Local Range has taken the fun out of shooting

[Bandit01]

I've been shooting at my local range, religiously for over three years now. I'm so disgusted with the new rules that I've lost my interest in shooting. Check out some of the new rules:
1 - It now costs $8.00 per 1/2 hour to shoot;
2 - You can no longer shoot bird shot 12 Guage ammo (If you're going to use a shot gun, you must use steel shot). This is a dumb new rule, cause they're the ones that encouraged me to get a shotgun (they ordered it for me) and encouraged me to stock up on birdshot ammo (now I can't even use the crap).
3 - Previously, you would attach your raget onto a large cardboard. Now, they've cut the cardboard down to literally 8 1/2 x 11 sheets. You can't change the new cardboard sheets until it's almost completely obliterated. The purpose is to encourage shooters to purchase large paper targets to tape to the small cardboard sheets. I shoot paper plates. They're to large and round to attach to the new cardboard sheets.
4- They've expanded the range to include a new range--this range is limited to law enforcement officials. Now, the range is even more crowded, there's a limited supply of parking spaces and truth-be-told, I don't want to be around a lot of cops.
5 - The next closest range is about an hour and a half away.

I don't know what's up but I've lost my taste for shooting by these Gestapo rules.

 

[tinygnat219]

Do you have a chance to become a member, with say an annual fee?
8 bucks for half an hour is extremely expensive to shoot. I say this with the average of 12 bucks an hour here.

Ask what's up with the rule changes, and state why they don't work for you. Who knows, there might be some reasoning behind it. Be polite about it.

One of the local ranges I belonged to was only open at certain times for LE. Being a paying member, I asked when I was getting my partial refund since I couldn't use the range at that time. They agreed to change their policy, and the range burnt down shortly thereafter...

 

[LKB3rd]

The local indoor range(pistol calibers only, even if it's from a rifle) charges $25 dollars and hour, and the outdoor range with up to 100 yard rifle charges $17.

 

[MarshallDodge]

Why is this considered Gestapo?

It's their range and they made the rules to stay in business. I'm sure there are other places to shoot and you have the right to take your business somewhere else.

Where I used to live I had to drive two hours to get to a decent range. The fee was $10 for all day use and the restrictions were not too bad. The range that was an hour from me was very restrictive and the price was $15 for half-day use.

It's still a free country.

 

[Cacique500]

Which range is this?

 

[orionengnr]

They agreed to change their policy, and the range burnt down shortly thereafter...

Wow, talk about tough customers...

 

[strat81]

Try http://targetz.com/ for 8 1/2x11 targets. Depending on your access to a copy machine, you may be able to get them printed for little to no $$$. Or hit up Kinko's.

The birdshot thing is weird.

 

[OAKVILLE SHOOTER]

Yet one more reason why I shoot at home.

 

[SamTuckerMTNMAN]

I like my range

but I make sacrifices to live out in the country where gun snobs and range officers are not found anywhere.

How else are you going to do ballistic tests on cool stuff? My poor old Datsun. . .

st

 

[cmidkiff]

Simple solution: Shoot somewhere else.

The closest outdoor range to my home is a 'hunters only' range. They frown on my EBR's, don't allow shooting faster than 1 round every 3 seconds, don't allow silhouette or human pictorial targets, et al.

Hey, it's their range. They can do what they want on their own property. I drive a bit further, and shoot where the rules aren't quite so restrictive (plus, it's free).

 

[moooose102]

WOW, if most ranges are that expensive, i will KEEP SHOOTING IN THE WOODS! but Bandit01, you SHOULD complain and inquire about all the changes. and if you did not get notice prior to the changes, you should complain about that as well. the lead bird shot rule may be pressure from a government office, epa, natrual resourses, whom ever has jurasdiction in your area, to reduce the lead being spread around. if they have opened up the range to leo's, they may have been pursuaded to reduce the lead accumulating on thier soil to get funding. i dont know how those thing work, but it would not suprise me. as for shooting with LEO's, i can understand how they might make you uncomfortable, even if you have done nothing wrong. especially if there is a group of them. but from my experiences with them, the overwhelming majority, are a pretty good bunch of people. i used to deal with many of them on a daily basis, and my aunt was one until she retired. they put their pants on one leg at a time just like you and me. they have a job to do, a DANGEROUS JOB. treat them with the respect they deserve. but you do not have to treat them extra special. just my 2 cts worth.

 

[RODS]

I did not know how good i had it,Range fee is $4 all day(outdoor range)just follow the normal gun safty rules and no 50cal or MG and life is good!!

 

[Zundfolge]

I bet these draconian range owners are also the same people bitching and moaning about how the gun culture is shrinking.


I've got it pretty good, the range I'm a member of costs $75/yr for unlimited shooting. They have two facilities, one is paper targets only, but the other has an informal "plinking" range where you can shoot steel plates and stuff (not sure about fruits/vegetables, and I know they don't allow glass bottles, but that would become a mess real fast).

 

[Eyesac]

That is rediculous

I have had horrible experiences w/ ranges... I will probably never set foot on a range ever again. It's the hills for me! I've ended up using an ironing board and shooting bag in the desert.

 

[mhillsing23]

The closest outdoor range to my home is a 'hunters only' range. They frown on my EBR's, don't allow shooting faster than 1 round every 3 seconds, don't allow silhouette or human pictorial targets, et al.

Seeing you are in MO, I am assuming that is a MO Dept of Conservation range. I shoot at one in the St. Louis area. The restrictions are annoying, but the price is right. $3/hr, and I have never been charged more than $3 even though I have been there much longer than an hour.

I sincerely wish there were more options for ranges, but with the way our country has become, I am thankful for the ranges that we do have.

 

[Bandit01]

The thing that pissed me off is, they never gave any advanced notice of the new rules. They just started enforcing them. And, they looked shocked when people started questioning the new fee and rules. This is in Charlotte, N.C., where there are not a lot of ranges. There was another range a few miles away but the range that I shoot at (used to) bought them out.

 

[jenrob]

Man I thought $20 a year for our out door range 100-1000yrd in 100 increments and a pistol area no limit on what to shoot and the police also use the range. The times they use it you can go in and watch just no shooting. only a few officers at a time are shooting and most of the time it is just for qualifing other than that when an officer is out there they are just another person to shoot with.
I use to have the some attitude towards officers then I grew up (also married one). Come to find out they are the same as the person shooting next to you.
Talk to your ramge and tell them you think that they should let them use it during a qualifing round but think other than that they should open it up to all. they can look at it as helping the officers train. they don't need it quit they need distraction and other noises. Do you think they are going to tell the lady next to them to shut up I need to concetrate so I can shoot at the bad guy, or tell the bad guy hey quit shooting so I can get a good shoot in on ya.
Try talking to some of the officer ask them what they think. You might be suprised some of them might not care some might. Just depends on there mood (dog died, wife left) we just never know there only human.

Shooting with the cops you might learn something. Me and my wife do a fair amount of shooting but she goes and does training and has come back on a couple of differenet time and said hey try this. Works pretty good I get a few pointers from her that she gets from expert marksmen. Not saying that all the pointers I find help in the way I shoot but it is like exchanging notes and seeing which one is best. Heck you might be able to give them pointers to.

 

[ChickenHawk]

Yet one more reason why I shoot at home.

I had to stop doing that when my wife complained about all the holes in the walls!

ChickenHawk

 

[jenrob]

As for the range expanding and just making it a LEO area. Do you think maybe they are leasing it.

 

[lonegunman]

We just had a post from a range nazi guy,,,,

He loved these kind of rules and pestered a fellow til he walked off the range, then he called the cops on the guy. All that guy did was eat on the firing line.


What is happening is a combined effort and a concerted one at that. Companies that insure ranges are demanding more and more constraints on shooter conduct. Most of them have little to do with safety and a lot to do with making the shooting experience unpleasant.

Range nazi guys. People that say they go to the range for "friendship and camaraderie" and crap like that and never actually shoot. They buy into the whole shooting is dangerous, elitist or requires special skill to enjoy theme of the liberals. They demand more rules, because they get pleasure from following the rules or forcing rules on people and do not actually give a crap to shoot for the pleasure of it.

You only hope is to buy private property and build your own backstop or find a new range. I drive a little further to enjoy myself a little more.

Some of the worst ranges I have ever seen are in the Seattle area. They have security cameras, range nazis and bizarre rules, klaxons wailing when people are down range and flashing lights. You would think they were setting off nukes. One had a guy who would blow a whistle and scream if he saw you step over the "red-line" when you turned the corner to go down range. They had painted a 90 degree corner well out into the walkway just to give this insane man something to do.

Now imagine, a klaxon wailing, lights flashing, no staples because you could get a pokey when changing targets and a half crazy drooler with a whistle chasing people around while they shoot. Why wouldn't shooting be pleasant?

:banghead:

 

[AK103K]

I think a lot of this has to do with where you live, and what the climate towards guns is. Insurance is also a big issue these days too.

I used to shoot at two ranges for 20+ years, one indoor(public), one outdoor(private), neither related. As the area became more built up and the yuppies started moving in (it was predominantly a rural farming community in the beginning), things began to tighten up.

The outdoor range started to bear the brunt of it at first, due to houses being built in the surrounding area, but that and just the assault on guns in general through the media added to the frenzy.

The outdoor range became extremely paranoid a round was going to leave the property, and installed all sorts of barriers to trap an errant round. They also became very paranoid of any kind of rapid fire and targets that resembled a human being. Both of the latter bled over into the indoor range.

The range officers at the outdoor range became more numerous and annoying, and like the modern day police state we live now in, you could not get through your time there without some infraction, no matter how minor, and someone was right there to make sure you knew it too. It got to the point where I felt they were actually becoming a safety issue in their own right, as they would hover over you trying to catch you doing something they could scold you on.

While they did have a DCM/CMP shoot there, you could not practice any of your rapid fire strings, except on the day of the shoot, during the shoot. Those shoots brought out another batch of range "Nazis".

I've come to believe that most of these range officers are angry little people with no control of their own lives outside the range and they become little Napoleon's, with awesome powers at the range.

The indoor range also became more draconian in their requirements and enforcement of things. I understand that they tend to have more issues being a public, by the hour type range, but come on, if your a paid up member, and in there all the time, and they know you, and how you conduct yourself, you'd think they'd cut you come slack. Nope, thank you!

One big problem I had was, I have a couple of machine guns, which REALLY puts the fear of Todd in the little people. There were no ranges in the area, except for the indoor range, that would allow you to shoot them there, on full auto anyway. It gets a little old, when they (outdoor range) see you with one and have to tell you EVERY TIME, that you cant shoot it on full. Really!? Keine Scheiße Sherlock

Lucky for me, I moved.

Now I can actually shoot right off my porch if i want and I have a real nice range two minutes down the road. It costs $20/yr. and I can shoot anything I want, anyway I want.

Now, if I ever see a yuppie headed this way.......

 

[RNB65]

Arrange a boycott. If their revenue goes does the toilet, they'll be forced to change the rules.
.

 

[btg3]

Be thankful for what you previously enjoyed and that it didn't change sooner than it did. Seems many public indoor ranges are headed in the same direction for reasons mentioned above -- insurance, safety, and of course profitability.

I don't think the changes you cite were dreamed up overnight. More likely, "they" (owner, manager, consulant, etc) took a strategic look at the business and are implementing what they feel is the best path forward. Satisfying regulators and customers while maintaining revenue isn't exactly a no-brainer. Regardless, it sounds like communication with customers could have been better as the changes were rolled out.

 

[WinchesterAA]

Stories like these make me love pasadena gun center all that much more..

7.50 to shoot all day long, renting a full auto firearm is encouraged, all you do is sign in, start shooting, pay on the way out.

The downside is if you do the all you can eat buffet method you'll die soon because of the lack of ventilation and extremely high volume of gunfire.

Shoot the target holder and it's 25$ for a new one to encourage accuracy too which is never a bad thing.

I give PGC a 10/10 rating, the crew is slightly arrogant and dismissive of everyone, but that adds to the charm of having no one thinking about what you're doing while you're doing it, shoot and enjoy.

 

[Soybomb]

I think the difficulty in finding a good range is one of the biggest problems we have with getting people into shooting sports and will probably only become a bigger problem with time.