I’m looking for recommendations for classes in the Northwest. Both pistol and rifle wanted.
Thanks for your help.
Looks like Magpul Dynamics still has a few openings in WA, though they’re level 2.
I’m on the wait list for carbine 1 in Portland. Not fast enough on the application process.
Two of the best in the country are:
Greg Hamilton at http://www.insightstraining.com/
Marty Hayes at http://www.firearmsacademy.com
I have trained with sone of the Insights guys and was happy with the class.
I have not heard anything but good about the FAS guys as well.
As far as local instructors go, LMS Defense is great.
There is some more information in this thread-
Thanks for the link, it had some great information. Options are a good thing!
LMS Defense. Highly recommended. Some of their classes are near Seattle, but they also hold classes in Okanogan.
See: http://www.lmsdefense.com/lms/home/schedule
The Okanogan SO is hosting a variety of classes this year, including LAV, Bennie Cooley, and others.
Also recently saw an article on Caylen Wojcik’s school near Yakima http://ccptraining.com/
Hope that helps
I’ve taken quite a few courses with Insights and every one has been top-notch. They regularly host General Defensive Handgun and General Defensive Rifle. They also less frequently do higher level courses such as Intensive Handgun Skills (which was absolutely outstanding) and Intermediate Rifle/Gun.
Here’s the 2011 schedule for GDH:
http://insightstraining.com/view_course.asp?courseID=146
And GDR (Note GDH is a prereq for this class)
http://insightstraining.com/view_course.asp?courseID=9
There’s an awesome school that is very much under the radar here in the Northwest. It’s the Public Safety Training Center operated by the Clackamas County Sheriff Office. It’s the best value I’ve seen anywhere. The 2 day defensive pistol class is about $210 and is about 20 hours of excellent training. The advanced course is same price, about 800 rounds, and a very intense (read fun!) 20 hours. The lead instructor is also an instructor at Oregon’s police academy and spent 20+ years on Berkeley PD SWAT as well as being an adjunct instructor for HK. I enjoyed the program so thoroughly that I continueed on and joined their volunteer coaching staff to give back to others what was given to me.
I’ve also attended Oregon Firearms Academy’s Defensive Handgun 1 course. It was very good but not as intensive as at the PSTC. I would have no problem recommending either.
One limitation of both facilities is they are limited to one direction of fire (square range). While I haven’t been to FAS I’ve heard good things about them and they do have the facilities for 360deg engagements.
Michael Coffman
Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk
I’m in oregon and have taken classes at the Public Safety Training Center mentioned above and as well at Oregon Firearms Academy.
Have taken a couple handgun classes at PSTC and and handgun and carbine classes at OFA…I really enjoyed and learned a lot from both places. That being said those are the only two places I’ve taken classes so far so I don’t have much to compare them to. I’d like to make it to a FAS class to check the place out.
Another strong recommendation for Insights. They have a great curriculum that is integrated across the entire use of force continuum. Their instructors are also excellent.
LMS Defense also does a lot of classes in Ravensdale and Okanagon. I have yet to take anything from them, but I’ve heard nothing but positive things about them. They also host single day clinics which are great if you are pressed for time or budget.
+1 on Insights. They’re instructors and POI are outstanding and they work out of some great facilities.
Although InSights was and is highly recommended, I was underwhelmed by the General Defensive Rifle class I attended. I probably should have typed up my constructive criticism and sent it to Greg right after the class, but decided there was ultimately no benefit to anyone in doing so. I paid my money, checked it out, learned some good stuff, wish them well, and moved on. I will probably opt for different PNW firearm training options in the future, but I am sure they are highly recommended for a reason.
That being said, InSights does offer some 1-day defensive knife and pepper spray classes that interest me.
My local range is offering a series of well-priced 1-day classes this spring and summer through Oregon Precision Firearms Training. I haven’t attended any of the inaugural classes, but they have been well-received by some friends. Bend isn’t especially convenient to the OP, but it’s an option.
I am eager to drag a few specific untrained friends to the 1-day classes offered by PSTC, and once my training budget recovers from Magpul Pistol 2 and Carbine 2 this April, I am very curious about intermediate classes at LMS and OFA.
Having taken GDR from Insights and found it very good, but with an admittedly limited range of experience by which to evaluate it, I’m curious to know what your main complaints were.
Did they arise from having done other carbine courses and feeling like Insights glossed over or skipped important topics? Was it their focus on civilian self-defense rather than a more military-based approach (team tactics, etc)? Or something else?
To keep this thread on-track, PM inbound. And no, I appreciate a general or civilian focus in courses and IMHO GDR handled this aspect well.
Not trying to be coy here, but:
- A central tenet of this forum is that not all opinions are equally valuable. I agree. I’ve been to a small handful of courses so far and might not have the context that others do.
- Not all classes/schools/instructors/flavors of ice cream appeal to all comers. This is not a bad thing, it’s just how it is.
Jeff_M has actually contacted me to ask about my feedback. This is outstanding, and IME the mark of a sound small business.