Passed My CWP Requirements

[pitbulllady]

Due to escalating crime and home invasions in our area, many of them targeting women, I made the decision awhile back to apply for a Concealed Weapons Permit(CWP). In South Carolina, it is legal for permit holders to carry concealed handguns on their person and inside their vehicle in many non-government locations for personal protection and defense of others, and 17 other states have the same law, meaning that a SC permit is valid in those states, too. To get a permit, you have to pass a criminal background check and certify that you are not mentally ill, take and pass a rigorous 8-hour training class with an instructor certified by both the State Law Enforcement Division(SLED) and the NRA(who actually have tougher standards than the state), which includes a written test, and then pass a handgun shooting skills test on a shooting range. I took my training and tests yesterday, under the instruction of none other than Col. James E. Braddock, the real-life hero of the Missing In Action movie series, in which he was portrayed by Chuck Norris. He's a great guy, very funny and entertaining as well as informative. I passed both the written and shooting skills test with perfect scores of 100, and 95% of my shot groups were "kill shots", in spite of this being the first time I'd used particular handgun, a little Taurus PT22 semi-automatic(cheap to shoot, IF you can still find high-quality .22 Long Rifle ammo, that is). I'm used to shooting long guns, shotguns and rifles, but handguns are still fairly new to me and they are a whole different ballgame to aim, handle and maintain. I had a ball, though, out at the shooting range-great way to let off stress! I plan on taking a women's firearms and self-defense class he's going to teach next month, as well, which he's actually offering through the school district free of charge.

Oh, here's my little tack-driver:


Yeah, it's purple with scales...how could I NOT buy this? It's definitely no toy, though. I also have a Taurus M85 series .38 Special revolver that will probably be my main concealed-carry self-defense weapon once I receive my permit from SLED.

pitbulllady

[mintygreen]

Cool gun, PBL. I like how it looks.

One of my friends in the US carries concealed also.

[RandallBoggs]

I'm afraid to ask what your "head-shot" count was on those tests given that 95% 0_0

[pitbulllady]

Jan 28, 2013 19:29:06 GMT -5 RandallBoggs said:

I'm afraid to ask what your "head-shot" count was on those tests given that 95% 0_0

Actually, none. Shooting proficiency tests grade you on the number of shots placed in the center of the chest, where the heart and aorta are located. Yeah, I know that more and more criminals are using body armor these days, but leave their heads unprotected, but that's how the tests are still scored. I had three shots placed in the upper left shoulder, which still would have taken out a brachial artery, and one in the lower abdomen, but the rest were clustered right where they were supposed to have been and none missed the target. The gun itself is not even recommended for shooting from the range at which our last rounds had to be fired, 20 yards, and a lot of shooters online complain about its lack of accuracy, but I didn't find that to be a problem. My .38 has much better front sights on it, with a bright orange dot to sight from, but even range(practice) ammo for that caliber is pretty steep in price, so the .22 is still the cheapest to shoot. I'm just not wanting to depend on a .22 in a life or death situation that I plan on walking away from.

pitbulllady