Where you live affects your interest and participating in guns....right?

Hokkmike said:

What is the cure?

Click to expand...

Live in a place that reflects your values. Either you did and now you don't, or now you do.

No harm either way.

I Man Cave/ Gun Room where you can sit and see your guns and dream about shooting them, dry fire a few, it helps till things change

Give it time. I noticed a similar phenomenon with myself 20 some years ago. Big change in life, new location, household arrangements, new job. Little time or inclination to shoot. My interest in shooting has had ups and downs - never a down like that before or since, but it's always come back.

Just do what interests you and is fun. Don't worry or make it a chore.

The place I grew up was somewhat ungunfriendly, at the time, but has gotten much worse thanks to one massive, cancerous urban area dominating the population and politics of the entire state. Limited gun hunting was available, but you had to know someone to go target shooting (legally), and know somebody important to carry.

Glad I got out.

Place Im in now is friendly for target shooting and carry, but hunting opportunities are sparse due to lack of public hunting lands and not much game.

So ya, location, location, location.

Cure? Vote, move, or tolerate it. Not much else you can do.......

Well, go to the gun store often and maybe make a friend or two? I’ve invited many folks that needed a spot to shoot to my farm. Usually folks don’t take me up on it. But I am sincerely thankful for my spot and my wish to share. Maybe you’ll meet someone with a spot that wants to share.

Hokkmike said:

So I moved from rural PA to what I consider to be large town PA in York County.

Here, I must join a range and undergo a trial period with a sponsor to shoot and do not have freedom to hunt as I once had. But I am new to the area and don't yet know any shooters. Previously I had the property of many friendly farmers and huge amounts of game land at my disposal. Plus, I belonged to range that was vastly under utilized.

I find my interest in guns waning a bit. I keep what I have because I like them and realize their value, but no loner actively pursue new additions to my small collection. Even the coming deer season is in doubt....

What is the cure?

Click to expand...

Contact Fish and Game to see if they have any volunteer needs in your area. Also check Turkey/Pheasants/Duck groups...........there are lots of opportunity, as you mentioned, just need to make the connections.

Interests shift over time. I did small bore 4-position as a teenager, then shotgun sports in college as they were close, available, and I had several friend that like doing it. A few years later I got into handgun and went on a USPSA bender for over a decade. The interest is fading now and I am focus mostly on NRL22 shooting since its close and available. My hunting interests and species of choice has got through similar evolutions. Such is life, the only constant is change.

Hokkmike said:

So I moved from rural PA to what I consider to be large town PA in York County.

Here, I must join a range and undergo a trial period with a sponsor to shoot and do not have freedom to hunt as I once had. But I am new to the area and don't yet know any shooters. Previously I had the property of many friendly farmers and huge amounts of game land at my disposal. Plus, I belonged to range that was vastly under utilized.

I find my interest in guns waning a bit. I keep what I have because I like them and realize their value, but no loner actively pursue new additions to my small collection. Even the coming deer season is in doubt....

What is the cure?

Click to expand...

2 cures.

#1: Make some friends. You'll gravitate towards people who share your values/interests. When I briefly lived in that area, I found that much of the private land was posted to keep hunting pressure off for those who already had access. You'll get access through relationships, and the hunting will be different. Limited tracts of private land, and more crowded public land. If you're going to hunt Game Lands, it'll be a year-round quest, more scouting and so forth.

#2: Watch more TV. That'll get you wanting something to do and out to the range.

Hokkmike said:

So I moved from rural PA to what I consider to be large town PA in York County.

Here, I must join a range and undergo a trial period with a sponsor to shoot and do not have freedom to hunt as I once had. But I am new to the area and don't yet know any shooters. Previously I had the property of many friendly farmers and huge amounts of game land at my disposal. Plus, I belonged to range that was vastly under utilized.

I find my interest in guns waning a bit. I keep what I have because I like them and realize their value, but no loner actively pursue new additions to my small collection. Even the coming deer season is in doubt....

What is the cure?

Click to expand...

Hi...
I live in York County, Pa.
There are several large tracts of State Game Lands within an hours drive of York, Pa.
I also belong to a couple of gun clubs in the area. Memberships are dependent on getting on a waiting list but there are exceptions at some clubs.
Also quite a few decent gun shops in the area FWIW.

It affects my long range shooting where I am limited to 200 or 300 yards. If I want to shoot my sharps at longer distances I need to plan a trip to west Texas to see my family, that is a 6 hour drive and than an additional 1.5 hours where my brother own land that allows me to go 1000 yards or further.

Frankly, I got more shooting in when I lived in south central Los Angeles than I do here in South Texas... .

I spent many formative years living in one of the most anti-American, gun- unfriendly locations in the Country. If my teachers knew what I was thinking about during class downtimes I’m sure I would’ve been sent to a re-education camp until I was “cured” of my “sickness.”

That didn’t affect my love and fascination with firearms in the least. I used to frequent the sole gun store in town to buy .177 pellets and to ooogle the guns on display (I seriously fell in love with the Ruger No. 1 African .458 the owner had on display!)

Now I will say that I got breaks at summer when my Grandfather would pay for me to fly out to the family’s ranch in Texas, so I wasn’t basted 24/7/365 in the propaganda that was fed to the masses back at home.This time was golden hunting/shooting time that kept me on an even keel.

All that being said, I think it’s more internal than external when it comes to forming and keeping a pro-firearms mindset. Seek out your peers and you will find them.

Stay safe.

Hokkmike said:

So I moved from rural PA to what I consider to be large town PA in York County.

Here, I must join a range and undergo a trial period with a sponsor to shoot and do not have freedom to hunt as I once had. But I am new to the area and don't yet know any shooters. Previously I had the property of many friendly farmers and huge amounts of game land at my disposal. Plus, I belonged to range that was vastly under utilized.

I find my interest in guns waning a bit. I keep what I have because I like them and realize their value, but no loner actively pursue new additions to my small collection. Even the coming deer season is in doubt....

What is the cure?

Click to expand...

Focus on precision reloading. It was the only thing that kept my interest in guns while I was living in the city.
Another thing is hone your shooting skills. That way when you going again you'll be even better prepared.

See if there is any BLM land nearby. it's Fed. and generally 'shooter friendly'.

Whatever you do, don't get rid of your guns.

I was at a low point re: shooting some years back and got rid of some gems which I can never replace.

Initial outlooks are always the worst, how I felt when I left NY. But some time will help and you'll make some acquaintances, and things will look better.

Good luck!

Speedo66 said:

Whatever you do, don't get rid of your guns.

I was at a low point re: shooting some years back and got rid of some gems which I can never replace.

Initial outlooks are always the worst, how I felt when I left NY. But some time will help and you'll make some acquaintances, and things will look better.

Good luck!

Click to expand...

I agree !!
Back in the early 70's, I had one of the Ruger .22LR semi pistols, this one with about a 7" barrel. I ended up trading it for an Astra Constable in .380 after an incident at the college I attended.
I still miss that pistol.

Maybe look into air guns. Some of them don’t require much space and maybe you could even shoot in your basement. Ammunition is pretty cheap as well. Some of them are capable of incredible accuracy. It will keep you shooting anyway.

Hokkmike said:

So I moved from rural PA to what I consider to be large town PA in York County.

Here, I must join a range and undergo a trial period with a sponsor to shoot and do not have freedom to hunt as I once had. But I am new to the area and don't yet know any shooters. Previously I had the property of many friendly farmers and huge amounts of game land at my disposal. Plus, I belonged to range that was vastly under utilized.

I find my interest in guns waning a bit. I keep what I have because I like them and realize their value, but no loner actively pursue new additions to my small collection. Even the coming deer season is in doubt....

What is the cure?

Click to expand...

There's a range on SGL southeast of Dillsburg not far from you. It's usually busy but it is an option. If you need some more details feel free to PM me.

I grew up in inner city Chicago. I currently live in a large suburb of Cleveland.

I'm still highly interested in firearms.

The only reason I don't shoot nearly as much as I used to is a combination of a miserable financial and work situation between 2009 and 2017, work hours that preclude me from shooting when and where I ordinarily would, and the current artificial ammunition shortage.

I still purchase large quantities of shooting books and magazines and watch numerous YouTube firearms channels.

I live in New York State. We're not as bad as Massachusetts or California for gun owners (no list of "allowed" handguns, for example), but we have our own issues, with the NY "SAFE" Act and all. That said, I'm not in NYC, so a CCW isn't too hard to get -- just takes a long time -- and I have two places to go and shoot: a rod & gun club with a 100-yard outdoor range and an indoor commercial 25-yard range. I'm less than 1/2 hour from both. I shoot trap, and I shoot in two rimfire leagues: one rifle and one pistol. I carry everywhere I legally can, which is just about everywhere that Fed law allows.

Could be better, could be worse.

The context is rather different.

Living many years in east Memphis, I had no exposure to gun people.

But to avoid increases in property taxes we moved - strictly a Coincidence- to an area where you can plink into river banks (yes, private land) and the, by far, best private shooting club in or near west TN—- 12 minutes away.

It happens. Best advice I can give is like other hobbies you will have to intentionally make time and plan for them. Schedule time off for fishing and hunting trips, pick specific weekends for shooting and travel if needed. You will thank yourself for it later in life even if it seems challenging right now.