cluznar,

You are a keen handgunner; most folks are not as adept to shooting their protection handgun enough! What gun and caliber are you carrying?

Webley

 

I believe I need to...

In which context are you asking about?


Why do you have that belief in that context?

 

Ummmmmmmm! My wife started out shooting 50 rounds a session for the first few times at the gun range, then she moved up to shooting 100 & 150 with in a month. Then she started back at 50 rounds, when she got a bigger caliber pistol and so on. She went through 6 pistols before the dust settled and she ended up carrying a Glock model 27 in .40-Cal.

It was then another 4 to 5 months of practice 5 days a week, until I thought she was ready to handle most situations that might accure on the street. I figured up that she shot over 5,000 rounds during her practice time at the gunclub pistol range. I have wore out 2 barrels shooting a 1911 pistol and one barrel in a COLT PYTHON. All in all must have shot over 125,000 rounds wlith pistols. I carry 2 of the Glock pistols, both in stainless barrrels and the other is standard length for the subcompact Glock model 29 (3 & 7/8 inches) in the 10mm caliber.

 

I think you should practice with any weapon or ammunition so that you are proficient with it and that any ammunition you are going to depend on in a self-defense situation should be tested thoroughly to ensure 100% reliable functionality in your firearm. I don't know that anyone can, or should, put a number on either one of those variables. YMMV

 

I think you should practice with any weapon or ammunition so that you are proficient with it and that any ammunition you are going to depend on in a self-defense situation should be tested thoroughly to ensure 100% reliable functionality in your firearm. I don't know that anyone can, or should, put a number on either one of those variables. YMMV

Said well enough to speak for me.

 

Goodness, I haven't put but 2 or 3 boxes through my carry gun in ten years. And those were 20 round boxes! Granted it is a revolver, and most of that was just to get an idea of the sight picture. 4 or 5 of the rounds were on various critters.....

I do go shoot my 22 handguns when I can.

 

I have a Bersa Thunder .380 and also a Ruger SR9c which I alternate carrying. Both are very concealable and both are accurate, dependable, and easy to shoot.

Even though I have the rounds which I posted above fired thru the Bersa; I just bought 400 rounds of brass cased FMJ for more practice and to make sure things are good. It is fun shooting both of these guns. After I shoot another 200 thru the Bersa I'll buy another 200 to go thru the Ruger.

Of course I have already shot enough defense ammo thru both to see it fires flawlessly.

Take care of your guns and they will take care of you.

 

Well, I'm a country type, so I ALWAYS have at least 1 gun with me at any time or event.
I don't know that I could give you a number that I use. I don't buys guns to stare at, so when I buy a new pistol; I almost always take it out with at least 200 rounds. I like to get to know the guns issues, or personalities up front.

I always have my G17 with me, and because I love to shoot. My SD ammo gets shot within 1-2 months. I'd love to tell you it is because I want to keep powder fresh, or something.... But I love shooting! So what I have, I shoot.

 

I myself believe that it is just as important to practice those varied situations that might araise on the street than to just practice shooting paper tagets. The shooting of human torso targets in double or triple etc.

There are several video's out on how to ready one's self for your defense with a handgun on the street or home etc. The Glock Store also sells such practice adds. A good thing to know in time of need folks.

 

To make it easy, there is no maximum!

 

I think you should put 250-300 flawless rounds through your carry gun before it goes out with you.

 

Practice makes perfect. I fortunately live in a rural area so when I go for my daily walk I carry a different handgun each day. About halfway into my two mile walk, I will step off into the woods and shoot a while. My carry guns get a lot of practice since they go with me on my walks a lot. If you carry, you should practice, even a little. I worked with police officers who never practiced. The only time they shot their carry weapons was at yearly qualification.

 

Now just in case some of you who might not know this fact! A few pistols will NOT start shooting on target for at least 200 rounds put down the barrel.

The Sig Sauer pistols, must be shot from 350 to 450 rounds before they even start to shoot where your aiming at 21 feet. Now this is straight from the Sig Sauer factory Rep!!!

 

When new gun owners are buying pistols from me for protection, I always recommend a minimum of 200 rounds for semi-autos and 50 for revolvers, but I just see it as making sure the gun really does work right, and to break it in, at least a little. Beyond that, I don't put a round count on it, but I recommend they practice with it at least fairly often.
And, I recommend shooting at least a box of their defensive rounds, after break-in, to make sure they're reliable and don't have unacceptable muzzle flash.

 

One problem, of course, is that many folks who are arming themselves are not at all familiar with firearms, and in many cases I've seen first-hand, are planning to carry the first handgun they've ever owned (or fired). So, they probably don't realize that they can't select any arbitrary ammo in the right caliber and know it will perform. Inexperienced folks, at least, should know there's at least some chance a particular gun won't function reliably with particular choices of ammo--and even that what may work for one shooter may not work for another due to mysterious forces beyond our comprehension.

Also, defense with a handgun involves the whole system. Perfect cycling of the ammo doesn't mean squat if I change belts and now my holster moves enough to prevent me getting the gun out like I expect to. So, just as important a question might be--how often do you practice presenting the weapon from your carry holster with your street clothes on? The answer for me is not a very good one. While I've probably drawn with my IDPA or USPSA setups 10,000 times or so, I very rarely (and I mean RARELY) draw from my carry rig with my 'carry' clothing. That's a bit foolish of me.

 

It depends on the gun and the ammo.
My newest handgun, which is the one I am most likely to carry, is a 357 magnum. I've owned it for about 15 years. It has never malfunctioned.
I have never run any (for instance) 140 grain Hornady factory loads through it, but I've never had a problem with Hornady ammo. If I had a box of 140 grain Hornadys, I'd shoot at least 6 of them. If they went where they were supposed to, and I'm pretty sure they would, I would have no qualms about carrying them.

 

I will pop off a few rounds from my Astra A 70 just to check it and the ammo.........People that carry have a tendency to leave the pistol in the holster for long periods and trust it and the ammo to work every time......Like a car one must crank and run it occasionally it or the battery will die and the tires will loose pressure.

 

Cluznar, I think your general rule is very well done.

Most CCW owners are non shooters or light shooters. So your rule makes perfect sense to me. I find most CCW new comers, don't shoot more than one box. And they buy autos that take expensive ammo, so they say "WOW, I can't shoot a box every month, they stuff is expensive". sounds crazy to me but, People are....well people.

The old rule that a revolver is at its most rliable condition after 12 rounds, and reliablity goes down very slowly with each round. And that a Auto is at it's least reliable condition until 500 round are thru it; has always been true. So I try to get new auto CCW to really shoot those new guns (few do)!