Shotgun Shells: The Ins and Outs of Selection (Part 2)

By Brad Wilson - Guest Contributor

In the last segment we talked briefly about a few different factory loads and hand loading.  We saw a few examples of how different characteristics work in different loads and how those characteristics determine how the load performs when it comes to ballistics. Now let’s tie all this together and find what works best in our guns….

...after the jump.

Daddy's Little Girl

By Carrie Lightfoot, Guest Contributor

Have you ever wondered where all of these women shooters are coming from? They are everywhere; at the range, at gun stores and they are even going to gun shows! It’s like they are crawling out of the woodwork. Even the color and shape of gun gear is  changing because of them all. They are EVERYWHERE. 

Did they just appear out of nowhere, are they some new form of creation?  Where did they all come from and how did they become such good shots?  It actually isn’t all that mysterious. Many have just been busy being girls and since the world of shooting for the most part, has been a “manly” culture,  they have left it to them. But as with most things, the times have changed. The door has swung wide open for women and they are skillfully and happily - stepping over the threshold. 

Many in fact aren’t new to shooting at all.  If you ask them you are likely to hear that their father showed them how to safely use a firearm when they were young. They will share their fondest memories of falling on their behinds because of the recoil, or of hitting the bullseye on their first shot and the shocked look on their dad’s face at the sight. Time with dad is a very special thing to a young girl and they remember every minute of their times shooting together. For many it was one of the few places where they could really connect with their fathers. They will lovingly give him the credit for teaching them about safe gun handling and for making them such good shots. Many share that they had put these times and the guns behind them to move into womanhood to assume their roles as wife, mother and/or professional. But, as I said, the times have changed. Necessity drives many of these women to return to their roots and pick up a gun again to protect themselves. 

What great gifts for a father to give his daughter; precious time with him and the skills to safely handle a firearm. As so many women are sharing their memories of shooting with their fathers this Father’s Day and how grateful they are because of it, I hope the dads of today continue to invest in their little girls and realize that it is about so much more than guns.   

Happy Father's Day!

Carrie Lightfoot is owner of The Well Armed Woman and quest contributor for the Beretta Blog. Join the dynamic group of women shooters on Facebook orTwitter and visit www.thewellarmedwoman.com

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This post and its contents are the views and opinions of the author only, and do not represent those of Beretta.   

Shotgun Shells: The Ins and Outs of Selection (Part 1)

By Brad Wilson - Guest Contributor

How I love my hand loads!

In a previous entry by fellow blogger Adam Brassfield titled “Shell Selection for Waterfowl”, Adam talks about what size shot he would typically use for different types of waterfowl.  What he based everything off of was the size of  bird he would be chasing that certain day.  Adam laid down some great groundwork for new and old hunters that sometimes get mislead on what size shot they should be using.  This is the first thing everyone should take into consideration when choosing shot.  I would recommend reading that post as he has some great information in it.

For the next few segments we will take it a step further now that you understand that using 3.5” BB during early teal season is akin to bringing a SCUD missile to a boxing match.

I could honestly go on for hours and probably lose your attention with everything I am about to throw at you so for the sake of time and attention I will break this up into 3 different segments.  Factory VS hand loads, patterning, and what you can do to manipulate variables to achieve the outcome you are looking for.

After the jump I will talk briefly about factory ammo as well as hand loads….

Clay Shooting, a Beginner’s Thoughts

By Keith Hollar – Guest Contributor

I wanted to chronicle some of the things that I have been learning as I start my journey into the world of clay shooting and bird hunting.

Even though I’ve been shooting for over 20 years I’ve only shot at flying targets a couple of times before.  I had some friends that enjoyed clay shooting that took me along a few times and gave me some basic instructions, but it didn’t really help me understand what I was doing, wrong and right.  I wasn’t very successful at breaking the clays those times.  Recently I’ve been able to go with someone who has been shooting at clays for a while and was able to explain things to me that made a light bulb go off in my head.

Here are some of the things I’ve learned while shooting trap and skeet; when shooting a field gun in trap you need to cover the clay with the barrel to get a hit, also in trap you want to hit the target while it is still rising, in skeet the leads are for station 1 = 1 foot, 2 = 2 feet, 3 = 3feet, 4 = 4 feet, 5 = 3 feet, 6 = 2 feet, 7 = 1 foot, and of course with both keep the barrel going.  Now these may not be huge revelations to most of you but I’ve never had anyone explain these things to me in such clear terms.

The next lessons have to do with the shotgun itself.  Since I’m used to shooting rifles I got into the habit of bringing the weapon to my shoulder and then bringing my head down to the sights.  That works fine for a rifle, but not a shotgun.  What you want to do is bring the shotgun up to the eye, then mount it to the shoulder.  I’ve found this works lots better getting the sighting rib aligned correctly.  Also you need to make sure the shotgun fits you.  I purchased a nice used side by side shotgun and took it to a local guy who was recommended to me to have the butt stock shortened to fit my arms.  Now that I’ve had it cut to a length of pull of 14 1/8” (including the new recoil pad) it now mounts quicker and feels more natural.

Now I’m not ready to be taking on a competition but I have noticed my scores improving each time I go.  I hope to be able to get more proficient and consistent and also try sporting clays and other more difficult clay sports.

One last piece of advice, don’t worry too much about not breaking all of the targets at first, even if you’re shooting with guys that complain about shooting a 24.  Everyone started at the beginning.  I know that is something that was difficult for me to do at first.  I know I need to concentrate of making sure I’m doing things right in order to hit the target.

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This post and its contents are the views and opinions of the author only, and do not necessarily represent those of Beretta.

Crutching Around With A CCW

By Jason Parks – Guest Contributor

I have some questions that I want you to think about for a minute:

How does someone with a permanent physical disability carry a concealed weapon?

How much more time does it take for them to draw and fire compared to someone without a physical disability?

How can they avoid a confrontation if they cannot quickly extricate themselves from a dangerous location?

What affect does having a physical disability have on your situational awareness?

Do laws take into account a person’s physical disability if they are forced to use their weapon?

Now I want you to consider this scenario:

A man is home in bed with his wife. The sound of breaking glass wakes him up. He lies there for a moment listening. Did he dream it or was it real? His wife is still asleep beside him. Then he hears it – the sound of the deadbolt unlocking and the slight squeak of a door hinge that he has been meaning to oil.

He realizes that someone has just broken into his home.

He wakes his wife up and tells her what’s happening. She grabs the phone and calls 911. He gets out of bed and into his wheelchair. He is paralyzed from the waist down from a car wreck. He gets his pistol and flashlight from the drawer of his night stand.

His wife has been shooting a few times, but is not that familiar with guns. He is armed and ready, but his two children’s rooms are between him and the intruder. To get to their rooms he has to wheel himself out of his bedroom and down the hall to their rooms. He can’t simultaneously hold the pistol and the flash light and wheel himself into the hallway.

What does he do?

Most people don’t think about the challenges that people with physical disabilities face when it comes to CCW and personal safety. I think about it because a little over two years ago, I broke my left femur while walking. Believe me, I wish I had a great story to go with it but it was simply that I stepped wrong and broke it. The bone was brittle, and it shattered because of the radiation treatment I received when I had cancer. For a good story, remind me to tell you about the chainsaw incident.

Anyway, I have been on crutches for two years, two months and counting. I recently acquired my concealed carry permit so all these questions have been on my mind along with figuring out how to best carry a concealed pistol while on crutches. The standard stuff just doesn’t work. I Googled “concealed carry”+”disability” a few weeks back and got a lot of links that I have not looked at yet. I wanted to be able to take you on this little jaunt into figuring all this out with me.

So what do you think? Is it harder for someone with a physical disability to protect themselves and their families?

This post and its contents are the views and opinions of the author only, and do not necessarily represent those of Beretta.

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You can follow Jason on Twitter @thejasonparks.

Our Future Hunters and Fishers

By Brad Wilson - Guest Contributor

Five years ago my wife and I were blessed with our first child and at that point and time we both realized what it really meant to be a parent.  I can't even begin to name the millions of things on my bucket list that I now wanted to include him on.  From waterfowl hunting in Canada to sail fishing in Costa Rica, my adventures would not be complete without him included.

One thing that I have learned over the years as a parent is that these kids that we are raising are the future of our outdoor passions.  It really all came into perspective for me when my oldest son asked me every day, sometimes 2 or 3 times a day, for a week straight: "Daddy, when are we going fishing?"  At that point I realized that our children are what we mold them to be.  I realized quickly that both of my boys are as eaten up with hunting and fishing as I am (for which I have to give credit to my own dad).

The future of our passions and the future of our rights depend on what our children are taught, yet sometimes we get so caught up in ourselves that we tend to forget that.  I have learned over the years that I may not even pick my gun up the whole time on a hunt because I am more involved with teaching my sons about bird ID, flyways, or how wind plays into exactly where the birds will most likely decoy.

I am a firm believer in the saying "Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he will eat for the rest of his life."


Have you taken a kid hunting or fishing lately?


Brad Wilson is an avid outdoorsman targeting waterfowl and saltwater fish and is a guest contributor for the Beretta Blog.  He can be reached on Twitter or YouTube.


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This post and its contents are the views and opinions of the author only, and do not represent those of Beretta.

Impressions From A Gun Show Virgin

by Carrie Lightfoot - Guest Contributor

Here are some simple impressions and a few questions from a gun show virgin:

There are not too many women at gun shows.... Yet!

I didn’t get strange looks for walking around with a gun on my hip.

I did get curious looks for being a woman cruising the aisles.

It is oddly comfortable and comforting being surrounded by guns, ammo and gun loving people!

I have no difficulty believing the recent Gallop Poll that said 47% of homes in the US have a firearm. They were all at the show!

You can wear ANYTHING you want to a gun show and I mean anything.  

Fully grown adult males actually will pin handwritten signs on scraps of paper on themselves! 

What are all those little parts filling the tiny bins on so many tables?

Gun lovers are really nice and patient people.

The people watching doesn’t get any better.

There are many “interesting characters” at gun shows.  

Bring a cart with wheels - everything is VERY heavy.

Buy your ammunition on your way out!

Going to a gun show is like going to the humane society. There are so many guns that need good homes. You MUST leave with one.

You see the wildest T-shirts for sale and on the visitors.

I didn’t expect to see machetes and Gothic swords - but they were fascinating.

The collector firearms are amazing.

The military historic paraphernalia is sobering.

I want one of those huge rounds in my home. I don’t know what they are - but they are really big, very heavy and very cool!

I like the sound of stun guns.

Nothing beats a hot dog, a Coke and a stadium full of firearms.

Carrie Lightfoot is owner of The Well Armed Woman and quest contributor for the Beretta Blog. Join the dynamic group of women shooters on Facebook orTwitter and visit www.thewellarmedwoman.com

Make sure you follow Beretta on Facebook, Twitter or YouTube

This post and its contents are the views and opinions of the author only, and do not necessarily represent Beretta.