I recently renewed contact with an old friend who I had just lost contact with over the years. Besides being a fine Christian, he is a true friend and one of the five best pistol shots that I have ever known. I’ll tell you a little bit of his story because it is an interesting one and there are some lessons that all of us can benefit from.
Taylor was working as a cowboy out in Arizona and, typical of cowboys all over, was a bit financially strapped. An uncle, knowing that Taylor didn’t have a good gun, gave him a three-screw Ruger Blackhawk in .45 Colt. As money became available, my friend bought a little ammo but then figured out that it would be cheaper if could learn this business of handloading. He bought a used press, a manual, and then began scouring his part of Arizona for used wheel weights. When he decided that the single action needed an action job, he took it apart and figured out how to do it himself.
But mostly he just shot that .45 sixgun every single chance he got. Every cactus in a 50-mile circle had bullet holes in it and it wasn’t long before he was using the gun to put meat on his table. He literally shot the gun so much that he wore out the barrel shooting lead bullets, which just takes a lot of shooting. I saw photos of the gun before he had it re-barreled and restored and it sure looked like it had been rode hard and put up wet, to borrow a cowboy saying.
Today, Taylor is retired. He owns a few guns, but not really all that many. But my point is that you should not suggest a shooting contest to him. I promise you that you’ll end up very embarrassed.
Too often we equate owning lots of guns or fancy guns as something special. The really special thing is to be able to shoot and to shoot well. Putting bullets downrange, lots of bullets, is the way to get there. Sure, going to a qualified training class can help with a few shortcuts but, in the end, it’s all about trigger time.
Frequently, I see posts from guys who just bought a new gun and want suggestions as to what accessories to buy. My answer is always the same: “Ammunition ... Buy lots and lots of ammunition!”
