BB guns in Bloomington

[Coach]

I feel like you just need to be doing a lot of dry fire. That will improve things well. Then just actually shoot. You can buy a blue gun for very cheap too. Look in to that for teaching others fundamentals. You can literally do everything but trigger press.

Amen

 

[Coach]

I would agree more dry firing is always good but it doesnt give me much use able feedback. I want to draw, fire, check results. Adjust accordingly. Then fix my technique.

Dryfire for the practice and improvement. The live fire for the feedback. It is a tried and true method.

 

[szorn]

Was thinking today about how I would like to practice so much more than im able to due to the restrictions of where i live. As i was strolling through the land of INGO, an add popped up trying to sell me a beretta copy BB gun. If i could shoot air guns in my backyard i could get quite a bit done.

anyone know if these little pistol bb gun replicas are any good or are they really just novelty.
also, the biggest question is are their any ordinances against air guns in bloomington city limits?
I got to a website that listed several laws but none of them directly reffered to air guns/air soft/pellet or BB.

I could set up a trap in my basement and probably be okay regardless but id like to be able to take it outside.

another option may be those little laser bullets. But that would certainly only be an indoor activity. Id really like to be able to shoot bbs for obvious reason of mark targets. The lazer seems less useful.

In general BB guns are illegal to shoot within city limits for obvious safety reasons (injuries, property damage, etc.). However, some cities may allow it. Check with you city police department.

BB guns and airsoft pistols serve as excellent and inexpensive training aids regardless of what some may say. You can shoots hundreds of rounds through these and get 5 times more training for the typical cost of an hour on a commercial range. As you know, greater proper repetitions mean improved skills. Some BB and airsoft guns include functional slides that work like real firearms. Obviously they do not provide the same kind of recoil nor the flash or sound. However, they can dramatically improve trigger control, sight alignment, breath control, etc. These along with regular dry-fire practice will provide way more benfits than just regular range work a few times per month.


Steve

 

[szorn]

Everything but recoil and the smell of burnt powder. I highly recommend SIRT and the LASR software.

SIRT and LASR are great training aids as well but can be cost prohibitive for some. $400 for a SIRT and $120 for LASR compared to $40 for a solid but inexpensive BB / airsoft gun and around $20 for canister of BB's. If someone has the funds I definitely recommend the use of both along with their live-fire practice.


Steve

 

[IndianaSoloMcfly]

I love the feedback. And the suggestions. However, my interest in firearms is a two way street. I am glad i can depend on myself. And im glad i can go out with a box of ammo and have a good time. It is as much a sport as it is a practice for me. Im not super high speed guy. Im end of the road have a good time and take care of yourself guy. Id like to go ahead and take classes and buy the gear and learn the do's and dont's but it just isnt their financially.

400 bucks on a training mechanism isnt realistic.. in that case i would buy a new gun to learn about it and have fun. I have invested a lot or what i consider a lot for myself in self defense, belt, holster, fire arms, ammo, mags. My platform is a 1911. I have multiple forms of that platform because of muscle memory.

im 23 and i work HARD every dollar is earned and spent in a very thoughtful manner. I was hoping the BB or airsoft method would be a inexspensive tool to help me improve my skills.

i wont always be where i am financially. And one day ill have the money to grab at these wild future star trek phaser contraptions.
right now im looking for cost effective training.

I hope i dont come off as assinine or mean. Just wanted the members in this thread to understand the situation.

 

[cosermann]

Know what you mean.

BB/Pellet/Airsoft guns can help lower the cost of certain aspects of training, but IMHO, their generally poor triggers and lack of inherent accuracy (cheaper models) is really going to limit their value if what you're trying to do is improve your marksmanship/accuracy skills. Airsoft can be good for force-on-force type training and all that's involved with that.

If marksmanship/accuracy is your goal, you might consider a laser training aid for your current pistol paired with an app for your smart phone/tablet.

The app tracks your hits on the target providing feedback. This would combine working with the same trigger and same sights on your carry gun with inherently better accuracy than the typical bb/pellet gun at a significantly lower cost than a dedicated SIRT-type pistol.

 

[szorn]

Know what you mean.

BB/Pellet/Airsoft guns can help lower the cost of certain aspects of training, but IMHO, their generally poor triggers and lack of inherent accuracy (cheaper models) is really going to limit their value if what you're trying to do is improve your marksmanship/accuracy skills. Airsoft can be good for force-on-force type training and all that's involved with that.

If marksmanship/accuracy is your goal, you might consider a laser training aid for your current pistol paired with an app for your smart phone/tablet.

The app tracks your hits on the target providing feedback. This would combine working with the same trigger and same sights on your carry gun with inherently better accuracy than the typical bb/pellet gun at a significantly lower cost than a dedicated SIRT-type pistol.

Most of the airsoft and BB guns that I have trained with, even the inexpensive models have been fairly accurate up to 15 yards. Their trigger issues have been minimal unless the assumption is made that their trigger press will be comparable to a person's carry gun. That said, the trigger press on a SIRT isn't exactly the same as a Glock (for which is claims to be) and is even more so different than other handguns. Despite all of that they continue to improve skills for those that put them into practice. However, if defensive shooting is the desired objective these issues are minimal in comparison to having the ability to make combat / defensive accurate shots under stress and while moving or being moved upon at relatively close distances.

While the laser aids for specific carry guns have their place they are still more costly than the BB / Airsoft option and they do not allow realistic continuous training, as the slide generally has to be manually cycled after each shot in order to use these training aids. It seems that this would do more to decrease skill rather than improve it and not to mention the bad habits that it would build upon regular use.


Steve