Lessons learned at the range, such as...

[capt_happypants]

Never make fun of a 3-Gun Match Director.

He will assign you to the squad that has to engage 15 IPSC targets at 50 yards with slugs.

It might be cool to roll over to the next shooting position and engage the last target with your pistol, but you shouldn't do it after firing 20 rounds out of an AR. Especially if the shooting position is to the right.

 

[Slimjim]

Be nice to the old range officer with the 1911 on his hip. He can teach you many things you didnt know about that pistol. And He might even show you how to field strip it and put it back together right.

 

[Stingray]

Even if you think there is no one else on the range, do not remove your earplugs until you are out. Someone might of slipped into the far lane without your knowledge.

 

[Zach S]

Even if you think there is no one else on the range, do not remove your earplugs until you are out. Someone might of slipped into the far lane without your knowledge.

Or, if you do decide to take your plugs out, check the lane farthest from the door first, and then the rest. Normal habit at the range I frequent. If I'm there when its close to closing time I normally sweep the brass up, of course, most of its mine anyway.

One more thing, when you're in the range going over the rules with a first time visitor, beware of other shootiers coming in when you dont have ears on. When the shooter tells you "Dont worry, I've got a supressor for it," be sure to tell him when you or the other person is going to start shooting. He may let you run a few rounds through his USP tactical.

 

[Third_Rail]

Shorty-upper ARs are not fun to have in the lane next to you.

I know how you feel, jfruser!!! I have burns and scars that would prove that I know how you feel.... inconsiderate LEOs to the left of me, ignoring the 5 rounds to a mag rule, ignoring the rapid fire rule. 'Twas not fun.

After one too many incidents I've learned to leave when a group of cops come to the range. They are inconsiderate and I don't care to experience the reason all those rules they ignore are called safety rules.

You're not kidding, Ryder. Try explaining to a policeman why you just hit the deck after he points a LOADED AR-15 that had a CHAMBERED ROUND at you. His finger was in the trigger guard, and I really thought I was about to get shot. He thought it was funny.

 

[grislyatoms]

Make sure you tighten down the top screws on a Browning Buckmark snugly before going to the range. Has a definite relationship to accuracy.

Make sure to put the rifle mags IN THE RANGE BAG before driving to range.

Copper solvent = getting those stubborn bits of crud out of the barrel where the grooves meet the lands.

Don't try to shoot a scoped rifle right handed - left eye dominant. I have had a scar for 20+ years.

The guy that runs around the range from person to person being overly friendly and giving lots of advice about everything under the sun is either a nice, lonely old gent or a raving lunatic.
He's usually the latter.

The little snits at the range that jeer when you pull a .22 out of your range bag usually stop jeering when you pull out a .454 Casull. After 1 or 2 rounds they tend to leave the range altogether.

A pipe full of Borkum - Riff, a brick of .22, and last week's beer cans make for an enjoyable afternoon.

 

[Edmond]

wear a baseball cap

and

don't wear shorts-having a hot casing from a .45acp land inside your shoe really burns!

 

[shep854]

Grislyatoms said: "Make sure you tighten down the topscrews on a Browning Buckmark snugly before going to the range. Has a definite relationship to accuracy." Reliability too.

Edmond suggested, "Wear a baseball cap." Better yet, a full-brimmed hat. The back of your shirt collar is a legitimate target for hot brass.

I'd also suggest shirttails out. That way the brass that goes down your shirt can easily be shaken out.

 

[Treylis]

My friend "Harry Potter" learned a lesson he won't soon forget about eye relief of scopes on high power rifles.

Haha, that's hilarious.

Once, a friend called me up while I was at the range. I had just finished reloading all the mags for the AK and popped one into the gun. Leaving the phone sitting on the table, I hit "Answer."

I caught some hell from the guy when I went over to his house later. Seems like my bump-firing and "hysterical laughter" scared the crap outta him and caused a small panic at his apartment. Only when he hung up the phone and got a hold of his roomate did he realize where I was.

Sounds like a good idea for a new answering machine message. ;-)

 

[Arcli9ht]

During a cease fire, remember to carry your hearing protection with you, not leave it on the bench with your guns. And if you do leave them on the bench, remember to put them on as soon as you get to the bench, don't just stand around chatting.

A pack of youths at the range learned this yesterday. The first time was by accident on our part, but the following 3 times were to teach them by example.

/Arcli9ht

 

[GigaBuist]

A steel casing being ejected out of an AK has enough force to destroy unprotected lightbulbs.

Apparently the fine folks that just re-did our rifle range never thought about auto-chuckers being on the firing line. It's just a bare lightbulb mounted 2 feet off the bench.

Hearing glass shatter just after firing makes one pause and wonder just what the heck happened too.

 

[Magnum88C]

1.) OO buck will penetrate a grown man's butt cheeks at 100 yards.
2.) The person will not speak to you for several weeks if you laugh the whole way to the hospital -- especially if you won the bet.
3.) The ER doctor WILL laugh as he's pulling out the pellets.

4.) If you leave a steel pistol target at the private range, someone WILL come by and shoot it with a rifle.

5.) The guys who are dressed in camo, with all the latest gear from teh gun rags and surplus stores hate it when you outshoot their "high speed, low drag" equipment with your levergun.

6.) The same guys don't react well to having them and their $2000+ "combat pistol" outshot at a pin shoot by some schmuck with an SAA.

7.) Whilst shooting one's Mosin-Nagant M44, with bayonet properly extended, try to avoid the bayonet charge downrange when the magazine runs dry. It disturbs the children. AND the guys in camo. . .

8.) The yuppy kids that are occupying the center lanes at a range, bragging about their high-$ ARs get disturbed by the muzzle blast from a short Mosin-Nagant rifle, or FAL for that matter. They really hate it when you outshoot them with that "cheap piece of sh*t commie $60 rifle". They don't want to hear that it's not the rifle, it's the rifleman. . .

9.) Don't shoot your .454 one-handed at the range. It disturbs the other shooters when their wife/girlfriend/daughter comes over to watch you shoot.

10.) Don't shoot your SxS 12-gauge one-handed, it removes skin from your hand and adds a lump to your forehead.

 

[444]

I once went shooting with some guys from work. As we were pulling up to the area I spied a cinder block sitting there. I had once read an article in a gun rag about how cinder blocks blow apart when hit with bullets, so I thought I would impress everyone by shooting it with a round of 00 buckshot. As the car stopped I jumped out and loaded a round from the sidesaddle and let it fly. I got hit right in the center of the forehead with a richochet that hurt like hell.
Propane cylinders. As a teenager I took one of my dads propane torch tanks and set it at the end of our driveway. I backed off to the side of the hosue (roughly 50 yards) and shot the cylinder with a S&W Model 17. The tank took off like a rocket. It's flight leveled off at about 30 feet in the air and then it assumed horizontal flight. I was crapping my pants that it would hit the house but it flew in a circle for several seconds before it ran out of gas.
"M855 ball *will* tumble after passing through a single sheet of plywood. "
Just a side note: I shot a three gun match yesterday. One of the stages had us firing through ports in "walls" that were made of that plastic stuff that I guess might be sold as like a barrier tape. It is orange and looks like squares with the middle of the square being empty. So there is just a framwork kind of thing ??? That is as clear as mud. Anyway it is just thin plastic that can be rolled up and put away for stroage. While taping targets I saw tons of keyholes from bullets striking this very thin plastic.

 

[TechBrute]

5.) The guys who are dressed in camo, with all the latest gear from teh gun rags and surplus stores hate it when you outshoot their "high speed, low drag" equipment with your levergun.

6.) The same guys don't react well to having them and their $2000+ "combat pistol" outshot at a pin shoot by some schmuck with an SAA.

11. For every guy dressed out in HSLD, there's some guy with a levergun and SAA that thinks they're a good shot but aren't.

 

[Black Majik]

cans really do fly straight up in the air when shot with a handgun round.

I shot a diet pepsi can with a Colt Government .45 and the can shot straight up in the air at least 20 yrds high!

Cool...

 

[VeT|Us]

1. When your girlfriend starts to fire downrange while you're down there checking targets, its time to repeat the safety-issues.

2. Mudholes in the middle of the range can be very deep, and If someone thinks they arent, you're in for a treat.

 

[straightShot]

Hmmm.....

Having laid quite a few block over the years, the term 'cinder' block kind of reminds me of calling a refrigerator an 'icebox'.

Cinder was used in block many moons ago as an additive. Except when reusing very, very old block, block are not cinder at all. Block are made of concrete.

I would suspect that shooting into cinder block would have a quite different result than shooting into concrete block. Concrete block, for instance, have a nice ring when whacked on the side by a trowel when you're holding it. They're harder, heavier, and more solid than 100 year old cinder block. Old cinder block, on the other hand, respond with a dull thud when whacked and break quite easily when the web is struck with a hammer.

I just wonder what the difference might be when shooting either. I'm curious.

 

[Len_in_Phoenix]

- Kids smile a lot when they shoot.

- My children can empty magazines faster than I can load them.

- You will drag your cleaning kit/tool box to the range 100 times without using it....and the first time you don't take it you'll have to borrow something.

- If you have a chronograph, check the battery BEFORE you get to the range.

- The fastest way to make another shooter smile are the words "Would you like to shoot it?"

- If you have a cool gun, always take some extra ammo for it. (see above)

- Never shoot a prarie dog with a 12 guage when it pops up from a hole 3 feet in front of the station you're shooting from.

- The old fat guy with the white beard and the faded John Deere hat can probably teach you something.

- Try not to get in a shoot-off with a person whose gun doesn't have any bluing left on it. There is a reason it looks like that.

- Try to get a table next to the people carrying their ammo in a WalMart bag. 99 times out of 100 you'll go home with their brass.

- Never pick up brass for guns you don't have. You'll end up buying a gun just so you can use all the brass you've collected.

- Steel targets are cool.


- 200 grain .45 lead semi wadcutters: 3 cents each
- 3.5 grains of Bullseye: 1 cent
- 12 pound Wolff recoil spring: 8.99
- Watching jaws drop when an 11 year old girl steps to the line with a full size 1911: priceless


Len in PHoenix

 

[RevDisk]

- Always listen to advice given by the old guy with the old weapon

- Always bring spare batteries for anything that needs it

- Always bring some extra ammo for nifty weapons

- If you need to debate whether or not to bring something to the range, bring it. Because if you don't, you'll definitely end up need it.

- If you see people practicing their fast draw with finger on the trigger, leave

- If someone muzzle sweeps you more than twice, run

- If anyone under the age of 40 says "Hey watch this trick", run faster

- It is not polite to laugh when a new shooter outshoots their instructor

- Even if someone is annoying, it is not polite to draw happy faces in their target. When they can't hit the broad side of a barn, drawing a very small happy face in the exact center of their target is even less polite.

- It is not polite to keel over laughing for longer than ten minutes when one's lady friend proceeds to rapid fire an AK47 with drum clip after a jerk makes snide comments regarding her .22 plinking pistol

 

[SteelyDan]

Great thread!

The only little thing I can add, which happened to a guy I know, is when you're target shooting with a .22 (or anything else, I suppose), don't let the tip of your left index finger drift up in front of the barrel. Oh, and wear eye protection when disassemblying magazines, too.

 

[Ivy Mike]

my little additions are:

When trying to shoot skeet, don't stand to the right of the launcher. Skeet REALLY hurts when it hits your back and shatters. Thank god finger was off the trigger.

Don't give uninitiated shooter the shotgun when tramping through the desert. He will find the only lizard that isn't scared of you, and he will shoot at it...even if it is a foot in front of you.

In a Metalica song, they say "...throw all your bullets in the fire, and run like hell." They speak the truth. It was fun though.

 

[farscott]

When I told the guy at the counter, his response was that he couldn't be held accountable for what people did, and that hey, I had signed a form absolving the range of responsibility in case of an accident. True, but he could have said something to the guy. (This is the same guy who told me the reason that Atlanta Arms ammo tended to jam was because "Sigs have all kinds of feeding problems.") He then sent three 18-ish kids back to the lanes with a rental-gun without carding any of them. Scary place. Luckily, word gets around.

Why does this sound like Ed's Gun & Tackle in Marietta? They also had a round come through the OUTER door of the range back into the sales area.

 

[Bart Noir]

444, about that welding tank.....

Unless your Dad had just retired from welding, he probably was going to use that soon. How did the 'splainin' go?

Bart Noir

 

[PromptCritical]

Angered propane tanks will dent the hell out of Tacoma tailgates.

When your 10/22 won't fully chamber, don't shoot it. It sucks having to stop everyone from shooting so you can find your extractor. A titanium extractor is impossible to find in gravel.

Just because a Colibri is super quiet in a rifle, doesn't mean it's quiet in a pistol.

(On shooting trip) When someone throws the Volkswagen engine block in the fire, don't try to put it out with water.

 

[Kevmo327]

1) Never let a guy with a TC Contender shoot at your small bore steel targets

2) Coconuts are fun to shoot

3) When at the range a small vialliage walks in with two rifle still in the carboard boxes and looks clueless they are...get out

4) Tell your son that because of size and speed it will be his job to run down and change targets and as long as he stays in our lane he will be Ok...look on his face was sooo worth it!

It is fun to give your buddy who is 5'4 and 140 soaking wet a Mossy 12 gauge with a 3" mag in it and watch him rub his shoulder for an hour