Hi all,

I' m looking into training and was given a brochure on this school which I believe is in Stratham, NH.

Has anyone been there or heard anything about them?

I've heard of SIGacademy and S&W Academy but can't afford those prices right now.

PSI has classes for both defensive pistol as well as defensive rifle.....



Thanks in advance

weerwolv

Decide if you want to train just to get the certificate to get your LTC, learn target shooting techniques, or learn defensive handgun techniques. VERY different types of training and trainers!

If you want to learn defensive techniques/tactics, look for info on where the trainers trained! Where they worked previously as a trainer, etc. The best defensive trainers train regularly (to keep their skills up) at places like GunSite, ThunderRanch, etc.

It seems that PSI has killed their website, but I found info on them at the following places (from a Google search):
http://www.personalsecurityinstitute.com/ - DEAD site
www.northamptonrevolverclub.org/PSIinfo.htm - lots of good info and shows a 20% discount for NRA members (hmm, see below). Only thing missing is info on the individual trainers (which I think is critical for defensive training).
www.nrahq.org/givejoinhelp/membership/disclist.asp?State=NH - shows a 25% discount at the NH location for NRA members.

Everything I learned from target shooters in 27 years (and alleged training for LEOs during 17 years) was either wrong or useless for defensive shooting! This year I bit the bullet and took a local (Nashua area) class with Jim Crews www.marksmans.com. BEST money I ever spent and some of the techniques can be useful for target shooting.

I've met some of the PSI trainers, but can't recall their credentials, so I can't make any recommendations. But I hope that the above gives you some food for thought and questions to ask.

Appreicate the background info LenS.

Looking to go toward more of a defensive training situation as I already have my LTC Class A (ALP).

Got it when I lived in Milford, MA which I thought would be tricky. Turned out ot be very easy. Now I live in Blackstone, MA which I am told is even easier for renewal.

I got some info on different training options when I went to the GOAL building to take their "Art of Concealed Carry" course about a month or so ago. Excellent class as it is partailly taught by a Darius Arbabi, a lawyer who knows MA firearms law very, very well.

I would like to continue my training but want to stay local if at possible.  They did recommend the PSI course but I wanted to as well to see if anyone here had first hand knowledge of it as I believe they give GOAL members a discount. As a backup, I'm also an NRA member.

Also looking to probably get into IDPA at some point but want to take one of these defensive shooting classes first to increase my skill set and speed...

I know Darius well and agree that he is VERY knowledgeable on MA gun law.

See if you can get names of potential instructors and their personal credentials (regarding teaching-where they were taught, etc.). That is the best way to judge. It's not the company that provides the instruction, but the individual teacher!

The folks (Northeast Shooters) that brought Jim Crews to this area this past Summer are bringing the following nationally/internationally known defensive tactics trainers to the MA/NH area in 2005:
- Randy Cain www.guntactics.com/
- Gabe Suarez www.suarezinternational.com
- Jeff Gonzales www.tridentconcepts.com/

More info (dates, prices, etc.) can be found at Northeast Shooters website www.neshooters.com/2005-schedule.html There are even pictures there showing what we did for some of the drills with Jim Crews this past Summer.

Each instructor has a different style and technique that they teach. Some emphasize speed while others emphasize accuracy. Jim Crews emphasized accuracy only and told us that with practice we'd improve our speed, but until we could do the drills accurately it was best not to dwell on speed. I agree with him! Jim Crews also told us to take additional classes with other instructors for the reasons I mentioned above.

HTH

At today's defensive practice shooting session I asked the head of NE Shooters (see my prior post for URL) about your request. He felt that PSI was NOT the best source of defensive firearms training (he also knows the head of PSI). See the other suggestions that I provided in my prior reply.

Appreciate all the info LenS.

Looks like I have some decisions to make on training as I very much want to continue my firearms education.

Although expensive, so you have any feedback on the SigArms Academy. I have heard the training is excellent by all accounts and well worth it.

Thank you in advance

PSI is headed by John Peterson. He was an instructor at S&W, then at SIG, and has now branched out on his own. He doesn't have his own range that I know of, relying on local ranges to host the courses.

I've personally had him as an instructor at S&W for pistol and sim's during one of the advanced courses. More recently, I took his defensive carbine course which was hosted at Nashua F&G last summer. My wife also took his intro defensive handgun course this past summer, also at NFGA.

I would characterize his style as stripped down, no-nonsense, here's what works. Unlike certain instructors who demand you do it their way and only their way he will quickly show you several ways, describe their pluses and minuses and then give you the opportunity to try them all. Then he gives you feedback and lets you continue with your chosen method (if it's working for you). This is an advantage and a disadvantage, as you do sacrifice some benefits of repetition. But that's what the advanced courses are for, to solidify your skills

His approach also tends to be high intensity and high value. He likes to cram a lot into 2 days since he knows most of his students can only afford a weekend or a couple of days off. At the same time he personally is very laid back, there is no "drill instructor" environment. Students get out what they put in, so you've got to be motivated.

He saves his war stories for the night-before lecture. Once you get out to the range it's shoot, shoot, shoot. High round counts are the norm (my wife shot 700 pistol rounds in 2 days). We did a similar round count during the 2-day carbine course.

John is still bringing his staff up to speed, and some of the instruction is a bit rough, but at his prices you can afford to take each of his courses twice and still be ahead of the game compared to SIG, S&W and others. The biggest issue is since he is an "independent" with no fixed facility, finding his courses can often be a challenge.

My contact says that SigArms would be OK for your first course in defensive handgun. For advanced training he says that there are a lot better alternatives.