https://townhall.com/tipsheet/...-gun-owners-n2596002

According to preliminary results from a 2021 National Firearms Survey, 7.5 million Americans became new gun owners between January 2019 and April 2021

The National Firearms Survey polled more than 19,000 adults. It is one of the largest nationally representative, population-based surveys about gun purchasing ever conducted

the survey found that new gun buyers were more racially diverse than existing owners who bought more. Among new gun buyers, 55% were white, 21% were Black and 19% were Hispanic.

Nearly half of the new gun owners in the 2019-2021 period analyzed by Deborah Azrael of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Matthew Miller of Northeastern University were women — roughly 3.5 million compared to approximately 4 million men.

Women pointed to personal reasons, like having a fighting chance in the face of sexual assault and domestic violence, and to concerns about safety amid calls to defund the police and last summer's violent riots.

I don't care about the race of first-time gun owners. I care that they are first-time gun owners, with many of them being quite young.

I've been swept twice with loaded pistols at the range in the past few weeks. I see kids with handguns. Yes, to me, if you're 21 or so, you're a kid. Fatherless households are rampant in our "enlighted society" and these kids have not been exposed to the safe handling of firearms at a young age. They know about firearms only what they see in movies or TV, or in video games.

My wife is not allowed on the range right now and I try to go at times when the range is slow. Somebody's going to get shot because of carelessness and ignorance and it's not going to be me or my wife.

Funny thing is those "preliminary results" are based on a PowerPoint presentation previewing the researchers' survey findings. First page of the PP says, "The material presented is preliminary and not for citation or attribution."

That of course didn't stop scores of media outlets from citing their preliminary results.

https://assets.joycefdn.org/co...ebinar-June-2021.pdf

I would like to read more of their findings and survey methodology when it's published.

quote:

Originally posted by sdy:
Nearly half of the new gun owners in the 2019-2021 period analyzed by Deborah Azrael of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Matthew Miller of Northeastern University were women — roughly 3.5 million compared to approximately 4 million men.

Women pointed to personal reasons, like having a fighting chance in the face of sexual assault and domestic violence, and to concerns about safety amid calls to defund the police and last summer's violent riots.

Yep, now break down the number of new women gun owners into those who voted for Joe Biden and those that didn't. According to reports, urban women are one of the biggest constituents for the Dem's, the group trying to walk all over 2A rights.

I'm all for women owning guns to protect themselves and their families, but these same women apparently are promoting the environment that seeks to put them in harms way which seems a bit delusional to put it mildly.

Para's experiences at his range is why I go to the range only in the middle of the day in the middle of the week. In the two times I've gone to the range in the last couple weeks there's been only one or two other shooters, and there's always been an RSO right there.

I'm amazed there are not more gun "accidents" or whatever you want to call them, when I see people handle guns or talk about situations where they would deploy a weapon.
Many are long time gun owners that you would expect to know better too.

I go to the range twice a week, but only one of them is a handgun/rifle range. When I go there, I go with a number of members of my "squad" usually around 7 or 8 of us.

There are at least 2 watching everyone and everything at all times and all of us have concealed handguns on us while we're there.

The other range I go to each week is a shotgun range but even there I have at least 1 person with a concealed handgun watching everything at all times plus I have a concealed handgun while shooting a shotgun.

Before I retired I was a Law Enforcement firearms instructor. I worked for a large Armored transport Co. and trained the employees in the midwest at 4 branches.
I never looked forward to range time. Too many idiots in my classes. Most were minorities.
I would always give a rant the first day of training about Democrats (which most were)wanting to buy and carry guns but then letting the people they enthusiastically voted for, do all they could to abolish firearms in our country.
I'm a IL. State Police certified CCW instructor. I finally stopped teaching CCW (16 hrs in IL) because I could not stand the hypocrisy of teaching these DIM Dem's.
Some people have no business around firearms.

If instruction worked for everyone, there wouldn't be a single traffic accident ever.

So with a lot of new owners, there are probably going to be a lot of NDs. (I don't believe in AD's)

Last time I went to the range (about 8 mos ago) RSOs were everywhere, I think due in large part to clueless first-time gun owners, that were also legion. The RSOs were very helpful with their safety advice, helping both the noobs and their potential ND victims.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
I don't care about the race of first-time gun owners. I care that they are first-time gun owners, with many of them being quite young.

I've been swept twice with loaded pistols at the range in the past few weeks. I see kids with handguns. Yes, to me, if you're 21 or so, you're a kid. Fatherless households are rampant in our "enlighted society" and these kids have not been exposed to the safe handling of firearms at a young age. They know about firearms only what they see in movies or TV, or in video games.

My wife is not allowed on the range right now and I try to go at times when the range is slow. Somebody's going to get shot because of carelessness and ignorance and it's not going to be me or my wife.

quote:

Originally posted by synthplayer:
California has a law - you have to take a "handgun safety" course before you can purchase a handgun. It costs $25.00 and you get a little card which is good for one year. I don't know if it does any good - but one of the questions has to do with sweeping people. Also, keeping your finger out of the trigger guard until you're actually going to pull the trigger.

It’s just a written test.

You don’t have to take a class.

It’s good for 5 years and you have to have one that is current to purchase a gun.

Yes, the test is $25.

quote:

Originally posted by PR64:

quote:

Originally posted by synthplayer:
California has a law - you have to take a "handgun safety" course before you can purchase a handgun. It costs $25.00 and you get a little card which is good for one year. I don't know if it does any good - but one of the questions has to do with sweeping people. Also, keeping your finger out of the trigger guard until you're actually going to pull the trigger.

It’s just a written test.

You don’t have to take a class.

It’s good for 5 years and you have to have one that is current to purchase a gun.

Yes, the test is $25.

You can skip the HSC (FSC now I think as they require the same for long guns now) if you get the paperwork reduction card, also known as an LTC or license to carry a concealed handgun.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
these kids have not been exposed to the safe handling of firearms at a young age. They know about firearms only what they see in movies or TV, or in video games.

Exactly why my kids have been informed any time they've been curious/inquisitive when I'm packing up for the range. And that started when the oldest (now 10) was about 4 or 5.

They've been taught proper handling & checking for a loaded chamber.

They have a Cricket 22lr, just haven't had the time to get them to the range to try it, and some/most won't allow them on the firing line.

quote:

Originally posted by slosig:

quote:

Originally posted by PR64:
[QUOTE]Originally posted by synthplayer:


Yes, the test is $25.

You can skip the HSC (FSC now I think as they require the same for long guns now) if you get the paperwork reduction card, also known as an LTC or license to carry a concealed handgun.

I live in Alameda County and can not get a LTC ….

You can thank Oakland for that.

I was at a local indoor range not long ago… mom and dad had their daughter with them, all using the same lane. Daughter looked to be 11-14yo. She was wearing body armor. That’s one I’d never seen.

These days, that's not a bad idea.

You know, I couldn’t make my mind up on the matter. Crazy helicopter parents or simply realizing they brought their daughter where strangers were firing guns.. I suppose you’re right though.

Per the survey, in most cases (81.9%) the gun is not fired.

I guess I need to be re-trained.

I was a Small Arms Instructor while in the CG. I’ve been swept so many times…eventually another instructor turned me on to the sharpie marker….first time someone does something stupid and against the safety rules they get a black mark on the back of the firing hand….if it happens again they now have a large X on their hand and they get to go home for the day.

I always wore my body armor. When I became a cop, range day was a day of fear. I always wore my body armor then too. One of the people who routinely did unsafe stuff asked why I had it on. I told her, because peopl like you keep pointing guns at me…..the sgt made me go stand by myself after that.

At my range they have 8 pistol bays(outside with berms on three sides) I can get one of those almost any day of the week and then I don’t have to stand on the “pistol line” where you see holes in the overhead and holes in the benches.

quote:

Originally posted by MikeinNC:

At my range they have 8 pistol bays(outside with berms on three sides) I can get one of those almost any day of the week and then I don’t have to stand on the “pistol line” where you see holes in the overhead and holes in the benches.

The club that I belong to, just a bit north of Orlando, is like yours -- 5 pistol bays, each enclosed on three sides.

My wife asked why we go there, about 35 minutes from home, when there is a gun store with an indoor range much closer to where we live. I started listing all of the dangerous things that I've been exposed to on the "pistol line" at the indoor range; I did not get halfway through the list and she expressed shock at the things I told her. We continue to go to the outdoor club where we feel much safer in a pistol bay.

Something else that helps, besides the physical layout, is that this is a members-only club. There are no "walk-in" shooters who pay to use the range. Each probationary member receives a safety briefing, and then is required to shoot on three different days, under the observation of an RSO who observes safety habits, before becoming a regular (non-probationary) member. Non-members must be hosted by, and accompanied by, a member, who is held responsible for his / her guest's safe practices.