New to guns

[KnoxvilleBrenda]

Hi all,

I’m new to gun ownership, having bought my first 9mm last month. My older kids also pitched in and bought me a shotgun for home defense. I’ve been able to practice with the 9mm a few times, but have still not tried the shotgun. I look forward to learning more about guns in general and also in getting my conceal carry permit in the near future. 

[Magiccarpetrides]

Welcome to the group from a fellow East Tennessean!  I would suggest you use the 9mm for home defense until you have some time to practice with the shotgun.  Also depending on the model I would look for some "low recoil" home defense ammo for it and start with that first depending on if its a 12 or 20 gauge model.

[KnoxvilleBrenda]

Good advice! I actually signed up for a 2-hour private lesson with one of the instructors at Shoot Point Blank. Tomorrow he’ll walk me through firing the shotgun. I figured that if my kids gifted it to me and I have it in the house, I need to learn how to use it properly. 

[DaveTN]

Good for you! Welcome to the forum.

I would suggest you get an Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit if you can swing it, instead of a conceal carry permit. More training, less hassle carrying, possibly more reciprocity with other states.

A shotgun requires more training than a handgun for home protection. Specifically, a plan to “clear” your house should you ever need to do that with a shotgun. Walking around your house with a shotgun looking for someone is a bad idea, in general.

[KnoxvilleBrenda]

Thanks for those suggestions! I’ll look into the Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit. Is that the in-class Training instead of the new online option? 

[DaveTN]

2 minutes ago, KnoxvilleBrenda said:

Thanks for those suggestions! I’ll look into the Enhanced Handgun Carry Permit. Is that the in-class Training instead of the new online option? 

Yes

[gregintenn]

Pull the shotgun tight against your shoulder before firing, and kudos to you for learning to provide your own protection.

Welcome to the forum.

Edited April 7, 2020 by gregintenn

[KnoxvilleBrenda]

Thanks! 

[KahrMan]

Welcome

[quedz]

Welcome aboard. 

[Raoul]

Howdy. Welcome to the madhouse. Just remember, we 're mostly harmless.

[PoofNoEyeBrows]

Welcome!

[FUJIMO]

Welcome to TGO

[Guest BCR#1]

Welcome ma'am to our humble abode. Another piece of good advice is to be proficient with the pistol before you take the carry class as you will need to score at least a 90 out of 100 on the shooting part of the class at a distance of 3,5 and 7 yards unless they have changed that part again.

Bill

[A.J. Holst]

Hi Brenda, welcome aboard!

I'm glad to hear you've had the opportunity to practice with your pistol and have an interest in obtaining your carry permit.

Happy you are here.

[Jeb48]

Welcome

What 9mm and shotgun did you get?

[KnoxvilleBrenda]

I got the ruger sr9c. The shotgun is a Mossberg Maverick 12 gauge. 

[DWARREN123]

Howdy and Welcome to TGO!!!  

Good to hear you are getting some training.

[Grayfox54]

Welcome! I love a lady that takes responsibility for her own safety.  

Sounds like you're off to a good start. Hang around and join in the various discussions. We could often use a woman's point of view. 

And don't pay too much mind to us grumpy, opinionated, old farts.  As Raoul pointed out, we're actually pretty harmless. 

[Jamie Jackson]

Greetings from another Knoxville local. My wife & I are members at SPB, Good folks there.

And welcome to the responsible gun culture family. Sounds like you're making a positive entry. 

[ReeferMac]

Welcome Brenda! 

My wife has the same Ruger. Lots of good advice, great idea to get some training! The more you can shoot, the better. There are also dry-training techniques worth inquiring about with your trainer, especially if you don't have a location to shoot.

 

- K

[KnoxvilleBrenda]

@Grayfox54 and @Jamie Jackson, thanks for the warm welcome! I’m not sure what I can contribute to the other discussions, but I’ll take a look around and if a woman’s point of view is in order, I could offer that.

 

[KnoxvilleBrenda]

@ReeferMac, I’ll ask the instructor today about dry-training techniques. Never heard of that, but I’m willing to try whatever to help me get better. Thanks for the welcome and advice! 

[maroonandwhite]

Welcome! The good news is you can learn lots from YouTube. A good instructor is hard to beat but once you get some basics you can always get on YouTube for more tips. Just be sure to use discernment. There are some idiots on there as well. 
Dryfire is basically just going through the motions of drawing and/or shooting along with manipulations of the gun. Make sure you have no ammo in the room or near you as an extra level of safety. I usually choose an external wall in the house facing away from anyone. You won’t gain any recoil control practice from this but if you focus on proper draw, grip and a smooth trigger pull it WILL help you over time. 

[KnoxvilleBrenda]

Thanks for those tips! Hopefully I’ll be able to discern the idiots from the experts on YouTube.