Jim Wilson

1 week ago | shootingillustrated.com | Jim Wilson

Not long ago, I went to an area gun show and, of course, took a couple of guns to trade. At the safety table were two middle-age deputy sheriffs, nice guys. I handed one a double-action Smith & Wesson revolver and gave the other a double-action Colt revolver. The first deputy held the gun and just stared at it; he clearly didn’t know how to open it. I told him to push forward on that little button right there. He did, and the second deputy started pushing forward on the cylinder release on the Colt.

1 week ago | shootingillustrated.com | Jim Wilson

The vast majority of potential threats that we perceive turn out to be no threat at all. So how do we determine of it is a threat or not? Well, since most situations occur under poor light conditions it might be a good idea to light it up for a closer look. One solution that has become popular is to attach tactical lights to the firearm. The problem with that is that we have now pointed a loaded gun at a person who is probably not a threat at all.

2 weeks ago | shootingillustrated.com | Jim Wilson

When we think about our personal defense, it may be that we spend too much time considering just which gun to carry, which ammo to use and exactly how to carry it. While all of that is certainly worthy of consideration and study, there might be other things that are just as important or even more important. Here are three other areas that the concerned citizen needs to give thought to. I firmly believe that the greatest defensive tool is awareness.

3 weeks ago | shootingillustrated.com | Jim Wilson

Whenever we handle firearms, safety should be our main concern. Whenever I teach classes, one of the first things I tell the students is that they are all range safety officers. And, as much as I hate clichés, I tell them, “If you see something, say something.”  Based upon my experience, I believe that there are two major causes of negligent discharges: lack of attention, and lack of knowledge. Anytime we handle a firearm we ought to focus our full attention on handling it safely.

1 month ago | shootingillustrated.com | Jim Wilson

When I was a kid just about every country home had what we called a “kitchen-door gun.”  That was an old .22 rifle or maybe a single-shot .410. It was used to dispatch unwanted critters from the porch or yard. Poisonous snakes would be a good example. Of course, the kitchen-door gun occasionally came into play when dealing with even more dangerous, and bigger, critters. In today’s society, having a long gun safely stored near your external doors is really a good idea.