I took the BPS class with my three daughters. Bertrand was extremely knowledgeable and very patient…read morewith us. The course was all about safety, which made me feel much better since I had no prior experience with guns. We all enjoyed our class. Thank you Bertrand!

I took the BPS (Basic Pistol Shooting) course with Bertrand, who was recommended to me by friends…read morethat had taken courses with him before. Bertrand is extremely knowledgeable and meticulous in his lessons, with safety always at the forefront of everything he teaches. You'll likely walk out with newfound confidence and competency about using firearms, I certainly did. The BPS course was broken up into 4 parts - a self-paced online course, an in-person classroom session, 2 hour private range practice time, and 1 hour gun cleaning session (sometimes the gun cleaning is done at the range, though that'll depending on timing). Detailed information about each section will be provided once you sign up for the course. The classroom session was a group session, and it went almost 6 hours for our class (you basically go over everything that was taught in the online course, and then do some dry-firing exercises). The range time was great because it was a private coaching session, and usually done at non-public hours at the range, so there are no other distractions. One caveat - Bertrand is a bit of a drill sergeant, and while this approach may work for some people, others might prefer a softer touch. That being said, he does make sure you walk out with a wealth of knowledge and is extremely passionate about teaching. I had previously tried shooting once before, and I was taught next to nothing compared to what I learned through this course. An excellent surprise bonus to this course was how well I was able to shoot in our range session, and I definitely give kudos to Bertrand for his excellent course and training. He offers a wide variety of courses and is super responsive. If you're looking to safely learn how to use a firearm, SFE is the way to go.

I am not rating Dave Matthews. He appears to be a good trainer and owner based on the other…read morereviews. I am rating one of the other trainers who I randomly got for my ccw course. The good: He provided good information, was knowledgeable, and got the training done. The bad: No way would I use him again. I'm all for safety, but he was constantly threatening the class to throw us out for a mild infraction of safety protocols. Not all protocols are the same level. Yes, I would agree with him if someone pointed a l.g. at someone due to negligence. But he was maniacal with well intentioned people. Another insanity after every firing drill, looking over both shoulders. Someone is going to get a neck kink this way. It's fine to teach it, but after every firing round, this is just dumb. He just used threats to drive behavior which drove us crazy. Update: 2 star to 5 star...spoke with Dave the owner. He graciously called me to find out what happened, a sign of someone who cares. I think this particular instructor cares too and maybe was just new and a little rigid, which isn't always a bad thing when it comes to safety. I will definitely after this interaction consider FTI for my future training needs.

I recently needed to get my NRA Rifle Instructor certification. After looking around, a few people…read morerecommend Dave at Firearm Training Institute. I ended up signing up for two weekend sessions (Basic Instructor Training and a few weeks after that, Rifle Instructor). I have to say, Dave is an amazing instructor, he was well prepared, really knew the material, and overall did a fantastic job. I would highly recommend Firearm Training Institute to anyone (whether you are new to firearms to a seasoned pro).

Wayne is a very funny and pleasant person to be around with. He's an excellent teacher.read more

Wayne was an amazing instructor, my first. So chill, yet so knowledgeable. Just a great guy to be…read morearound. RIP Wayne

Manzano Tactical: The Efficiency Course That Gets You HOOKED!…read more I initially joined Manzano Tactical just to enjoy my range days, but their Rifle Efficiency Course on September 27th completely changed the game--I'm now hooked on competition and eagerly look forward to participating in the member pistol matches and 2-Gun matches they host with the club! This course is a must-do if you are serious about improving. The course description holds true: they immediately incorporate fundamentals with serious movement and variable challenges. We spent the day pushing our limits with demanding standards, striving for those "Demigod gold standards" while shooting both handguns and rifles. The training gave me a clear, honest assessment of my current abilities and showed me exactly where my weaknesses lie. What truly set this apart was the personalized instruction from the lead instructor, Kyle. He is a master at identifying specific struggles, even managing to see and correct my flaws while I was on the move. Kyle carved out time to help solidify those exact skill sets. I walked away learning to shoot efficiently, mastering reloads and weapon manipulation on the move, fixing frustrating ammo misfeeds under pressure, and achieving seriously fast target acquisition with my optics. They even provided insightful feedback on flaws in my equipment setup! The course was fun, incredibly safe, and, by the end of the day, I had gained massive confidence in my skills. If you want to move past casual shooting and get a clear, detailed path to mastery, book this course. Highly recommended!

Kyle and the guys at Manzano legit brought 2A to the bay…read more Gun shops have always seemed intimidating, but all the staff over at Manzano are extremly knowledgeable and happy to answer all sorts of questions. They aren't salesman, they are shooters trying to help, regardless of our skill levels. I was luckily enough to take their Pistol Match Efficiency class, Jake put together a solid class with an abundant amount of information and drills to get introduced to shooting at a pace that was productive in learning. Being a member has its perks too where we can really try to better our skills in a variety of ways. Rapid fire, holster work, and even comp days. With more than competitive pricing, the ability to source things that aren't available in the shop to get products we want, Safety is also a top priority. Kyle and the team educate and demonstrate how to be efficient with firearms.

Re: Anoop and Grove Group intro to pistol class. As a…read moreperson new to pistol shooting, I found the class informative. The little detail Anoop teaches and his "crawl, walk, run" teaching techniques helped me be more confident in the use of the fire arm. I would recommend the calss to anyone interested in learning about pistols.

Clay Disneyland is the best way to describe this place now that it is under new ownership (RIP Tom…read moreEbert founder of Coyote Valley Clays). The facility caters to new and experienced shooters on a beautifully maintained world class shooting facility. The facility offers Trap, Skeet, and of course sporting clays. The pro shop offers FFL transfers, cold beverages for sale, and swag (T-shirts, hats, pins, stickers etc.) to show off your school spirit. The staff is extremely helpful and they have BBQ on the weekends! A+ facility!

I had a chance today to take the Basic Safety and Marksmanship course with Sgt. Andrew Bowen. In…read moreshort, it was worth every penny. Andrew improved my pistol skills from the ground up. He fixed my stance, my grip, my trigger squeeze, my sight picture and my breathing control. He taught me how fatiguing it can really be to send every round downrange, and more importantly, how to combat that fatigue. My groups went from 12" down to under 6" (at 7 yards) in under 2 hours and less than 200 rounds. I know with more practice and focus on Andrews techniques I can get that group even tighter. I've read the books and watched the videos, but nothing compares to the solid one on one instruction Andrew provides. I can't wait to follow up with his more advanced classes!

Another satisfied customer!! I have to admit I was hesitant to take another basic class, but seeing…read morehow green I am I figured it shouldn't hurt. Lucky for me I think that way because Sgt. Bowen opened my eye and mind to things that were not brought up in my previous basic class. Some gun jams that I haven't heard of and some I have heard of,but haven't seen, and how to clear them . I learned a better stance and better grip that all just made sense. If you are new and serious on learning and improving don't pass an opportunity to get trained by Sgt. Bowen. I am excited to practice what I learned and to move on to tactical training to see what else I can learn and improve on. I also hope to continue to update this review as I work my way through other lessons.

Robert and Matt are some of the best shooting instructors that I've had the pleasure of training…read morewith. They were professional, patient, and their attention to detail is second to none. If you're looking for a premiere firearms instruction company then Silicon valley Tactical is the choice.

Rob always provides a safe place to learn and practice all firearm skills. His courses are dynamic…read moreand interactive. He is knowledgeable on anything related to firearms. Highly recommended.

I took Fighting Rifle 1 + 2 over the weekend and had a great time and learned a ton. I went from…read morenot knowing how to rack the rifle, to knowing how to zero a rifle, confident with manipulations, and knowing what my limits are in terms of shooting, stress, and movement. It was also a lot of fun Brian really donates all of his energy into this, and goes above and beyond. He's not here to give you a simple low effort easy experience that you can feel good about later. He wants to challenge you. He really wants you to grow as a shooter and share with you his passion for this activity and skill. I saw a few people here post about the drive up so I want to help inform others with this aspect-- I will say that its a very doable drive if you can drive twisties. I have performance driving experience and it took 50 minutes from the base of San Jose. I will say if you are less experienced, budget 1.5 hours. And if you lack confidence driving, budget 2 hours. Its not a difficult drive as in there is no risk, as long as you drive within your limits in terms of speed. Feeling not confident? Just slow down. Some people were driving 15-20mph which is totally fine for these roads. But if you are the type of person that cannot confidently put their car where they want it to go, I would skip this trainer and find a closer place to town. His range itself is off road. I would say its in the beginner off road level of driving. Meaning treat it like driving on road. There isn't really anything that can damage your car. But you will be driving on dirt, and if you are not used to that it might concern you. But don't worry off road is only tricky with hills, ruts, or rocks, which there are none. With a standard sedan, drive up to the bathrooms. Any further and you will get bigger hills. With fwd, if you are a confident driver you can make it down to the classroom building. However I would not suggest driving down to the range unless you have AWD as you may not have enough traction to go back up. I will say that if you do not consider yourself a skilled driver, do not drive back at night. Plan to pack up at 5 and leave at 6 minimum (assuming 7 is sunset). I drove back at night, and had to manage deer (saw two packs), fog, rocks on the road. It was raining that day so maybe my drive back was trickier than normal. These things are not an issue during the day, however at night you do need to be attentive.

I don't write many 2-star reviews, but I think this experience warrants it. I took the firearm…read moresafety class with Brian, and unfortunately I can't recommend it. Brian was unprofessional, rude, and had a habit of belittling students. He made the learning environment uncomfortable by embarrassing people rather than constructively correcting them. While I understand that it's not an instructor's job to be friendly or to "hold our hands," there's a difference between being direct and being outright disrespectful--and Brian crossed that line. In terms of content, the class was heavily skewed toward theoretical discussions, such as legal frameworks for self-defense and broad topics on conflict and society. While some of this information was interesting and well-explained, it dominated the day, leaving little time for actual hands-on firearm training. The balance between theory and practical instruction was way off. Additionally, while Brian welcomed questions, he often responded by making students feel stupid instead of providing clear, direct answers. This approach, combined with his condescending attitude, discouraged people from asking questions at all. A firearms class should foster confidence and competence--not intimidation. I gave it 1 extra star because instructor Spencer was amazing. Overall, I did not gain much practical, in-depth knowledge about firearms or safety. If you're looking for a class that prioritizes hands-on training and a professional learning environment, I'd suggest looking elsewhere.