Tom is great. My partner and I were nervous about going. I'm trans and not exactly passing, and we…read moreboth have anxiety about guns. I admit that I went in "in stealth", not appearing trans because you never know what you're walking into but it was a good group and afterwards, I felt like I could have come as my authentic self and not had any problems. The training was good and easy to follow. The videos ahead of time were really helpful and they explained everything thoroughly.

I have taken two classes with Tom and his team…read more Whatever your reasons to pursue firearm training, their thoroughness should be applauded. Their patience with new shooters is much appreciated. Frank discussions of safety, breakdowns of weapons, ample firing opportunities with a wide variety of pistol choices, direct hands-on training and improvement. Even in group settings individual attention is generous. Yes it's a hike to get out to Azusa, but there is solid safety reasoning for that choice. Deal with it! I can see moving up to their more advanced training sessions soon.

Andrew Is a Great Teacher. His Work Book was great. Mary & I had a Great time. Trainers have been…read moreexcellent working with the Students. I like how they did excellent job running the Shooting Range. Very Safe and Professional.

From the owner: The goal of Defensive Shooting Academy California is to give you the knowledge, skills and attitude…read morefor owning and operating a firearm safely.We teach the Fundamentals of Marksmanship, Safety, and Team Building. We are all NRA Certified Instructors.

Stan is a great instructor, and I would whole heartedly recommend him to anyone who wants to learn…read morehow to use firearms in a more dynamic manner, whether for sport (e.g. ISPC / IDPA) or for defense. I took 4 days of private training (1-on-1) with Stan, and it was easily the most enjoyable course (of any type) that I've taken in recent years! Before this course, I had done a fair bit of target shooting both with pistols and rifles, but was getting bored of the repetitive nature of that static type of shooting. Since I was passing through LA and had a couple of days of downtime on my hands, I looked around for a tactical shooting course to learn how to use firearms in a more dynamic manner. I explored a fair few different options, but found many either too "commercial" (with large classes, and low instructor to student ratios), or too elite (i.e. too expensive, and also inflexible). Stan has been a pleasure to work with, both in terms of setting up and arranging the training, and also throughout the 4 days of training itself. Stan is able to clearly distill down the core fundamentals of tactical shooting, and communicated them in an easy to understand manner. Throughout the practical aspects of the course, Stan gave clear demonstrations of each of the drills, and then ran the drills with me until he was satisfied that I had fully absorbed the lesson before moving onto the next drill. Where I struggled with certain drills, he was also able to give me me timely and effective tips and tricks that resolved the challenges. Within 4 days (about 5-6 hours training per day), Stan helped me move from someone who could only really do slow fire target style shooting to being comfortable with manipulating both pistols and rifles in rapid (for me) fashion. On top of the excellent instruction, Stan is also a very friendly and patient instructor. I'll certainly be back - I can't wait!

Preface to my review, I am a liberal and I voted for Obama. Not just that, I actually donated quite…read morea bit to Obama and Feinstein (also Stephen Colbert but that was more for sh*ts and giggles). So when a lot of my more conservative friends found out I owned a gun, they become confused? Why do you need a gun? The answer I always give is that gun's serve a very specific tool, and only fools would go into this world not using every tool and leverage that was offered upon them. It would in my mind equate to going to a steak house and attempting to eat steak without a knife. That was a horrible analogy. I apologize. Regardless, a few years back someone broke through my front door into my home while I was in bed, in my boxers. Took the cops 15 minutes to arrive, and that day I realized I was without the correct tools. So I bought a gun. A gun is useless unless you practice with it so you know how to use it safely and accurately. Going to the gun range, I learned how to use my tools safely and accurately, or so I thought. I decided I need to take some real training, and that is when I found Stan, and The Academy of Saint Crispian. Stan is a certified NRA instructor, ex-cop, and ex-Marine. He is well qualified to teach, and his prices are good. At $75 dollars a class (discounts if you take more) it actually is quite affordable. The classes I have taken: - Pistol 101 - Rifle 101/202 - Shotgun 101/202 - Surefire Night Course I'm not going to give you a blow by blow on what he teaches, you can dig online and find plenty of postings on what occurs during these courses. What I will write are some observations and tips. Tips: 1. The 202 series are honestly over kill if you just want familiarity with your weapons and home defense. The 202 series covers a lot of more advanced techniques that really benefit if you have a partner, and a lot of the concepts are more on how to use the skills you learned in 101, rather than gaining the skills. While amazingly fun, if you don't plan on assaulting a force and laying down covering fire correctly, these classes may not be for you. 2. On the other hand if you really want to experience how to properly engage a target with a fire team (movement without fire is BAD) and want to have a BLAST then take 202. 3. 101 is suppose to be for beginners, but if you aren't 100% comfortable with your gun and gear then you may find the pace much too fast. My girlfriend was honestly floored by the pace of the classes. This was Pistol 101. 4. On the other hand, what I have begun to notice is not all of Stan's classes are always full. In fact if you call him sometimes you might be able to attend a class with just 1 or 2 people. That is basically one on one training. Killer deal. If you really want to improve this is the way to go (Sorry Stan if you read this). 5. If you don't have the correct gun or gear, that is fine. Stan has tons of guns and boy are they nice. He rents the equipment cheap. 6. Not all guns are the same. One of the most important thing I've learned taking Stan's classes are how important your gear really is. While you may PIMP your gun out, after firing 500 rounds through it will really show you what works, and what doesn't. How stupid (and dead) will you feel if you actually need to use your firearm and it doesn't work... 7. Want to learn target shooting? Want to be able to hit a bulls eye at 100 meters with your rifle! Wrong class! Try Appleseed. You won't be target shooting at any of these classes. While hitting your target is important, emphasis is more being effective on shot placement than accuracy. 8. Don't have a red dot? Shotgun isn't super fancy? Doesn't matter. Getting training from Stan will make you 100% better than all your friends that only go shoot at the range or on BLM land. After taking the course you will have literally done hundreds of mag changes, cleared untold amount of jams, and learn the in's and out's of your weapon to the point where you do feel comfortable and fluid. 9. Wear the right gear. Some gear is appropriate, not everything is necessary. I would say for the 101 series go light as possible. Whatever you feel comfortable going from standing to kneeling, and moving. You don't need a crazy vest to hold a billion magazines, and just realize that all that gear you wear will start to get heavier and heavier and heavier as the day goes by. 10. The night class is probably the one that really opened my eyes the most (funny cuz it was at night and I couldn't see crap). The skills I learned that night regarding light and how God forsaken scary when things go bump at the night really reinforced in my mind a lot of things.. I could keep writing these, but I know I probably lost 99% of the readers awhile back... so with that being said here is my take away: Before I took 101 I wasn't 100% sure about training, but after 101 my eyes have been opened, and I've gone back to take more.

I successfully completed the NRA Basics of Pistol Shooting Level 1 course with Tola Defensive…read moreSolutions' instructor Todd Larato. It was a pretty intense experience. My fellow classmates were an ex-sniper for SWAT and a gun enthusiast who takes 3 classes per month and has groupings that would fit within a silver dollar. I was overwhelmingly "outgunned," pun intended. I have no idea why these guys are taking a basic class, but I'm always up for a challenge! The upside is during the course of the day my confidence and skills markedly improved, in my mind in any case. For context, I've never shot using a pistol holster before, and my hallmark of marksmanship thus far was a Rifle Shooting Merit Badge from the Boy Scouts of America. Hot Shot Eagle Scout, swallow your pride once you completely miss the paper target! There was a steep learning curve with a myriad of skills including holstering, multiple targets, changing magazines to time, situational awareness, moving and shooting, I could go on and on. It was a packed day and a lesson in stamina too. I had issues with mashing the trigger, supposedly common with beginners. Todd was patient throughout, despite me holding the class back (repeat: ex-SWAT sniper!) Todd's instruction was thorough, precise and firm, which produced results. You don't want a laid back surfer dude "whatevering" you through life-and-death self-defense scenarios! Todd gave me insightful pointers and homework to review as I've taken my first step of a thousand mile journey. The course made me realize how little I knew about properly handling a pistol, in addition to the majority of civilians who own pistols. The class was priced reasonably to the point that it should be affordable for most people. All new gun owners should be required to undergo this course. Proper training is crucial for your own safety and the safety of others. Lasly, make sure to bring plenty of water, a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, proper boots, and electronic earmuffs. You'll need approximately 300-350 rounds of ammo, which I purchased at Walmart.

Todd was a very knowledgeabale coach and was an awesome instructor. Had an awesome basic pistol…read morecourse this past weekend. I highly recommend him.

I lost my cousin due to gun violence, so at very young age Guns had left a very negative…read moreimpression on me. In my adulthood, I respected them; but wasn't quite sure I ever wanted to touch one. Sadly, the reality is the world we live in now is a dog eat dog world. - I want to be able to protect myself sufficiently and confidently. Showing up to Gun class in the middle of no where with no prior gun experience with no cell service and alone, sounds like the perfect Saturday! Hahaha - And it was. Thankfully Darren and his two guys, were fabulous instructors! Good energy and lots of knowledge, not to mention super helpful and will lend a helping hand gladly to help build your confidence holding a gun... loading your gun or magazine. These guys give good instruction, than it's up to you to practice them right, inevitably; because Perfect practice makes for PERFECT. Thanks so much gentlemen, I will be returning to sharpen the skills I was shown today and break in my SIG P220 and Smith & Wesson Shield.

I took my first firearm training class with Darren at 5 Arrows.. ....prior to this I've had zero…read moreexperience with firearms....I am so pleased with the way Darren taught me everything from the safe handling and cleaning to actually firing a pistol accurately. I highly endorse 5 Arrows Tactical for your firearm training needs.

Great service with great experience, very friendly to Amateur, Duke is very patient and…read moreprofessional.

Had to leave a review for this shooting school and my instructor! The coach was super thorough and…read morepatient--explained every step clearly, and you could really tell he knew his stuff. The best part was how he helped me connect with the firearm almost instantly, which took away a lot of the nervousness. I only took one lesson, but the progress was real. Went from knowing nothing to handling the basics with way more confidence. Highly recommend for beginners!

Great gun range! Range Master is friendly if you are not…read moreendangering anyone. This place has family vibes at times :-)

Screw the entire staff EXCEPT the Asian Range Officer at the rifle range. He was super chill…read more Everyone else is extremely rude, even when not actively shooting at the range. Might as well hire a bunch of women on their rags. Another range officer at the rifle range got in front of me to my 11 o'clock while I had my rifle up, finger off the trigger and thought I was GOING to point my gun at him when I wanted to point it away and down because the retard got in front of me. So he started tripping on me but I wanted to stay and shoot my brand new rifle so I kept it cool. I have video of the whole incident. Cool spot. Fuck the staff.