How to help a newcomer?

[dougt06]

My boss's son has recently taken an interest to firearms, mainly carrying a handgun. Since I'm the only person he knows who knows anything at all about guns or shooting he has came to me with all his questions. I have helped him in every way I possibly can, but judging by the questions he is still asking, he is not ready to own or especially carry a handgun. He is wanting to carry for all the wrong reasons. He has the idea that he will be a bad ass with a gun and does not understand the responsibilities of carrying a handgun. He also has an extremely small amount of experience with firearms period.

So I was looking for a little input on how i could possibly help him out. I would never want to discourage anyone from gun ownership, and would rather give him a little gun knowledge. Should I try taking him on a few trips to the range, or are there any firearm training classes available in this area?

Thanks

 

[Newbomb92]

Holy negative rep Batman!

 

[JDonhardt]

Asking for advice on giving advice has got to be some kind of paradox or something.

Also, Holy negative rep Batman!

 

[Gunaria]

This doesn't sound like it's gonna end well. Does this "kid" have a LTCH or is 21?

 

[pierce195]

I would be willing to help out if you take him out the range.

 

[Sylvain]

If you think he's not ready to own a gun you should talk to his dad about it.
It depends on his age.Even if he CAN legally buy a gun doesnt mean he should if he's not mature enough.
Also having him take a basic pistol class could be good before he even buys a gun.

 

[JohnP82]

This doesn't sound like it's gonna end well. Does this "kid" have a LTCH or is 21?

^^^ This^^^
Curious of his age? I would start by going over the basics of safety with him one on one at a private place before ever heading to the range. Then if you think he is capable of handling them safely at the range I would do a range trip with him. Sometimes the process of actually shooting a firearm can give them a sense of reality as far as what it is capable of. Sometimes not though, all you can do is give him as many safety lessons as you can and go from there. If after you do this you do not think he is mature enough or ready I would not hesitate to talk to his father about it. A class or two from a certified instructor would be great too. Good luck with the situation.

 

[jthom19802]

Class can never hurt; neither can a few talks with him off to the side before he goes wielding the thing around like a madman. At the end of the day all you can do is try to help him prepare for the situation, beyond that it's on him.

 

[INyooper]

Great advice on giving advice!

One of the things I do before I go to the rage with someone I've not shot with before is to go over range and gun safety rules. I preface it with the idea that I assume every new (to me) shooter has absolutely no experience with firearms and then start with the four basic rules, gun handling, what to expect, etc. I also ask questions about things I covered earlier "Do you remember what the four basic rules of firearms are?" for example as a review and to test comprehension.

Doing this does a few things, aside from making sure everyone is on the same page, it can also give you feedback on their attitude and comprehension by how they track and respond. ....are they asking good questions to help clarify, are they understanding the concepts ...do they seem a bit too eager and/or cocky???

If things go well (and they usually do), it makes for a fun day at the range. If you start seeing red flags fly up, you can adjust your schedule accordingly.

 

[dougt06]

Sorry, I did not specify on age... He is 18 and is in the process of getting his license to carry. I know he can not legally purchase a handgun on his own, but I believe his parents are planning on purchasing it for him when he gets his permit back. As they don't see any problem with him owning a gun.

Thank you everyone for your input, you have been a lot of help. As soon as we get some nicer weather I will invite him on a trip to the range. From there I can get a better assessment of what he actually knows, and what he thinks he knows, and see how he actually handles a weapon. I don't think I will have any problems as he probably just needs a little help in the right direction.

 

[speedsix]

Have him read Ayoob's "In the Gravest Extreme".

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

An 18 year old can purchase a handgun 100% perfectly legally.

Just not from an FFL-holder.


-J-

 

[cosermann]

Have him read Ayoob's "In the Gravest Extreme".

And, Bryan Ciyou's book on Indiana Handgun Law.

 

[vzdude]

The written material is not only good advice , but good reading too!

 

[acarnahan]

If you have any officers that work at a gun shop, have him talk with those guys. They'll be able to give him a good idea of the responciblities and legal issues of carrying.

 

[JoshuaW]

Communication. I think a basic pistol class would be appropriate, and carry specific classes. If you can convince him to read the written materiel, have him read the books as well. Get him on INGO, so he can observe and get put in his place a bit.

Lastly, convince his parents that he needs to go through the training and classes before he gets a pistol. By the end of the training, he will at least be safe, and should have a better respect for firearms. That buys some time.

 

[g+16]

their for years their were three of us who really knew of weapons from shotguns, rifles, pistols and automatic wepons, unfortuatly know their is one. My friend frank died from a heart attack, and tony was ambused in his home from people wanting his auto wepons (yes they were caught and will spend the rest of their lives in jail). When someone who come up to us wanting to talk wepons and where to buy them, the first question was allway do you have your carry lic.? before we took anyone shopping for handguns or rifles they got their lic., seems redundent but this was are way of them showing us they were at least aiming to stay legal, then we would go with them to ranges and greet them to safe firearms handling, a replacement for formal classes, NO we refered them to several local NRA instructors for their classes, but at that time we all three had extensive military and competetion back rounds, and we not a one of us ever refered to us at Experts at anything, just my