What to bring
Handguns
Long Guns
Ammunition
Food and Drink
Clothing
Holster
and Belt
We hold our South Carolina CWP, personal protection, and
other firearms classes at convenient locations in the greater Columbia, South Carolina,
area.
No matter where we hold your class most of the following is dictated by our concern for
firearms safety: yours, ours, and everyone else's. Gun
safety is our foremost concern
and is never negotiable.
What follows is intended to ensure your success
and for your comfort consistent with our concern for safety. We really are on your side. We want you
to succeed and to enjoy the experience. We also know you're
more likely to practice what you enjoy doing. Very smart people have been using
firearms for purposes including both recreation and self-defense
long before there were people who tried to tell others it
was wrong to do so. Of course everyone needs to be safe
around any potentially-dangerous mechanical device, which
is why we focus on firearms safety in explaining what to
bring.
Students may not bring firearms or ammunition into a classroom.
Student firearms brought to the shooting range must
be safe, unloaded, and either cased or in a bag or
other appropriate container. Bring a safe, unmodified, perfectly
functioning gun that you can shoot. We're not
gunsmiths and can't check each gun but we will not allow
one that seems unsafe to us nor can we repair malfunctioning
guns. No one ever points a firearm at anyone else. We
don't allow reloaded or handloaded ammunition in any
class.
When there
are specific requirements or suggestions for a particular
class we will e-mail them to you. Don't expect us to
lend you what you need unless we agree to do so in advance.
Be self-sufficient.
Handguns.
If you already own a handgun you intend to carry concealed
we'd like you to use it in class so you get as much as
possible from that class. Either a double-action revolver
or a semi-automatic pistol in a self-defense caliber is good.
No single action revolvers, derringers, target, plinking,
or novelty guns, and no .25 or .50 caliber guns. Avoid bringing
.22 caliber semi-automatic pistols: they tend to be
fussy about ammunition and we can't stop the class while
you fiddle with them. A .22 caliber revolver is all
right to use in some classes and it's a useful practice
tool but it's not ideal for self-defense.
If you don't already own a handgun we can lend you one
of ours if you arrange the loan with us in advance and pay
us for the ammunition in class before you use it:
the rule is that if you use our gun you must use our ammunition.
It's a safety issue. We want our guns used with the ammunition
we ourselves would use. If we lend you a handgun we'll
lend you a belt holster for it too but you need to provide
your own 1-1/2" wide sturdy belt to use with it. We
don't have belts or other clothing to lend. See our comments
on Holster and Belt below.
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Long Guns.
Not every class involves the use of a "long gun" (a shotgun
or rifle). If you're taking a class that requires a long gun bring the kind
of shotgun or rifle that is appropriate for
the class as we describe it. We're highly flexible in such
matters. You won't need a long gun
in a CWP, Basic Pistol, or personal protection class. We
do offer shotgun and rifle classes and we also provide personal
training in the use of shotguns and rifles.
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 Ammunition.
Bring only fresh factory ammunition for the gun you use. No
reloads or handloads: only new ammunition from a major
manufacturer such as Winchester, Remington, or Federal.
We're not fussy about the brand: those are just examples.
(Tip: When there's a choice between ammunition labeled
something like "Target" or "Personal Protection," choose
"target" for use in class unless we say otherwise.
It's less expensive and works just as well on paper targets
as more powerful and more costly ammunition.) All ammunition
must be in factory fresh boxes just as you bought it. Don't
bring old, corroded ammunition and do not mix or repack any
ammunition. These are safety concerns. Bring more ammunition
than is required: that way you won't run short, can take
advantage of opportunities to practice, and return home with
the excess. It won't spoil and we want you to have a
great experience in class.
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 Ear
and Eye Protection. Bring good hearing protection
and vision protection, and always wear them when anyone
is shooting on the range. Anyone shooting a firearm must have
and employ good eye and ear protection. Use them or suffer
permanent physical damage. Consult your own health care
professionals for what you need to protect your health.
We're not eye or ear specialists either and we won't
risk your vision or hearing with cheap produts that might
not do what you need. Take charge of your own safety.
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Food and Drink.
Proper hydration is essential in our Southern climate, even
during fall and winter in the vicinity of Columbia, SC. You
should bring bottled water to our classes and drink frequently,
but of course we can't parent you and must rely on your
own good sense. Bring lunch to CWP classes and other classes
that span lunchtime: there's no nearby place to purchase
lunch. (Tip: Feel free to bring other snacks, especially
health bars, but not chocolates or other sweets. You don't
want a sugar rush.) Of course we do not allow beer, wine, or
other alcoholic beverages or intoxicants anywhere in class or
on the shooting range.
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Clothing.
Dress appropriately for the weather and a sandy environment
in the Columbia, SC area. Men and women both should wear
long pants with pockets for spare ammunition, a shirt with
sleeves that can roll up, socks and sneakers or boots or
rough shoes, and a baseball type cap. (Tip: If you join the
NRA or renew through us in class we'll give you an NRA
baseball cap that we found to be perfect for use on the range.)
We suggest you dress in layers including a T-shirt so you
can adjust according to temperature and humidity. The shooting
range is outdoors. That's good when you know how to adjust
for conditions--better than an indoor range for serious defensive
training and much better ventilated too, which is important
when lead particles are in the air. We shoot in all but the
most extreme weather conditions. Check your e-mail the morning
of a class: if you don't get an e-mail from us
that morning calling a class off, assume that the
class is on.
Sweatshirts, pullovers, or anything else that can catch
a gun or get in your way are unsafe for our classes. If
a cover garment can't tuck into your pants it
must unzip, unbutton, or unfasten so it is completely open.
No threatening or offensive slogans on anything please. Do wear
socks and don't wear sandals: your feet must be
protected from hot shells. There are good reasons why experienced
people who use shooting ranges dress as they do. Personal
safety is foremost among those reasons.
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 Holster
and Belt. These are safety issues, not fashion
preferences. You don't want to get used
to walking around dangling an unholstered and potentially
loaded handgun. You most certainly don't want
to be around other people who behave that way. You do want to develop skill
in how to draw from a holster and shoot to stop an attacker. In our CWP and NRA Basic Pistol
classes we require belt holsters (also known as "outside
the waistband holsters") because those holsters tend to be safest
for people in basic classes.
You also want a belt holster
so that later you can practice marksmanship and other
basic skills without getting tangled in more complex
holsters required for concealment. You need a
holster if you're taking the required training class for a South
Carolina CWP because SLED's shooting qualification test
for certification requires you to shoot a substantial number of rounds after
drawing from a holster.
Good holsters are made for specific handguns. Bring a good quality belt holster suitable for your handgun
and make sure it fits perfectly before you come to class.
("Belt holsters" are also called
"outside-the-waistband" holsters.) No retention,
inside-the-waistband, cross-draw, shoulder, small-of-back,
bellybands, or novelty holsters. We'd like you to practice
what you've learned in class after it's over and
we think you'll enjoy shooting practice more with a good quality belt
holster and belt.
 The belt must fit
you, the holster, and the belt loops on your pants. The idea
is for the belt to support your gun in your holster
without flopping or sagging. We usually wear Original
Wilderness Instructor Belts of the 5-stitch kind. We like
that belt 1-1/2" wide, which is the width required by
holsters we use. In South Carolina and elsewhere
order the "Instructor" belt (Stock Number A108) in your size
from EOTAC™ through its web site. By the way,
we've found that this belt so comfortable that we've taken to
wearing it off the range too.
If you're wheelchair bound or have some
other relevant medical disability we'll work out another kind
of holster situation with you in class.
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For more information and an application to attend any of
our classes please click on this link to e-mail
us. Please include your local phone number so
we can call you to answer questions and get information about
what you need. We'll be happy to hear from you.
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