Frequently asked questions

Absolutely. This is the whole reason why we started, as an inclusive and non-judgmental space, and teaching in a non-intimidating and welcoming manner. We know that BIPOC, progressive and queer folks often don't feel welcome in conservative gun spaces, so our lessons are safe spaces for anyone who doesn't feel welcome anywhere else.

Our passion is demystifying and destigmatizing what firearms are, in a safe and comfortable way, so anyone who wants to learn, even if they may not like guns, can get the information they need to be safe and responsible around them. 

You don't even need to book a lesson or touch a gun yet -- we've made our Friendly Intro to Firearms video series FREE to all, as a non-intimidating way to learn about gun safety and how they operate from the comfort of your home.

Once you're ready to take the next step and attend a class with us, you may be surprised how much your view on them has changed, and how much more confident and empowered you'll feel afterwards.

You can read our Yelp, Google reviews and Testimonials. Read about our students featured in L.A. Times, CNN, TIME Magazine, KQED, and listen to podcasts on the history of our inclusive, welcoming gun community, and our teaching philosophy on our Press page.

You do not need to own a gun, because they are already included in PISTOL 101. 

Most students in Pistol 101 are not gun owners and we prefer it that way.

Buying a gun before taking a proper lesson is like buying a car before you learn how to drive -- how potentially dangerous is that?

We encourage taking a lesson before deciding on purchasing your first gun, so you can make the most informed decision.

After taking Pistol 101, returning students can book PISTOL 102: Buying First Gun to help you decide to buy your 1st handgun by trying a selection of the most popular 9mm handguns. 

We highly recommend you try as many different models and sizes before making a purchasing decision. Many beginners make the wrong uninformed choices, such as buying a compact gun, thinking it's more convenient to have around, or easier to shoot, when smaller guns are actually harder to shoot, because there's less mass to mitigate the recoil, and not as much area to grip well or load and unload it easily, depending on your hand size and strength.

Also remember that gun stores are like car dealers -- they're not there to advise you on the most ideal gun. Their job is to make a profit, selling you whatever gun they can get off their shelves, and we have been disappointed and shocked at the kind of guns being sold to first time gun buyers, like women with smaller hands and elderly folks with limited hand strength, being sold guns too small, with triggers too heavy to squeeze and too much recoil to manage. Do not buy the cute pink pistol!

For students who already own a gun, we encourage you to bring it to the lesson so you can train and learn to be proficient with it.

We are available for group lessons 7 days a week. Private lesson are available Mon-Fri.

Founder & lead instructor Tom lives in Mexico and only returns to L.A. to teach every 4 weeks, so classes fill up fast. Book early! Here are 2026 class dates:

Apr 4-12, May 9-17, Jun 13-21, Jul 18-26, Aug 22-30, Sep 26-Oct 4, Nov 7-15, Dec 5-13

We teach at Burro Canyon Shooting Park outdoor shooting range in Azusa in L.A. County, a nice scenic drive up the San Gabriel mountains on Highway 39, where the 605 and 210 freeways meet.

The benefits of an outdoor range, as opposed to an indoor range, especially for first time and new shooters, is the noise level of gunshots is much lower outdoors, there is less exposure to lead out in fresh air, and for experienced shooters, we can work on advanced skills (like holster draw, rapid fire, movement) not allowed at indoor ranges. We have our own private bay which is more safe, secure and private from the public side of the range.

Due to heavy demand for our lessons and reserving a private range in advance, payment is required at the time you book online to confirm your seat and is non-refundable. You can pay online with credit/debit card and please read our terms and conditions.

For people new to guns, the 1st step is watching our Friendly Intro to Firearms video from the comfort of home, to build up confidence before coming to class.

Then, in our 4 hour in-person Pistol 101 class, we practice hands-on practice with unloaded pistols everything we covered in the video, so you can ask any questions, and are comfortable and confident, before we head to the final 1 hour live fire portion. 

Unlike other schools, for the ultimate safety & comfort of our students, live fire in Pistol 101 is always one on one instructor to student ratio. and we start you with .22 caliber, which has very little recoil, and is less intimidating for people learning to shoot guns their first time. Then, as you build your confidence, we let you shoot 9mm.

Our teaching philosophy is very methodical, to ensure each student understands and is confident at each step, before moving on to the next step. 

This is different than many other instructors, who do the entire lesson at the firing area, where it can be intimidating and hard to hear through ear muffs and with all the folks firing guns around them.

For those with hearing sensitivity to loud gunshots, everyone in our Pistol 101 class is provided with electronic noise-cancelling ear protection that dampens loud gunshots and still amplifies our voices so you can be comfortable and easily hear us above the noise.

You have many choices where to take firearms lessons, and we highly encourage you to carefully vet us and any instructor or school you are considering.

First, judge by the consistent results twe help people most afraid of guns achieve their first time shooting a gun -- easily shooting Holes in Holes, better than the majority of other people at gun ranges.

Anyone can call themselves an instructor -- It only takes 16 hours to get certified as a basic firearms instructor, and many instructors with law enforcement or military experience are only teaching outdated, obsolete knowledge they learned decades ago, that is not relevant to a civilian self-defense mindset.

No matter what an instructor's credentials are, the best question to ask before considering their class and putting your safety in their hands, is "When was the last time you were a student?"

In any profession with responsibility for people's safety, continuing education is critical to not becoming complacent.  When lead instructor Tom and staff are not teaching, we're continually training and honing our craft with nationally known instructors, to make sure we're delivering our students the latest knowledge and most updated techniques. Founder & lead instructor Tom & staff have trained under Modern Samurai Project, Tim Herron, My Own Defender and Raven Wing.

Tom has been shooting firearms since the late 80s and got certified to instruct in 2020, to address the need for a safe and inclusive space for politically liberal and progressive, queer and BIPOC folks to learn how to exercise their 2nd amendment rights. Our firearms instruction business is a fully insured LLC, and is a minority immigrant-owned & operated small business.

We have a passion for teaching and breaking everything down to the fundamentals so anyone, no matter their background and ability, can learn to shoot safely and responsibly. Tom has been teaching adults and children in rigorous physical disciplines like martial arts and surfing since the 90s.

Accessibility is a critical part of our mission. We believe that the ability to own and operate firearms is a constitutional right, everyone and anyone, no matter their ability or disability, should be able to exercise if they choose to. We think it's important to be up-to-date on the latest innovations and techniques to help folks of different abilities. 

For example, Tom has trained to be an ambidextrous shooter to instruct left-handed people and people who are cross eye dominant. We make videos about tools to help folks with limited hand strength and invested in red dot optics so from day 1 of learning to shoot a gun, all folks are able to aim more naturally, especially folks with prescription glasses or vision challenges.

Representation matters. We are continually trying to offer more classes catered to the most underrepresented folks in a very conservative gun world. Now that we have a woman instructor and Queer and Spanish speaking staff, we plan to offer Women's Pistol 101, Femmes & Thems Pistol 101, and Pistola 101 en Español, if there is enough demand. Join our Waitlist! 

As with any instructor and school, safety should always be paramount, and there is zero tolerance for unsafe gun handling in our classes. We restrict Pistol 101 class sizes so there is always a one-to-one instructor to student ratio at the firing line for utmost safety while handling loaded firearms. We are 1st Aid/CPR/AED/Stop The Bleed certified. 

In April 2021, 6 months after we started our teaching business, our team of students won 1st and 2nd place in the Amateur Civilian division of Glock Sport Shooting Foundation competition. Tom achieved B Class ranking in Carry Optics within 8 months of USPSA pistol competition and have shooting standards to help motivate our students to continue improving their skills.

Whether you've been shooting guns all your life, never taken a formal lesson, or it's been years since your last lesson, shooting techniques are constantly evolving and progressing, and you don't know what you don't know. You may have picked up many bad habits and too casual attitude towards safe gun handling.

Tom learned to shoot with Weaver stance in the 90s, and when he returned to shooting in 2019, he had to relearn the thumbs forward grip, and isosceles stance. Then, he started USPSA competition shooting in 2021, which requires a more relaxed, efficient stance in order to be dynamic and fluid while shooting on the move. 

Even if you are already a consistent and accurate shooter, be humble and open-minded enough to learn something new. 

You may also have friends and family who've been shooting as long or longer than we have, and showing you obsolete techniques they learned in their military and law enforcement service decades ago. Also, as well intentioned as they are, teaching you military or law enforcement tactics is not ideal and often inappropriate for the civilian self-defensive mindset.

If your friends and family aren't constantly refreshing their knowledge with the latest shooting techniques as well as maintaining strict safety protocols as good professionals do, they may be passing on their bad habits to you, instead of giving you a solid and modern foundation as a new shooter. 

Also, for first time shooters who are apprehensive and anxious, your first impression is everything -- it can go well or turn you off on guns, if you have a bad first experience. And that would be the fault of whoever is teaching you, in maybe not the most patient or informed way, or if relationship dynamics get in the way, instead of learning from an objective certified professional.

As instructors, we do not believe in dogma or orthodoxy, or teaching students to do something just because that's how everyone does it. Whatever you are being taught needs to make sense to you, and there is always more to learn and improve in your shooting skills.

We are constantly questioning and challenging prevailing techniques, and making sure they make sense both for us and our students, as well as adapting them, depending on student's different abilities and individual circumstances.

So, if you have reached a plateau in your shooting, or aren't able to shoot accurately and consistently, or you never learned or have forgotten the fundamentals, a refresher will always help you. 

We can assess where you are at currently in your shooting techniques and skills, and then help you get to the next level in your development as a pistol shooter. If you're an experienced shooter who owns your own gun, you can take Pistol 101-B: Accuracy & Best Practices class, taught concurrently with Pistol 101.

Congratulations! If you've taken the 1st step in taking a lesson with us, you're now a different shooter than the majority of folks you see at the public ranges who haven't invested in a formal lesson from a certified professional.

As with any skill you learn, shooting firearms well is a perishable skill, if you don't practice regularly and consistently.

Also, being competent with your firearm doesn't end at just 1 lesson, especially if you intend to purchase one for home defense. Buying a gun for home defense requires more knowledge and practice than just shooting slowly at a paper target. 

Pistol 101/101-B is just the 1st basic step to knowing how to safely operate and shoot a pistol accurately.

Our curriculum is step-by-step to progressively build your confidence and skill:

Pistol 102: Buying First Gun: Practice what you learned in Pistol 101/101-B with 12 different guns to make an informed buying decision by narrowing it down to your 3 favorite guns -- then experience shooting them fast for the 1st time. Class video

Pistol 201: Speed & Performance: Once you own your 1st gun, learn to shoot them fast AND be defensively accurate, real skills required for home and self-defense that most gun owners who only slow-fire at public gun ranges lack. Class video

Red Dot: Cheat Codes: We invest in & are huge proponents of everyone shooting with pistol optics from Day 1 in Pistol 101. Iron sights are outdated, hard to shoot with both eyes open, and very difficult to aim for many who wear glasses. Red dot instantly helps anyone of all visual abilities aim with less frustration and shoot more accurately. But most are still using them like irons sights -- learn the proper way to master the dot and take your shooting to the next level. Class video

These classes can be booked on demand Mon-Fri. Join the Waitlist.

Once you're a client, you'll also be emailed our newsletter, and you can always reach us at tom@laprogressiveshooters.com or 323-900-5277, and follow our community on Instagram and Facebook.

We will teach children on a case-by-case basis, depending on their maturity level and the attention span and seriousness that is required for learning how to shoot firearms. Children must be accompanied in the lesson by a parent/legal guardian.

Yes, it has been possible to get a CCW permit in L.A. County since 2020 when good cause was relaxed, and even more straightforward after the 2022 Supreme Court Bruen decision that good cause was no longer required.

As a L.A. County authorized CCW training provider, we provide CCW Training for initial and renewal applicants with LASD, LAPD, and most police departments in L.A. County.

Absolutely! We specialize in demystifying guns and making the experience fun and educational, with an emphasis on safety and comfort. Know someone who's always wanted to learn, or who wants to take their skills to the next level? Give the gift of a lesson for your family and friends here.