This was what Engineer Oscar Gabuya, fondly called Ka Oca by many, explained to photographer Mike Alquinto and this writer over cups of coffee and generous helpings of different stories and advice on, what else, guns, shooting and the like.

Starting early and is still unfinished

Ka Oca started to learn gunsmithing as early as 12 years old by helping out in his uncle’s gunsmithing shop in Cebu in the 1960s.

At an early age, Ka Oca learned to do simple gunsmithing jobs and was earning a decent income until Martial Law was declared in 1972 by then President Ferdinand Marcos.

The situation was harsh. Civilian carry of firearms was banned and those found were confiscated. This affected the livelihoods of Ka Oca, his uncle and many others in the industry.  They thought that Martial Law would pass by in a year or so until the communist threat to the Marcos regime was over, but then Marcos chose to stay in power for over 20 years.

Ka Oca, by profession, is a marine engineer.  He became a seaman and had worked on boats abroad during the Martial Law years.

In 1976, he saw on television news of an International Pistol Conference being held and the creation of the International Practical Shooting Confederation (IPSC) in the US.

He acquired an IPSC learner handbook that time, studied it and realized that although he is a gunsmith after all and considered himself a good shooter in Cebu, the lessons on gun safety and shooting found in the IPSC handbook were all founded on scientific study and differed from his own learning.

Ka Oca has since kept the book as reference and continues to study shooting and gunsmithing. 

Racking the slide in the air

In the middle of swapping stories, Ka Oca started joking about his arm getting sore due to old age and that he cannot rack the slide of a 1911 pistol the usual way.

We were dumbfounded when Ka Oca

stood up from his chair, got the 1911 in his right hand and racked the slide in the air by shoving it forward or pulling it backward at waist level (we really do not know how he did it!).  But for us, it was simply a show of strength and years of continuous practice.

“It is my secret move,” he said, giving us a wink.

Ka Oca repeated the feat for us, using a shotgun instead of a 1911 pistol.

He told us that it never ceases to amaze people when he does this racking.  He recalls that at an American shot show (gunshow) in early 1980s, saw many firearms but the only thing he can afford is to try the 2 magazine-for-$5-dollars shoot in a range located inside the shot show.  An American instructor first gave Ka Oca a gun safety lecture before giving him his 2 magazines full of ammo and a 1911 pistol. The American instructor never got to sit down as he was flabbergasted when Ka Oca racked the 1911 in the air.  He instead called out to his buddies and Ka Oca was able to enjoy another 20 magazines free courtesy of the American shooters who were appreciative of his feat.

A sample of this and that

Ka Oca said that he started Firepower Custom Gunsmithing in 1997 in Las Piñas City, south of Manila, with a handful of machinery.  News of his excellent gunsmithing work spread despite Ka Oca never going into any advertisement for his shop, as his satisfied customers are doing it for him by word of mouth.

This marine engineer is very detail oriented. He wants to give Filipino shooters affordable quality gunsmithing service and conducts his own quality checks per item done either by him or his workers before the item is returned to its owner.  His shop also works on restoration of vintage firearm pieces.

Ka Oca firmly believes in always studying shooting techniques coupled with discipline in practicing gun safety.  He has house rules posted within his house on firearm handling and the like.

He gives out simple yet very effective “tips” for shooters whenever possible.  On holstering for example, Ka Oca advised to “keep your eyes on the target”, letting your hand automatically reach for your firearm (FA) and pointing it in the direction of your target, while also doing the same when returning your FA to the hoslter.  This will enable the shooter to save precious moments in drawing and aiming his firearm at any given target.  He believes in kinesthetic awareness and/or muscle memory and this can be enhanced with drills.

Ka Oca is always ready to coach new gun owners on firearm safety and practical shooting at Firepower’s shooting range and gun club, which was set up in 2003.  The gun club has some 120 members, and it is still growing.

“We are like a family here,” Ka Oca said. Aside from the tight knit relations of the gun club members, which they largely owe to the activities they hold, the members also have a duty to coach newcomers on gun safety and shooting by taking turns in joining Ka Oca at the shooting range during weekends.

Come full circle

“The time came that every time I see a boat, I’d get nauseous. I felt that my work as a marine engineer aboard boats for 20 years, no matter how rewarding the pay, is plain work that is stressing and tiring me out. It is then I realized that I want to be happy doing what I had really loved early on, which is gunsmithing and shooting,” admitted Ka Oca.

This father to 5 and grandfather to 13, a husband to a charming wife, 5’3” inch of a man that can rack a 1911 pistol in the air, sure looks happy.