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EastofWest18
11-12-13, 05:35 PM
Good evening Marines,

Has anyone here gone into the Firearms Training field (outside of your employment in military or law enforcement)? I love training people in the proper use of firearms, and am thinking about starting an LLC and doing some basic pistol courses and CCW courses in my state. I know that there is a market for it (based on demographics and a conversation with a pistol instructor that I met). I am planning on getting the NRA BIT, Basic Pistol Instructor, and Home Defense Instructor certifications. I am going to do this on the side, as I have a day job and it pays better than I could ever do on my own!

If anyone has experience, can you post it here or shoot me a PM?

Thanks,
Dan

Tennessee Top
11-12-13, 08:03 PM
Of course, depends on what state you're talking about. Some are stricter on CCW than others and a few you can't carry at all so there's little need for instructors. Before I got my CCW here in East TN I shopped around for classes and there were many to choose from. All of the indoor ranges offer classes, there are business cards galore on the counter tops of the gun shops, and there are even retired deputy sheriffs who give classes using the range at the sheriffs academy every Saturday. One local gun shop/indoor range here ("Gunny's") is owned and operated by a former Marine and all his instructors are former military. Seems to be a big demand for qualified instuctors but also seems like a big supply out there already in this area anyway. You are certainly right about knowing the demographics and having a good sense for the supply and demand before committing to anything. Good luck.

03GyRene
11-13-13, 07:42 AM
Hey Dan...I've had my CCW for about 20 years...here in Idaho the demand for it seems to have gone up a lot in the past 5 years...we are definitely a gun totin' state! I see businesses popping up all over offering CCW training and even tactical pistol and rifle training, lots of signage and ads in the newspapers for it here. What I have seen here in Idaho is instructors with various levels of qualification....everything from highly qualified former military/police...all the way down to Joe Shmo with virtually no qualifications...so I am not sure what the requirements are here in Idaho but they seem pretty loose. Like you said though, I think there is a market for it...especially for quality instruction from someone with good credibility and qualifications like you have...looks like you are on the right track with the certifications you are getting!.....best of luck to you and Semper Fi.

EastofWest18
11-13-13, 05:57 PM
Thank you for your input and good wishes!

Rocky C
11-13-13, 06:54 PM
Outstanding !!! Best of luck Dan. If you get a website let me know and I will tell you how to link it to our site and help your business grow Brother.

Semper Fi,
Rocky

Tennessee Top
11-13-13, 08:07 PM
Saw on USACARRY.COM today a certified instructor (in PA I think he said) is offering free CCW courses including meal, ammo, weapon, and range fees to any disabled veteran (must provide documentation from VA/DVA). Very gracious offer.

Rocky C
11-14-13, 10:31 AM
Nice !!!

advanced
11-14-13, 01:16 PM
Saw on USACARRY.COM today a certified instructor (in PA I think he said) is offering free CCW courses including meal, ammo, weapon, and range fees to any disabled veteran (must provide documentation from VA/DVA). Very gracious offer.

Top, of course with our DD214 we don't need the ccw course as at least Florida recognizes our prior training.

Rocky C
11-14-13, 03:03 PM
In Rhode Island you have to re-qualify every year and can only carry up to what you qualified with and it's big bucks for renewal.

Tennessee Top
11-14-13, 05:18 PM
Wonder how much the instructors at the mega courses like "frontsight" get paid?

Rocky C
11-14-13, 05:42 PM
It must be BIG Dollars Top.

<center>Yearly Firearms Instructor Pay Statistics</center>
<tbody>
Average Yearly Firearms Instructor Salary
$63,240 - $94,860


Starting Yearly Firearms Instructor Salary
$52,080 - $78,120


Top Yearly Firearms Instructor Salary
$74,400 - $111,600

</tbody>

crazymjb
11-18-13, 04:35 PM
I'm an NRA basic pistol and Massachusetts State Police certified instructor (not a cop, its just a cert, to clarify). It's good for making a few bucks here and there while I'm in school, but I founded a gun/shooting club at my school and use it more to teach classes for that as a "credential" of sorts. To date I've taught 30 or so people privately probably in about 10-15 classes, and I've taught another 100 or so students in classes ranging from 5 to 30+ students. I've also run ranges with 20+ people, and I do that very military style for safety reasons, with a PSO for each lane and an RSO. That is the one thing the Marine Corps absolutely got right as far as safety goes.

In order to be a successful instructor, in my opinion, you need to keep up to date with legislation and hardware, training techniques, etc. Too many instructors out there spread bad info on state and federal laws, as well as on firearms capabilities and carry philosophy. This unfortunately included the trainer who gave me my certification as an INSTRUCTOR, who made multiple errors when talking about carry restrictions in Massachusetts. When I teach about the local laws, I provide quotes and citations, I'd recommend you study up and do the same if you start teaching classes. I am also a bit of a legal/2A buff.

Mike

thewookie
11-19-13, 09:42 AM
You can make some money off it, (I use the money for my gun fund) but a lot of people out there do it, so keep the day job like you said. I am also NRA certified in Basic Pistol, Home Firearms...

thewookie
11-19-13, 09:53 AM
If you get all the certs before you get out you can also find work for the government as a MI. Shortly after I got out I was in the process of applying for the FBI's Firearms Training Unit when life threw me a curveball. But, there are jobs out there if you can get the right certs and connections. A former colleague of mine who was working for the uniformed division of the secret service just switched over to the marksmanship division and he said they take guys from the street, also. But it helps to know people for that gig.

Rocky C
11-19-13, 04:31 PM
You the man Mike :thumbup:.
I was hoping you would see this thread soon.
Almost sent you a PM today on it Brother.

thewookie
11-20-13, 08:43 PM
You the man Mike :thumbup:.
I was hoping you would see this thread soon.
Almost sent you a PM today on it Brother.

Thanks, Rock - very kind of you.

I'm always lurking, but with an active two year old boy I am always busy, too.

To the OP -- The NRA certs are basically easy if you are a Marine, no offense to those who earned them. Start there and build networks. You'll be surprised what the contacts you make as a Marine will do for you down the road.