Revolver Knowledge: Resetting the double-action trigger

A revolver shooting issue that comes up frequently is resetting the double-action trigger (or, more correctly, allowing the trigger to reset.) This problem seems to be more common among those who are accustomed to shooting autoloading pistols, as they tend to develop habits that shooters of lesser experience do not. (I’m not saying the problem […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On November 5, 2018

How fast should you shoot?

For at least a decade I’ve subscribed to the idea that a teacher needs to be open to change, and that in fact one of the best ways to gauge the quality of a teacher is to ask what he (or she) has changed their mind about. If they’re learning, if they’re growing, they’ll experience […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 26, 2018

Things people ask: “How do you write a book?”

I was finishing up the manuscript for my 10th book this week when I received an email asking, in essence, how to go about writing a book. I don’t know that I’m very good at it yet, nor that anyone should follow my example, but I certainly have some experience under my belt! Every author […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On June 9, 2017

Where are we going wrong?

Daughter, 22, shot by dad who says he mistook her for intruder Hardly a week goes by that I don’t see an article like this cross my electronic desk, and they bother me. Quite a lot, actually. Why? Because I don’t think we in the firearms world are doing enough to truly educate people. We […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On May 15, 2017

Things people say: “If it ain’t raining, it ain’t training!”

I remember my first serious (multi-day) defensive shooting course. It was a spring day in the early 1990s and, as is normal here in the Pacific Northwet (no, that’s not a typo) it was raining like crazy. It was a cold, wet, miserable day. Being a native Oregonian I was prepared for the conditions, but […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 6, 2017

All training is an abstraction. Is that good or bad?

A couple of weeks ago someone posted an interesting video on social media. It wasn’t the video itself which was interesting, but rather the reactions to it. The video was of an exercise from a defensive shooting class. The exercise was a good example of forcing cognitive processing rather than a Pavlovian draw-and-fire response, which […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On December 23, 2016

Standards and integrity

If you're a fan of standards, you have to be sure that those standards have integrity. That's how you verify that they actually mean something.

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On November 7, 2016

Time is running out to sign up for Threat-Centered Revolver in Arizona!

Just a month from now I’ll be teaching my Threat-Centered Revolver class in sunny Phoenix, and if you want to attend you need to book now! December 3 & 4 I’ll be at Phoenix Firearms Training, basking in the warm sun and teaching responsible revolver owners how to defend themselves with the classic double action […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On October 31, 2016

Things People Say: “I want to buy a gun to keep myself safe”

Anyone who’s been around guns for any length of time eventually gets asked for advice: “I want to buy a gun to keep myself safe. What should I get?” It’s tempting to launch into a discussion about shotguns versus rifles versus handguns, or maybe about 9mm versus .40 S&W, striker-fired versus double action/single action, or […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On October 10, 2016

The difference between doctrine and dogma

The world of self defense seems to be full of polarizing opinions. While it can be said that any field of specialization has its strong opinions (and adherents to them), my observation is that this one is by far the most Balkanized. It doesn’t matter how you look at it, someone else will see it […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On September 23, 2016

Choosing a defensive handgun: making the best of bad alternatives

An interesting question came up in a class I taught recently. It had to do with defensive carry firearm recommendations in states which restrict the models available for sale (such as in Massachusetts and California.) How is someone to pick the best of the worst options? The attributes of an ideal defensive handgun When picking […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On September 19, 2016

Are shooting classes all there is to self defense?

In the last couple of years I’ve had a somewhat radical change in my thinking about self defense. Rather, a change in thinking about teaching self defense. I’ve always focused on helping that half-percent* of gun owners who are interested in taking shooting classes to improve their gunhandling skills. In that respect I’ve been like everyone […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On August 29, 2016

Why your CCW class isn’t enough

If you’re like most people who read this blog, you’ve already been through a CCW class of some sort. (CCW, of course, stands for Carrying a Concealed Weapon, which is a catch-all term for the practice, licensing and study to carry a handgun concealed on your person. The term ‘CCW class’ is generally applied to […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On August 22, 2016

Defensive shooting fundamentals: I do not think it means what they think it means.

I want you to sit back and think for just a minute: you have 60 seconds to teach someone how to use a gun to defend herself from an imminent attack. What useful defensive shooting fundamentals can you give her in that small amount of time? This little exercise strips away all of the nonsense, […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On August 1, 2016

Want to improve your skill development? Take notes during class. Lots of ’em.

A couple of years ago I was teaching a class in which there was an interesting mix of students: there were two public-sector firearms instructors, one from a state agency and one from a federal agency, along with the normal range of people you’d find at any shooting course anywhere in the country — blue […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On June 17, 2016

Is “Constitutional Carry” good for the rest of us? Let’s make sure it is through education!

So-called “constitutional carry” is becoming more popular around the country. This refers to being able to carry a concealed handgun in public without any sort of permitting or licensing process, assuming that the person is legally allowed to possess the handgun. (The term “constitutional carry” is itself a reference to the Second Amendment’s wording of […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 28, 2016

Boring doesn’t sell, and realistic self defense skills are kind of boring.

No matter what you’re trying to get people to buy — from cars to breakfast cereals to political candidates — you have to make it exciting, because if it’s not folks will just pass it by. (Yes, political candidates. Anyone remember Scott Walker? He was an early entry into this year’s Republican field and widely […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On March 11, 2016

My job is helping my students discover what’s important. Sometimes that takes guts.

Techniques, gear, and even concepts can be cool and exciting — but that doesn’t mean they’re necessarily important to your self defense. My job, the way I earn my living, is to figure out what’s really important for my students and readers and then how to explain it to them. How and why do I do […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On February 5, 2016

The problem with defensive shooting is that it’s dominated by enthusiasts. That’s not necessarily good for you.

I have a confession to make: I once screwed up a lot of people who came to me for advice. Wait, it’s not what you think! It does, however, directly apply to what I do today, and probably why you’re reading this blog. Allow me to relate my short story. Back in my much-younger days […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On January 15, 2016

What did you change your mind about in 2015? Here’s what I did.

I’ve come to the belief that one of the most profound questions you can ask anyone who purports to be an expert in any field (to include defensive training) is “what have you changed your mind about?” This isn’t an easy question to answer, and most people you’ll ask will try to wiggle their way […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On January 1, 2016

What if you disagree with your defensive shooting instructor?

You’re at a defensive shooting class; maybe this is your first, maybe it’s your twenty-first. Your instructor says (or does) something you disagree with. What do you do? There are a lot of different approaches to teaching self-defense shooting, and while at least 90% of the mechanics that are taught are the same from instructor to […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On November 2, 2015

How many self defense classes have you taken this year? They may be holding you back!

One of the common recommendations in the training world is to study with as many different people or schools as you can, to get as many different perspectives as possible in order to get a more fully formed opinion of the subject of defensive shooting (or self defense in general.) I think the idea is […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On October 19, 2015

Just what is a “critical skill”?

I really should stop reading stuff people link to on FaceBook. I really should. It’s like chocolate chip cookies; you know they’re bad for you, but you eat them anyway! The latest was a linked article which talked about practicing your reloading skills. In it, the other repeatedly referred to reloading the gun as a […]

Posted by Grant Cunningham
On April 29, 2015

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