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

[sicario103]

Well, they didn't make fun of us directly but by the way they were "acting" and the way they looked at you said alot. They were carrying Glocks and all kinds of Glock accessories. In the end, they were just a couple of losers who thought they were all that cause of what they were carrying but were too scared to back it up.

 

[critter]

I have had a guy with a 30-30 lever gun poo-poo my Contender super 14" in the same caliber.

Then he shot his getting minute-of-five-gallon-bucket groups at 100 yds. Mine put 3 inside 1" at 100 yds. He never said another word-just put his in the truck and left!

 

[M2 Carbine]

LeonCarr
Most gun snobs make fun of your guns at the range, until they get their money taken by some old geezer with a S&W Model 10 .38 Special with all of the blue worn off .

Now that gave me a good laugh.

I bought my first Model 10 in 1960. A two inch barrel for off duty carry.
Today it shoots as good or better than new.

 

[Clipper]

The folks at the local range refer to my wife's Phoenix HP-22 as 'the BIC pen of handguns'...But it shut 'em up real fast when I removed her (7-yard) targets (with some real tiny groups, BTW) by shooting the tacks out with it...offhand! Like to laughed myself sick on the way home.

 

[E5]

People ridicule

what they don't understand.

Many love to bash Taurus. I shot my fathers Model 66 357 today for the second time and I'll tell you that damn thing shoots quite nicely. Who cares what make it is when it feels good and punches the center out of the target?

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

This has never happened to me ... yet. If anyone is going to make unsolicited remarks, they had better A- be in the form of good-natured ribbing, B- be compliments (e.g., "Nice gun" or "Nice shooting"), or C- of a helpful nature. I have seen people next to me with blatantly unreliable firearms that wouldn't even fire two consecutive shots, but it was none of my business and I didn't say anything. I am also the type that likes to rib people, but this is just with my friends (both of them) and I wouldn't do it to a total stranger.

 

[Eightball]

I'll admit, every now and then I rib someone about their firearms. But, in the same breath, I ask them if I can try it out . All in good fun.

"Wow, whatever it is you're shooting looks hideous. Can I try it?"

 

[RH822]

Yes, at one time I owned a Jennings J22...

Do I really need to elaborate?
RH

 

[Hawaiian]

With friends, you can rib them some. They understand and will just tell you to ****. With others, especially someone new to the range, it is just plain bad manners to trash their gun, knife, or anything else.

 

[Confederate]

Yep, I had a scoped Raven .25 with a target trigger, a 20-round clip and a custom holster. Some people snickered at my rig til they saw me repeatedly shoot one ragged holes at 7 yards using a bench rest! Hee hee, that showed 'em!

There's just no pleasin' some folks. Wouldn't take it too seriously, though, if I were you. When them Smiths all shoot loose, that there gunsmith feller will be chargin' premium prices to get 'em back in time and tightening their little screws so their sideplates don't fall off.

 

[Socrates]

Well, I've taken not ridicule, but, a bit of ribbing. The range master came over, checking out my lil guns. I had just bought a 500 Linebaugh Maximum Ruger, 475 Freedom Arms 83, with leupold scope, and my other guns.

The grips on these guns made hitting much of anything very difficult, since I had to hold on super tight, and, I was not shooting them well.

I think I bounced a couple 400 grain bullets into the target at 25 yards. they also had bugs bunny barrel bands on em.

Those guns are fixed, triggers are better, and, that FA shoots one hole at 25 yards, clover leaf if I'm off at 50, and they don't say anything anymore....

S

 

[Cato the Younger]

I'm also just happy to have a gun

I am a young and inexperienced shooter- but I feel for the original poster. What difference does is make if your gun is 400 or 4000 dollars? Yes, there are most likely major differences in craftsmanship- however, whatever you shoot with is what works for you. One of my mentors here at my graduate school is a man who has been practicing law for 50 years...and he shares my affection for guns. He has several NICE collections of firearms- however, he did not disapprove of me purchasing a Springfield XD for my first centerfire pistol- he simply said that if I shot it well, and it was reliable, that I would be served well, so long as I practiced with it. He then mentioned that he carries either a .40 or 9mm Sig. To me, that is the type of older shooter that keeps us younger guys in the game. Someone who shows us what we may aspire to, but also takes the time to teach us to wring everything out of our current firearms.

 

[SAvulgarghost]

It ain't the arrow it's the Indian

In high school I went trap shooting with a couple of buddies who both owned their own guns, one a nice 870 and the other something I don't remember (I really didn't know much about makes and models then) that was short but he definitely had practice with it. I didn't own a shotgun but used the rattly old no-name loaner gun the range had for the first time, and on a windy day outshot them both by more than six pigeons.

Never heard them brag up their shotties in my presence again

 

[grimjaw]

Yes, but this gun has that affect on people.

jm

 

[DWARREN123]

Rugers are my favorite revolvers. I have a KGP-161 and 3 SP-101's.

Anyone who would put down a mans guns, dogs or drink is not to tolerated by polite society.

 

[dbarale]

I hate gun snobs too...
While some ribbing is expected from my friends, and actually enjoyable since it's part of the fun of social shooting, bashing some stranger's gun is rude and unacceptable.
I remember being at an indoor range talking to the kid in the next lane, he was shooting an older Taurus 80 or 82. That gun was the only one he could afford and he was pretty good with it.
Some jackass walked by and made a comment about "that brazilian POS...", same jackass who was shooting his Glock with his eyes closed and couldn't hit anything with it, but he was really fast :banghead:
I carried a Rossi 88 for a long time and got some pretty dumb comments about that one too.
Now that I think of it, most of the time that kind of behavior comes from a Glock shooting guy with "tactical pants", "tactical thigh holster", "extreme combat boots" and "extreme tactical operator underwear" to match...

 

[Stainz]

Most of my range 'friends' who are IPSC competitors do so with race-guns... and generally berate all roundguns. When I am on the range plinking, they'll often walk up quizzing "Hey, Old Dude, what ya shoot'in? Ah, another 'Old Dude Gun'!". That always fades when I let them try one... everyone appreciates a nice revolver.They especially can't believe how 'easily and effortlessly' they make major power factor.

Now, if I want some ridicule, I just get out an 1895 Nagant and bore them to tears with what I have to do to make my ammo. Or, if I am really nasty, I get out my SS Ruger Old Army cap and ball and let loose with some real black powder... a surefire method of clearing the adjacent lanes!

Stainz

 

[the pistolero]

Anyone who would put down a mans guns, dogs or drink is not to tolerated by polite society.

+1 to the 10th power...and to anyone who will denigrate my KGP-141, I say, would you like to hold my targets? I am a 1911 man through and through, but I'd never make fun of anyone's Glock (or anything else, for that matter), and that's because a of a true sense of gunnie brotherhood, not because I'm afraid I'd get shot at, because, well, I'm not. Find another range that has better people to shoot with, indeed...

 

[Master Blaster]

A couple of weeks ago i was at the rifle range, went in the shoot house and set up to shoot my 16" flat top AR. A few minutes after I arrived two yahoos in their early 50s showed up. They were both setting up 20" colt ar-15s on heavy duty rifle rests, with lead shot bag weights on them.

I was shooting off a sandbag only, actually holding the rifle. So one of the gents comes over unsolicited and asks me what I am shooting. I mentioned that I had built my rifle using a Rock River 16" midlength upper a bushmaster lower and a RRA 2 stage trigger. Gent one's comment was something like Ohh Rock River isnt that a peice of crap cheapo made in the Phillipines. I politely replied that they were made by folks in Illinois, to which both gents guffawed and pointed out to me that they had REAL COLTS, one was a match something and the other was a Hbar.

They then proceeded to advise me that the Colts routinely shoot 1/2" 5 shot groups at 100 yards. Colts he volunteers always shoot the smallest groups, and a 16" barrel isnt going to do that he opines. I smiled politely and commented that was nice.

So we go hang some targets, I'm using a sheet of blank paper cut in fours with a nickle sized orange dot in the center of each. They have some of those fancy shoot n sees with the 4" dot.

So I start shooting and notice that the two rambos wannabees are also shooting chuckling and boasting about how good their colt rifles shoot. I then notice that they are scoping my targets, and not saying much, its grown real quiet. One of them asks me what ammo I'm shooting as I finnish putting a 5 shot group on the last of my 8 targets. I tell him that its my hand load, and then there is silence.

So I suggest a target change. They are now packing up their rifles and gear and getting ready to leave. I ask if they want to go down range to get their targets, both men decline.

So I go down range I get my targets which have a .60 inch smallest group on one, and the others are all about 1" for 5 shots all centered on the orange dot, typical for this rifle and my handload.

The other guys targets???? shots look like a shotgun pattern at 40 yards.

Ohh well so much for gun snobs.

 

[lee n. field]

In kind of a backhanded, complimentary way.

Class I took once, the instructor borrowed my Ruger P90, shot 6 closely spaced holes in the head region of the target, and remarked to me "Who says Rugers can't shoot?"

I got laughed at in a store, once. Pimply faced kid, barely old enough to be handling the merchandise himself, laugh when I inquired after Makarov ammo.

 

[axeman_g]

I have run into a few memorable ones. In the mid to late 90's the guys that all laughed at my "commie handgun" a CZ85 combat bacuase they had never seen one before. Now it seems that they all bought one version, or another. Same with CZ rifles.

I have been shooting a old, worn first version Taurus 92 in some IDPA matches here. The gun is a brilliant version of the beretta, shoots very fast and never hiccups. Well all the big $$ gun owners all laughed at it, till I am competitive with or outshoot them.

I will never understand gun snobs, EVER. But I have no tolerance for dog snobs. My english setter is a field dog, only cost me $200, has a pedigree and she looks more spaniel then setter at times especially when I clip her feathers for hunting season. I LOVE when she outperforms dogs costing 10x more then her, with full time training regimens, etc etc. I have a memory of these 2 Delta airline pilots that were at our hunt club one day, start laughin about my dogs looks and that she cant be no setter, wont hunt, sorry gate so forth and so on. So they left and I waited for them to get out a bit, then trailing them by about 1/2 mile, I proceeded to shoot 4 pheasant , 3 chukar and a few quail for good luck over her. I caught up with them around the trucks, started cleaning birds and watering the dog just to see them flyers. Lets just say that I hope those gentleman weren't planning on feeding many people beyond themselves off their dogs performance and their shooting. Heard some great weather related reasons why they had no luck and somehow the areas behind them must have cooled off and was holding scent better after they passed through.

 

[cmidkiff]

I will openly admire a nice firearm that someone has at the range, but on stuff I don't like, I will only give my opinion if I am asked. Even then, I won't tell the guy who's proud of his brand new pot-metal POS that I think it's garbage.

I have had people snicker a bit when I get to the range and pull my P3AT from my pocket, but they usually quiet down when I break out whatever range toys I brought along. I've had people at the long range benches give my .17 Savage 93 a few sour looks, until I started shooting it

I did run into a guy a few months back that was shooting a brand new XD-9, badly. He was complaining that the sights must be off, since he couldn't hit the target at 25 yards. He asked if I'd check it out for him, and I put 5 in a row into the center of the target. Hmmm, sights seem to be fine to me...

 

[2ndamd]

I have had this happen many times. But, I can outshoot all the people rude enough to make fun of what I am shooting.

Case 1. I went shooting one day with work "friends" (we were all LEO). Lot's of testosterone in this group. I decided to bring my Ruger P95. One of them had a Beretta 96 and the other a Glock 23. First they berate my caliber (9mm) then they berate my gun maker (Ruger). We decided that we would set-up a hostage target (shoot/no shoot). Whoever could get the most rounds on the bad guy was treated to lunch from the other two. In the event of a tie the tightest group would win. I had a free STEAK for lunch that day. One of those Officers now owns a Ruger P95 he liked it so much.

Case 2. I was alone. My work errands had me close to my local indoor range. I stopped by to shoot 200 rounds of .38 WWB. I did not have my gun so I rented a range rental Ruger GP100.
On the range a group of professional looking people were all shooting and talking smack to each other. They were making fun of an "old timer" on their dept that still used a revolver. They were all shooting Glocks. I began to shoot my range rental gun. A VERY VERY dirty 4" brl GP100 in .38 special with a heavy brl lug and fixed sights.
Soon one of the men came over to see what gun I was using to get such tight groups. Then, a few more came over. That day I gave the Olathe' KS detectives a lesson in "aim small miss small". They were seeing the whole target and not fixing their sights on just one point of the target. We then discussed how to apply that to real world senarios. Like if you are going to shoot at a perp in a life or death situation focus your sight on the botton of their shirt or the pocket, or the graphic design on their t-shirt. The point is they were not able to group their shots because they were using the whole target to shoot instead of focusing on the "x" ring or the # 9 of the target for each shot.
I am cheap. So I use a target 5 times to shoot at. upper left (UL), UR, BL, BR, then the middle.

I don't think some people understand what they are mocking. Then, there are those that know better but, mock anyways......and these are the true gun snobs, that can give our sport a bad name.

Didn't someone once say "An armed society, is a polite society"?

 

[strambo]

I had a guy tell me I should practice with a gun that was good for killing people while I was shooting my 22/45. Ok...my first thought was the cliche about now many people have been killed with .22s. My second thought was; did he not see the big, honkin' .44 Magnum on my hip? Weirdos. The .22 was for targets, the .44 Magnum was for crazies.

 

[Geno]

Of course

I was at the outdoor range, firing my 1911 with a .22LR upper. A guy came over, sat down on the seat at the bench beside me and said, "For a minute there I thought you was shootin' a real gun!" He pulled out his S&W revolver and began firing.

I reached into my bag, pulled out my T/C Encore pistol with 15" ported barrel and launched a .270 Win hand-load with 130 grain Nosler over 64 grains of Accurate 3100.

The concussion blew the lid of his "fishing" box shut 5 feet away. He stood up, said, "You could have warned me first!"

I asked him if he wanted to use my credit card to go scrape his leg clean. He scoffed at me and walked off in a huff.

I returned to shooting my 1911 with .22LR upper. I seriously didn't think it would have that much concussion. Usually nobody sits beside me. Guess now I know why.

Doc2005