An un-qualified opinion II

General General Discussion
1

Most of you have read Rob’s post concerning the fact that not all opionions are worth the same. https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=19307

If you haven’t, take a moment and read it it (as it is good).

I was sending someone a link to it the other day and it made me think about how one really becomes an expert on a certain firearm. Meaning, knows how to repair it, improve it, knows if it reliable, how accurate it is, how durable/reliable it is, etc, etc.

So I came up with these 6 areas that will GENERALLY make you a SME on any particular area. Some of you might only be able to identify with one of them, but others will be able to cover all 6.

They are:

  1. Own said firearm.

  2. Train with said firearm.

  3. Teach training classes (instructor).

  4. Work in the firearms industry (specifically in the category in which the gun you own and train with resides). So if your business operates in the cowboy gun world, then you most likely know nothing about LE firearms sales. In the case of LE sales, you would also participate in bids/contracts.

  5. Know insiders. Professional instructors, national sales managers, former employees of said firearms companies.

  6. Are an armorer (factory certified preferred) for said firearm.

2

Let’s cover why each area is important.

  1. Own said firearm.

First hand experience. Nuff said.

  1. Train with said firearm.

Have run said firearm in a dynamic environment (meaning pushed it). This is VERY important when discussing reliability.

  1. Teach training classes (instructor).

This allows you to see a wide range of firearms (in a dynamic environment) and helps to give you first hand knowledge on what is going on with guns in the industry.

  1. Work in the firearms industry (specifically in the category in which the gun you own and train with resides). So if your business operates in the cowboy gun world, then you most likely know nothing about LE firearms sales. In the case of LE sales, you would also participate in bids/contracts.

Working in the firearms industrys (as either a dealer, engineer, consultant, etc) gives you first hand knowledge on how guns get made, issues, sales numbers, what agencies/PD’s/SO’s/ETC are buying and why.

  1. Know insiders. Professional instructors, national sales managers, former employees of said firearms companies.

This gives you the inside scoop on what is REALLY going on. Secrects, truths, and fixes to problems that the public never even knew about.

  1. Are an armorer (factory certified preferred) for said firearm.

You know what goes into the guns (how they work, why they don’t and how to improve them). You can also receive a lot of insider info via this way as well.

C4