Greg Ellifritz’s Concealed Carry Revolver AAR

I had the opportunity to take Greg Ellifritz’s Concealed Carry Revolver class at the wonderful Boondocks range outside of Jackson, MS. It was geared around the snub nose 5 shot revolver, which I carry everyday as a backup to my G34 or as my primary when I have to go deep cover in non-permissive environments. I had revolver training but never anything on the nuance of the snub, needless to say, I was keen to attend. As luck would have it, I caught the airport funk the week before and was a bit off my game, but it went well.

Greg started with introductions and discussing the gear being used, taking the opportunity to discuss the nuance of the gear people brought. Strengths and weaknesses of the guns and ammo were discussed, he saved the loading devices for later in the day but we discussed them, as well.

We had the historical backdrop of the lessons learned in the 1970 Newhall Massacre, where Officer James Pence, wounded and with an empty gun, loaded his Colt Python to capacity while he was being flanked and was murdered from behind at point blank range. A good deal of discussion and technique incorporated the lessons from that tragedy.

Greg firing a 3 inch S&W model 19. The K frame snub has distinct advantages to the J frame if you have room for it

Greg started easy and ramped up the intensity as we showed proficiency. Nuance in grip and trigger technique were covered. Loading a revolver can be a mess, efficient technique for 3 styles of loading, single loading, speed strips and speed loaders were covered along with the related gear. Examples of numerous products were passed around and the clear favorites discussed along with the reasons they were favored. Along with that, how you empty the fired cases matters with respect to preventing the gun from malfunctioning.

Shooting exercises included slow fire head shots, a dryfire/livefire exercise called Skip Loading, we also did a timed load and fire exercise that tied back to the Newhall discussion; how fast can you load 2 or 4 and get back to shooting vs load to capacity and continue shooting. Greg had a great shooting drill that showed quite well that you can really shoot quickly without much accuracy penalty. We had a simple Baseline Assessment for the Snub, giving a heuristic for personal performance going forward. We shot the Ohio Police Pistol Qualification and multiple versions of “Rolling Thunder”, he split class into relays, timing each separately. First shooter loads 1 then fires, then down the line, then 2, continuing until all 5 are fired. It is quite exciting once it gets rolling.

I was quite impressed with being able to hit all shots inside the scoring rings on a B8 center with my snub. I haven’t worked at that distance but the dryfire I’ve been doing has paid off. One surprising curiosity is that the point of impact of a single action shot can be different than the point of impact of a double action shot. My Double Action group was all in the scoring rings of the B8, mostly low. My Single Action group was all to the right (correct elevation but windage about 5 inches to the right). Discussion revealed that this is a known amongst true revolver experts.

I am very pleased to know I have the best information available on the gun I carry everyday, and my shooting skills are honed with it. It doesn’t get better than that. I’ll be taking more classes with Greg in the future.

Greg had an easy-going teaching style, I really enjoyed the class. He is coming back for knife and close combat training, I am not going to miss that.

The gear I used was;

Smith & Wesson 649 .357 Mag with Altamont Combat Grips and a Hi Viz front sight

PHLSTER City Special AIWB holster

Tuff Strip 8 rds strips (2 for $12)

5 Star Speedloader ($20)- https://5starfirearms.com/j2-357-38-speed-loader/

125gr Xtreme Bullets semi wadcutter, reloads

My training gun on the left, set up like my carry gun on the right. Hi Viz front sight and Altamont grips that let me get my pinky on it.

MAG Defensive Pistol AAR

In October, I had the opportunity to attend the newly formed Massad Ayoob Group Defensive Pistol class. The class was taught by David Maglio, the head of the MAG Instructor Program and hosted by Bill “The Godfather” Long.

David Maglio teaching the nuance of the Figure 7 Draw

The class is designed to take the lessons learned in MAG-20 Live Fire, such as The 5-point Checklist, The Exemplar Drill, Blind Swordsman, etc. and apply them to a variety of defensively relevant shooting challenges.

Day 1 began with a safety briefing, then discussing the reasoning behind how the drills will be performed.

The shooting portion of the class began with raw shooting skills. We started out with a slow fire tune up, then we moved on to shooting on a variety of cadences.

A particularly useful drill was on multiple targets changing pace in consideration of the target difficulty.

The change of pace shooting was particularly relevant to me as I was shooting a GSSF match the following weekend, and this is exactly the skillset needed to do well at the “Five to Glock” stage (5 targets at distances varying from 5 to 25 yards).

We worked on strong and weak hand only shooting, then we began an intense study of the draw. Exceptional detail was given to the breakdown of the draw steps, then the class practiced the draw without ammo. Once everyone had an opportunity to get the draw procedure correct, we began a live fire exercise to hone our draw to first shot skills.

I’ve spent 240+hrs and 15,000 rounds under David Maglio’s direct supervision, and it shows.

Day 1 ended with a qualification consisting of the skills practiced during the day.

Day 2 began shooting drills of varying target difficulty forcing the shooter to adjust the pace accordingly. We shot the qualification again.

Using the Rangemaster Casino Drill target, and at 7 yards instead of the typical 5 yards, we shot the target in varying orders according to the number presented, reloading as we went. This forces the shooter to make decisions while under the pressure to shoot for time. Then we shot it for score.

We shot a 3x5 target from concealment 5 yards, 5 rounds in 5 seconds. Quite often, this type of drill will be in the guise of a playing card, the joke here being that Private Joker from Full Metal Jacket was the best of all jokers.

Instead of a joker from a deck of cards, we have the best joker… Private Joker, from Full Metal Jacket

We had a series of reaction times that were documented per student. The value in this is to force people to consider improving.

We shot the qualification one last time. The round count was a touch under 500 rds.

I used my actual carry rig- a stock Glock 34 Gen 5 MOS with a Holosun SCS optic, a Surefire X300, a Dark Star Gear AIWB holster and a variety of mag pouches.

I was nursing a nagging injury to my strong hand, so I felt a touch off my top performance, but my scores showed as exceptional. To me, this highlighted that after 500 hours training in the Massad Ayoob Group system, performance under adversity is a very welcome outcome.

Barney Up; Rotating Carry Ammo

The ammo that you use for saving your life is sensitive to abuse, particularly in an autopistol. Overhandling will deactivate it. We had occasion to see that, in this case we see a host of defects on the cartridge, and we are not sure which instance of abuse deactivated it.

This heavily abused round failed to fire

There is some discussion about how many times is optimal for chambering a round. I’ve heard “one and done” meaning one time only. The great Tom Givens advises twice, then it goes into your practice ammo. Others say, when it shows signs of abuse. This is a decision that only the user can make, and only the user suffers the consequences of their decision.

Whatever decision is made, we have a problem; “How do I manage this?”, which is really what I’m writing this for.

For people who come to me for help with their firearms handling, I advise them to “Barney Up”.

Some may remember the Andy Griffith Show, where Deputy Barney Fife carried his one cartridge in his shirt pocket. This is where that name originates. We want to manage our one round, the one that is in the chamber of our autopistol, with a “Barney Mag”. This is a magazine that I “work from”, as opposed to a magazine that is filled to capacity and stays that way.

Let’s look at how this all works;

Remove the magazine, eject the live round

Remove the full to capacity magazine, eject the round in the chamber.

Remove the magazine and eject the round. Let the round hit the floor, you can try to catch it but once every few thousand times it will have an open chamber detonation… your dice to roll, I can only advise you.

OK, what are my options, now?

Now we have the situation that the internet cannot seem to manage, what do I do with the ejected round? I’ve heard it said “remove all 17 rounds from the live mag and put the ejected one at the bottom, then, refill the magazine. Do that every. single. day.” Forgive me but, that sounds insane. I’d like to see a video of someone doing that 30 days in a row.

Some would put the round directly into the chamber and drop the slide on the chambered round, when time to go hot. Pistolsmiths warn us that extractors are not intended to operate this way and damage can occur.

Some will chamber a round from the full magazine then top it back off with the ejected round, sometimes, on a rotation. This would take a level of awareness that I just don’t have enough caffeine in my system for, first thing in the morning.

If none of this is working… what am I supposed to do?

Ejected round in the cup, Barney round in the chamber, full to capacity magazine into the pistol

Barney Up!

What do I do, that seems to be successful? I put the ejected round in my Mickey Mouse coffee cup. Then I insert my Barney Mag, rack a live round into the chamber, and take the Barney Mag out. Then I insert my full to capacity magazine, give it a tug and holster.

Do that every day.

When the coffee cup has 17 rounds in it, and the Barney Mag is empty, you get to decide “Do I put the rounds in the cup back in the Barney Mag, or do I put them in my practice ammo?”

The full to capacity magazine is now the Barney Mag. I either fill the mag from the cup or I whip out a fresh box of Federal 124gr HST hollowpoints to fill the empty mag, which goes into service as the new full to capacity mag.

Another option?

A properly holstered firearm in a properly fitting holster in good condition is SAFE! Period. Otherwise, we could never carry them.

A properly holstered firearm in a properly fitting holster in good condition is SAFE! Who says so? Greg Morrison and Col. Jeff Cooper in the book The Modern Technique Of The Pistol

The industry standard in firearms training, like it or not, is the NRA. One of their 3 safety rules is “ALWAYS Keep The Gun Unloaded Until Ready To Use”, and you will never see me advise against the industry standard.

Now, if my operating procedure is “This firearm remains in a state of being ready to use” and I lock it in a safe fully loaded and holstered, ready to deploy at a moment’s notice, then I can avoid unloading it every time I remove it from my body.

It cannot be stressed enough, YOU WILL BE RESPONSIBLE if someone gets their hands on this loaded firearm and discharges it. I highly advise against this practice for all but the most highly trained of practitioners.

Guide to Online Gun Purchase

Guide to buying a gun online. With the recent panic buying and violence in society, gun retailers are dreadfully low on firearms. Selection is bad and prices seem to be high. I've had 4 of my students contact me for assistance in finding firearms in the last couple of weeks. At one point I was messaging 2 students at the same time on advice purchasing firearms online. It seemed like a good time for a blog post on the topic.

Can you REALLY buy a firearm online? Yes, but there is a background check.

First, know this… you WILL need a background check. There seems to be a popular canard that one can buy a firearm online without a background check. This is 100% false, you will need a background check in some capacity. It is critical that you not attempt to purchase a firearm for someone who cannot pass a background check, this is called a “Straw Sale” and is a felony, with penalties up to 10 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.

If you doubt your ability to pass a background check, or if you attract chaos, this is not for you. If you order and suddenly cannot accept delivery due to failing a background check, you could be on the hook for the full payment or a hefty restocking fee. I’ve never had a problem, myself. If there is any question, find form 4473 online and ensure that you can truthfully answer the questions. If any part of this process is unclear, then avoid it altogether.

You can get delayed on your background check, there appears to be no rhyme or reason to it, I've been delayed numerous times, talk to your FFL. Recently in my state, they began accepting the previously completed background check from your current Concealed Handgun Permit (provided you meet all of the requirements) as the background check.

The Process

Before anything, find an Federal Firearm Licensee (FFL). It is wise to generate a relationship with local people who have a passion for their business, they always seem to treat their customers well. My FFL is John Hanchey at FRC Range. I’ve spent many hours on the range with John and I know him to be top notch in everything he does. Talk to your FFL and let them know what you are planning, if they are not overflowing with help, you are in the wrong place. Specifically, find out what happens if you get your background check delayed or denied. Get your FFL’s email address and phone number, you will need it soon.

FFL transfers are included in my membership. Patronize the good places, they will take care of you.

Guide To Buying A Gun Online

Next, find the firearm you want to buy. Gunbroker is popular but you have to be careful of the terms. I would consider only paying with a credit card that has considerable consumer protections. Search the internet for exactly what you want, quite often you can find the UPC or other product code and search again by that. I always hunt for the best deal. ammoseek.com is pretty good.

Locate what you want. Read all of the conditions. If there is any question, do not purchase.

When you find a firearm you are interested in purchasing, read all of the conditions of the seller. You will have to honor any deal you make. If you buy a used firearm with a hidden/unknown problem, you own it. It is very much “let the buyer beware”. This process is not for everyone, that is for sure.

Make The Order

Finally, you make your order. Be sure to use a credit card with some consumer protection. There is no shortage of con-men looking to separate suckers from their money. Once you make your order, you will likely be given a tracking number, you will want to monitor that several times a day. Immediately contact your FFL by email and phone and have them send their information to the vendor. The vendor may or may not have the FFL on file already, there will be no problem with being overly proactive on this. More communication is better than less, you will not be bugging anyone.

Monitor the tracking number several times a day and once it shows delivered, immediately contact the FFL. The postal service has degenerated as of late, I have personally had the postal service cause problems, have false delivery notices, etc... despite being required to get a signature. Your FFL should be happy to assist in any way possible.

Stay on top of the tracking. Contact your FFL the instant it shows delivered

Guide To Buying A Gun Online

After processing, the FFL will have you come pick it up. You will have to fill out ATF Form 4473 and have a background check done. Answer the questions truthfully, it is against the law to falsify an official record. The FFL will have the latitude to deny you based upon observed behavior. Don’t act like an idiot or give them the impression you are attempting a “Straw Sale”. Looking at it from their point of view, the ATF could be testing them and they cannot allow even the perception of impropriety.

Answer truthfully. They will have to call in the background check.

After filling out form 4473, the FFL will have to contact the FBI for the background check. Be cool, it could take a while. You could get delayed, just play ball with whatever the policy is and things will work out (you DID speak with your FFL prior to ordering and talk about what happens on a delay, right?). If everything goes right, you will leave with your firearm. If you get denied, you'll have to fight it out with your vendor (you DID read all of the conditions of purchase, right?).

Wrapping Up

I estimate that I've purchased over a dozen firearms online, I've been delayed around 25% of the time. This is a tried and true process for most of the good people of the country who stay out of trouble. If you need advice on this topic, contact me. You will need to know what to do with it anyway, get some training.

https://www.frcbr.com/

Guide To Buying A Gun Online

MAG30 Review

I attended MAG30 for the 3rd time at Camp Villere in Slidell, LA. Hosted by Bill “The Godfather” Long from Gulf Coast Shooters.

Senior Staff Instructor David Maglio discussing the nuance of technique

The class is focused on the refinement of court defensible shooting technique introduced in the prerequisite MAG20 class. Senior Staff Instructor and head of the MAG Instructor Program, David Maglio, defines the class as “This is a PhD level class on how to shoot, a shooter development class. Tactics are taught in other classes.”

Shooting the Qualifier

The first day was a complete re-education in shooting the 60 round MAG Qualifier. All fundamentals were covered with safety and order religiously maintained. We also began laying the groundwork for the rapid trigger cycling needed later in the class, we fired about 800 rounds.

The second day started with a cold single speed qualifier, then one to make up for the previous day. I shot perfect 300 scores back to back. The second day is digging deep on the accuracy. Each of the 9 shooting positions (Weak and Strong Hand Only, Double Bill, Cover Crouch, High Kneeling, Low Kneeling, Weaver, Chapman, and Isosceles) were picked apart and every nuance explored.  Each shooter receives personal instruction and evaluation.

Then, we “shoot til’ you puke”. With 4 magazines of 6 rounds, we begin shooting. This time, we started with the 15 yard Weaver stance 24rds, to the 20 yds line for 24 rds, to the 25yd line for 24 rds, back to the qualifier distance for 24 more rounds. The idea being that after shooting further and further away, the original string should be much easier to clean… and it was. And so we went, working our way through each of the 9 positions of the MAG qualifier, shooting about 1200 rounds on day 2. We ended this section with Weak Hand Only (WHO) as fast as you can get reloaded and back on the line; at 4 yards, 7 yards, 10 yards, 15 yards, 20 yards, 25 yards then back to 4 yards, for a total of 168 rounds WHO.

When we got to 25 yds shooting WHO it was clear that we were being pushed beyond anything any of us thought was possible, then coached until that became reality. The instruction was more like a martial arts class in that anyone who did not perform was showered with instruction until they began performing.

This “shoot til’ you puke” approach is key in shooter development as it busts people out of bad habits and forces them to just do as instructed. Everyone was really starting to destroy the A zone. We shot the single speed qualifier again to round out the day.

The last day is about keeping accuracy while adding speed. We shot double speed for the first part of the day, and triple speed for the second part. The emphasis is on rapidly cycling the trigger while not losing the accuracy. The third day also has a “shoot til’ you puke” session, We had to holster with the slide back to let the guns cool off. We shot around 1100 rounds on day 3.

I have been on a maintenance routine of once a month shooting due to ammo expense and availability for over a year, and I saw a drop off in peak performance. These 3000 rounds under the watchful eye of David Maglio was just what I needed to get back in some serious form. I’ll be happy to get back to shooting twice a week and push the edge of envelope.

I recently switched to a red dot optic and was taking advantage of the MAG30 class to learn about my new gear. I made a critical error on the triple speed qualifier, I failed to do the “Blind Swordsman” confirmation on the Double Bill Drill. My sight was giving me a 45 degree oval on the dot and I made a nice little group in the -1 zone. This cost me in the overall. I came in 2nd behind Derek Overstreet by 4 points, who shot a perfect 300 on the triple speed qualifier.

Derek Overstreet shot an impressive perfect score on Triple Speed. With David Maglio

The proper application of the trigger cycle and the Stressfire Index is the secret to fast shooting, worrying about the reset has nothing to do with the speed we learned.

I’ve heard from some- “I don’t see the need for MAG30, it is just MAG20 sped up”. That is a bad assumption, because the additional training is how to keep the accuracy you built in the first two days, when you speed up on the third day.

In addition, like football camp, having a coach, David Maglio, to push you beyond what you think your limits are and drive you to succeed at a higher level than you thought possible has an immeasurable impact. I never thought I could hit WHO at 25 yds, and when I went back to the 4 yd line, burning it down as fast as I could pull the trigger was awesome.

There is a reason this is my 3rd time through MAG30, and I’ll be attending again. I realized a while back that I’d made more progress in the 3000 rounds of MAG30 than all of the 35,000 rounds I shot in the previous year. If you are serious about shooting, you NEED to take this class.

For my gear, I shot my carry gun, a stock Glock G34 MOS with a Holosun 507C red dot optic and a C&H mounting plate. My optic was mounted to C&H spec with purple threadlocker. The Holster was Tenicor Velo4, Safariland, Bladetech and JM Custom Kydex mag pouches. My clothing was my standard street clothing, polo shirt and jeans. I chose to add an additional safety to the Glock, the Striker Control Device from Tau Dev Group (now produced by Langdon Tactical).

Two of us were on our third trip through MAG30, and another on his second.

Lessons learned

Hydration is an ever present issue in South Louisiana. We had beautiful cloudless skies with highs in the mid 80’s. MAG30 is a no nonsense shoot fest, we were steady rolling… fill mags, tape, and back to the line. We were in that sun for 10 hours a day, cool down periods were given when the shooters were dragging but people were running out of water. My 2 cases of water sat in a hot car all day and got too hot to be of any use. The local stop-and-rob was out of ice so I bought a $35 case of cold water, dirty rats charged me per bottle. I’ll plan better next time.

Don’t put garbage in your gun. The sand was a fine powder, failing to wipe the magazines off after a trip through the sand caused my stock Glock to begin to gum up. The Lucas Red and Tacky that I use on the slide rails and barrel turned into a sludge with the sand. The gun never failed but the slide was visibly cycling slower. I detail stripped, cleaned, lubed and inspected for day two. Wiping off the magazines for the rest of the class kept the sand out of the gun. This is critical. I saw other people have their guns go down. Stock Glocks seem to be the king of reliability. Some SIGs were choking. The Canik seemed to be ok.

Double action guns are a challenge. We had two people fail to meet the incredibly high standard of 90% on each of the 7 qualifiers, including the double and triple speed. Both of those shooters chose double action SIGs. It can be done, but it takes a level of skill to do it under pressure. Choose wisely.

Positive attitude. The class began a week before with educational materials emailed out. Included in those was information on mental management, dealing with stress and positive attitude. Those who showed negative reinforcement also showed a marked decline from peak performance. It pays to do the homework.

Previous MAG30 graduate, Mike Teifer, came out as a safety officer. We all appreciated his positive attitude and help.

Mike Teifer, the safety officer. With David Maglio

Only 10% of Local Violent Crime Makes the News

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in their August 2012 Victimizations Not Reported to the Police, 2006-2010 (NCJ Number; 238536) report, they indicated that 52% of violent victimizations go unreported.

The fact is, there isn’t much data on crime at all, and what we have is often not up to the standards that one could consider timely/relevant. For instance, internet searches for numbers in my local area turns up very little recent relevant data. The best I can find is from the City of Baton Rouge for the year of 2017.

Violent Crimes In Baton Rouge, 2017 (City of Baton Rouge)

This is a total of 2,316 reported incidences of violent crime in 2017. Including the 52% that are unreported, this turns the 2,316 violent crimes into a more realistic 4,825 violent crimes in 2017, which is 13 every day in our local area.

Looking at the local news, WAFB reported 9 local violent crimes in the last 7 days while WBRZ reported 5 local violent crimes in the last 7 days.  13 violent crimes per day for 7 days is 91. The news appears to report around 10% of the actual violent crime here locally, at best.

It appears to be common for people to look to their news and make assumptions about their relative safety. The first, best thing that I can do is to warn you of unknown problems. Maybe you can take steps to avoid them.

Stay safe, I hope to see you in class.

http://city.brla.gov/dept/brpd/csr/default.asp

https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/vnrp0610.pdf

Dirty Doug’s Earn A Yard Drill

I needed a drill to teach myself accuracy and speed, with strict accountability. It started as Frank Garcia’s Dot Drill and I use that target from pistol-training.com - http://pistol-training.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/6x2in-circles.pdf but any 2”dot will do.

The Dot Drill is intended to be 6 shots in or on the dot at 7 yards in 5 seconds from the draw, shot clean 6 times in a row on the same page. That is considered by Ben Stoeger to be Grand Master level skill. I’ve shot that drill hundreds (maybe thousands) of times and have been millimeters away dozens of times, but never perfect.

Dot Drill Practice 6 shots @ 7 yds in <5 seconds. So close, perfect doubles actually do happen with regularity

A common training method is to try it at 3 or 5 yards and work up. As I used this drill to sharpen my skills it evolved into what I trained myself with and now what I teach. By request, my students asked for the drill.

The plus side of my drill is that it is scalable. I can take someone who has never held a firearm before and put the target a foot off the muzzle (if needed) or I can put it out at 15 yards for experts. I have 2 levels, Slow Fire and Rapid Fire.

NRA Instructor Mike Tiefer showing how it is done

Dirty Doug’s Earn A Yard Drill

Level 1- Slow Fire

In Slow Fire, shooters work on fundamentals, especially trigger pull and grip, there is no time limit (though we try to keep in mind that rapid application is the ultimate goal). The idea is, if you cannot do it slow, you will not do it quickly. The start distance is 3 yards, but for shooters who are seriously struggling in dry fire (which we always do before shooting bullets) I would not hesitate to bring it closer. With 6 shots per dot, shooters fire single shots from low ready, any shot not in or on the dot needs to be scrutinized. Questions to answer are;

1. Did you wobble your sight picture down or was it something else?

   1. If you wobbled, the fire your next shot.

      1. Don’t get negative, let it go.

2. Did you feel a pre-ignition push/flinch/jump/startle?

   1. This will go away with experience, fire your next shot.

      1. Don’t get negative, let it go.

3. What did the sight picture look like?

   1. Do you need to adjust where you are holding your sight picture?

4. If none of the above, where did the shot go?

   1. High/low?

      1. Refer to my grip notes.

   2. Did it go left or right?

      1. Refer to my trigger control notes.

   3. Was it a bit of both?

      1. Likely grip but it could be a compound error involving both grip and trigger.

5. How far out did it go?

   1. Gross errors (far out) need serious introspection.

   2. Minor errors (barely out) should be noted but not obsessed over.

Once the shooter can get all shots in or on the dot, they “Earn A Yard”. If it was a one hole group go to 5 yards. Keep working out to 7 yards or 4 pages (144 shots). Once shooters can shoot it clean at 7 yards, go to level 2.

*** Advanced application is to keep earning yards out to 15 yards or add in drawing from the holster.

NRA Instructor Marlyn Parelius breaking in a brand new G48

Level 2- Rapid fire

For rapid fire, the goal is to do everything from Level 1 but adding in a new thing, to get the gun to “return” so that follow up shots can be made quickly. Getting the gun to return is a function of improving the shooter’s connection to the gun combined with improving the shooter’s connection to the Earth.

With 6 shots per dot, from low ready, fire at a pace of around .2 or .25 splits. The start distance is 3 yards, but I would not hesitate to bring it closer until the shooter can shoot it clean.

Once the shooter can get all shots in or on the dot, they “Earn A Yard”. 7 yards clean is the goal.

*** Advanced application is working from the holster and/ or going past 7 yards

Senior Instructor/ Mentor- Bill "The Godfather" Long Went to Level 2 first try.

"The Godfather" also had me start issuing certificates for those who make it to Level 2, of course, he earned the first one.

Dirty Doug’s Earn A Yard Drill

Welcome

Welcome to Defensive Citizen LLC!

My name is Douglas Wylie. I started martial arts training in 1995. In 2008, I switched from Japanese martial arts to the American martial art of the defensive firearm. I’m a non-military, non-law enforcement, private citizen who spent $20,000 and 300,000 rounds learning the ways of defensive citizenry. I continue my education as I hope you will continue yours.

Over 550+ hours of formal training with the best in the world, I became acutely aware that defense of one’s self and family is so much more than just shooting. The State of Louisiana requires 9 hours of in-person training for their Concealed Carry Permit, but there is so much more information for me to pass on than will fit in a basic class. My hope is that, through this blog and videos, I can continue to inform the good people of the area.

Contact me if you have any questions.