Illinois CCW Training & ATTS Requirements for Training.

After finding out more about this ridiculous Illinois CCW bill, I am going to mandate that anyone taking my course will have to complete all 16-hours (two-days) of training.  I'm sorry to say that because of major liability concerns, I will not offer classroom credit, or recognize any past training or military service.  You may ask why will I not recognize military service?  Other than Military Police, I do not know of may other military MOS' that routinely train with a pistol.  Pistols are mostly symbols of authority or rank in the military.  

   

Whenever we decide what the final course tuition is, I will offer a $50.00 tuition discount to those who have successfully completed the following ATTS training courses.  The ATTS Two-day Tactical Pistol Course, the Dynamic Force on Force Air-soft course, or the Basic Tactical Pistol Course.  I've selected these courses because there was actual tactical pistol manipulation and decision making involved in all of them.  To obtain this discount, a student will simply present me a photo copy of their training certificate with their course application and tuition.  I'm sorry, but that's how it has got to be.  The full 16-hour curriculum must be obtained through ATTS.  I'm not taking it in the shorts from any of these lousy politicians in Springfield.  You shouldn't want to either. 

 

Remember, when you are ready to book a CCW course, you may find one that is less expensive than mine, but I can assure you that not many of the other instructors will have 15 years of trail proceedings and courtroom testimony behind them.  If you ever involved in a high-profile shooting and you're hauled into court, and I am subpoenaed to testify in your behalf, my instructor training and courtroom expertise may get you exonerated.  Trust me, you won't want some Bubba or some newly-minted firearm Instructor sitting in the witness box on trail day.  So if my time, my 15 years of courtroom proceedings, my 2,000 hours of firearm training and my voluminous certifications are not worth my fee to you, find another instructor to train you.  I refuse to put out a sub-standard product that may get you sued, jailed or killed.

EMT Certification

I just realized that I never followed up on the outcome of the EMT training course I signed up for last summer.  The 16-week course was tough, especially at 57 years old, but on January 22, 2013, I successfully completed the State of Illinois certification exam and was awarded my EMT-B license.   

A Trio of Contenders

Since selling off my Ruger New Model Blackhawk chambered in .357 Maximum, I wanted the same caliber but in a single-shot pistol with at least a 10" barrel.  I decided on a Thompson-Center Contender.  I purchased a stainless steel frame off of Gun Broker and searched for a 10" barrel in .357 Magnum.  More on this in a bit.  The next thing I know I went a little Contender crazy.     

All of a sudden, the Thompson-Center Contender project grew to three pistols and four barrels.  The first was put together on the above-mentioned stainless steel frame and 10" bull barrel chambered for the .357 Magnum cartridge.  I then had Mike Bellm of Olathe, Colorado ream the chamber out for the .357 Maximum cartridge.  I now have 600 brand-new Remington cases, 500 Hornady XTP bullets and about 950 CCI primers, so I'll be good to go in the reloading room.  

Teamed with a Burris 2x scope, this Contender shot my load of a Hornady 180 grain XTP bullet over 20 grains of IMR-4227 ignited by a CCI 450 primer.  The CCI 450 is a Small Rifle Magnum primer but with such a large load of powder, this primer would guarantee performance regardless of the extremely cold temperatures we sometimes hunt in here in Illinois. 

When I test-fired this load, recoil was stiff but extraction was flawless and there were no signs of pressure-related issues with the primers.  This one is ready for the outdoor range and sighting in at 50 and 100 yards.

The second in my trio of Contenders was a 12" T/C Custom Shop barrel chambered for the mighty .44 Magnum mated to a blued-steel frame.  I teamed this pistol up with a Burris 2x scope as well.  This Contender shot extremely well on the indoor range so it too is ready for the trip to the 50 yard outdoor range.  I have piles of .44 Magnum ammunition on hand so I won't have to reload for this brute for quite a while.

My final Contender frame was also made of stainless steel and mated to a blued-steel Super 14" barrel chambered in 7-30 Waters and equipped with T/C's integral muzzle break.  I mounted a Burris 2x-7x pistol scope in Leupold rings and bases.  Luckily, I found five boxes of Federal Premium 7-30 Waters ammunition, loaded with a 120 grain bullet.  The 7-30 Waters is basically a .30-30 Winchester case necked down to 7 Millimeter. 

I fired three rounds though this pistol and was pleasantly surprised at the lack of recoil.  The T/C integral muzzle break really does it's job, as the 7-30 Waters seemed to recoil less than the .357 Maximum and the .44 Magnum.  The group was 2.5 inches high and all three were within an inch.  All this without bore sighting too.  This beauty is ready to be sighted in at 100 yards.  I'll then fire it at 200 and 300 yards to see how it performs.

My other barrel is a brand new, Super 14" chambered in .41 Remington Magnum.  I love the .41 Magnum as it's one of THE most accurate pistol rounds I've ever fired.  I have amassed 500 pieces of Starline brass and 500, 215 grain, SWC lead-cast bullets.

All in all, I'm very impressed with the quality and accuracy of the Thompson-Center Contender.  These pistols are essentially hand-rifles.  I look forward to using all three pistols on my quest for more species of Exotic game in Tennessee.          

The .357 Maximum Project Lives!

Well the .357 Maximum project is finally moving on.  Tug Hill Cartridge, Inc., in upstate New York must have forgotten about my standing order, so luckily I just found and ordered 500 pieces of brand new Remington .357 Maximum brass, and 500 Hornady 180 grain XTP bullets from Midway USA this week.  I also obtained 800 of the CCI 450 primers I wanted to use for the project from a friend, so the last step is to buy a couple of pounds of IMR 4227 powder and then I'll be loading up my first batch of .357 Maximum hunting ammunition for my Ruger Super Blackhawk revolver.

The load I'm looking at is 20.0 grains of IMR 4227 powder over a CCI 450 primer, utilizing the Hornady 180 XTP jacketed hollow-point bullet.  This load is supposed to be superbly accurate, easy on the gun and the brass, and still pushes 1,450 feet per second.  That's more than enough for Deer-sized game animals. 

I found this particular load in an article written by Glen Fryxell, and published on the Los Angeles Silhouette Club's website.  I'm not a big experimenter when it comes to cartridge reloading.  If I find a load that is accurate, and it works well for me in a particular rifle or pistol, I'm done tinkering around.

As soon as I get some rounds loaded up and I get to send some bullets downrange, I'll report back on my findings.  I'm fairly sure that Glen Fryxell's load will work perfectly in the big Ruger Single-action.

www.lasc.us/fryxell357max.htm

www.GunTrainingIL.com

www.midwayusa.com

EMT Certification Near Completion.

As an instructor I am always looking for ways to add more knowledge to my repertoire of instructor certifications and to improve service and provide a safer training environment for my clients.  While I had a background in CPR and Trauma First-aid for quite sometime, I've wanted more knowledge on the subject. 

Always a student at heart, I registered for an Emergency Medical Technician's course on August 20th and began to study for my EMT-B license.  I am now near the end of my journey and hopefully I'll take my licensing exam before the end of the year.  I really learned a lot and thoroughly enjoyed the training course.

When I complete the EMT-B course and obtain my state license, the next course I'd like to complete is one of the Tactical EMT certification courses I've seen offered.  I also have an interest in obtaining the Wilderness EMT certification as well.

     

A Tip for Conducting Warm Weather Training and Operations

About a fifteen years ago I read an article in Police Magazine about conducting training and/or operations in extreme hot weather which has served me well ever since.  It pertained to hydration and keeping your troops hydrated throughout the mission.

While water is an excellent source of hydration we tend to lose essential salts and minerals when we perspire and expel waste fluids.  I hope I don't have to explain that last part?  We need to replace those elements if we want to keep our body up and running in extreme hot weather.

Gatoraide and similar sports drinks are an excellent source of hydration and for the salts and minerals our bodies need, but we can expel most of those before our body can absorb them.  A great way to ensure that your body absorbs these salts and minerals is to cut your Gatoraide with water by 50%. 

Back in the day when I did Surface Operations with the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary on Lake Michigan, I used to take a half-gallon container and pour a quart of Gatoraide and a quart of water into it and refrigerate it overnight.  That mixture kept me going on the boat even when temperatures were extremely high and there was barely any wind blowing across on the lake.  A stifling situation to say the least.

Next time you're going to attend or conduct hot weather training give this hydration tip a try.  You may find yourself performing better, especially at the end of the day.

What is Dynamic Force on Force Air-Soft Training?

What is Dynamic Force on Force Air-Soft Training?  It’s essentially “Gun-Fighting 101” with Air-Soft pistols as opposed to actual firearms.  It’s probably the closest as you’ll ever get to a deadly force encounter without actually shooting someone or being shot yourself.  Air-soft has rapidly become one of, if not THE best tool on the market for this type of training application.  

Air-Soft is far safer than Simunitions and also much quieter so training can be held virtually anywhere, indoors or out.  Air-soft pistols fire a plastic BB at approximately 250 to 450 feet per second.   Other than a slight stinging sensation on bare skin Air-Soft is also an incredibly safe training tool.

If you’re in law enforcement, armed security, have a concealed carry permit, or are concerned with home defense, then this course is definitely for you, your co-workers, or your significant other.  As a student of the gun, you’ve probably attended several tactical training courses and have certainly put in a lot of trigger time on a static range.  But are you truly prepared to face an armed, violent aggressor who is Hell-bent on killing you in armed combat?

During this course, you will be subjected to various training scenarios geared for both law enforcement and civilian applications.  These scenarios are staffed by our highly skilled instructors and role players.  These scenarios may quickly degenerate into a deadly force encounter, testing your ability to persevere and overcome violent, armed assailants.  

While participating in this extremely realistic training, you may also experience one or more of the Physiological affects that high levels of stress place on the human body.  These are loss of fine motor skills, Tunnel Vision, Tachypsychia, and Auditory Exclusion.

Your performance may be well below par in some of the scenarios but I promise you that you will definitely learn from your errors in this class.  The term “better to bleed in training than to bleed on the street” is quite accurate.  Make your mistakes in a class where at the end of the day you go home sore but alive and in one piece.  Remember, you’ll always digress to you level of training under stress.  So if you train hard to fight hard, hopefully if that fateful day ever comes you’ll survive.

Our Air-Soft training course is highly mobile so if requested, we can bring the course to your location.  All Air-Soft firearms and mandatory safety equipment is furnished to the students during this class.  Tuition is only $150.00 per student.