Author: David Nash
Copyright Date: January 2011
Publisher: Looseleaf Law Publications
ISBN: 978-1608850259
I was contacted by David Nash, who wrote “Understanding the Use of Handguns for Self-Defense
One of the first things that caught my attention, was the Foreword – written by SurvivalBlog’s own Editor At Large, Michael Z. Williamson, and he gives Nash a good review for his efforts. Secondly, and this really caught my attention was the Introduction, written by Nash. Here’s part of what Nash humbly says about himself: “I’m not a policeman. I wasn’t a special operations warrior, and I don’t compete in national level shooting competitions. What I am is a student of the art and science of firearm usage. I am by no means a self-proclaimed or self-important gun guru. I learn from every class I teach. I like teaching, and I particularly like teaching firearm usage…” I like that in a teacher – I couldn’t tell you how many firearms “instructors” I’ve run across in my life, who were all some sort of SpecOps types – when in reality, there were nothing more than armchair commandos or mall ninjas, and didn’t know which end of the weapon a bullet came out of – and they surely didn’t know anything about firearm safety.
In the “Mindset” chapter, Nash talks about the color code, and this is simply your own state of mind. White means you are totally unaware of your surroundings – and you should never be in this mindset. Yellow means you are at least aware of your surroundings and what is going on all around you. Orange means you have shifted into an alert state of mind – something isn’t quite right, and you are preparing your mind for what might come your way. Lastly, is red, and you are engaged! Some instructors use a different color code, or add another color or lesser colors but it is important that you have some sort of code in your mind if you are going to carry a firearm. Nash also talks about “it takes longer to react than to act” – this is a simple fact, and I taught this to my martial arts students over the years, as well as in my own firearms classes. If you have to react, you are already behind the eight-ball.
The “Legal” chapter starts right off, where I start with my own students. David Nash starts right out with “The average cost of defending a justified use-of-force shootings is $40,000…” I tell my students, that no matter how justified a self-defense shooting might be, that they are still a suspect in a homicide – that catches their attention. Nash also talks about different right to carry state laws – and these laws are every changing, so be advised of the laws in your own state. And, you need to be aware of the consequences of buying and selling guns for a profit – if you are in the “business” of selling guns, you’d better get a federal firearms license – be advised!
Chapter three talks about safety, and I constantly stress safety in my firearms classes, and thankfully, I’ve never had a student have an negligent discharge (ND) in one of my classes. If I see a student not performing safe gun-handling, I ask them to remove themselves from the firing-line and think about what they are doing wrong. If I have an assistant instructor with me, I hand that student over to them for further safety instruction. Nash touches on many of the common-sense safety issues – that aren’t so common-sense to a lot of folks who own firearms. I applaud him for bringing this up in his book.
What Happens In a Gunfight is what Chapter four is all about. Gunfights are very dynamic according to Nash, and they are ever-changing – starts out this chapter. And, I couldn’t agree more with this. I’ve been involved in a couple shootings – as a civilian – not as a police officer. And, these things are over almost as fast as they started. This is why your training is important – if you train hard, and train properly, you will react as your trained! If you believe that all gunfights are over in 2.5 seconds, as many stats claim, you might be in for a surprise, if you are engaged in a gunfight that lasts for minutes, or if there are multiple armed attackers – Nash covers this, too. A lot of things happen to you mentally as well as physically in a gunfight, and this book will help you realize what to expect and how to overcome it – as best you can.
In Chapter Five, Nash talks about the use-of-force. And, to be sure, this does vary from state-to-state, and locale-to-locale. You have to understand what actually justifies the use of deadly force against another human, and Nash does a great job discussing this in his book. I used to recommend that my firearms students sit down with a criminal defense lawyer – and you will pay them for their time – and discuss the use of deadly force against another person. However, if you talk to ten different lawyers, you’ll get ten different opinions on this. And, I steer my students clear of talking to law enforcement officers for the same reason – you’ll get ten different answers from ten different cops on this subject. As an example, in Oregon, you are allowed to own and use automatic knives – however, most police officers are ignorant of this fact – this law! And, they arrest people all the time for this “offense” – only to have the case tossed once it goes to court. In the meantime, the person arrested then has an arrest record because the police officer was ignorant of the law. Nash covers the use of force nicely in this book, and it is just good, common-sense in most cases, where you can use deadly force.
Choosing A Gun is Chapter six, and this is always a real subjective thing in my book. David Nash does an excellent job in this chapter discussing choosing the right gun for you! Don’t expect some clerk behind the counter at the local gun shop to choose a gun for you. Sure, the Glock 19, 9mm handgun might be right for 9 our of 10 people, but that doesn’t mean the gun is right for you. You have to have a gun that fits your hand, and a caliber you can handle. Choosing a 6″ .44 Magnum revolver isn’t a good choice for a woman who is 5″ tall and has petite hands. Spend some time researching various firearms on-line, or in gun magazines before going to the local gun shop. Don’t let the clerk sell you something that they want to sell you. Do you need a revolver or a semiauto pistol? Nash covers the differences in this chapter, as well as choosing the right caliber, too. Most people don’t understand the importance of picking the right firearm for themselves – and many just go with whatever the gun store clerk recommends to them. Whenever possible, I bring out a variety of different handguns for my students to test on the range – so they have a good feel for what feels right for them. About a year ago, I did several handgun classes, in which all of the students shot best with the Ruger SR9, 9mm pistol. In another class, several students picked a Glock 23, .40 S&W handgun for themselves. So, there is no one-size fits all when it comes to handguns. If you live in an area that has an indoor shooting range, and rents guns, test several different guns before deciding on one.
I’ve watched this hundreds of times on the television show “Cops” – when they take a firearm from a suspect, and they have no idea how the gun operates – they don’t know how to unload the gun or safely handle it. Sure, they know about the handgun they are carrying, but they are totally lost when it comes to a different handgun – they look stupid, on television, not knowing how to properly check to see if a gun is loaded, or how to unload it. David Nash covers this in Chapter Seven “Operating A Handgun” and this is more important than most people think it is. You need to know the different parts on a gun: barrel, cylinder, safety, etc. You also need to understand what happens when a gun fires, or when it fails to fire, as in a misfire, hangfire or squib-load. You need to know about malfunctions, too – and how to handle them. Again, Nash covers this, in layman’s language, that you can understand, if you are a new shooter, or an old hand. Do you know how and when to clean your handgun? Many people don’t – a lot of folks never clean and maintain their firearms, nor do they have any idea how the guns actually function, because they didn’t bother to read the owner’s manual.
My local gun shop gave me a Ruger LCP .380 ACP pistol to check out for them – I repair a lot of their firearms for them, as they carry me as an employee on their books, so I can do some minor gunsmithing. A customer purchased this Ruger LCP, 9 months ago – and never fired it. Then decided to see how the gun operated after 9-months. The customer brought the gun in and said it “jammed” all the time. Well, that doesn’t tell me anything. I took the gun out and test-fired it – it worked every time, for 75 rounds. I took the gun back to the shop and the owner picked it up. He brought it back in and said it still “jammed.” Well, I figured out what the problem was. This fellow would load the magazine, insert it into the gun, and he would retract the slide and “ride” the slide forward (keeping his hand on the slide as it went forward) – and rounds weren’t feeding into the chamber. This is not the way to chamber a round in an semiauto pistol. You retract the slide fully rearward, and release it – a round chambers properly. When this was explained to the customer, he didn’t have any more “jams” after that. Nash covers properly gun handling very nicely in this chapter.
Carrying A Gun is Chapter 8, and this is a important subject for all of us. Do you want to carry openly or concealed? Know the laws of your state and locale. In my area, it’s not uncommon to see folks carrying a handgun openly – we just don’t give it a second notice. In some areas, it will result in the police getting called – even if you are carrying openly, legally. Nash talks about the different methods of carry – inside the waistband, on the belt, in the pocket, in a shoulder holster, on the ankle, etc. And, you need to find what works best for you and your firearm. I carry on the belt, on my right side, and I carry a back-up in an ankle holster – this works best for me, but it might not work best for you. Experiment with different methods of carry, and find a good holster that works best. Don’t get a cheap, one-size fits many, ballistic Nylon holster – save your money and purchase a good holster – you’ll thank yourself later on. Many firearms books don’t even touch on this subject for some reason, Nash does a fine job!
Shooting Techniques is Chapter Nine, and Nash isn’t dogmatic here, like many instructors are. Some instructors believe that their way is the only way, and that simply isn’t true, and I don’t care who the instructor is. While their technique might work for 99 students, it won’t and can’t work for student number 100 for some reason. There are different ways to grip a gun, different firing techniques like the Weaver or Isoceles stance. You also need to learn how to properly draw a handgun and re-holster it. Sight alingment is important, as well as the proper sight picture – again, Nash does a fine job covering these topics. Proper trigger-pull is important, too – no matter how well you have a perfect sight picture, if you don’t have proper trigger control, you’ll blow the shot, You should also know how to “read” your target, so you know what you are doing right or doing wrong – it’s covered in this chapter, and most books don’t cover this topic.
I talked about “tactics” and Chapter ten covers this topic…you react the way your train, and this is covered in Nash’s book, too. You’ll learn the difference between cover and concealment – and they are not the same, You’ll learn about low-light shooting, and this is a very important topic, as most shootings take place in low-light conditions.
Many common myths are explored in Chapter Eleven. I’m sure many of you have been told by someone who is totally ignorant, that if you shoot someone outside of your house, to drag them inside, and claim they broke in – don’t do this, you are only inviting legal trouble, Nash discusses the “one-shot stop” myth. Sure, it happens, but not all the time – if someone is high on drugs, it may take many shots to stop them from harming you or a loved one. And, shot placement comes into play here – it doesn’t matter what caliber you have in your handgun, if you don’t place the shots where they need to go, it may not stop an attacker. Nash discusses the Mozambique Drill – that’s two shots in the chest and one in the head – it’s a good thing to practice on the range, and it can sure help under real-life circumstances.
Chapter Tweleve deals with the criticism that you might get from your loved ones, friends and co-workers, because you made the decision to carry a handgun. I don’t recall any other publication dealing with this topic, but Nash covers it. It’s important to know how to deal with this subject. And, one of the best ways is to not get into a debate over it – it’s your decision to carry a firearm, and you know the reasons for carrying. So, don’t get into a heated debate with anyone – the less people who know you are carrying the less problems you’ll have.
The last chapter covers additional training. No book will teach you how to shoot – you actually have to get out there and do some shooting, and you should pick an instructor who’s credentials you can varify. I’m an NRA Certified instructor in several different disciplines, but that doesn’t mean that I’m the world’s best instructor. However, it does let my students know that I am a trained and certified instructor. Some of the best instructors I know aren’t NRA Certified. My good friend, John Farnam, is one of the most underated instructors I know, for some reason, but he is also one of the VERY best instructors in the world in my humble opinion. Seek out qualified training instructors for advanced training, and don’t be afraid to ask them to show you their creditials or letters of recommendation. Be a little leery of someone who claims they are an ex SpecOps person – more than likely, they are NOT!
I’ve been around firearms for 45-years now, and I learned a lot from this book. Nash did a great job covering some common-sense topics, that we all should be aware of when understanding the use of handguns for self-defense. If I can learn something from this book, than you can, too. You can find this book on Amazon.com and you can contact David Nash at his school’s web site – The Shepherd School. You’ll really get a lot out of this book – I know I did.