Your thoughts about big and glitzty indoor ranges

SO from what I am reading quality of indoor ranges seems to vary a lot - from very modern and well managed to what seems crude and dangerous. The only thing I have as far as an actual 'range' is a old two building set up in a small portion of state managed forest land. It is essentially un-managed and is nothing more than a covered area with a couple benches and the rest just 100 yard and 300 yard lanes with two dirt berms at the ends. It's not bad for what it is and is rarely used except for before hunting seasons for people sighting in rifles,
 
I'm a member of an outdoor range that is just 15 minutes away and cost $100 a year, and it has about everything I need. Archery, blackpowder, .22 plinking range with steel plates, 300 yard rifle sight in, sillouette range, pistol falling plate range, cowboy action range that looks like the town in "Gunsmoke", 7 skeet shooting ranges, action pistol range, 500 yard rifle range, etc. I also have a new fancy indoor range about 15 minutes away but I hardly ever shoot there. It's not too crowded but expensive and sometimes I go there just to look around and hang out. They have a Sports bar with excellent food and big screen tv's and sometimes I'll watch a game and get something to eat or drink and check out the guns and gear.
 
Well... if folks are 25 deep waiting to shoot a glitzy indoor range, my thoughts are that the area might could use more glitzy indoor ranges to meet demand. Folks learning, practicing and enjoying guns is a good thing, fancy facilities or otherwise.

My personal preference is outdoor ranges. Most of my shooting is steel or bouncing around soda cans at the Plinking range. Shooting at paper isn't as fun. I know this to be generally true for gun owners. At our club we've got a half dozen fantastic ranges for handguns and long guns to shoot at paper but the Plinking range is by far the most popular for recreational shooting.
 
Before moving to my current location, I worked p/t at a LGS/Indoor Range. It was dated, but safe and workable.
I actually felt sorry for so many of the shooters and customers there. Many had NEVER fired a gun ANYWHERE but at an indoor range. Kinda sad.
Think if that was my only option, I'd give up shooting.

Have my own range now, and if I want to be more social, there's a $20/day public range 1/2 hour away.
 
Only have used an indoor range once. Dreary, dirty place. A new high tech one just opened nearby. May give it a try.
In my le career always trained and qualified at outdoor ranges. Fortunate I live in an area where there are national forest ranges. Most are far out which helps keep less serious folks away.
Best indoor range I have seen is the NRA HQ range in Fairfax, va. Open to public. Worth a visit to the museum and range in Washington DC area.
 
Shooting at paper isn't as fun. I know this to be generally true for gun owners.

I suspect that this is one reason that guns are more popular in rural areas than in urban/suburban areas.

The only option around here is shooting at paper in an indoor range, not exactly a thrilling experience. :)
 
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CAUTION: Indoor Ranges--
One of my many medical issues is LEAD POISONING !
Heed AJ's advice-if you shoot a lot at an indoor range-every few months get a test for lead poisoning.

I am blessed to live in Arizona where we have the best of both worlds. I am within easy driving distance of Ben Avery perhaps one of the best outdoor ranges in our Country. Phoenix and it's suburbs have multiple indoor ranges with state-of-the-art air handling facilities. I know one range for sure has their employees regularly checked for lead poisoning and so-far there have been no problems.
Jim
 
When I worked at the mentioned LGS/Indoor Range, annual blood tests for employees were mandated by OSHA.
Even though I'd been a bullet caster for many years and worked there for ~6 months, my results came back completely clear.
 
I shoot on indoor ranges when visiting in the Denver area. I have shot on the Firing Line, a relatively small commercial range in conjunction with a great gun shop. Only 6 public ranges, but I've never waited long. There are also some very new ranges that might be more to your definition. I think 25 lanes and lounges to relax in. A little pricier at $18 and hour. Then there is a really nice indoor club range for use by members and guests only. My friend Stu had me as a guest there and If I ever moved to Denver it would be the first place I would join.

I have belong to a couple of outdoor ranges, and that's where I prefer to shoot, but in the winter, a nice warm range with electric target carriers is a lot more fun to shoot on. Keep in mind those folks that don't have access to any other ranges, but still want to shoot, if not for some glitzy new ranges they wouldn't be able to.

The little .22RF range I belong to in the basement of our Jr High School where the High School team shoots I can only shoot on one evening a week, only during the school year, and it is only available from 6PM to 8PM that one day. But we have a weekly bullseye league competition and we currently have more shooters than we have shooting lanes for, (20 lanes). We are currently on pin & needles waiting on the results of a OSHA lead testing done last week.
 
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My experience with public indoor ranges is limited to the NRA headquarters range in Fairfax VA.

It's well maintained, well ventilated and is closed for cleaning and maintenance enough to suggest that proper cleaning and maintenance actually gets done.

Ammo was almost always available, even in the midst of a shortage at very attractive prices, with no effort to gouge or charge more than MSRP.

I'd usually go on a weekday, leaving early enough to drive opposite to rush hour traffic in order to arrive just before the range would open at 8am and there'd usually be no waiting. On the average week day, there'd also usually be no line, so you could over stay your appointed hour with their permission.

If I shot on a weekend, I'd leave earlier to get there 30-45 minutes prior to 8am to make the first flight of shooters. If not, you waited up to an hour for a lane to open.

The primary benefit of the range was their computerized target system that you could set at any range from 1 to 50 yards and program to expose the target for various times and sequences. Shooting there a couple times a week really helped me improve and maintain my speed and accuracy in drawing from concealment and shooting during brief target exposures at social shooting distances.

A primary complaint was that my ability to do those kinds of drills depended in large part on who the range officer was at the time. Some of the more experienced ROs were very good at detecting who was competent and draw and shoot without putting a divot in the floor, while the less experienced imposed the same restrictions on everyone, limiting you to the low ready position. I encountered one who would not even allow a low ready start, but that was a one time occurrence.

Not that I can blame them, as another complaint was that I saw some incredible idiots there, doing incredibly stupid stuff that ensured that I took care to stay behind the bullet resistant glass that separated shooting positions. To be fair, that is by no means indoor range specific, but I suspect suburban indoor ranges tend to see a greater share of people who were not raised with firearms and were not ingrained with the basic safety rules.

The final complaint was that one of the more common firearms encountered at the NRA headquarters range were AR-15s, more often than not with 16" barrels. 16" AR-15s are loud in an indoor range, and an AR-15 toting moron doing mag dumps in the lane next to you sucks the fun right out of it, even with plugs and muffs. That level of noise is very fatiguing.

Now, again to be fair, I also took some perverse pleasure in the evil black rifle shooters at the range, as the NRA threw the EBR crowd (and I'm a proud member in good standing) under the bus in 1994 when they caved into the 1994 AWB in exchange for some weak promises to preserve hunting access for their Elmer Fudd membership. In doing that they badly mistook who their members were. They are less likely to make that mistake again if any of the suits upstairs ever bother to look at who is shooting with what downstairs.

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After shooting on the range, I'd wash up and get breakfast in the cafeteria, and then hang out in the Museum for an hour or two to let the traffic die down before driving home.

In that regard, it's also the cafeteria, and the museum that made the range worth the trip. I've never had a desire to just drive to an indoor range.
 
The indoor Range I shoot at is a bit run down but well ventilated,I just don't care for the part of Town it's in but being as that may be I do like this Range more than some Others.
 
Well, I prefer to just walk out back, toss a can on the ground, and start shooting, but haven't been able to do that since I moved back "to town." Now I belong to one of those big, fancy, indoor ranges, and I like it. I'm retired, so I generally go early in the morning, and on weekdays, when it's not so crowded. My wife and I go together, and share one lane, a handicapped one (she uses a walker). I've never seen any unsafe gun handling there, but they have at least two, and usually three rangemasters in there. The staff is quite friendly and helpful. They don't allow plain lead bullets (except in rare instances) but once I realized how much easier cleanup is with plated bullets, I wouldn't go back to lead if I could. They also sweep up my brass for me and put it in my bag. I always get more than I shoot.

It ain't shooting out back of the hog pen, but it ain't bad.
 
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A place like that is about the last place I'd want to go shooting. I'm an outdoor kind of guy when it come to shooting. I have an indoor range that I can go to if the weather is bad and I just gotta go get rid of some pent up hostilities. But it isn't glitzy or fancy, just comfortable and friendly. I've been shooting there for about 50 years and for me it's kind of like CHEERS...everybody knows my name.
 
My indoor range just added 5 lanes. You can rent full auto guns including a belt fed .30 of WW2 vintage . If that doesn't do it for you, you can go outside and rent a tank or self propelled gun or a personnel carrier and drive through a wooded trail and over a car or two. Take money.
 
I'm glad these indoor ranges are available and usually do a couple times a year, but the lighting in these places has aways bothered my eyes/vision and the indoor ranges I go to don't really want you to pick up your brass, so mostly go with a revolver.
Recently, me and my son were able to acquire some rough desert property and can setup a temporary shooting range. Here's a short youtube video my son setup to blast away. I mostly set back out of the way and just watch him and pick up all the brass afterwards.
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6urb3JPgNRw[/ame]
 
While I prefer outdoor ranges, as that is all we had available until the last few years. But, I also belong to an very nice indoor range, fully air conditioned. Too cold to shoot, indoor range. Too hot to shoot, indoor range! Best of both worlds. Air quality is top notch.
 
I went to an outdoor range today. It was my second time using it and for the second time I was the only one there but I know that will change come springtime. I like the freedom to bring targets, plinkers, whatever they may be. And at $5 per hour it's great. The indoor range I frequent isn't fancy but I can use my own paper targets. It costs a little more but It's 15 minutes away vs 45 minutes. I like both but prefer outdoor.
 
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