I live in Garden City. Could you guys recommend a nearby CCW class that you have attended?

If I have to pay them money, I'd prefer to listen to someone who isn't talking out of their A$$.

At first thought, my feeling was that I would prefer a cheaper class to just meet the requirement. But I would be willing to pay a little more if the instruction is good, especially the legal and "how should you repond" aspects.

thanks,

Don

IMHO-

I think the best training you can get is from those who do it everyday as part of a curriculum.

Since you're in GC you should go over to the Wayne County Regional Police Training Center (Schoolcraft College - Garden City).

The down side is the Schoolcraft’s Continuing Education Services don't list the CCW or Advanced CCW in the Winter '06 edition; which, means the next offering will be in the Spring/Summer.

Lt. John A. Monge (Ret.) usually is the main instructor of the firearms portions of CCW and the academy.  His office phone at Radcliff is (734) 462-4448, give him a call and see when the next class will be, or if there's anyone he'd recommend in the area to teach it if you need to do it before the spring.  You could always ask him if he'd do a personal instruction class between now and the next class.  He's a wealth of knowledge in the area since he worked with the county board on the CCW issue, plus being MCOLES certified he's always up to date on the stuff being given to the academy.

Hope this proves helpful...

Don, I applaud you seeking a quality course. May I suggest also, some self study? The subject is really more of a life long study, and there is lots of great information out there, designed to keep you safe both physcally and legally.

A great read (I sometimes wonder if it should be required reading for CCW) is "In the Gravest Extreme" by Masaad Ayoob. For tactical, and 'it happened to me' sort of articles, Combat Handgun magazine is often a wealth of info to sift through.

I've taken two CCW courses in the area that I could recommend. The first was taught by Mike Hoban, and I took it at the now gone Alexanders gun shop (bad story on that shop...).

The second was taught by Gerald Wrage of Protect Systems Training Academy (his signature reads "NRA Civilian and Law Enforcement Instructor, Use of Force and Legal Liability Instructor").
This was taught at Great Lakes Crossing mall, in the large sporting goods store (with range).

I have no contact info for Mike Hoban (was very active in Mich. Gun Owners as I recall) but the second course I mention, I have a phone number for Jerry Wrage of 1 (248) 844-8274. This was a bit over  3 years ago, hopefully the number is still good.

T Bone (Detroit).

Check out Northwest Tactical Firearms Training. The lead instructor (Chris) has been doing CCW/CPL training for over fifteen years. His qualifications and credentials are first rate.

NTFT does everything from basic CPL to advanced pistol/rifle/shotgun. I've helped teach several CPL classes there and recommend them very highly.

NTFT web site

I've dealt w/ Chris & John out of Northwest Guns over the years and wouldn't overlook them for decent qualified local training.

Thanks guys! That's the type of answers I was looking for. I'll try calling around monday to find out on class availability.

Don

Edit:I scheduled with Gerald Wrage of Protect Systems Training Academy for this saturday. Tbone, I owe you a beer.

On Saturday my friend and I took the class at Bass Pro held by Gerald Wrage.

http://www.handgun-shotguntraining.com

He was a very friendly and informed gentleman. If you had questions to ask he was great at answering them, or getting you to consider certain things to answer for yourself. There wasn't nearly enough time to go over all the training material he gave out.

The range portion was a joke, but it did come with the disclaimer that it was to reinforce safety aspects and to get the newbies to use their sights. Oh, and to meet the state requirements.

I'd recommend the class overall, especially for people without pistol experience. Just keep in mind it's a BASIC class and only an introduction to carrying issues.

Don

Chris @ Northwest has the best training in the area. Hands Down.

Good luck in your course.

Don, hope I didn't steer you wrong. The classs as you said is basic, it's impossible to take a group of folks from varying degrees of experience and bring them all up to professional pistolero standards (whatever that might be!) in a couple of class sessions.

As I mentioned in my first post, this is more of a lifetime (or at least ongoing) study. It is very truly a parrellel to the more oft. considered "conventional" martial arts.

I have seen several folks mention NW Gunshop's training, and I suspect for good reason. Though I've not been there in some time, I was a "regular" more or less there some 15-20 years ago. I found these folks to be correct thinking in terms of tactics, the "armed lifestyle" if you will. I would imagine they do offer some really good training as well. Perhaps you may wish to consider an advanced course down the road, after you've trained some more on your own, and let the initial course you've taken absorb a bit more.

There are multiple sources for local training, then there's the big national schools as well (Gunsite Academy, Thunder Ranch, et al).

Hope you enjoy the journey, it really can be a fun undertaking and is certainly empowering.

Shoot safe,
watch you six.

T Bone (Detroit).