In 2022 so far I have taken 2 pistol and one rifle classes. I will be taking the low light class next month. Total so for this year will be 1000 for classes and I am not including ammo. Ammo I have spent 3,000 this year. A lot of cash to own a firearm, at the same time I need to be responsible. I go without the nice cars, I buy cheap clothes and eat at home. It is not a hobby it is part of my life style. I save a little bit every check. The reason I can save, I have no car payments. I am blessed I can take classes and pay for ammo. But I have a family to support it is a juggling act. My wife gives me all the love and support.
I take 2-3classes a year and I shoot once every week. No I do not shoot hundreds of rounds I shoot 25- 50 rounds. 200 a year for range membership (my birthday and Christmas gift from my kids and wife)
The importance is I stay ready and not get complacent.
Thatās good, and puts you way up at the very top in terms of both training and practice frequencies.
I generally like to hear that capable and experienced shooters live fire practice at the range a minimum of once per quarter with their carry gun in order to keep the rust from building, with once a month being a solid goal most would do well to aim for IMO/IME.
Ever do any matches? Even if just local club level semi/non official stuff?
I shoot around 60 >70 rounds a week (around 3, 4 mags) on the usual drills at my local range, including the Dicken drill now. I try to always shoot at least half a magazine strong hand and weak hand only.
If i manage to make it to another club Iām a member of on a Tuesday night for action shooting Iāll shoot a lot more.
Same club runs an IDPA match every month. If i can wrestle the car keys from the wife iāll go to that too.
Training wise this year iāve spent around a grand on gunfighter pistol, carbine, Utah carry permit and stop the bleed courses.
Need to shoot my carbine more and defo want to get more training in the new year. Buddy of mine has done a couple of course with AHT in Ohio.
The way i see it, i donāt golf, i donāt drink and i donāt gamble so iāve gotta spend my hard earned on something
It can be a very expensive lifestyle to say the least. But hey, at least youāre not drinking it away, and the family and loved ones are much safer for it.
I donāt save money to take classes. The same as I donāt save money to fill up my car or help my son to pay his Collage tuition.
These are part of my everyday life. I work hard to have enough money to spend it wisely for anything that has to be paid.
Classes / practice / training - these are not any kind of whim, that needs extra money. These are calculated into the budget.
In young age we pay for basic education (to be good person), then we pay for academic education (to get a great job and be a good parent). Finally we pay for firearm education, regardless the age (to be responsible and keep Family / Community safe).
Yes, I spend less on ammo these days, but it actually doesnāt compromise the quality of the training. We all learned how to maximize dry firing time and get full benefit from it.
Iām trying to keep the same schedule - 1 indoor training per week, 1 outdoor class per month, 1 two/three days class from ābig firearm community nameā per year. So far - all within the budget.
I save for the unknown. Owing a house in Massachusetts, is expensive.I also invest in my retirement. Meaning extend medical care in case my wife or I get sick when we retire. What I have witness with my parents and my wife parents. If i do not prepare the right way you could lose everything you work all your life for. I never want my kids to worry about their parents finances, we cannot work forever.
I have been working since I was 15 and put myself through collage without help from my mom and dad. I am 50 now, I got some years before retaining. I never have to worry if I can afford traing class or ammo. My training is always continuous without interruption.
We have different experienceā¦ but eventually looking for the same results. We need to be financially independent.
But the way I was raised, Family is the priority. Parents help their children, whenever kids cannot afford anything. Within next decades it reverses - children help their parents, when they cannot take care of everything anymore. Thatās the proper way of the real life.
Anywayā¦ as long I can afford ammo and classes ratesā¦ plus my health is in good condition, Iām gonna continue my firearmās education as a part of my life.
I do the same, not really into fancy clothes and gadgets, and learned to cook so I can eat what I want.
Gun ownership costs money. Responsible gun ownership costs even more.
I used to go to the range once a month. But, I tend to forget without a calendar reminder.
So, I decided I would go every federal holiday, a routine that worked for me for years.
However, Covid ruined my routine and the nearest, most conveniently located range closed down when the owner suddenly died. Iām at the point of creating new routines.
Interesting. I donāt have a line on my budget sheet for āFirearms Trainingā or āAmmunitionā. I just go and train, take classes, buy ammo because, well, itās just something I do. I live in a fairly violent part of Salt Lake City so family support is always there. All of that said, training and having enough ammo is Important, no matter how you get to it, Get To It.
Glad to hear you were raised with good family ties.
Keep in mind not everybody out there is quite so fortunate.
My wife and I have some close friends who are more like family than our families were to us. Heck, I had to be self sufficient at a very young age.
As for the topic at hand, we keep our bills paid down as much as possible and are able to pretty much purchase anything āon demandā as opposed to saving for it.
This definitely helped when we had our large dog need his spleen removed from a massive tumor that was undetected until almost too late
Since we both retired, hubby & I try to shoot once a week either in our local indoor range or on BLM land depending on weather and which firearms we want to shoot. Our indoor range/gun store had to close during Covid. The county finally allowed them to reopen the store after a year, but not the range. They still havenāt opened their range due to not being able to find qualified employees willing to pass the background check. Our closest BLM land is closed every year to target shooting for fire season from around May to around end of October. Practically to only shooting Iāve done has been twice a year either in Arizona where we vacation every year in January and then Idaho, when we go visit our kids. Sometimes we get to ID in the spring and then again in the fall. Itā fun to go shooting with the grandkids.
Iām getting rusty, even with a laser training system. Got some bad habits to fix.
The training prices seem a little high, unless theyāre longer, like all day or maybe a couple days.
Ammo sounds like range prices.
I like to support my local range, but you could probably save 1/3 buying online. Unless youāre in one of those states where you canāt get it delivered.
IDPA should be available almost everywhere but it may be some distance. I have to drive about 45 minutes away to my nearest 2 but itās a lot of fun and good practice.
I never put a price on training. I live in New England. I have attended many types of firearms training classes, and the top tier training place like Sig Academy for the introductory course is 300. You can easily spend over 1000 on classes. Fox-Den Solutions is the correct training style for me because it provides training that most training places charge up to 1000 a course. I buy online ammo at Target sports and Velocity ammo, to name a few. I do not buy Wolf ammo or some strange brand. As you wrote it is the state you live in. A lot of Online will not send to Mass, Even though it is legal to do so with an LTC.
One of the class teaches you how to draw from a car- how many classes teaches you the technique of getting out of a car? Plus firing in a car?
I also think it might be slightly overrated (as is common, I think, due to overly emphasizing what police do vs private citizens), especially the getting out part. Most of the time people get stuck thinking gun centric when their several thousand pound battering ram escape vehicle is really the way to go (pedal on the right)
But that said vehicles can and do get disabled or boxed in and they are bullet magnets with an awful lot of area that doesnāt stop bullets
The teaching is if you use your car as a battering ram. Depending on your vehicle you could get stuck when driving over an object disabling your ride. I have a different view about gas on the floor. Observe, orient, decide and Act. OODA loop
Some of the training and classes Iāve attended and hear about seem to be a bit extreme for the average gal on the street carrying a .380 in her purse. Sure itās fun but it all goes back to is it āPracticalā for me.
Complacency is something we need to watch ourselves for on a daily basis. Love all the training that is out there. I had back ground many years before carrying. Lucky that my kids who served after me picked skills also. I also learn from them and anyone else I can draw in close Never a dumb question . One thing I learned also. I have found a bunch of amazing intelligent like minded friends in the process.