Range manners

N

Noban

New member
I was at my local range in Santa Barbara County this past Sunday. I was starting to set up on the rifle range during a cease fire and placed my CASED rifle next to the bench. I noticed that the bench next to mine had a rifle on it, pointing down range while shooters were placing their targets. All other rifles were in the racks. Concerned, I walked over to the rifle ( a Garand) and not wanting to touch it and make matters worse, I looked at the action and noticed it was locked open and unloaded; better, but still bad! Any way, I walked back to my bench and heard this guy yelling and pointing as he came back from setting his target, "What do you think your are doing, pointing a gun down range, don't you understand range safety?" I realize he is refering to the Garand thinking it's mine. Before I can say anything another guy pipes up, "No, it's mine, sorry." Mr. pissed just shrugs and says, "oh" and then the range opened for fire. No sorry or excuse me for drilling you a new one for no reason.

I was pissed, but kept my mouth shut, but it was like swallowing a hot coal. But now that I am calm, I'm hoping that guy is a TFL member and reads this. Next time you get in somebody's face and you're wrong, act like a decent human being and a MAN and apologize.

Noban
 
I was at an outdoor range yesterday and my father fired one .357 from his 4" SW66. All of a sudden, a guy on the far right yelps and comes over saying "hey, what's the big idea!"

Turns out he was standing in front of his table and everyone else was holding fire. I was checking my mother's SW17 and wasn't watching him. Guess I should have drilled safety specifics of outdoor ranges into him (we have only shot indorrs till now, no ceasefires there).

I apologized to the guy whose hearing we just ruined and had my father apologize. Not having anyone do the same to him meant he had no clue as to how scary and unpleasant that one shot he fired was to others around him.

Got to watch my newbies closer!

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Oleg "cornered rat" Volk (JPFO,NRA)

http://dd-b.net/RKBA
 
We've all seen this behavior in all types of human encounters. It's ok to rant at a stranger, but when the cause of the rant turns out to be caused by a friend, then the original problem is no longer quite so bad. Precisely like a mild mannered white collar worker, for example, going ballistic when he is cut off on the highway leading to a road rage incident. If the two had known each other, it would have been an incident to be laughed about later.

About the guns pointed downrange problem, I've have always thought that that is no problem as long as they are completely unloaded (no magazine) and the bolt is open and locked back or the cylinder of a revolver craned out (or the feed gate open). The most important rule is to never ever touch any gun on a bench when there are people downrange. I think that someone even looking intently at gun when I am downrange would make me nervous. Maybe this is what got him riled.
 
Oleg, IMO, the guy in front of the line is just as guilty if he didn't yell out a cease fire and that the range is cold and verify that everyone knew that. Just asking those nearby to stop shooting for a second doesn't hack it.
 
This shows why I don't want anyone around when I'm shooting. Five miles to the nearest soul is about right. ;) Luckily I live in a state where that is still possible.

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Get your 1911s and AR15s while you still can!
 
Actually it was at the end of ceasefire and his was not visible to us (blocked from view by other shooters). After that I ende dup rangemastering and making sure ceasefires were properly called.
 
I know how you feel folks.
Last summer I had some jamming problems with a bullpup.
I checked it out then another guy had a look. All we could do was guess.
All the while two local yokels (remember this is SW VA) setting up their squirrel/deer rifle. After staring long enough one of them yells “keep at thang point’ed down raange!” Guess they thought it might go off with no magazine and me looking at the open bolt. And no I didn’t point the thing at them; they would have disappeared into the national forest. Yep I had one of those evil Bushmaster Bullpups in 223 cal. With a scope and a 30 round clip guess it rattled their cage. Course those double-taps, not on purpose, might have done it. :D
 
At the State-run Lee Kay range near Salt Lake City, Utah, when there is a cease-fire, all guns must have actions open and no one can go near their table while anyone is down range. As long as that is SOP, I don't mind guns being pointed down range.

Their 100 and 200 yard ranges are unsupervised, though they do have a motion detector that squalls if you go in front of the benches. They have regular military-style pits where you can set up your targets
even while others are firing. Wish they were
all like that.
 
I have no problems with a gun on the bench that is unloaded and has the action open, as long as no one is handling it.

Before anyone goes down range, all firearms are benched, unloaded, actions open, safeties on (if possible), everyone steps back from the bench, and no one handles the firearms.

Jared
NRA certified range safety officer
NRA certified firearms instructor
 
At the Rio Salado range here in Arizona all guns have actions open and pointed down range after the ceasefire is called. No one is to handle their gun during a ceasefire.

We had one guy start to walk out to the targets while the line was hot. The rangemaster had not called it out, but the red flag was out. Poor guy's face was so white when I yelled that the line was hot! He made it back double time to the bench.

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John/az
"When freedom is at stake, your silence is not golden, it's yellow..." RKBA!
www.cphv.com
 
Our club's rule is guns pointed downrange, actions open and empty, and you stand away from the bench during a ceasefire.

The other day, two guys were handling their Glocks during a ceasefire. I politely told them to put them down. They had done the same thing a month ago and I screamed bloody murder at them. I'd seen them do it once before that as well. So, I called one of the officers of the club to recommend they be kicked out. Is that going too far?

Dick
 
I have to agree, I have no problem with a gun sitting on the bench, unloaded and the action open. The rules at both private clubs I shoot at are simple, action open, gun unloaded, and NO gun handling while someone is downrange. I use that time to sit at the end of the bench and load magazines.
 
Monkeyleg. NO! You were not out of line.
At the range where I shoot, it is self controlled. That is when someone wants to change a target, he yells "Clear?" Then everyone clears their weapons, and either benches or racks them, actions open. Work pretty good 99.999999999999999999999 percent of the time. They've never had an accident where someone was shot.
One day though, I was sharing the 100 yard range with one other fellow. He was at the extreme left bench, and I was at the extreme right bench. I called "clear" and he said OK, and set his rifle down. Situation normal. As I was changing targets, he proceeds to start shooting again. I hit the deck so damn fast I just couldn't believe I could move that fast. I just ain't that young anymore. I guess you can imagine the various 4 letter words I was kicking out, like an M-60 with the trigger held back. When I got back behind the line, I really started in on him. You know what he said? I quote. "You were at least 60 feet to one side of my target. You weren't in any danger." I swear to God, that's what he said. I really went totally ballistic at that one. About this time, the Rangemistrss came up wanting to know what the problem was. i told her, and she promptly ordered him off the range, PERMANENTLY. Sometime I jokingly say some peoples children should have been drowned at birth, but in this guys case, it really should have been done.
Paul B.
 
Monkeyleg: If I understand you, these guys broke an important range safety rule once, were corrected, and then a month later, broke it again. I agree with your club's officer: they should be history.

Jared
 
just food for thought:

"drilling a new one" with strangers can be hazardous to your health. some people don't take personal insults well. some errors at your range might not be errors at an offending person's normal range.
 
6forsure:

I agree. I was about to ream out a bloke at my range for carrying his rifle cased -- a real no-no in my club.

Someone quietly told me he was a visitor from another club where it was perfectly permissible to carry cased firearms onto the range.

So I explained gently to him and he was happy to comply.

Our club rules are simple: range closed, then no-one gets behind or touches a rifle until it's open again. They can be left on the bench, but bolts MUST be withdrawn. If they can't be withdrawn (or are lever action etc.), they are cleared by an RO and "struck open" for the duration.

Noban:
You deserved an apology, no doubt about it.

B
 
M1911 is right - weapons are to be benched, opened and on safe... and not to be handled until the range is made HOT.
Noban was not in error and deserves the nod.
 
Typically upon cease fire the weapon should be benched, breach/action opened, and pointed downrange. If conveniant racked. If you see a weapon not in either of these modes notify the range master IMMEDIATELY and get that firearm in"safe" mode.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Paul B.:
"You were at least 60 feet to one side of my target. You weren't in any danger."
[/quote]
That clown is lucky to be alive. As much as I hate to say it I know some people who would have returned fire in an instant.
 
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