Ladies Take Aim • Tactical Dry Fire Cartridges

The portrait of gun ownership is changing in the United States. In 2020, the country saw a record surge in first-time gun ownership, with sales up 40% among women. But not only is the gender of gun owners shifting, so too is their ammunition. Partly a byproduct of manufacturing shutdowns due to COVID, the cost of bullets more than tripled last year, making practical training quite costly. And while owning a weapon is one thing, responsible gun ownership and safety training are imperative. Shooting itself is a diminishing skill; if you don’t use it, you lose it.

Training with dry-fire laser cartridges that fit in your existing firearm may be the solution. Laser dry-fire training allows you to practice gun handling without live ammunition and without even having to go to a gun range. Increasing numbers of firearm owners, including law enforcement and civilians, are turning to laser dry-firing as a low-cost, convenient, and effective way to train.

Dry-fire training uses a laser cartridge in place of bullets. The cartridge doesn’t contain powder, primers, or projectiles, so nothing leaves the barrel of your weapon. You go through every step of the shooting process except without live ammunition, making it a great way to perfect your trigger pull and keep your motor skills sharp.

There are different dry-fire training solutions available on the market, costing as little as $30 and as much as $300. Training systems include a laser cartridge that you use with an app you download onto your smartphone. Simple dry-fire solutions track your shots in real-time and provide a trigger control analysis and a shot timer. The more expensive models also offer recoil, multi-target, and holster draw analyses and consistency comparisons.

While most women purchase their first gun citing personal protection, many find fun and fellowship along with firearms safety training. With the rise in the number of female gun owners, there has also been a significant increase in women-only gun clubs making the scene. These clubs offer a less intimidating environment for many female first-time gun owners. They’re a place where women can comfortably ask questions, improve their marksmanship, make new friends, and socialize with like-minded women.

Given the vast increase in first-time concealed weapons permits, it goes without saying that a growing number of first-time gun owners are out there. Responsible gun ownership is paramount. While weapons training helps make you safer handling a gun, simply owning a gun does not make you safer, and it’s not for everyone. Choosing to own a firearm is complicated and deeply personal and comes with two words commonly missing in today’s society— responsibility and accountability.