First Timer, Questions about Range

M

MrBagsby

Inactive
I just bought my first gun a Glock G17 and while I was talking to the gunshop guy he mentioned that there were no good ranges nearby, so the thought occured to me "Why not start one!"

So here is the land setup: 20 acres square with 3 sides open and the back facing very dense woods with the nearest house about a mile from the back. I read that the NRA wants at least 12' berms so that wouldn't be a problem but would the acreage be enough for all types of guns or just short range. I guess what I am wanting to know is what would you look for when you go to a range and any ideas that you can give me as to how to set it up. If any of you know the requirements for starting a range as far as legal standards or insurance and such. I figured that asking a huge amount of gun owners what they like when they go to the range would be the best start to my quest, and now that I am getting into this myself it could benefit everybody. Any ideas?
 
If I remember coorectly there was a good enough range in the Branson area. I lived in in NW AR about 13 years ago but went up there for some IPSC.

Good luck but I would highly advise visiting a couple ranges first before making the investment you are thinking about.
 
The NRA website has information on standards for building a shooting range.

There are a lot more things to creating a range than just having the land and 12-foot berms.
  • Access - can people get to it? Is it safe to drive to in bad weather?
  • Liability insurance - is a must
  • Water Table - how deep is the water table there? And what kind of geological structure is the land on? This will be part of a review to make sure expended lead rounds don't pollute ground water.
  • Neighbors - if people live about a mile away, they may object to the sound of constant or sporadic gunfire, depending on acoustics in the area.
  • Structures - You'll need at least one enclosed structure for the range staff and to let people get out of cold/damp/wet weather.
  • Power - how much will it cost to string electric power to the location?
 
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