by Gila Hayes
Flying brass cartridge cases are a common problem. Less common, yet posing a much greater threat of injury, is the possibility that an ammunition cartridge may be defective and blow apart the revolver or semi-automatic pistol. If this happens, debris flies in every direction. In other instances, a semi-auto itself malfunctions, and an unlocked breach at the moment the cartridge is detonated allows parts of the brass case to break out and fly in all directions like a little grenade. Both are sobering accidents and can blind unprotected eyes.
Buy safety glasses designed as protection against industrial accidents. The polycarbonate material needs to meet or exceed the ANSI Z 87.1 Industrial Standards for impact resistance. Do not trust your drugstore sunglasses or fashionable prescription spectacles to do the job!
Finally, just owning safety gear is not enough. The ear muffs and protective safety glasses must be put on before entering the shooting range and remain in place until leaving the range. Although you may not be actively shooting, the noise and bullets of others who are shooting can damage your eyes and ears.
No, I’m not suggesting you’ll be shot when I say, “bullets.” Any experienced shooter has felt the problem of “bounce-backs.” While good ranges are designed and maintained to prevent part or all of the expended bullet from ricocheting or bouncing back toward shooters, inevitably some do. A tiny shred of metal bullet jacket lodged in a cheek or chin is uncomfortable, but usually can be removed with a pair of tweezers. If it strikes an eye, instead, the injury is agonizing and removal requires a trip to the doctor. Other times, the entire bullet strikes a stone in the backstop, part of a metallic target holder or other object and bounces back. While its return velocity is considerably slower, a bounce-back can break skin and will certainly bruise.
Lost vision and hearing are irreplaceable. Protect both carefully while on the firing range.
Invisible Hazards
A less apparent shooting hazard is the lead particulate matter generated when ammunition is discharged. Shooters need to protect themselves against lead contamination and take steps to avoid being poisoned.
With a few limited exceptions, firing a cartridge of ammunition releases lead into the air in two ways. If the projectile is a bare lead bullet or had exposed lead portions, lead shavings are created when the bullet is discharged. Even if the bullet is fully encased in copper, nylon or another covering, lead is expelled during the firing process, because most primers contain lead styphnate. When it is detonated, a cloud of molecular lead compounds is released. Lead is airborne when firearms are discharged, and settles on horizontal surfaces like the floor, shooting benches, window sills, and even the hair, clothing and skin of shooters present on the range.
If you pick up empty cartridge cases from the floor—either in pursuit of range cleanliness or to reload the cases—take special care with hygiene. Put the brass into a sealable plastic bag, and wash carefully when the job is done. During range time, make a conscious effort to keep hands and objects away from the mouth, and when you leave the firing line, wash your hands and around your mouth without delay. Do it immediately, before you unconsciously touch your face or eat, drink or smoke. At the same time, take a tissue and vigorously blow your nose to discharge the dust and particles captured by the small nose hairs.
Like many shooting professionals, 99% of the ammunition I shoot is loaded with full metal jacket (FMJ) bullets. This eliminates much of the lead particulate in air and on surfaces. I think avid shooters who are on the range more than once a week are crazy if they continue to shoot unjacketed lead bullets. Lead-free primers are also marketed, though they are far less common than fully jacketed bullets, cost more and are reputed to be subject to degradation from humidity as well as somewhat prone to misfires. In short, so-called nontoxic primed ammunition is a small percentage of what most people shoot.
Women of child bearing age owe it to themselves to be particularly careful about lead contamination, as lead can be stored in the bones to later be mobilized by a variety of physical conditions including pregnancy and lactation.1 Research by the Reproductive Toxicology Center of Columbia Hospital for Women Medical Center cites studies that give a severe warning about lead exposure in pregnant women. “Lead can be readily transferred across the placenta to the fetus.”2 Stillbirth and miscarriages are common problems associated with lead poisoning.
Risks to Pregnancy
The question of firing range safety for pregnant women and their unborn children is one fraught with highly emotional opinions. I am certain that in response to this section a number of women will report that they shot regularly while pregnant and little Johnnie or darling Susie has come into the world quite unharmed. From a less anecdotal viewpoint, however, I believe there is compelling reason to avoid live gunfire during pregnancy. Lead toxicity and the potential for birth defects is alone very compelling reason to stay away from live fire during pregnancy and breast-feeding.
Some have hypothesized that the potential for hearing loss is further reason to give up shooting during pregnancy. Liquid is an astounding medium for sound transmission with sound waves traveling four times faster in water than in air. Thus the amniotic fluid in which the fetus rests cannot be expected to muffle gunshots or other loud noises, and may magnify sound instead. On the other hand, medical studies reported in Vol. 78 of Obstetrics & Gynecology suggest that the liquid environment and the fluid filling the fetus’ developing hearing organs may reduce “the risk of mechanical trauma.” We have, of course, no means of measuring what actually happens.
For the expectant mother, the wide selection of air guns marketed allows continued marksmanship and defensive firearms practice. Plinking practice with these quieter, cleaner tools keeps the draw and fire motions quick and smooth, as well as maintaining the skills of quick sight picture acquisition and smooth, surprise trigger break, all skills that transfer quite well to the conventional firearm the expectant mother may be carrying for the defense of herself and her unborn child.
Other Dangers
When learning and practicing gun safety, we acknowledge that handling guns can be a dangerous activity. Without a clear understanding of the mechanical function of your firearm, there are additional risks. For example, when a revolver is discharged, some of the gases created by the burning powder escape from the gap between the front face of the cylinder and the forcing cone and can burn close-by skin. While burns from the gas and punctures from lead shaved off the bullet as it goes through the forcing cone are minor compared to a gunshot wound, the revolver shooter should be aware of the hazard. The hands belong on the grip panels. If practicing one-handed shooting, the unoccupied hand should be held far away from the gun, preferably anchored somewhere on the body.
Handling just ammunition alone is relatively safe. The cartridge’s function is to expel the bullet from the mouth of the cartridge case into a gun barrel, where the gas pressures are harnessed behind the bullet. If struck squarely and with sufficient strength, a primer can spark and ignite gunpowder outside the gun. Without the chamber walls to contain the pressures created by the burning powder, the bullet doesn’t go anywhere, so the hazard is not from gunshot wounds. Instead, extreme pressures rupture the sides of the metallic cartridge case in a tiny grenade effect. Now, it requires intentional effort to dent something so small as a centerfire cartridge primer, although curious children have sometimes managed to do so. Ammunition, as well as guns, should be kept away from unsupervised youngsters until they are responsible enough to be trusted and to understand the hazards.
During unloading, instead of allowing the hand to grasp far forward on the slide, grip the slide at the rear serration. Gripped thus, if the worst possible happens, the hand is well out of the blast zone.
Safe Habits Offset Dangers
Guns can be dangerous! You’ll get no argument from me, but we must also recognize that a number of other useful inventions, including automobiles, chain saws, matches, even knives or scissors are dangerous, too.
Much has been
written and broadcast about “dangerous guns.” Our society has literally become phobic about the small mechanical device known as the firearm. If fear and emotion could be set aside, we would be forced to acknowledge that a firearm is an inert assemblage of mechanical parts designed to perform one function. Without emotion, we would recognize that function as accurately discharging bullets for a variety of purposes, ranging from warfare to hunting, competitive shooting to self defense. Similarly, a larger mechanical device, the automobile, serves a useful function, yet is grossly subject to misuses that cost thousands of lives. Amazingly, society does not loathe cars! We could say the same about power tools.
Practically every aspect of our physical existence is fraught with danger. We harness tools and other elements to offset some of these hazards. In so doing, we tacitly agree to adhere to rules of general safety, as elemental as containing fire in the fireplace so it doesn’t burn the house down when we heat with wood. The gun has its own safety rules. If you choose to own any firearm, it is your responsibility to learn, practice and make these safety tenets a habit.
Hot gas and bullet shavings escape at the gap between the forcing cone and the cylinder face of the revolver. Keep hands well away!
Safe semi-automatic pistol manipulation requires the shooter to grasp the slide well behind the ejection port.
Always Remember!
TREAT ALL GUNS AS IF THEY ARE ALWAYS LOADED.
NEVER POINT THE GUN AT ANYTHING YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO SHOOT.
KEEP YOUR FINGER OUTSIDE THE TRIGGER GUARD UNTIL YOUR SIGHTS ARE ON TARGET AND YOU HAVE DECIDED TO SHOOT.
KNOW THAT YOUR TARGET IS SAFE TO SHOOT AND THAT IT IS SAFE TO SHOOT INTO THE AREA BEYOND.
Notes
1“Lead in bone: Implications for toxicology during pregnancy and lactation,” Silbergeld E., Environ Health Perspect 91: 63–70, 1991.
2“Transfer of lead to the human feotus from Moneral Metabolism in Pediatrics,” Barltrop D and Burland WL, eds., Blackwell Scientific Publ., Oxford, 1969, pp 135–151.
CHAPTER 16
Basic Firearms Training
Trigger control and sight alignment are both are both part of the pure skill of shooting accurately. Beyond these skills are additional concerns specific to self-defense shooting. The self-defense shooter must guarantee consistently accurate shots on demand, avoiding misses that endanger innocent bystanders—a very demanding standard indeed.
The question of how much marksmanship training is enough varies from individual to individual. I believe anyone who carries a handgun for defense needs to study and practice tactical drills that require making split-second decisions, as well as practicing accurate shot placement. These skills far exceed being able to place five shots at your leisure in the X ring of a paper target!
A male friend or lover may not be the best choice to teach you to shoot. Some men can become decent marksmen without adopting a technically correct shooting stance, because the mass and strength in a man’s upper body better overpowers the recoil. The female physique typically has much less upper body mass and musculature to absorb the handgun’s recoil. Conversely, a woman’s legs are her stronger limbs and she can position her body to take advantage of this strength. Women’s smaller, thinner hands grip the gun and manipulate the trigger differently.
The intimidating task of learning to defend oneself with a deadly weapon is a job better approached without the emotional baggage of a male-female relationship. At this point, you need a respected teacher, not a beloved friend. Self-defense issues that have nothing to do with shooting ability also need to be addressed. Women will have different concerns, and, to some degree, different limits governing their use of deadly force. A classroom format that allows you to learn with other women or with women as well as men should encourage discussion of female-specific issues in self defense and in shooting.
Take time to find a training course that is sensitive to women’s concerns about self defense. Check the phone directory for a list of firearms or handgun instructors, or start by visiting the gun shops and commercial shooting ranges in your area. Ask for names of people in the area who offer beginning defensive handgun instruction.
After compiling a list of likely candidates, contact these instructors and ask for a résumé of their credentials. Ask about their philosophy of women’s self defense, with whom they trained, the length of their experience as an instructor, if they participate in competitive shooting events, and explore their attitude toward women. Get to know the mindset of your potential instructor. Ask if they discuss local firearms laws and use of deadly force, along with live fire instruction. Ask for a brief written course description for their beginning shooting classes. An excellent starting place is a handgun safety seminar or an introduction to handguns. An inexpensive one-day or evening course gives you a chance to decide if you like the instructor’s teaching style and the opportunity to learn about other training offered. That, however, is only the beginning.
Some women prefer the women’s-only class option, making it easier to ask questions and get help with shooting problems.
What to Look for
A basic defensive firearms course should include an awful lot more than learning to shoot accurately. Is the world’s best target-shooter prepared to save her own life if she is not truly convinced of her right to use the firearm to stop a violent assault? When I teach beginners, I answer many questions about appropriate use of deadly force. If you can’t find an instructor who includes material on the use of deadly force in their curriculum, obtain and read Massad Ayoob’s book In the Gravest Extreme as recommended earlier. At the very least, educate yourself about your responsibility as an armed citizen by logging on to your state’s law website by computer, or visit the law library at your county courthouse to read up on your area’s firearms and self-defense law. Finally, the National Rifle Association’s basic firearms classes include instruction by local law enforcement, attorneys or prosecutors to expose gun owners to this vital legal information. Call their headquarters for the number of an instructor near you.1
Ruger’s Model 22/45 is a perfect gun for the beginning semi-auto shooter, as it works much like larger caliber semi-autos, but its inexpensive .22 LR ammunition has minimal recoil.
Next, I believe a basic handgun course should provide beginning students with appropriate training guns and ammunition, allowing hands-on experience before they even buy a gun. First-time shooters learn the fundamentals of marksmanship most easily with the low-recoil .22 LR caliber revolver and semi-automatic. After becoming safe and proficient with a training gun, the student can move on to a caliber that is big enough for self defense. Many beginners can avoid buying a gun that’s not right for them by joining a friendly, low-key class with the handguns and ammunition supplied. They learn to shoot, have the chance to ask many questions about handguns and defensive ammunition, concealed carry, safety, maintenance and cleaning of the weapons, all before dealing with the expense and intricacies of their first gun purchase.
Professional training is a responsibility you should fulfill before getting a gun for self defense. If you absolutely cannot find competent training in your area, arrangements can be made for qualified instructors to come to your area or you can travel to one of the nationally recognized defensive shooting schools footnoted below.2
When beginning training is complete and elementary questions answered, the student is able to present herself knowledgeably at a gun counter and fend off the patronizing suggestions that the little lady needs a pretty little gun—maybe this .25 caliber with the fake pearl grips. The educated woman can respond with the brand and model number of a 9mm or .38 Special she has already tried out at class.
Next, buying a gun and ammunition for self defense.
Notes
1National Rifle Association, 703-267-1000.
2Lethal Force Institute, P. O. Box 122, Concord, NH 03301, 800-624-9049; John and Vicki Farnam’s Defense Training International, P. O. Box 917, Laporte, CO 80535, 970-482-25
20; Thunder Ranch, 96747 Hwy 140 E., Lakeview, OR 97630, 541-947-4104. Additional training resources can be found at the website of the Armed Citizens Legal Defense Network at http://www.armedcitizensnetwork.com/Instructors.html
CHAPTER 17
Annie, Get Your Gun
Years ago, when I asked Massad Ayoob what guns he recommends to women, he said my question was a lot like asking a carpenter if you should buy a hammer or a saw for a building project: “What do you need to do with the tool?” he asked. A gun for home defense can be considerably larger than a gun for concealed carry. A person who can afford just one gun may have to consider its concealability beneath clothes for both hot and cold weather. Someone who can afford a summer gun and a winter gun, or a carry gun and a competition gun, must look for guns on which controls such as the manual safety and magazine release are in similar locations.
I asked the same question of retired cop and fellow gunwriter Charles Petty, and thought he summed it up best when he said, “The best handgun is the one you have with you when you need it.” He went on to add that, due to the importance of shot placement, an individual’s best self-defense handgun choice is one with which they can hit accurately every time they shoot.