5 Things Missing From Your Range Bag That Tell Me You Aren’t That Serious
Walk into any shooting range on a busy Saturday, and you'll see them everywhere: shooters with expensive guns, premium optics, and all the latest tactical gear. But peek into their range bags, and you'll often find they're missing the most basic tools that separate serious practitioners from weekend plinkers.
Don't get me wrong—there's nothing wrong with recreational shooting. But if you're serious about developing real defensive skills, preparing for the unthinkable, or training like your life might depend on it, these five missing items are dead giveaways that you're still thinking like a casual shooter.
Sure, there are plenty of convenience items that show you spend time at the range—dedicated range bags, Uplula mag loaders, upgraded hearing protection, or an EarClip for your electronic ears. These things make your range sessions more comfortable and efficient, and they're worth every penny if you shoot regularly. But they don't directly impact your ability to defend yourself or your family.
The items below? These do.
1. A Shot Timer
What it tells me when it's missing: You're shooting for groups, not for life.
This is the big one. In a self-defense situation, you don't get unlimited time to line up the perfect shot, but you also can't just spray and pray. You need to be fast AND accurate under pressure. Without a shot timer, you have no idea how well you can deliver accurate hits under time constraints—and that's exactly what defensive shooting demands.
A quality shot timer forces you to push your limits and gives you objective feedback on your performance. Whether you're working on your draw stroke, practicing reload times, or running multiple target engagements, the timer doesn't lie.
Our recommendation: The Rangetech Shot Timer offers a great combination of features and reliability for serious shooters. It's the most economic option on the market and will allow you to save all your shooting data for later review.
The serious difference: Every drill has a time standard, and they're constantly pushing to meet real-world defensive shooting benchmarks.
2. Dummy Rounds (Snap Caps)
What it tells me when it's missing: You're not training for malfunctions.
Real defensive encounters don't happen on perfect guns with perfect ammo. Your gun will eventually malfunction, and when it does, your response needs to be automatic. Dummy rounds let you practice malfunction clearances, simulate failures, and work on your immediate action drills.
Our data suggests that malfunctions are much more likely in real defensive situations than in static range shooting. Don't assume it won't happen to you and understand that knowing the proper clearance procedure is different than performing it automatically without thought.
Our recommendations:
- Ready Up Gear Dummy Rounds for simulating Type 1 and Type 2 malfunctions
- Type 3 Malfunction Rounds for practicing double feed clearances
- Stay In The Fight Training Course for insights on the most effective procedures and training techniques
The serious difference: They regularly practice malfunction clearances and can clear a Type 1, 2, or 3 stoppage without thinking about it.
Stay In The Fight – Malfunctions Prevention and Clearance Online Course
3. A Trauma Kit
What it tells me when it's missing: You haven't accepted the reality of what you're preparing for.
If you're training for self-defense, you're acknowledging that violence exists and you might face it. That same violence could result in you or others being seriously injured. A basic first aid kit with band-aids isn't going to help with a gunshot wound or serious trauma.
A real trauma kit includes the tools to stop life-threatening bleeding and keep someone alive until professionals arrive. More importantly, carrying one means you've likely taken training to use it effectively.
Our recommendations:
- The Yellowstone Trauma Kit as a starting point for serious trauma preparedness
- The Emergency Trauma Response Online Course for an intro or brush up on trauma skills
The serious difference: They've taken a Stop the Bleed course and can use every item in their kit under stress.
4. Note-Taking and Record-Keeping Supplies
What it tells me when it's missing: You're not learning from your training sessions.
Serious defensive shooting isn't about how you feel—it's about measurable performance. Without documenting your training, you can't identify weaknesses, track improvement, or remember what techniques actually work under pressure.
Your records should include your scores and performance on various standardized drills or tests you conduct regularly to measure your skills. Also information about specific challenges you want to work on or things you are working to address. This data drives your training decisions and helps you focus on areas that need improvement.
It doesn't matter how you prefer to track your performance. Some write it down in a range notebook, others film all their training sessions and review the video later, and others may utilize their Rangetech Shot Timer to save their shooting data to the cloud. Whatever works for you—the key is consistency and actually using the data to improve.
Our recommendations:
- Ready Up Gear All Weather Notebook for durability in any conditions
- Smartphone apps like RangeBuddy for digital record keeping
The serious difference: They can tell you their exact draw times, hit percentages at various distances, and what specific skills they need to work on next.
5. Maintenance Gear
What it tells me when it's missing: You aren't prepared to address common issues at the range that cut your training session short.
Having a solid cleaning kit and a lot of gun oil in your bag allows you to address common issues you experience that can cut your training session short. Also, cleaning your gun and performing other simple maintenance at the range allows you to fire a live round to function check the gun before you leave the range maximizing your peace of mind knowing the gun will be ready to go if called upon.
Beyond the cleaning kit and oil, consider any other equipment you need to manage your firearm, optic, etc.
Our recommendations:
For any pistol:
- A compact cleaning kit with brushes, patches, and a quality oil like Gunfighter Gun Oil
- Real Avid Pistol Tool for comprehensive pistol maintenance
The serious difference: They can handle basic maintenance issues at the range and always function check their gun before leaving, ensuring their equipment is ready when they get home.
The Mindset Behind the Gear
Notice that none of these items are about looking cool or impressing other shooters. They're tools that reflect a specific mindset: the understanding that defensive shooting is a perishable skill that requires constant development and that your equipment might literally be the difference between life and death.
