Shoot Smart tactical AR 15 class?

[Downs]

I'm going today to hit thei LVL 1 then tomorrow for their LVL 2 I'll report each night when I'm done.


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[KBScobravert]

I'm going today to hit thei LVL 1 then tomorrow for their LVL 2 I'll report each night when I'm done.


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I might be there too.

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[hrt4me]

So are there any amateur 3gun competitions around the DFW area? Or are there any amateur rifle courses non-vets can take? I know how to handle my weapon. I can clear a jam, tactical reload, standard reload and have a good shooting stance. Other than that I'd just like to learn.

there are local matches practically every weekend

[KBScobravert]

Downs running the last drill. Three targets, 2 mags of 15rds each (1,2,3,4,5 mag change 1,2,3,4,5)

[Downs]

cobravert running the same drill



I'm uploading Jewmadbro's

[motoman]

I'm going today to hit thei LVL 1 then tomorrow for their LVL 2 I'll report each night when I'm done.


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What are your thoughts on the class?

[Downs]

http://www.shootsmarttx.com/

http://www.fortworthfirearmstraining.com/ar-15/

This will be a running AAR of the Shoot Smart Texas (north west Fort Worth by Alliance airport and Cabela's) AR 15 classes. I will be taking all 3 levels of their training for the rifle (and probably the night shoot also) and report back on how I felt the course was ran and the quality of the training.

Level 1- 2 July 2012 run time was from 1830 to about 2200. :words:

Level 1 is setup for shooters with little to no experience with the AR15 platform. The first part of the class is classroom time and takes about an hour to get though. Here they cover the most basic stuff with the AR platform. Starting with the nomenclature of various parts of the rifle, moving on to disassembly, reassembly, and lube points. From there they move on to discuss the various type of sights that are in use, irons, scopes, red dots, and holo sights as well as various sling setups and how they work, and proper sight alignment, trigger control ,ect.

From there they move onto performing reloads and general manual of arms with the platform. They split the class into two groups and have them perform reload drills and trigger manipulations explaining trigger reset and trigger control, then they go over malfunctions and how to clear them.

I did feel that there were some things that could have been practiced more and clarified a bit more (mainly in weapons manipulations/reloads/and malf. clearing) but we're dealing with a 3ish hour time frame to get everyone trained to a basic level and get some range time in before time runs out.

Out on the range the drills were simple enough that the guys who were just starting out but people who had been shooting for a bit such as myself and a few others weren't bored with the class. We made good use of the 100 rounds you need for this course (bring a little extra just in case) and performed some good drills with good feedback from the two instructors there. Most of the drills seemed to be focused on getting you used to handling the weapon in a way that most people aren't used to handling them (i.e. outside of the square range environment) and also getting them used to getting the weapon reloaded and back in the fight or if you had one clearing a malf.

This is a short range course. The max range on the indoor range is 25 meters/yards I think. It seems as though they focus on short range self defense distances that most civilians are likely to encounter but we'll see how levels 2 and 3 play out.

My final thoughts on the lvl 1 course- Worth the money especially if you have little to no experience with the AR platform. This group does require you to start with lvl 1 and work your way up but even for experienced shooters who have to run the Lvl 1 too it's a good refresher if you haven't shot in a while or even if you have you won't be bored with it once you get out on the range. The classroom portion is kinda eh but it doesn't last long (maybe an hour or so) and then you get out on the range. They emphasize that there are tons of ways to setup and run an AR and there is no one right answer or setup to run.

Lvl 2 review (coming soon)

[Jewmadbro?]

A couple things I would do differently. I would bring a sling and retention belt mag holders.

[Downs]

Yeah agreed at least one mag holder and a decent two point or single point sling. I left nearly all my stuff in Mineral Wells so didn't have time to go back and get it :/

[Downs]

Jewmadbro final drill

[GeorgeG.]

Awesome write up Downs!

[Jewmadbro?]

At least in level two we get more shooting.

[KBScobravert]

I spoke to Shoot Smart today. They will host an event "private party" with 2 hours of range time and 2 Range Officers to run us through drills if we want. We did not discuss cost but I would expect $250. Split that 5 ways and $50 is cheaper than their class which your range time is split with 10plus shooters. Split if more and it is a better deal. I think shooting forward of the line running drills works best with between 5-8 folks.

[Downs]

Definatly. We had 10 last night and that was border line too many for the small range front we had.

[KBScobravert]

Definatly. We had 10 last night and that was border line too many for the small range front we had.

I think some of the inexperienced shooters we were with last night slowed it down too though. I would have liked to have seen better muzzle orientation last night also. Some of those guys were terrible about inadvertently flagging.

Good AAR by the way. I was up there today shooting and they were happy with the coverage we are giving them. I still contest that you will not find a indoor range around here that is that friendly and nice. I just can't wait till the expansion is done.