If I timed this right, this post will be published a day before Black Friday. Which means, you are likely reading this after Black Friday and you probably already got most of your holiday shopping done and this post won’t help you. But if you are reading this before Black Friday, or you happen to be like me and procrastinate until the last minute to get gift shopping done, then this guide maybe useful in helping you find a great gift for that firearms aficionado in your life.
Like the father’s day and birthday gift guides, the general theme remains the same. Accessories for anything regulated by the BATFE will generally make a good gift for folks like me. And in the same spirit as those other guides, I’m going to cover some of the things on my wish list this year and gifts that I’ve received in the past that I’ve thoroughly appreciated and enjoyed.
The Gift of Skill
I’m going to start off this list with a gift I received for my birthday that I was thrilled about. Ready? Ok. Here it is! My wife got me a seat in a tactical pistol and rifle class for my birthday this year.
A good place to start is the NRA Training website. From there, one can search for instructors, schools, and training facilities offering a variety of courses. Now to get the this right, one needs to know what shooting activities the gift recipient is interested in and their skill level in those said activities. When uncertain, take a moment and strike up a chat with the intended recipient. They’ll likely talk your ear off. Then call the training center or an instructor who can help you find the right class.
One word of caution going this route. Some folks who may even claim to have a mastery over firearms, but have never received formal training maybe in for a rude awakening. Yes, some truly have achieved mastery and won’t experience this awakening. However, the first intermediate level course I attended really opened my eyes to how much I didn’t know and how far I had to go to truly be proficient with essentially every firearm I can think of. Keep in mind, I’ve only been into the whole gun thing for less than a decade.
However, I enjoy attending firearms and self defense training courses and learning new things to practice in order to level up my gun handling and self defense skills. If that’s true of your intended gift recipient, then this is a really good way to go.
Targets to Shoot
In previous guides, I’ve mentioned that ammo makes a great gift because “one can never have enough ammo.” In fact, in the last birthday gift guide I listed several types of ammunition that I can always use more of. So yeah, ammo is and always will be a good option.
However, I felt like switching it up.
With all that ammo, a gun owner will also always need something to shoot at. And this is where targets come in. There are many targets out there. Steel targets. Bouncing targets. Any many others. While shooting ranges may not lend themselves well to all the different types targets, many will allow high visibility reactive targets. And that’s what I am going to suggest.
These high visibility targets make it really easy to see where shots are landing which makes them fun and useful.
Tactical Gear Subscription Box
I’ve been toying with the idea of getting one of these subscription boxes. There are plenty out there. Some with meat (which could be cool but can get expense). Many filled with stuff I couldn’t care less about. However, the ones that I’ve found the most intriguing are the tactical gear ones.
There are plenty of these to pick from:
The beauty of these as a gift is that they eliminate pressure of finding the right gift. However I’m going to be really honest here, I’m not too keen on buying somebody a year long subscription with a monthly fee. Especially when a single monthly fee is about what I would generally spend on a close family member or friend for a Christmas gift. One per year. Thankfully, some of these subscription box services have either figured that out or received feedback sharing my sentiment and offer a single purchase gift box.
Here are a couple of those no subscription required gift boxes:
It’s Not Just About the Gift
I’ve said this in every gift guide. The gift isn’t nearly as important as the relationship with the person it came from. So stop losing sleep over it and go spend sometime together. Maybe, go shooting together.