What To Expect From Our Pistol Permit Course
The first step is the most difficult in any new process or phase in our lives.
It’s understandable why some people may be reluctant to take a pistol permit class, considering the fear of the unknown.
The process of obtaining your pistol permit is a lengthy one and requires a certain level of commitment on your part. There are fees associated with the initial class you take, as well as fees to your local and state police. You are required to submit a set of fingerprints (No, you can not use the same ones you have on file.) You must also understand that you will be the subject of an extensive background check and there are specific charges and certain history that will automatically disqualify you.
Over the years, we have answered many questions that our customers might have. We took the time to publish a free eBook: The Steps Required To Obtaining You Connecticut Pistol Permit To Carry.
An average pistol permit course runs about eight hours. Each course must consist of classroom instruction and live-fire exercises. Depending on who administers your course, you’ll be shooting bullets from one of many calibers, or bullet sizes. You are required by state law to shoot live ammunition, although the number of bullets you shoot is not specified.
Pistol Permit Course Daily Schedule
8:45 To 9:15 – Registration
9:15 To 12:30 – Classroom instruction
12:30 To 1:00 – Lunch
1:00 To 2:30 – Written-test administration
2:30 To 2:45 — Break
2:45 To 4:45 – Live-fire exercises
4:45 To 5:00 — Distribution of course completion certificates
There is a lot of information to learn, so we’ve designed our own curriculum handbook. Every student gets an e-copy of it when they sign up and it’s free to keep. Understand that Connecticut has some of the strictest laws in the country when it comes to firearms, personal safety, and the use of force.
We have a list of the laws and their definitions that we think are important for you to know. Follow the link to get your copy.
Below I discuss an overview of a pistol permit class and what to expect. I’ll introduce you to some terms that you may not be familiar with as well as some important safety information that you need to know moving forward.
What’s Covered in Our Pistol Permit Course?
Firearm Safety Rules
We begin with the basics and teach four rules that are imperative to all firearm training and the foundation of all firearm safety. We directly cover the safe storage and handling of all firearms.
Gun Knowledge
What is the difference between a double action and a single action firearm? Don’t know? Perfect, we love to teach from the ground up.
Loading And Unloading Firearms
One of the most intimidating things to do is to manipulate or load and unload your firearm. We know that most people are very uncomfortable with the idea that firearms can misfire, or go off by accident. Triggers take pounds of pressure to be pulled and to fire a round.
Shooting Fundamentals
There are five basic firing fundamentals that we teach. These steps have always made the most sense to us:
Aiming
Breathing control
Movement control
Trigger control
Follow-through
Ammunition
Ammunition is broken down into five parts:
Bullet (a projectile)
Case (holds the powder, rim, and primer)
Powder (the propellant)
Rim (the bottom of the case)
Primer (a pressure-sensitive explosive)
We also discuss types of cartridges, different sizes and types of bullets, or calibers, and types of ammunition malfunctions.
Firearms in general do not really have a lot of moving parts, but firearm malfunctions are common. Problems the shooter may face include rounds failing to feed correctly, double feeds, failure to extract, failure to eject, or “stove-pipes.” The important thing to remember is that these malfunctions can and will happen. We teach you exactly how to handle them and all the safe corrective measures to fix them.
The Range
Once we complete the classroom instruction, we head into the range, which can be an intimidating area. The range is where it all comes together.
Prior to entering the range, we teach you all the terms you’ll need to know. These terms are listed clearly in our student handbook which you’ll receive once you sign up for our permit class. You’ll learn about the firing line, cold and hot areas, and so much more before even pulling a trigger.
Obviously, safety is of the utmost importance whenever at the range or around firearms. While at the range and under the instruction of Prepare To Act staff, there will be Range Safety Officer (RSO). Most of the time, the RSO will be your lead instructor. It is important to listen carefully to your RSO as they are in command and ultimately responsible for your safety. You will learn specific safety rules, language, and protocols that must be adhered to once on the range.
We suggest comfortable clothing and sneakers. Prepare To Act supplies approved eye and ear protection to keep you safe.
Types Of Holsters
During the classroom portion, we discuss different types of holsters and explain the benefits and options that you have. We discuss holsters that can be kept inside the waistband (IWB), outside the waistband (OWB) as well as ankle, shoulder, clothing undergarments and purse carries. There are also “retention holsters” that are rated at different levels. We discuss them all in our pistol permit course.
Purchasing Your First Firearm
Once you are issued your pistol permit, purchasing your first firearm is the next step. There are so many options out there and so many things to consider before investing a few hundred dollars. We cover this topic at length in our original Basics Of Firearms class (the pre-requisite to this course is having your pistol permit).
Firearm Maintenance And The Importance Of A Clean Weapon
The intricate moving parts of a firearm must all work smoothly and in unison. One way to be sure that happens is to routinely clean and maintain your weapon. Some of the things we teach include:
Refraining from overcleaning or excessively scrubbing the weapon, which can wear the metal down and change its tolerance
Looking for carbon and metal deposit build-up
Determining where to oil the weapon (lightly) to prevent caking, which will attract dust and dirt
Handling toxic cleaning products
We also cover Connecticut laws as they pertain to firearms, self-protection, use of force, and home protection. Because of the focus, goals, and limited time frame of our pistol permit course, we do not hammer home or discuss these laws at length. We do, however, supply a copy to you in our student handbook that is sent to you when you do sign up for our class. Or, if you’d like a copy of the laws we’ve researched and other important legal information, please follow the link and you can get your free copy of the gun laws governing Connecticut.
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