Ever have someone make fun of your guns at the range?

Yes, the first time I took my new-to-me Marlin levergun to the range I had a guy laugh at me and call it an obsolete POS

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Why would anyone make fun of a lever gun? They are quite possibly the most enjoyable shooting platform. That comment shows an utter lack of appreciation for firearms.

As you can probably tell, I really like my Marlin in 44 mag

Ugly Gun

Some clown called my P3at ugly at the range last weekend. Said James Bond shot a cool .380, but mine was ugly.

Know what I did? I wrapped black PVC tape around the grip to make it UGLIER!!!!

I showed up at the range with a Yugoslavian SKS and a Chinese SKS that I bought at a local gun show a few months ago. The guy in the lane beside me was firing some M16/AR15/M4 clone... tricked out with all kinds of fancy accessories including one of those Aimpoint red dot sights. He looked over and immediately started bragging about how accurate his rifle was and how much money he had spent customizing it. He proceeded to tell me all about how much better his rifle was than both of the rifles I had brought that day, then he went on and on about the virtues and superiority of 5.56 NATO vs 7.62 NATO, which I found hilarious, since the SKS fires 7.62x39, not 7.62 NATO.

Since I was paying for range time to shoot and not to talk with this idiot, I loaded my $150 Yugoslavian SKS and fired a reasonably tight group about an inch left and one half inch below the center of my target. I brought that target back and sent out a fresh target. With my $175 Chinese SKS, I fired an even tighter group, this time about one inch directly below the bullseye. The guy beside me showed me his target and claimed that it was proof his gun was better than mine, because he had managed to hit dead center two times. What he neglected to mention was that he had also hit other points all over the target. I'd rather be consistent than lucky.

Was his superexpensive rifle better than my dirt cheap SKS? Probably. But no gun is a good gun in the hands of a bad shooter. Just as there is such a thing as "too much car" for an inexperienced driver, this guy had "too much gun" for an inexperienced shooter. I buy cheap old rifles like my SKS and Enfields because they're durable, easy to maintain, and fun to shoot. For the money that guy spent on his M4 clone and accessories, I literally bought 3 SKS carbines, 2 Enfield No1MkIII (SMLE) rifles, and 2 Enfield No4MkI rifles.

Maybe the kind of rifles I buy aren't ideal for home defense or competition or hunting, but that's not what I bought them for. For home defense, I have a Maverick 88 (cheap Mossberg 500). I catch a lot of negative comments from Remington lovers and Mossberg haters when I talk about the Maverick. In fact, the guys at my local gun shop all cringed when I said I wanted to buy a Maverick. All I know is that the Maverick does what I want it to do, and it does it every time.

Nice line, spirolii...

But no gun is a good gun in the hands of a bad shooter.

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That may end up as somebody's sig line here on THR.

Bart Noir
Who likes the old used guns also.

Ever have someone make fun of your guns at the range?

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Frankly, no.

I can't imagine how I'd react if someone did - it just seems so, well, SILLY.

Not actually "made fun" of... I hate the (mostly) old target shooters, who look derisively at "combat" handguns like my Glock or HP, though. They can't understand that I prefer to shoot pistols like that accurately and fast at 15 meters rather than making one super accurate shot every half our with a .22 target pistol at 25 or 30 meters, with my left hand behind my back. Stupid gun snobs...

But keep this in mind too, spiroxlii, Your $150 SKSs will still go bang every time and will shoot those reasonably tight groups even if they're completely caked in mud and haven't been cleaned for 2 years. Put 500 rounds thru his tricked out AR and see how many FTFs he has.

In a perfect world, you would outshoot them with your Ruger and then, beat the two guns together until parts fell off the Smith and then outshoot whoever is left with your Ruger.

You have nothing to be ashamed of with a Ruger.

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That is great!

Life is too short to spend time around gun snobs.

I've had a few people make fun of some of my odder stuff. Or odder ideas. Most of the time, I like to win, and do what it takes to get there. However, there are days where I have other ideas. Sometimes it can be great fun to use the wrong tool for the job, but use it so well that you still impress.

Everybody knows you can't shoot trap without an expensive single shot, with the worlds funniest looking contraption for a fitted stock, and a vent rib five feet high, right? At least they did till I broke 24 out of 25 with an old '97. 16 ga, no less.

Everybody knows that you can't shoot a 3 gun match without a whole bunch of expensive goofy looking gear, and the latest in tacticool guns, right? At least they did until I shot my "Army Surplus Match." I shot an M1 Carbine, a gi joe 1911, and an old cut down '97. I used a 1912 cavalry holster rig, GI canvas web gear for mags and such, etc.

That was a lot of fun.

~~~Mat

To the original poster, I'm sorry your experience wasn't positive but these guys dropped out of the womb with shooting experience and an endless collection of high end guns. Chances are there are one or two people in that group who sympathise with you but are afraid to stand up to the head A hole in the group.

IMO I would go back. Take your friend so it is a little more comfortable and act professional, courteous and smile. If your success on the range translates into making them heat up and vibrate inside their skin so be it.

I wouldn't buy anything from them except range time. In all aspects of life the people who are courtious and offer support are the real wise people.

PB

I agree with the previous poster who said it seems so silly that I almost can't imagine it. Are you sure they weren't trying to tease you just to initiate some back-and-forth? I imagine you are sure, but boy it seems odd.

There is a trap shooter (contrary to the archetype here, he's a GREAT shot) at the shotgun range, and he makes fun of just about everybody about their guns. Also, about anything else. He comes on pretty strong. Those of us that know him know that he's having fun, but he has pissed off lots of folks when he first met them. He expects you to give it right back to him, though.

Other than that, I've never had anybody make fun of my guns, except some friends who made fun of my first attempt to weld on a Mauser bolt handle.

Lots of times I have guys come tell me what a mistake I made choosing that scope/that caliber/that brand of gun, etc. Some of these guys go to the range to talk, though. They hardly ever fire a shot. And if you make eye contact with one, you won't be able to fire a shot either. They mean well, but the whole conversation will consist of them giving you good instruction.

I put together a Mauser and stuck an old B&L scope on it. Some guy came over and started telling me all the reasons I ought to spend a little more and buy a Leupold. I have around 20 Leupolds. I just stuck the B&L on the rifle for fun. But I still got plenty of instruction.

I had one of my .375's at the range one day, and another guy gave me lots of info on how that wasn't a sensible caliber and was an awful waste of money to get all that recoil...blah, blah, blah.

I've had the opposite experience. I was shooting a piece of junk (Auto Ordnance 1911 - this was before Kahr Arms bought AO) and the people shooting with me at an informal bowling pin match were really helpful. The gun kept jamming and several folks tried to help. Also, another time the cheap pot metal front sight popped off while I was firing it (before the gun proceeded to jam again) and a couple of guys called a cease fire and helped me find it! They were shooting some high dollar Euro guns at the time and they never commented on the crappiness of my firearm or even jest in a friendly way about it! I really appreciated their helpfulness.

That AO 1911 was terrible. I disassembled it to clean it and noticed that the locking lugs in the slide were chipping/wearing down (after only shooting a few boxes of factory ammo).

A few months ago I took my Remington 552 and Stevens 15 .22 rifles to an indoor range and laid them up on the counter while I signed in. A couple of young, rather cocky guys started talking trash about them. I said "just watch me"... and went to the shooting lane.

I ended up shooting out several target bullseyes at 50 yards with a pair of $100 rifles. They could barely hit large silhouette targets at 15 yards with their $500 Glocks.

When we came out, they asked what I was shooting and if I knew where they could buy them

I had two young men reaking of something other than cigar smoke make fun of my 10-4, till I asked if they wanted to bet $5 per 10 ring at 20 yds.

I had someone make fun of my gun once at the range. I was shooting my Ruger P95, a gun I've owned for nearly 8 years and have fired thousands, upon thousands, of rounds through. He had his Glock, and said, "Man, why would anyone buy a Ruger? You should've bought a Glock kid, it's a much better gun. It's way more accurate than that POS. Someone suckered you with that deal." He shut up promptly, when I stood at the line next to him and put all ten in a large, ragged hole in the center of the target. I simply smiled at him and went about my business.

I thought someone was going to make fun of my Smith 64-5 the otherday at the indoor range I went too. The guy had a brand new Beretta 96 and he couldn't hit the target to save his life. When I pulled a revolver out of the case next to him, I could see he was giving me that, "Wow, that's obsolete" look. That was until I slipped six rounds in the cylinder, closed it, raised the gun and once again shot the center of the target out. Just to jazz him a bit, I yelled to myself over the gunfire, "DAMNIT...that's a bigger hole than the last time. I gotta practice more..."

if u like your guns then the hell with the know it all my crap dont stink dumb@$$ .

I've had some characters make fun of my 2.5" S&W 19-3, calling it old-school and just plain ugly. I just gave em my best "buck-fifty" smile and said "Whatever works for me right?" They sneered and went back to missing their targets with a $1000+ Kimber from all of 7 yds. When I give them a few tips to help them get on paper, they look at me like I'm the a**hole.

Regards and Semper Fi!
-L7

Been a while back, but some guy shooting one of the "Wonder-Nines" was ending up with targets that looked more like shotgun patterns. Not sure, but his gun looked like a Browning Hi-power.

He was gving me a hard time about my "Useless Cowboy Gun" (50th Year Blackhawk)

After I punched 6 holes inside the 10-ring, he went away muttering something about "John Wayne wanna-be"

A few joking remarks, fine. but if he's ruining your day, that's uncalled for. Next time he makes a derogatory remark about your gun, make fun of his wife/girlfriend. (J/K, I know we're supposed to take the high road).

Feeling ashamed or embarrassed by your ruger is not necessary, they aren't the highest priced, but they are rock solid and reliable....and even if they weren't, that's what you bought so he should just shut up and shoot.

Oh, man can I chime in to this one. This one comes from when I was still back in Texas.

So I unzip my range bag to reveal my plastic fantastic wonder nine (Glock 17) and my pinko piece (CZ-75B) and my cheapie plastic CCW (Kel-Tec P3AT).

Well, the beer-gutted gentleman to my left, who had a very expensive 1911 and a what looked like a Colt Python, maybe one of their other snake revolvers, said something to the effect of "what's wrong with American guns, son?" I hadn't the heart to tell him that Kel-Tec is an American company. I wasn't very offended by his comments, more amused than anything. His friend, an even fatter guy in overalls with a .22 target semi, said did kind of piss me off, refering to the CZ that by that time was in my hand, as a "commie piece of ****."

I thought it was funny how young guys (I'm 23) are supposed to be cocky and ill-behaved and here are these two geezers going out of their way to crap on my taste in weapons. I remembered something my dad told me and said: "Opinions are like @ssholes, everybody's got one"

Then I went on to shoot my customary ragged hole with the CZ, and my near ragged hole with the Glock. The 1911 guy was a good shot with his guns, doing the hand behind the back thing as he fired. The .22 guy sucked balls, letting the rounds fly all over the place.

Nothing more was said, by them or me. Their opinions were neither sought out nor welcome. The fact that I was better behaved and a better shot was good enough for me.

Never had anyone make fun of me at any gun range. Pretty stupid of them if they do. You never know when you might have an a/d.

In the olden days, I went to the range with one of the other sergeants in my S-3 Operations shop and a corporal we knew from one of the infantry companies assigned to our task force. The corporal looked over to see what I was shooting and grinned at my old 3 inch Colt Detective Special. He used the line from Lethal Weapon, "A lot of you old-timers like those old sixshooters." Twelve rounds right-handed DA and twelve rounds left-handed at the E-Type silhouette 15 meters outs as fast as I could pull the trigger stopped the smart comments, but it was hitting a two liter Seven Up bottle at 110 yards and bouncing it over the top of the berm that really silenced him. You never know when the bad guy's going to be using a rifle.

ECS

I visited my father in CT (I live in TN) and we went to a range up there. We both had some SKSs. I went into the little shop there and looked around. I asked the guy behind the counter if he had any SKSs for sale and he said "We cater to hunters and target shooters here." Then, about my SKS question, he said "We don't sell that stuff here." He almost said "sh*t" instead of "stuff" (he caught himself) and his tone of voice dripped with disgust. What a snob! That was one of those times when an idiot benefited from my giving up alcohol. A pure putz.

Another time, here at home, someone just had to walk over uninvited and tell me how my CZ 52 was vastly inferior to his 9MM. A very amazing thing, seeing as he had never shot or even held one in his hand. He kept talking until I started shooting and letting my spent cartridges fly in his general direction. Don't mistreat my mother, my cat or my CZ 52!

There's alot of elitism from the armchair commando crowd. Usually, I offer to shoot whatever I've got vs. whatever they've got, and they shut up.

Remember, that 82-year-old retiree in the corner with the worn-out, pre-WWII wheelgun can put us all to shame

After reading these post ...Wow I haven`t run into any people like these in a long time ...I almost forgot how the real world is //I moved to smallsville 12 years ago so I`ve gotten over the public range snobs . I myself have never seen a gun I didn`t like ...And its a big plus when a guy can shoot what he brung ..If he thinks he needs something else to compete / he`ll ask for help .
Small local clubs are great , like family .