Chattanooga, Knoxville, & Greenville SC ranges?

[No4Mk1*]

I will be moving this summer and I am curious about the shooting range situation around these towns. My favorite type are the public ranges in WMA's or national forests as it is hard to beat the ventillation system or range fee.

 

[Bainx]

I can vouch for the Knoxville area. If it isn't the shooting capitol of the south, its darn close. We have the world-class Oak Ridge Sportsmen Association which has a multitude of ranges including 1000 yd. high power rifle, indoor pistol, 200 yd rifle, plinking, archery and trap and skeet. You join as a member by the year for $100.

Next is the John Sevier range in the city of Knoxville on Rifle Range Road. It has a 100 yd rifle range with NRA rangemaster in charge, a pistol range, and a shotgun range. Highly recommended for the $5 per day. Only open certain days of the week.

If you don't mind the general public, there is a 200 yd. rifle range in Norris, TN about 20 miles north of Knoxville. $5 per day. No range master.

Then, there is Guncraft in Knoxville, right on interstate 40. A great gun store with indoor pistol range. You can join or pay by the session. You can even rent and fire a submachine gun!

 

[JHill]

Bain gave a great summary--the only supplement that I can think of is ORSA has a brand new IPSC dedicated range w/ 5? bays.

Haven't been there yet, but hear that it is very active--shoots almost every weekend.

 

[VaughnT]

There are no indoor facilities in the Greenville area. The closest is a rather nice establishment in Hendersonville, NC (Rex's Gun Range) - 30m N on Hwy 25. They carry a bunch of reloading supplies and the complete line of Benchmade knives. IIRC, there are about 10 lanes and it's a new facility so it's still nice. I'm planning on a trip up there soon.

In Greenville, the only shooting venue is the Greenville Gun Club located in Conestee. This is a wonderful club, of which I'm a member, with rifle range out to 300yd; pistol range from 25 to 50yd; trap/skeet area (don't know what that's called) and a clubhouse. It's the only game in town and well worth the dues.

If you're gonna live in G'ville, there are shooting clubs similar to the GGC in Anderson, Columbia, and Spartanburg. All are outdoor ranges requiring membership.

I'm not familiar with any public land shooting areas with the exception of the range on Parson's Mountain near McCormick, but that's a long, long drive from G'ville and really isn't worth the effort.

 

[No4Mk1*]

Thanks for the good info about Knoxville and Greenville. It may be worth the money to go to one of those ranges as they sound pretty good.

 

[No4Mk1*]

Just posting this for anyone using the search function in the future...
I found a good outdoor range near Greenville, SC. And it's free!

It is an excellent public range run by SC DNR Between Easley and Pickens. It is free and has up to 100 yard rifle, about 25 yard pistol with a pulley system to place targets similar to indoor ranges though you manually pull on the rope to move targets. It also has archery and shotgun areas. The pistol and rifle areas are covered. You have already paid the range fee (TAX) - no charge to use it. The range is open 9am-5pm Standard time and 10am-6pm Daylight savings time. Closed on Mondays, Sundays, and all SC holidays.

From Easley, take SC 8 approximately 4 miles towards Pickens. Turn left on Breazeale Rd. Drive 1/2 mile past SC Dept of Transportation Maintenance shop and turn left on Porter Rd. Go 1/2 mile and turn left at the red gate. Go less than one mile to the end of the gravel road.

SC DNR Greenville office (864) 288-1131

There is also a Spartanburg County range nearby but I have never been there.

 

[Lexter]

Outside of Seneca, SC

There's a WMF range just past Stump Creek Tunnel(?). It's very primitive.


Outside of the Ocoee River in TN

There's a Forest Service outdoor range. Primitive as well.



Lexter in NC