bigskygal wrote:Yeah, 'range tag' is my vehicle tag allowing me access to the shooting range - I'm now a member of the local pistol & rifle club.
I ran through a few clips the other day; once I got used to the kick (damn, a lot of kick on such a light little weapon!) I did a great job clustering my shots at the center of mass. (Springfield!
) It's not a fun gun to shoot for any length of time and is not a target gun, but I plan to hit the range once a month to keep comfortable with using it, in case I ever need to.
I'm sorry, but I had to laugh at the thought of a .380 having "a lot of kick". Being a lightweight, it will have more than the same caliber in a heavier pistol, but any .380, even the little Walther PPK I fired, has minimal recoil. (In perspective, my preferred pistol is a Smith & Wesson Model 29 in .44 Magnum. My uncle's carry gun is a huge Ruger Super Redhawk in .454 Casull.)
As to why I got the gun; I had a seriously mentally ill client with a history of sexual assault and other violent crime who became obsessed with me when I was working at the public defender's office. It woke me up to the risks in my profession, and in living in a society with sociopaths, psychopaths, et. al amongst us decent, law-abiding folks.
I'm a single woman living alone; my dog provides a pretty good early warning system, but if someone really wanted to hurt me, she wouldn't provide much defense pending arrival of law enforcement - assuming I was able to dial 911. My community is so small that it would be the easiest thing in the world for a determined defendant to locate my residence. And yes, there are huge wide open spaces between here and there in the West - I like camping/hiking by myself, and have read a few too many stories about women on their own on the road or in the wilderness falling victim to sick, violent men.
Also, a few months back an old colleague of mine in Yuma was gunned down in his office on his last day prior to retirement, by the husband of a former divorce client. He was a sitting duck, not having a weapon in his possession.
Considered something for home...namely, a shotgun?
The 2nd amendment guarantees my right to bear arms, and in Montana, my right to defend myself in the face of imminent threat of harm is pretty nearly absolute - both within and outside of my home.
So, why not?
Next up, I'll be investing in a good elk gun and starting to practice with it. I once qualified as US Army sharpshooter (in my JROTC days); though my vision is no longer quite so perfect, I expect I'll do well. I'll be applying for an elk tag in the spring, for next year's hunt. I'd like to get into target shooting on a regular basis, apart from hunting. It's a great release of tension, whilst also feeding my perfectionistic tendencies.
Yee-haw!
That's no serious hindrance...my uncle was just short of legally blind and wore Coke-bottle glasses until LASIK about ten years ago.
For a REAL challenge, try shooting 2" wooden blocks out of the air. It's not as hard as it sounds. (It's actually MUCH harder!)
For a holster, what will you use? Liz uses a shoulder rig...she had a problem with fit & wound up getting one custom-made. In her words, after trying a dozen that didn't fit, "Whoever designed these did not have breasts." (Making things harder, she is left-handed.) My uncle carries his Ruger (and carried the Model 29 he gave me) in a Maqui rig.
Treat Gaza like Carthage.
