Who was your biggest influence in the firearms/shooting world?

[DustyGmt]

My shooting instructor. I owe him alot for my training. I was lucky when he found me a few years ago. Funny story, when I met him we pulled in next to each other at the range; both driving H2s. When I got out, he said "Nice truck". I said thanks, and walked to my bench. I'm shooting for about 10 minutes, making all the usual noob mistakes. All of the sudden he kicks my heel and tells me to move my heel to the right. "I'm thinking "Who the ****is this guy? Then he turned my shoulders, pushed in my left elbow, made me bring the gun up to my head (Not head down to the gun), and said "Shoot". So by now after 3 words and alot of nudging, I'm REALLY thinking "Who the **** is this guy"?!?!

I shot, and the first thing I thought is "WHO THE ****IS THIS GUY??!!?!?!!? Bulls eyes.

Turns out he had years of experience in instructing at Front Sight, over seas etc..

6 or 7 classes later, we're pretty good friends. He helps people for free all over the place at the range too. The culture needs guys like him.

That's a good guy right there. If he'd said "hey, can I give you a couple pointers" you might not have liked the cut of his jib and passed up the good advice and said no thanks. There are so many people who can't learn because of pride or just simply thinking they are ready to teach others what they don't even know. It's good to keep an open mind....

I am not a golfer and have only been a couple few times, but my wife's sister's husband started to give me pointers and my game immediately improved even though I didn't really ask for the advice...... I think some people are competing against themselves when they seem incapable of taking outside input.....

 

[Coyote3855]

My Dad taught me to shoot his Remington .22. I was five years old. My best memories of him are of hunting and fishing trips we made over some 50 years. He owned only a few firearms. The Remington, Colt Woodsman, Remington pump shotgun, S&W M28, sporterized M1917, and two Winchesters in .25-35. He spurred my interest in firearms and shooting. One of my mentors was a WWII vet who fought in Italy. I have always been interested in handguns and that continues today.

 

[Necessary_Nutrient]

the Bushmaster 2002 catalog is what really started me down the road. Glad that spirit lives on at Windham Weaponry.

 

[IJ1981]

My fine co worker, Orville "Butch" Wilson, a great Kentucky gentleman from Bardstown , who set me right at a young age, what the 2nd Amendment was all about.

Bless you, Butch!

 

[Thomasss]

Robert Stack was an aerial gunnery Trainer.

My uncle was aware that Clark Gable was also a bomber during WW II. Now it's interesting that I Googled Clark Gable and got some very different information on him that what my uncle told me. I was told that Gable entered WW II right after his wife died and Google confirms that, however, that were it ends. My uncle told me Gable entered the war as a private and flew B-17s as a bombardier in a different bomber group. Google says he was a belly gunner. I heard he flew only two missions when the brass found out who he was and what he was doing. About the same time Hitler put a price of his head to capture him alive since Gable was Hitler's favorite movie star.
Gable was pulled out active duty ASAP after only 2 missions and Google says 5. Gable was then promoted to a Major and sent back to the states to sell War Bonds. Google says he made at least one promotional movie in England about belly gunners before going home.

 

[peeplwtchr]

That's a good guy right there. If he'd said "hey, can I give you a couple pointers" you might not have liked the cut of his jib and passed up the good advice and said no thanks. There are so many people who can't learn because of pride or just simply thinking they are ready to teach others what they don't even know. It's good to keep an open mind....

I am not a golfer and have only been a couple few times, but my wife's sister's husband started to give me pointers and my game immediately improved even though I didn't really ask for the advice...... I think some people are competing against themselves when they seem incapable of taking outside input.....

You're 100% correct. He says that his female students are almost always the fastest learning and most improved shooters. They don't have the guy defense mechanisms to act like they already know everything. When I offer tips at the range, I usually only offer them to females, because I know they'll listen. Indid the same thing he did for me for a girl last weekend who was missing a 12 inch target at 7 yds. Next shots she had a 3 inch group, with a bad gun.

 

[DustyGmt]

You're 100% correct. He says that his female students are almost always the fastest learning and most improved shooters. They don't have the guy defense mechanisms to act like they already know everything. When I offer tips at the range, I usually only offer them to females, because I know they'll listen. Indid the same thing he did for me for a girl last weekend who was missing a 12 inch target at 7 yds. Next shots she had a 3 inch group, with a bad gun.

When I want somebody, like say an older gentleman I work with (ETA: Just re-read this post and that particular sentence didnt come out the way it might have sounded ), or other proud know it alls, I employ a technique where I come up with a better way of doing something or I want them to do something differently, I'll make them think it was their idea or that they in fact showed me, when they didn't. It actually works most of the time, proud men can't take advice and there is some sort of oppositional defiance gene that makes them incapable of changing their ways or taking advice. Some people need to be tricked into doing better.

 

[IWAC]

My father was a trap shooter therefore I became a trap shooter. I grew up at sportsmans clubs.

Jack O'Connor and Skeeter Skelton.

 

[Stefan A]

Pretty much on my own. I started when there was a home invasion in my rural neighborhood and I decided I needed a gun. Then I became more politically aware and the hobby grew. If I had to point to a person/people, I guess it would have to be some of the usual suspects on YouTube.

 

[JWF III]

My dad was a gun junkie and there’s no doubt he passed his addiction on to me.

ditto. My father is fully to blame for my affliction.

Wyman

 

[W.E.G.]

Criminals.

I can't fist-fight them when they come in groups.

So I own guns.

I like hunting and target shooting too. But I'm not sure I would care much about guns if it weren't for criminals.

Knives sometimes too...

 

[JERRY]

Rick Miller
Leroy Thompson

 

[Spats McGee]

Dad. He was a duck hunter. I never really caught the duck hunting bug, but he bought me just about all of my "first guns." First shotgun, first .22, first pistol, etc. We also dove hunted, but duck hunting always remained his biggest interest. At some point, my own interests in guns took over, and I branched out into areas that he was never really interested in, like target shooting, or figuring out what kind of ammo a gun likes. In his mind, if it was the right chambering, you were 95% of the way home on an ammo decision. The other 5% just consisted of "what size shot do I need?"

 

[Mike OTDP]

My father was an influence, but so were two of his North-South Skirmish Association teammates. One, John Anderson, was on the first U.S. International Muzzle-Loading Team that shot in 1976. He came home with stories about traveling to distant, exotic lands; meeting exciting, unusual people; and thrashing them on the range. (Which the U.S. team did that year)

A 13-year-old me decided that I wanted in on that action. 20 years later, I was shooting for the USA. 22 years after that, I finally closed the deal with a World Championship.

 

[4570Tom]

I had 3 main influences for shooting.

First was my Uncle Dave, who took me and my cousins .22 shooting one day. Only time, but the hook was set.

Second was my sister’s husband Larry who was an ex-Army Ranger. He liked firearms but was more into hunting overall, and firearms were more or less tools to get the job done. Still, there was overlap between the two and he encouraged my growth in both.

Third was my best friend Gary. He was also a hunter, but had greater interest in firearms of all kinds. We talked guns, shot guns, went hunting, and still do to this day even though he moved out west a number of years ago.

Rounding things out, in the earlier pre-internet years I hit the gun rags hard, especially Guns and Ammo, Shooting Times, Rifle, and Handloader. These days I am far more likely to read the various online forums such as this one.