I think im bored with shooting!!

[Ironicaintit]

I was, or have been feeling that way for a while, too.

But then a couple friends invited me to their range (never been to an actual commercial range before) and we had a blast. Ran some drills, and then just trying to outshoot each other. What really brought me back around was firing my 44 mag SBH that I hadn't drug out of the safe in years.

I think what I'd missed was real recoil!

Maybe you just need to switch gears, or even just step away from it for a while.

 

[Scooter22]

I don't know what has come over me but I cant seem to get excited about going to the range. My range is 10min away and I have a bunch of 9mm, 223, 45-70 and 38spl to test out but I cannot get motivated to do so. I was invited to shoot at my buddies place today and grabbed rifle ammo instead of pistol ammo and had about 80rounds of 38spl in front of me and fired about 20 rounds and got bored. He offered me some 9mm and I declined cause I just wasn't feeling it.

I fired about 40 rounds of 22lr out of my rifle to sight it in and got a little bored with that too. IDK what the heck is going on but I don't like it!! I have 100rounds of 223 sitting in front of me I could be testing right now but not feeling it.

Not good!!

WOW! I was going to post something similar. I'm 57, shooting all my life about once a week average. I'm burned out from work and had rotator cuff surgery on both shoulders. Bottom line I'm in pain 24/7. So it limits everything I do and shooting is one of them.

 

[tark]

I get these "Bored with it all" spells now and then.

When they strike, I just blow something up with some Tannerite and then I feel all better.....

 

[Axis II]

Lots of great comments
But no one asked are you ok?
Are you feeling blasé with other things too?
Is there a new stress in your life?

If so, you might be depressed. Everyone gets some depression at some point, so you might want to see if that’s an issue. If so, if it’s mild get more sun, exercise and adjust your diet. If more serious get help.

Otherwise another interest and a break sound like what you’re hinting at.

Yeah, I'm okay for the most part. I found out a few weeks ago my company is changing hands and they new company took my vacation for a year which bummed me out.

I go to the gym 3-4 days a week and lost almost 20lbs so I'm feeling better physically.

I had a long talk with my best friend sitting around the fire until midnight last night about this issue and he said I'm one of those who buy things because I need it to feel better and not bored and then I get bored with it and it just sits there. I brought up ditching a couple rifles to get something else and he says see you get bored with the same old thing and then you end up with another gun. Take a break and do something else he says.

I used to like to fish but once guys started taking all the fish the ponds and lakes dried up and you could electrocute the whole lake and not one fish.

Ill figure something out.

 

[John Joseph]

What are your goals?

If you see shooting as a hobby and the hobby has lost it's luster, maybe make a change (a front stuffing charcoal burner, perhaps? Metal Silhouettes? Sporting Clays?)
Or just take a break and explore other hobbies (maybe restore an old Coleman lantern? Go camping? Set up an old school film darkroom and learn to make silver prints? Raise some tomatoes.)

If you see shooting is a moral imperative---being prepared to bear arms as a civic obligation---then you should at least participate enough to maintain your competence as a marksman and keep some fresh, tested ammunition available.

 

[doubleh]

Variety is the spice of life. Same ol', same ol' gets boring to almost everyone. I'll make an exception for the anti gun crowd as that seems to be their only passion. Mix in other things that interest you with shooting or take a complete break for awhile.

 

[chicharrones]

Yeah, I'm okay for the most part. I found out a few weeks ago my company is changing hands and they new company took my vacation for a year which bummed me out.

I go to the gym 3-4 days a week and lost almost 20lbs so I'm feeling better physically.

I had a long talk with my best friend sitting around the fire until midnight last night about this issue and he said I'm one of those who buy things because I need it to feel better and not bored and then I get bored with it and it just sits there. I brought up ditching a couple rifles to get something else and he says see you get bored with the same old thing and then you end up with another gun. Take a break and do something else he says.

I used to like to fish but once guys started taking all the fish the ponds and lakes dried up and you could electrocute the whole lake and not one fish.

Ill figure something out.

Yep. I'm guilty of the bold part in bold. It's not so much I need the item or things I want to buy, but I can bury myself in researching the item that is best for my budget (which is always quite small).

With guns, I definitely like to shoot, but I really like modifying those guns or making them better for me more than shooting. I think I just need to do that to just about everything. When my kids are finally on their own, I'm going to probably go the route that member Michael Tinker Pierce is on. I can't wait.

 

[KansasSasquatch]

Work 80-90 hours a week, wheher it' at one job or multiple jobs. After a couple weeks or months you'll be itching to go have some fun, and your bank account should definitely have a little extra fun money in it.

Or like others have suggested, go enjoy another hobby for awhile. I love shooting. It's always been one of my main hobbies, but paintball is my main hobby. Even so, I I've taken several breaks from paintball in the 20 or so years I've been playing, sometimes as long as 2 years without playing once. I just get burnt out from it sometimes. I'm sure I could get burnt out from shooting too, I've just never had the chance to shoot often enough to get burnt out.

 

[chicharrones]

Hobbies definitely change. While shooting has been a mainstay of mine, there have been years it got put on the back burner for motorcycles, home brew beer, disc golf, soccer, canoeing, etc., etc. Then I come right back to shooting. I sure am glad I keep my little gun safe full.

 

[Sovblocgunfan]

Hobbies definitely change. Although i enjoyed golf, it became very expensive for me and sorta lost its luster after awhile. So i took up guns. That will stick with me for some time to come, I think, because i can never quite find the time or money (or both) to completely explore all facets of the thing I’m doing at the time. Now, partially out of need, I’ve taken up fitness as a major time sponge at 44 years old. Olympic weightlifting. It is the most expensive of all!

 

[Zebraranger]

I agree with the others that say find another interest for a while. It happens to me form time to time and heck, I even own a firearms related business. Its bound to happen over a period of decades. Its no big deal to me, I have other interests, and when it happens I just focus on something else for a while until the interest comes back, it always does. Some of my other many interests are scuba diving and unique motorcycles. I've been riding most of my life and currently own a Moto Guzzi, it's something that occupies a lot of my spare time. Like firearms, its something to always tinker with, do maintenance on, accessorize and so on.

 

[Ks5shooter]

When I get in the shooting "lull" I go into the gun vault with a nice sipping bourbon. I handle every gun ,wipe them down ,and get inspired to go out to the range with a couple of guns that haven't seen daylight in a while.

 

[GEM]

I found that going to the range became quite boring. Thus, I participate in various competitions with different challenges and guns. I will shoot steel with a Buckmark, a carbine match or an IDPA match. I'll do a specific close range SD oriented match every once in awhile.

One thing about matches is that you build a social network of friends, so handing out with them is more fun that being on a range and just shooting holes.

 

[RedlegRick]

If you eat steak and potatoes everyday, pretty soon you get bored with it. There's nothing wrong with you, just time to seek out other avenues of interest. I only shoot twice a month myself, so it isn't that much of a routine, but even then, it gets old sometimes. It helps that my girlfriend needs my (dubiously) capable assistance maintaining her house, and I try to engage in other areas of interest to me.

 

[pert near]

I'd like to add something that I'm working on that goes to the OP's lack of enthusiasm.

I love to shoot & I have 2 ranges within 20 min of my home. What bugs me is how hard it is for me to get everything ready to go & then unload & cleaned up when I get back home. I load up my rest, sand bags, targets, cleaning stuff, tools, target frames sometimes, ice chest & a ton of other stuff. Then worry if I've got everything! I miss just grabbing a gun & a box of ammo & spending an hour shooting.

I'm trying to consolidate things in such a way that I can load 1 or 2 containers & be ready to go in 10 or 15 min. I'm trying not to take too many guns at one time & of mixed types. For instance, taking only 2 rifles or 2 pistols. I try to clean guns (at least on the exterior) at the range so they can stored right away when I get home. I can always clean the bores later or leave them alone if I'm going to shoot again soon. I had to quit going to the range with a good friend because of all the gear he'd have to load. It took forever just to pack & to unpack at the range. When he wants to shoot black powder the gear loading goes up a quantum! To top that off he always takes more guns then you could ever shoot in an afternoon. It became pure drudgery! Great guy, but I had to protect my sanity & say "I'll meet you there"!

Keep it simple.

Keep it easy.

Keep it fun.​

JIMHO

 

[Axis II]

I'd like to add something that I'm working on that goes to the OP's lack of enthusiasm.

I love to shoot & I have 2 ranges within 20 min of my home. What bugs me is how hard it is for me to get everything ready to go & then unload & cleaned up when I get back home. I load up my rest, sand bags, targets, cleaning stuff, tools, target frames sometimes, ice chest & a ton of other stuff. Then worry if I've got everything! I miss just grabbing a gun & a box of ammo & spending an hour shooting.

I'm trying to consolidate things in such a way that I can load 1 or 2 containers & be ready to go in 10 or 15 min. I'm trying not to take too many guns at one time & of mixed types. For instance, taking only 2 rifles or 2 pistols. I try to clean guns (at least on the exterior) at the range so they can stored right away when I get home. I can always clean the bores later or leave them alone if I'm going to shoot again soon. I had to quit going to the range with a good friend because of all the gear he'd have to load. It took forever just to pack & to unpack at the range. When he wants to shoot black powder the gear loading goes up a quantum! To top that off he always takes more guns then you could ever shoot in an afternoon. It became pure drudgery! Great guy, but I had to protect my sanity & say "I'll meet you there"!

Keep it simple.

Keep it easy.

Keep it fun.​

JIMHO

LOL. I have that exact friend. He spent 5 hours at the local range during a weekend hunting trip trying to get a flint lock rifle to shoot bug holes!!

Yesterday i went to the range with a buddy and procrastinated even going but didn't want to be rude because he invited me so i get up early and begin loading 50rounds of 223, 100rounds of 38spl, pulled a bunch of bullets from a load i didn't really care for and he calls me early wanting to go so i "hurrily" load like 25 more 38spl and in the rush i grabbed 2 rifle boxes and forgot the handgun ammo cans so i kind of stood there like a dummy when i got bored with the 38spl.

I thought man i got the rest of the day ill go test these 3 223rem loads (30 or so rounds) and then just didn't feel like it. I'm guessing now cause i had to load all the crap and then unload it and load back up.

 

[Reloadron]

I don't know what has come over me but I cant seem to get excited about going to the range. My range is 10min away and I have a bunch of 9mm, 223, 45-70 and 38spl to test out but I cannot get motivated to do so. I was invited to shoot at my buddies place today and grabbed rifle ammo instead of pistol ammo and had about 80rounds of 38spl in front of me and fired about 20 rounds and got bored. He offered me some 9mm and I declined cause I just wasn't feeling it.

I fired about 40 rounds of 22lr out of my rifle to sight it in and got a little bored with that too. IDK what the heck is going on but I don't like it!! I have 100rounds of 223 sitting in front of me I could be testing right now but not feeling it.

Not good!!

Didn't you go through this once before? As the nicer weather finally moves in you may find yourself more motivated to go to the range. I know that while we have plenty of indoor ranges my desire to hit the range is more seasonal as I simply enjoy outside and my rifles. During some periods my shooting is more frequent than others. Since we just had a few beautiful days (finally) I thought time to go to the range and then decided screw the range and took my bike out riding and maybe after lunch today I'll do the same. I have also had periods where I stepped away from the gun safe for periods of time. That does not mean you have a fire sale on gun broker or similar. You need to do what feels right for you and what trips your trigger.

Ron

 

[Axis II]

Didn't you go through this once before? As the nicer weather finally moves in you may find yourself more motivated to go to the range. I know that while we have plenty of indoor ranges my desire to hit the range is more seasonal as I simply enjoy outside and my rifles. During some periods my shooting is more frequent than others. Since we just had a few beautiful days (finally) I thought time to go to the range and then decided screw the range and took my bike out riding and maybe after lunch today I'll do the same. I have also had periods where I stepped away from the gun safe for periods of time. That does not mean you have a fire sale on gun broker or similar. You need to do what feels right for you and what trips your trigger.

Ron

I did. I have been going quite a bit and its just not doing it for me like it used to. Same with hunting i used to be like a kid on Christmas if i knew i was hunting after work or the next day, etc. Now its like Uh!! I don't really want to do this.

I have some tinkering coming up here soon with a boyds being ordered tomorrow and debating if i want to buy another 22lr or a new scope for it as i did get a kick out of shooting the tiny pieces of clay pigeons on the dirt mound last night. Makes me want to go buy some and throw them on the hillside of my range lol.

 

[wally]

I'm never bored once I actually get to the range, but my goal of twice a week since I've retired has been more difficult than I'd expected with weather, and other things I need or want to do. Sometimes I do blow off a range trip because of the time commitment that would be required afterwards with cleaning up and putting things away. But unless the wather is really bad I've been pretty solid shooting once a week.

I don't do competitions any more (I did do local IPSC matches back in the 80's) because I find its too much standing around and not enough shooting. YMMV.

Nothing wrong with taking a break, I'm reinvigorated after a run of bad weather (where I shoot is prone to being unusable because of standing water) forces me to take a break.

 

[Reloadron]

I did. I have been going quite a bit and its just not doing it for me like it used to. Same with hunting i used to be like a kid on Christmas if i knew i was hunting after work or the next day, etc. Now its like Uh!! I don't really want to do this.

I have some tinkering coming up here soon with a boyds being ordered tomorrow and debating if i want to buy another 22lr or a new scope for it as i did get a kick out of shooting the tiny pieces of clay pigeons on the dirt mound last night. Makes me want to go buy some and throw them on the hillside of my range lol.

When it no longer does what it once did just walk away from it for awhile. I developed my passion for the gun when I was 8 years old and a friend of my uncle gave my a Remington 510P .22 LR. I turned 68 in February and there were times I walked away from shooting. I also figured when I retired I would be on the range everyday and that never happened. I enjoy my hobbies as the mood (and weather) strike me. Focus on doing the things which you enjoy doing when you want to do them.

Ron

 

[Mn Fats]

 

[dh1633pm]

When I get tired of shooting ....... wait, I have never gotten tired of shooting. We all grow tired of certain things in life from time to time. Normal part of life.

 

[Bush Pilot]

I'm fortunate to have some toys and a reloading room that most people would kill to have. Having said that, I've lost almost all interest in either shooting or loading. When I get home in the evenings I'm too tired to really do much but eat dinner and crash. I'm hoping with the weather improving I'll snap out of my funk. For those in a similar spot it's completely understood.

 

[LoneGoose]

Try taking up casual skeet shooting. I say casual because some folks get really uptight shooting skeet. I got to where I was shooting a box of shells every week. That's all. 25 birds. That kept me away from the handguns until I started missing them. It was nice to get back to my old friends.

 

[Demi-human]

I just got back from picking up the children, after I was at the range. All this week my thumb was sore, I couldn't hold a router steady to save a board. I kid you not, after fifty rounds of Desert Eagle, I am typing like a teenager. My thumb doesn't hurt at all.
I don't want to say Big Bores are a cure for what ails you, just that Magnum Pistols are a cure for what ails me! You should try it!