcycle/pistol. Your experience may be different, however. Paul


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## GCBHM (Mar 24, 2014)

TAPnRACK said:


> Once you get the fundamentals down and your proficient (meaning you can reliably and repeatedly hit what your aiming at)... shooting 1 or 10 guns dosen't matter. At that point, you should be able to pick up any gun and be able to hit what your aiming at.... the fundamentals haven't changed, only the gun has. You still have to focus on sight alignment, sight picture, grip, stance, trigger control, natural point of aim (NPA) and breathing.
> 
> I will usually bring 2 to 3 guns at a time and rotate which ones based on mood and which ones I haven't shot in a while... or which one is new. I'll always make my EDC one of the guns that make the trip.
> 
> That said, when starting out and working on proficiency... one gun would be a good idea. I learned on my Beretta 92G-SD for a couple years before buying my second, third, fourth...etc, etc. I think that helped me become a more skilled shooter.


I have to admit that 92G you have is pretty sweat. Did you see the Wilson Combat 92FS video I posted? I'd love to have one of those!


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## TAPnRACK (Jan 30, 2013)

Yeah, those are nice pieces... there's just something about Beretta's. So iconic and the accurate.


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## NickAcker23 (Oct 1, 2014)

When I first got a handgun I would only bring out my handgun. But now that I can shoot it accurately and I have more then one to pick from I bring out at lest two guns and one is always my EDC and usually attest a rifle or shotgun... Thinking about it I wish I could just bring all my guns. :smt082


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## BackyardCowboy (Aug 27, 2014)

NickAcker23 said:


> Thinking about it I wish I could just bring all my guns. :smt082


How big a truck would you need?


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## Greybeard (Mar 17, 2013)

I bring 3, my carry LCP II, either my M&P-9 or LC9s, and my MK III .22 because I enjoy shooting them.


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## Craigh (Jul 29, 2016)

I usually bring three or four. I bring my EDC and #1 Home Defense handgun most every time. Lately I've been bringing my little LCP II because it hurts me to practice with it and I'll try 3 or so magazines every time. I will often then bring whatever I want to practice with mostly. It might be a 1911 or a Rimfire. It might be one of my old competition guns just to see how little I retain.  Lately, I've been bringing my (new to me) Bulgarian Makarov in 9x18 with the Red Star grips. I'm falling in love with that and am carrying it more and more as an EDC instead of my Shield 9x19 or LCP II. 

There are quite a few I should bring to the range, but don't. I have several revolvers that never seem to go. I have a Ruger MKII I haven't shot in years and a High Standard Sentinel. There's a Super Blackhawk and Model 29 which don't see the light of day anymore. My Model 41 Smith, my 2 1/2" Colt Diamondback, and my Sig P220 gather dust. There's a few more I just don't shoot anymore. I don't know why. I still like them. 

Oops, gave the Diamondback to my Son last summer during my great 2017 Summer Gun Give-a-way. With my health failing, I gave away over half my firearms to close family I really cared about. I'll probably do it again this summer. I want to disperse all I don't really shoot to family members I think would most appreciate them. That way probate won't sell or fail to distribute them the way I want. I have two g'zillionaire brothers who I love, but can buy anything they desire without thinking. I generally don't include them in the giveaway. I do it quietly. I gave one of them an AK a few years ago as a gift and found out he sold it a few weeks later to one of his partners. The other turned up his nose at getting my Mini14 saying it was too much trouble to fit optics to it. On the other hand, my son in law who's an Angel shot a deer with my Ruger M77 in 270 cal last season. He simply loves and appreciates it. He also promised not to sell anything I give him and will see that his kids, my grandkids, inherit them from him one day. I like that because a few were handdowns from my father and grandfather. One particular 1911A1 my dad brought back from the Pacific. My grandson will eventually get that.


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## JamesCC (Mar 21, 2019)

HOPELESS said:


> I take two or three guns to the range one reason be a good boy scout something go wrong be prepared don't have a bad day shoot a different gun. But that is not what I am asking, I been told shooting one gun is the best way to get better, then shoot a different gun the next day. So now I will ask you guys what do you think ? Shoot safe and have fun


I think I like getting comfortable with one gun then trying another and then going back to my other one to see if it stuck with me enough to say I was grasping the accuracy. That's me though.


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## donk123 (Jun 6, 2013)

Dear Craigh,
I believe I am your long lost brother. We'll get together soon and you can play catch up on you gun give aways.


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## boyfromnyc (Dec 22, 2019)

I am one of the one gun at the time guys. I used to bring several guns at a time and found that my skill was actually decreasing. I went back to one and my accuracy increased so I stuck with what I carried and got real good at it.

Sent from my M1031G1 using Tapatalk


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## PhuBai70 (Sep 26, 2019)

I have always taken two or three guns to the range each time I go. Like a lot of people here I own a variety of pistols and revolvers in different sizes and calibers and I like shooting them all. That's why I bought them. 
I do not compete so becoming expert with any one specific gun is not an issue. I do not carry so again, practicing with one specific defense gun is not an issue. In my opinion coming out on top in a one on one confrontation has more to do with luck than accuracy. I keep one gun for home protection but I do not usually shoot it more than any other gun. Unless you live in a house with exceptionally large rooms most home defense confrontations will happen at ten to fifteen feet so there's more to consider than tight groups at twenty-five yards. 
Everything I have said is based on my opinion of what's best for me in these scenarios. I am not recommending anything to anyone because each person should determine what's best for them.


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