Why the hate on the flying brass?

[Nushif]

I do have to ask ...

So I understand when people want to have a quiet day with their .22 revolver and just put some little holes in some little paper, been there myself. As a matter of fact, the wife and I trade cylinders of six in our .22 sometimes and it is one of the better times we have together.
And I understand when you're sitting there lining up the shot on that shotshell one gazillion yards away that a piece of brass to the neck can suck ...

But with all the hate of flying brass going on, dare I ask ... why are you at a public range?

I know, I know people everywhere are supposed to be quiet, very polite, non-intrusive and better seen than heard, but public ranges aren't for people I like. Public ranges are for the public. And one part of the current design and technology in handheld firearms and even large guns ... is flying, ejecting or somehow moving brass. Hells, even 105 rounds spend some limited time in the air.

So, dare I ask, that when we say "considerate" and "polite" ... maybe the one grouch at the range who hates all the young'ns because their guns spit brass and would rather everyone just shoot .22 short so he can focus down his scope, his iron sights or whatever for ten minutes before taking one shot is the odd man out?

I am not trying to say that anyone should have to put up with someone purposely throwing hot brass their direction with a malicious laugh while saying "Take that, sucka!" and twirling their bad guy mustache ... what I am saying is that brass happens at shared ranges. And a shared range may not be the place to go if I want to spend some time plinking my .22 shorts into a can without earmuffs.

So, can I ask why some people feel it's ok to go to a public range and insist it ought to be their own personal range designed exclusively for their own enjoyment?

Again, I have been on both sides of the fence here ... I have left the range when I just wanted to plink with my .22 and I am sure I have been that guy who annoyed some poor schmuck when I was seeing if my new mag would feed my Norinco 213 at rapid fire. But really, haven't we all?

Consider that when you truly are the one guy at the range in a bad mood, maybe sometimes .. again, I'm being gentle ... not always, but sometimes ... you are in the wrong spot and that instead of grumbling about everyone else at the range ... sometimes everyone else is grumbling at your behavior, too.

Or am I just too like ... chill here and just want to get along with my fellow shooter? Should I be grumbling when people come to my public range?

In all sincerity though, why all the hate of flying brass?

 

[MyGreenGuns]

I always assumed thats why you wear your "eyes". I also wear my hat backwards so brass doesn't touch my head, and wont get to my neck. I've messed with my bro though, turning my gun "gangsta" style so my brass went over the wall and landed on his side.
A lot of people are too uppity about everything. I try to be nice to people that I dont know, but you nailed it with "Brass Happens". OOOH! I should make a bumpersticker!

 

[blakeci]

It's more of a matter of simple good manners. If you're rapid firing a AR-15 and spent shells are landing all over the guy's nice firearms next to you, potentially scratching or dinging them, the polite thing to do would be to set up a net, or offer to switch places, something. It's not a requirement, it's just what respectable, polite adults do.

Or one could just be a selfish jack*** and not care about anybody but one's self...

 

[oneounceload]

What is wrong with being considerate of others and not having your hot trash fall all over them and their guns?

Maybe you'll get a handful of hot brass down your neck one time, or your wife down her shirt, and you'll understand

Using some form of brass catcher or deflector is not rocket science

 

[Tallinar]

I'm with you. I don't really get all the fuss with flying brass. Common courtesy is good to have and is always appreciated when exhibited, but frankly - in this world of automatic weapons, one should really just start to expect it as part of the public range experience.

The only, only time I get remotely annoyed with flying brass is when I am at the pistol range shooting revolver - and someone comes in with an automatic and stands on my left when there is room for them to shoot on my right. But in these circumstances, I typically just politely ask the guy if we can swap places. Problem solved - no hostility.

 

[Nushif]

I *have* gotten hot brass down my shirt. Plenty of times.
My wife has angry red marks still from some very hot S&B ammunition.

Remember, I am not condoning being a jack*** as someone is already insinuating I am for holding the belief that on a public range "brass happens" and I am not saying using some sort of device to catch brass is a bad thing or hard to do.

what I am wondering abut is this ridiculously hostile reaction I am seeing when I state that on a *public* range in a *public* environment one has to "play with others" not neccesarily well, but one does have to put up with the fact that there might be other shooters on the line who make noise and whose guns do throw brass.

I mean, would these very same people be angry at someone cooking an aromatic cabbage soup in the house next door over? Is every minor iritation that someone bestows on you really a sign of a "jack***" and inconsiderate, rude, unforgiveable and they should just not be in one's presence?

Look at just two of these replies. I can see some anger here! and I do think that my question as to *why* a lot of people get really, really angry and judgemental of their fellow people for a pretty small irritation. I am asking *why* objectively flying brass at a range is a sure sign of some other person being the scum of the earth. I am asking *why* a quite normal function of a gun is the trigger to this ridiculous kind of behavior from supposedly rational people?

 

[HOOfan_1]

I've seen people shooting a Mini-14. I think the brass comes out of those with the same energy as the bullet coming out of the muzzle....might go as far too.

At my range it isn't too difficult to find a place where your brass will not hit others. It is more a problem if everyone reloads and everyone is shooting the same caliber and the brass gets all mixed up, or someone decides to pick up your brass along with theirs. With the Mini-14 luckily the 50 and 100 ranges are usually almost deserted, so no problem there.

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

What is wrong with being considerate of others and not having your hot trash fall all over them and their guns?

Exactly. It's not that hard to accomodate others with a little cooperation.

The one time it happened to my son and I it was kind of funny. We were shooting on the outdoor pistol range at one of our clubs, and there were only two benches there. A local gun dealer I knew came and set up on our left and asked if some full auto fire from his Uzi would bother us. We told him no problem.

He loaded mags for a few minutes while we were shooting and then proceeded to empty one of them. We got a nice shower of hot steel 9mm cases.

We laughed, he apologized profusely, and then we did what we should have done in the first place, swapped benches. Our 1911s throw brass slightly forward, so no more problems.

 

[Fishslayer]

If it's a caliber I load, letter rip!

If the shooter to my left has a really hot ejector I just time my shooting to his reloading. While he's shooting I police my own brass.

I try not to pelt others but don't really get bent out of shape over being the peltee.

What gets me is when the range (indoor) isn't crowded & they put the mall ninja with the short barrelled .308 AR right next to me.

I've seen people shooting a Mini-14. I think the brass comes out of those with the same energy as the bullet coming out of the muzzle....might go as far too.

Yup. That would be my Mini-30. I never shoot it unless I have a wall to my right, and then it bounces hard enough to wind up a lane or two to my left. When it doesn't catch me in the head that is.

 

[Vyacheslav]

+1 to the above post. also feel free to shower me with expensive brass, i'd love nothing more than a full auto .50 bmg or 20mm next to me

 

[ForumSurfer]

There are several sides to this, all of which remind me that I am very blessed to be able to shoot on my own land...at least until someone sells the real estate 1/2 mile behind my backstop for urbanization.

And I understand when you're sitting there lining up the shot on that shotshell one gazillion yards away that a piece of brass to the neck can suck ...

Yep, it does.

I am sure I have been that guy who annoyed some poor <guy> when I was seeing if my new mag would feed my Norinco 213 at rapid fire. But really, haven't we all?

Yep, I have.

Consider that when you truly are the one guy at the range in a bad mood, maybe sometimes .. again, I'm being gentle ... not always, but sometimes ... you are in the wrong spot and that instead of grumbling about everyone else at the range ... sometimes everyone else is grumbling at your behavior, too.

Absolutely. Sometimes as you get older, it get easier to take an objective look at your own actions and realize you are the grumpy one. But sometimes as you get older, you just get grumpy and you don't care.

If you're rapid firing a AR-15 and spent shells are landing all over the guy's nice firearms next to you, potentially scratching or dinging them, the polite thing to do would be to set up a net, or offer to switch places, something. It's not a requirement, it's just what respectable, polite adults do.

The flip-side to that is that if I'm setting up my stuff, I'm not going to set it up where the guy next to me is going to be flinging his brass. I see his AR and I know it slings brass my way. Depends entirely on the situation and how the shooting areas are laid out. Maybe I should talk to him and see what we can work out.

 

[FlyinBryan]

for a second there i thought,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[ForumSurfer]

Look at just two of these replies. I can see some anger here! and I do think that my question as to *why* a lot of people get really, really angry and judgemental of their fellow people for a pretty small irritation. I am asking *why* objectively flying brass at a range is a sure sign of some other person being the scum of the earth. I am asking *why* a quite normal function of a gun is the trigger to this ridiculous kind of behavior from supposedly rational people?

Congratulations. We can now coin a new term: "Range Rage"



We all spent our hard earned $$$ to get there and we have a picture perfect idea of how it should go and how other people should react. Sometimes things go awry and people act out of character.

 

[Rustyol45]

Personally, I try to be considerate of others at the range, but I do not expect them to be considerate of me or my Wife. That's an unrealistic expectation. That would be nice, but brass flying at you is a realistically to be expected at a range environment. I instruct the women in my party to dress accordingly to prevent this type of mishap.

Life is 10% what it throws at you and 90% how you react to it.

 

[flip888]

For me it all comes down to respect for other shooters. If its unavoidable then thats that. But if i can prevent somebody elses head from catching my brass ill make the effort. Especially when I have the mini30 with me.

 

[chrt396]

I hate 22 cal brass pelting me..cuz' that stuff is "HOT!" I have scars on my upper arm where those casings have literally adhered to my skin. Someone with a weak spring where the brass is being thrown way up and over partitions...getting pelted with brass while shooting. It all sucks..but that's just the atmoshere of a public range! I was given a SKS by a buddy of mine that I restored it and took to the range to try her out. This beast was throwing the casings up in to the roof which is 15 feet tall and showering this guy next to me. He wasn't happy..and I can't say that I blame him. I just stopped shooting that rifle at the time. No sense in pissing off someone. I can wait for him to leave...or I can shoot it another day...it just isn't worth pissing off a fellow shooter with a lack of consideration!

 

[X-JaVeN-X]

Really? People get upset when a hot casing hits them at the gun range? Do you also get pissed if water gets on you at the pool? Grow some thicker skin and get on with life.

 

[chhodge69]

When I'm at an indoor range and getting peppered I just consider it part of the environment and deal with it. It's a lot easier to tune out hot pebbles than it is to ignore the guy shooting a .50 cal three bays down. Guns spit brass, why would that make you mad?

 

[jerkface11]

I've seen people give dirty looks for guns being too loud too.

 

[wanderinwalker]

Well, I normally shoot a self-loading brass-chucking AR-15, and shoot around people who also shoot self-loading, brass-chucking rifles. I have scars on both knees from hot .223 brass (some from my own rifle even! ). It's part of shooting, but I try to be considerate of others when I am setting up with a self-loading brass-chucker, as I know not everybody wants to learn how to concentrate while ignoring an impending 2nd degree burn.

 

[Bobson]

I always assumed thats why you wear your "eyes". I also wear my hat backwards so brass doesn't touch my head, and wont get to my neck. I've messed with my bro though, turning my gun "gangsta" style so my brass went over the wall and landed on his side.
A lot of people are too uppity about everything. I try to be nice to people that I dont know, but you nailed it with "Brass Happens". OOOH! I should make a bumpersticker!

I agree with your mentality 100%. As long as you're being safe and aren't going out of your way to annoy strangers at the range, I don't see a problem. Like you guys said, Brass Happens.

I'd buy the bumper sticker, btw.

 

[ezypikns]

How about just trying to be considerate?

If the range is full, sure, there's nothing you can do about it. But if there's room to set up so that you don't pelt someone with hot brass, just do that.

One other hting I TRY to do is this: if someone is really concentrating on their target, I'll wait until they finish their mag before I start shooting. Do I HAVE to do that? Absolutely not. And sometimes it's not possible.

Nothing wrong with trying to be considerate. And what better example to show kids when you're introducing them to shooting? Who knows? It might spread.

 

[HOWARD J]

I like the state range I go to in MI
It has nets between the benches & only 6 rds. in gun at a time.
Most MI state ranges-- in gun 1 bullet at a time.
I go on a monday & the range is very quiet.
Plus no range fee---this is the only state range that does not have a range fee--FREE

 

[spyder1911]

Most of the ranges I go to give you a divider to block the brass.

All is takes is one piece of hot brass down a shirt and someone with poor trigger control in that moment of pain for a serious mistake.


Also I hate shooting 5 stand when the person to my left has an autoloader that keeps hitting me with shells but I know it isn't their goal so I just smile and laugh it off.

 

[303tom]

When I first read this, I thought it said frying brass, made me think of this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2ac1I7Eq7w