Getting vibed at the Range.

[Rainman48314]

I started to remove my AR from it's case, and turned around(with the muzzle pointed up)and another gentleman who was also firing an AR happened to be looking directly at me, and must have thought I was incorrectly carrying the firearm to my lane. (Metro Detroit).

This needs to be cleared up. There is not a single indoor range in the Metro Detroit area where you are allowed to uncase behind the firing line. It would be impossible not to sweep most of the range. There is also no safe direction to point your muzzle. Up or Down are not safe. There are way too many guns brought in loaded, accidentally and otherwise. The ranges that don't inform you are rare and ALL of them have signs...including the one you went to. This is NOT an etiquette issue. It's a life and death safety issue.

 

[-db-]

I don't agree with your disagreement. He offered his criticism without charge. How much more would it have cost him to say, "Look, when you are getting your firearm out of the case......"

If he were truly interested in safety, the guy should take about 10 seconds of his valuable time and explain himself rather than just crab at somebody w/o them knowing what it was they did.

It was his right to crab, but he should have crabbed constructively.

Well, perhaps it's my experience in the Marine Corps both as a shooter and a range coach but as far as I'm concerned, the time for basic safety instruction is before ever getting anywhere near the firing line. If we know the shooter already understands he's not to point his weapon anywhere but downrange but does so anyway, a stern reminder should be all that's required to straighten him out and if the shooter's little feelings get hurt in the process, even better. He's going to dwell on and remember the incident and make sure he doesn't screw up again.

 

[keith44spl]

Well,

I do believe that muzzle discipline should be taught at home.....

When I was but a small boy my father gave me an old single shot bolt action 22.
we would be out and about on the place, fixin fence or out doing chores, etc...
He'd keep the bolt in his pocket and I carried the rifle. For all intent and purpose, it might as well been a stick.

But, dad would at all times encourage me to be aware of the muzzle and the direction it was trained.

His ol sayin to us boys was,
"Once you turn a bullet loose, you can never call it back. For good or bad, you shall forever live with it."

I learned muzzle discipline and firearm safety at an early age.

We all been to shops and shows where someone will be sweeping the room with a firearm....
If'n they're close to me, I general make an over exaggerated ducking movement, so the offender will sometimes take notice.


Swing a muzzle in my direction....I'll take note

Start sendin bullets in my direction...I generally take offence.




.

 

[hangnoose]

HURTING THE GUYS FEELINGS

Yes the grouch had every right to say something, and yes sometimes a good chewing out stays in the mind longer. In this case the kid NEVER knew what he did wrong, only that the range lizard was a jackwagon. A wasted opportunity for the ranter to show his superiority, and actually teach the kid something.

 

[wbraswell]

Yes, there is no substitute for safety, also, there is no substitute for manners and courtesy. Sometimes when you get rude, you find out you were talking to Capt. Call.

 

[redlevel]

I agree, generally, about the need for civility and courtesy. However, and this is certainly not an indictment of unbrkn, it really, really infuriates me when someone points a gun at me. I was about to buy a BAR semi-auto .270 from a man who was probably 10-15 years older than me at a deer camp once. He tried to hand me the rifle barrel first! I told him to keep his damn rifle and walked away. He was a friend and co-worker of the host, or I probably would have been even less civil. That was 40 years ago, and I can still see the muzzle of that rifle two yards from my face.

 

[Rastoff]

Well, perhaps it's my experience in the Marine Corps both as a shooter and a range coach but as far as I'm concerned, the time for basic safety instruction is before ever getting anywhere near the firing line.

This is a truism, but not everyone has the opportunity to get this training at home. Many shooters today have just bought their first gun as an adult.

I do believe that muzzle discipline should be taught at home.....

I agree with this too and practice it at my home.

My son has an Air Soft rifle that we allow him to keep in his room. He is required to treat it like a real gun. This means positive muzzle control. The other day I saw it sitting on his bed with the muzzle pointed toward the hallway. I called him on it. I asked him, "What's wrong with this situation?" Without hesitation he said the barrel was pointed in an unsafe direction. He corrected it immediately.


I guess my point with all this is, how will they learn if we don't teach them? Teach being the operative word. Berating someone for an infraction they are not aware of is of little help and only widens the gap between people. We should all be ready to help each other.

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

I guess my point with all this is, how will they learn if we don't teach them?

When I was a kid I had no one to teach me. No one in my family had a gun. My parents were not thrilled with the idea of me having a gun so I took it upon myself to enroll in a NRA safety class. I got 100% on my written test which helped me prove to my reluctant parents that I should be allowed to buy the .22 rifle I had my eye on. NRA is still teaching kids and adults basic gun safety. I would suggest to anyone that they take an NRA safety course before going out and waving a gun around.

 

[Rainman48314]

I wouldn't have created this thread if I had "muzzled" anyone. The LGS where the range is at, watches the ranges like hawks from their cameras. Clearly, if I had stepped over a line I shouldn't have, much like Office Space, I would have had 5 or more employees come in and tell me my mistake. I am not one to get bothered by stuff, such as this. But I am new to a lot of this as I have said. And the more I get to know people with guns, the less I tend to like them. Just a young man enjoying his second amendment right, that was fought for by many for me to keep. Just a few bad apples seem to always spoil the bunch.(ALSO! the gun was unloaded, magazines on the lane bench, as I was transferring the rifle from the back bench, to the lane. Yes, I understand Rule Number one, treat every gun as if it's loaded.)

You seem to miss the point that people are often shot by "unloaded guns"; that the rule is that you uncase only at the shooting stall. There is no way to avoid muzzle sweeping if you uncase at the back tables. FYI, I have shot there and they do NOT watch like a hawk. They rarely watch at all.

 

[LTC]

It as been my experience, it's best to leave your ego at the gate in the parking lot. I have been doing RSO duty at the private club I belong to for about 4 years.

I tend to watch from a respectful distance unless I see a violation of our safety rules. The rules are there to make sure everybody goes home at the end of the day.

If I see someone sweep another shooter or bystander, I will correct them for their mistake and then explain the rule they just broke or were about to break. There is no excuse for improper muzzle discipline.

I treat everyone civilly, but will not suffer a fool. If I have to explain the rule a second time due to another violation, your range day is over. Give me an attitude and the violations will go up the chain of command.

Being swept by a 12 gauge is like looking into a 4" pipe at spitting distances.

Oh, and by the way, every gun is always considered loaded in my mind.

LTC

 

[meaneyedcatz]

some people act like jerks because its the only way they can feel good about themselves.

 

[snubbyfan]

I learned gun safety way back when I was in the Boy Scouts for my Rifle Shooting merit badge. I actually qualified for an expert marksman certificate but decided at the time that I didn't need a piece of paper saying that I can shoot a gun, I know I can. Now I wish I had gotten it, it would have been a cool thing from my childhood.

 

[Vegetaman]

And this right here is why I avoid the range 99% of the time.

 

[the ringo kid]

I learned gun safety way back when I was in the Boy Scouts for my Rifle Shooting merit badge. I actually qualified for an expert marksman certificate but decided at the time that I didn't need a piece of paper saying that I can shoot a gun, I know I can. Now I wish I had gotten it, it would have been a cool thing from my childhood.

Same here a few decades ago. Geeze you make me feel old with making remember something from so long ago. )

I had that badge and tried for Archery but couldnt hit the side of a barn w/ bow and arrow. So much for my impression of Robin Hood.

 

[Sebago Son]

You think your lesson was harsh? I still remember the size 12 Redwing that my old man wore and how well it fit in my backside.... I didn't think I'd swept the crowd either .... then again I was about 7.

Your feelings got hurt. Sorry about that. But I bet you'll remember your lesson too.

 

[finesse_r]

I Have Trouble Relating to Public Shooting

It has been nearly 25 years since I shot a gun anywhere but on my own property, except when qualifying for my concealed carry licenses. The only problems I saw when qualifying was one or two people always showed up with some cheap semi-auto loader that was a jam-o-matic and the instructor would take care of those problems.

How those people expected to use such a gun for self defense is beyond me. A smooth throwing rock would have served them better. A high quality semi-auto loader can be a devastating weapon, but there is nothing worse that a poor quality or unreliable semi-automatic.

These days, I cannot imagine going to a public range, especially right before hunting season. Way back when I did use a shooting range, before I left the big city, I joined a private outdoor range in far west Houston near I-10 and Hwy 6, and it was never crowded except when they had a tournament and I almost always had the place to myself. Sometimes there might be one or two others there and it was a big range. It did not cost much either, as you let yourself in and out of the locked gate and there was no on site supervision, just some very nice members. They changed the combination periodically, but members were notified in advance of any pending changes.

I would avoid a crowed shooting range like the plague.

 

[snubbyfan]

Same here a few decades ago. Geeze you make me feel old with making remember something from so long ago. )

I had that badge and tried for Archery but couldnt hit the side of a barn w/ bow and arrow. So much for my impression of Robin Hood.

Same thing here, I was doing good if the arrows landed at the same end of the range as the targets.