Defensive/Tactical Pistol Training Courses

[perdurabo93]

Ive been considering taking a Defensive/Tactical Pistol course for quite some time and I'm doing my best to do my homework on what would be the best option for me. What I'm looking for a good defensive pistol course. I shoot pretty well but I feel I need more practically minded applied training to maximize that skill. What I don't need a beginners class on concealed carry pistol... I want solid tactical handgun training for full size high capacity sidearms.

In the past, I was considering taking the 3-day "Tactical Handgun" from Thunder Ranch since I already live in Central Texas, but now that Thunder Ranch has moved to Oregon, its a lot less convenient and a lot more expensive to take a course there... however Ive heard very very good things about Clint Smith and his teaching style. Taking a class from Clint would be ideal but I don't want to have to book a whole year in advance or pay an inflated price for it.

Another option would be the Gunsite 5-day "250 Defensive Pistol" course. A little closer to me than Oregon, but still pretty crazy expensive. I'm not sure what kind of reputation Gunsite has in these post-Jeff Cooper days but I imagine its nowhere near the quality it used to be... or is it?

Then theres Front Sight academy. Ive heard mixed reviews about this place. Many say they have good instruction and like the 4-day Defensive Pistol class, but I hear the Front Sight people try very hard to upsell you into buying property in their "community" or becoming a dues paying member or some such drink-the-koolaid wackiness.

Ive tried to find more local instruction and I found a place called Tac Pro up near Dallas that offers a relatively inexpensive 3-day Primary Defensive Handgun course. The course description is very thorough and looks quite good but their class schedule for 2007 is not published. These folks are also a total unknown to me and I dont know anyone who has taken a course from them.

What other sorts of considerations should I take into account for a defensive pistol course? If anyone has had any experience, suggestions or recommendations for the above training institutions, or knows of other good training options, I would be very interested in anything you have to offer.

 

[GEM]

Check out www.krtraining.com near Austin. Price is right and closer to you.

 

[Bartholomew Roberts]

perduba03, I've taken several courses at Tac-Pro Shooting Center (Primary Pistol, Intermediate Pistol, Primary Carbine) and would enthusiastically recommend them. The primary pistol course was so good I plan to take it again as just a basic skills refresher.

I was just talking with a friend I train with today who had won an Oklahoma state IDPA shoot and was pretty confident he knew his way around a pistol. He was talking about how much he learned from the class there.

 

[Augustus Andras]

I don't know if Houston would be an option or not, but Brian Hoffner seems to have a good reputation locally.

http://www.hoffners.com/course.htm

 

[BullfrogKen]

Same advice I offered in a concurrent I'll post here:


Call and ask if a class you have interest in is right for you.

Our Study Group discussed a year or two ago how to evaluate a class and its instructors. The best class is the one you are in right now. Everyone has slightly different cirriculum and techniques, but most will have a legal component, with some mixture of classroom to practical application on techniques.

I'd steer away from anyone that claimed to offer "the secret", those that center around a specific gun platform, and those that market heavily towards the law enforcement and military customers.

Other than that, nearly any training is better none. I don't believe there is any such thing as "the best", certainly when it comes to "tactical training". Enroll in one, and learn from it. Sometime in the future take another from someone else, and so on. Become well rounded. There are no "the best". There is good, and there is better, and mixed in are a few that I could say are "lacking".

 

[mdao]

TacPro has posted their 2007 class schedule. Primary Defensive Pistol will run from Feb 23-25 and again in June.

/I'll likely be there in Feb for my first training class.

 

[Specialized]

I've trained under several of the schools/individuals, and the most sensible, real-world training I've found from a school, especially for the price, is the Tactical Defense Institute (TDI) in West Union, OH. Their instructors are top-notch, their professionalism unparalleled, and they have a beautiful facility in which to conduct their courses. I learned more practical, go-home-alive techniques and considerations there than anywhere else I've trained. They're great with the basics, too, but by the time I went there I already had the basics drilled into me. Their website is http://www.tdiohio.com . Good luck in your search!

 

[tellner]

If you decide to come out to the Upper Left Corner for Thunder Ranch it's only a hop and a skip to Chehalis where you can get superb instruction at the Firearms Academy of Seattle. No, it's not in Seattle. It's about an hour and change North of Portland. Great facility. Wonderful teachers. Top-flight classes.

 

[chuck burnett]

Many say they have good instruction and like the 4-day Defensive Pistol class, but I hear the Front Sight people try very hard to upsell you into buying property in their "community" or becoming a dues paying member or some such drink-the-koolaid wackiness.

The membership offer is an optional lecture during lunch on day two. Attend or not, as you choose.

More than offset by the fact that the existing members have stacks of "first visit" certificates that are selling for next to nothing.

Score a cert and get four days of quality training for less than the cost of the ammo you'll shoot.

Chuck

 

[Robert Hairless]

I'll add to the good advice already given here a strong recommendation for Massad Ayoob's LFI I, especially "The Judicious Use of Deadly Force."

 

[FIREARMZ]

Paul Howe at http://www.combatshootingandtactics.com/

 

[flip180]

Here's another vote for Tac-Pro.

I've just completed my Advanced Defensive Pistol class there earlier this month. I'm also going to sign up for their Primary Carbine Operator class in march. After that will be another Advanced Pistol class and then thier Primary Shotgun class if it is offered later this year. Their pistol classes are very good and Bill as an instructor is incredibly competent. He takes you from the ground level and teaches you the fundamentals to progress up the ladder as a shooter. His classes are also designed to prepare you for the next which it is hard to stop at one. He taught me in three days what took me countless trips to the range and tons of ammo to try to figure out on my own. He, his wife and his staff are not only very professional but also very friendly and make you feel comfortable and welcomed while being there.

Flip.

 

[kengrubb]

I second Todd in naming FAS. In June, Marty is doing a 5 day class--consisting of what used to be called FAS-2, FAS-3 and FAS-4. At $675, looks like it's about half the price of a Gunsite 250 class.

http://www.firearmsacademy.com/5-dyHdgn.htm

 

[tanksoldier]

I'm thinking of trying Front Sight just because one of those first-timer certs is all I can afford.