Question About Firearms Safety Course Difference Province To Province

albayo

albayo

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Born on PEI, Live in NB
I have a question about the Canadian Firearms Safety Course. Is it different in the administering the courses province to province?

In NB the course is divided into two sections, one for non-restricted and the other for restricted.
The Department of Natural Resources (DNR), or Rangers handle the non-restricted part. The DNR sets up the dates and time for volunteer instructors to teach.
The CPFO in Fredericton sets up the restricted part of the Safety Course and the instructors get paid.
The non-restricted course costs $60 and the restricted part costs another $45 or $50.

I have another question about the courses;
Do the courses teach the students about the different classes of firearms?

The reason I ask, there seems to be a lot of people that slept through that part. I have had some Prohibited 12-6 firearms for sale and were clearly marked them as Prohibited 12-6. I still get PM’s asking if their Restricted class will allow them to purchase the firearms. Are they trying to scam the seller or are they unaware of the classes?
I would just like to know if something is lacking in the Firearms Safety Courses?
I have the Student Handbook, there is one section at the back of the book that has the definitions and it is clearly stated.
 
In Alberta the course is administered by AHEIA (don't ask me why cause i have know of no logical reason for this.) They have set the cost of the course for either a full course or challenge at $65 plus other expenses i.e. hall rental, courier charges to get material, etc. The non-restricted and the restricted courses are two different courses right across Canada; it is after all a Canadian law.

Classes of firearms are taught in both the non-restricted and the restricted course and there is at least one question about this on all of the written tests. However most people forget about 25% of what hey learnt in a class after about a week and 50% after about a month unless they are applying it on a regular basis.
 
The specific classes of firearms (12.X) are not required material for the course. Restricted, non restricted and prohibited is all that is discussed in the manuals and is all that is discussed in the majority of classes. Many "instructors" are ignorant of the additional classes of prohibited firearms.

I've posted this before and I'll say it again. The "instructor" course is a complete joke. Nearly as useless in its content as the PAL course itself. Of the 35 "instructors" who attended my class. There were maybe 8 that had any real intelligence when it came to firearms. Two individuals couldn't speak english and had only passed their PAL/RPAL course the week before. The "master instructor" was just as clueless as the majority of the students and wasted no time in offering bullsh*t information regarding the status of take-down rifles(he claimed they were prohibited) amongst other topics.

The moral to this story. Don't believe everything you're being taught, is everything you should know, nor is it necessarily correct. Do your own research and cover your a$$. Instructor status is a title not a science.

TDC
 
in Nova Scotia the courses are administered through N.S Community Collage and are taught by Gun Clubs and Wild life Clubs I believe there are a few private individuals that teach if there are none of the former in the area or a real high demand,Section 9 talks about the status of firearms (non restr,resrt,and prohib) but doesn't get into the 12.X classifications.It's the same book across Canada so the info should be the same,it only changes with the instructors own "experiences".
 
I think it's probably a little bit of wishful thinking on the part of people who like the lower price of prohib weapons and a little bit of what TDC is saying in that people forget most of what they've learned in the classroom.
I'm actually in the process of becoming a CFSC instructor and have been helping out in some AHEIA PAL an RPAL classes, where I have heard the instructors make mistakes in the information they give out, but I think there are very, very few people who can keep all the rules, regs and specifics 100% accurate all the time... including myself! There are so many crazy things to keep clear, that in the end I have to remind myself that an 8 hr class won't make anyone an expert and the real reason these classes are mandatory is to drive home the basics of firearm safety, not necessarily to make everyone an expert on what is a prohib firearm and the different categories thereof. That's more something people will learn as they make their way into the world of shooting, collecting, hunting etc.
I understand why you would ask that question though, and I'm sure it must frustrate you a lot when a sale falls through because of ignorance on the buyer's part.
In the end though, the more people we get licensed and practicing responsible shooting/ownership the more power we can get to loosening these ridiculous gun control laws, right? That's the way I see it anyway.
Oh btw, the AHEIA in Calgary offers the courses (PAL and RPAL) for a donation, not a specific dollar amount, but most guys that teach privately seem to charge about $65 like Walter H. was saying.
 
Firearms Safety Course

I have been teaching since 1993 and I am in the 12-3, 12-5, & 12-6 classes.
It just gets frustrating that the individuals that hold PAL's, for restricted class of firearms don't know anything about the classes.
It isn't rocket science, if it's prohibited and your PAL doesn't say prohibited on the back you aren't in the class.

I find some instructors try to add things that interest them like reloading. I teach what's in the book and don't try to confuse the students by wandering off the subject. One guy around here is an instructor in a community college, he wanders off the subject and adds all kinds of confusion in his presentation.
I was disappointed in how he taught the students I expected to learn from a professional. I guess I did, I don’t teach like he does and I like to keep things straight. I recently spent four years as a student in college and have a good idea which methods work.
I tell the class that the course is designed for students that haven’t had any firearms experience. Like one of the other gentlemen said the students will have to find out the rest for themselves.
 
I don't recall much information on classes beyond non-restricted and restricted. However, I did seem to learn pretty quick - through friends and people selling firearms (my friends RPAL was riddled with 12(x) classes and sellers would tell me I couldn't have this and couldn't have that). Generally, if others are permitted to own certain classes, people will naturally assume its just a matter of acquiring the necessary permits - thats what I thought. In the U.S., they grandfather the firearm, not the individual - so that may add to the confusion as well. So give us noobs a break! I didn't learn anything about re-loading either.
 
"...Are they..." Maybe a little bit of both. Thinking they might put one over on a seller or they just don't know what is prohibited and what isn't.
Mind you, there's not much point in going into a whole lot of detail about firearms for which no permits are being issued. I suspect at least some courses are taught by unqualified people too. Originally, there were no instructor qualifications published.
 
Prohibited Class Pistols

I dont know why an instructor would teach new applicants about prohibited class as they can never own one. And on the course cover page it states non restricted and restricted, there is no mention of prohibited.
Only my thoughts
 
What doesn't change much is the firearms themselves. Any course is probably adequate to learn how to handle them safely, including the courses I got in grade school many years ago, now discontinued. It's good to know about the newly invented class of prohibs the same as it's good to know about CPR -- never know when you're going to need it.
 
Jimpruner is correct. There is a lot of legal info to learn and remember. No one is expected to know the answers or keep up with all the rulings and details regarding every topic in the firearms community. However, every instructor should know where to find the answers or where to direct students to find the answers. What really chaps my a$$ are instructors who are too arrogant or ignorant to admit when they don't have the answer, and offer some BS answer of their own. IF YOU DON'T KNOW, DON'T MAKE UP AN ANSWER!

Some of the details regarding the firearms community and the legal bits are of no use to new shooters. Other topics should be covered at greater length such as selecting appropriate calibres for specific tasks/game. As well as a more in depth understanding of ballistics and trajectory.

TDC
 
The instructors I saw teach did talk a fair bit about ballistics and a little bit about caliber selection depending on usage and I thought that was great.
The prohib portion was good enough really in my opinion. It went something like "if it shoots more than one bullet with one pull of the trigger, it's broken or a prohibited firearm, and you should get it fixed or you can't have one." He also mentioned the barrel length details, but I don't honestly think any of the students will remember that part-- too statistical.
I actually feel that students should be given the books to read about a week before they attend the class so they can already have a vague idea what's going to be taught, that way it's more of a review, and more time can be spent on confusing parts, and the practical portion which is really the more important part in my mind. All in all though, I think it's not a bad course if taught well, and should be enough to help people keep from hurting themselves and others.
 
Tick said:
I dont know why an instructor would teach new applicants about prohibited class as they can never own one.
Click to expand...

Not entirely true. They could be upgradeing a POL to an RPAL and have 12.x registerd to the POL. Or, they could inherit 12.x and receive 12.7 status.
 
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