MC_MuHyeon
Inactive
Hi. I'm from South Korea and I would like to share some information on firearms in my country.
I'm 24 and I enjoy shooting a lot. The guns I've shot are:
S&W 686
Beretta 92FS
Pardini SP
Px4 Storm
Glock (don't remember the model but was chambered in 9mm.)
Walther P22
Desert Eagle .357
Browning & Miroku shotguns.
Of course, gun laws of my country are very strict compared to those of the USA. So in order to do some shooting in South Korea as a civilian, you have to visit a shooting facility and pay money to use guns & ammo stored in it.
I will start by labeling some facts about price & gun ownership in S.Korea.
-It's quite expensive to enjoy shooting in South Korea.
Unlike in the US, where you prepare your own ammo and just pay for using the chosen range and shoot no matter how long you want, the amount of money you pay to a shooting facility is linear to how many cartridges you are gonna shoot, and the price per shot is pretty high. The cheapest shooting range I've visited (it is located in Changwon and 2018 ISSF World Championship was held there) charges you as follows:
14000 Won (11.55 USD) for 10 rounds of 9mm
16000 Won (13.2 USD) for 10 rounds of .357 Magnum or .38 Special
20000 Won (16.49 USD) for 10 rounds of .45 ACP
10000 Won (8.25 USD) for 10 rounds of 12 gauge clay trap
22000 Won (18.14 USD) for 25 rounds of 12 gauge clay trap.
But the range is neat and firearms there are pretty well maintained.
In Seoul, there are many shooting facilities and they all charge you much more. One of the ranges was the worst I've ever visited. People there charges you like 40000 Won (32.98 USD) for 10 rounds of 9mm/.357 Mag/.38 Special/.22 LR if you are not a member if the range. Even if you pay some money to become a member, it's still 20000 Won (16.49 USD) for 10 rounds of pistol ammo. It's too expensive, yet people there don't care about maintaining their firearms properly; when I had a chance to shoot Pardini SP in .22 LR, the pistol grip was not tightly attached and was literally dangling to the mainframe. The gun failed to fire/eject/feed like 6~7 times for every 10 trigger pulls. I've never went there again.
-To legally own a gun, you have to be registered as a hunter or a professional shooter.
Police officers will do some background checks and will determine if a person who wants to register oneself as a hunter or a shooter is qualified. If you are qualified, then you can order your gun by paying domestic importers the price of the gun + some fees and letting them import the gun.
Asking for firearms ownership for self-defense is formally possible, but in reality, the request is almost always rejected.
-You cannot keep your gun at home unless it's powered by compressed air.
If your gun is for hunting, then it should be kept at a local police station. If it's for competition shooting, it should be kept at a local competition shooting range.
-Hunting guns can only be taken out from a police station only during hunting seasons. You may also not check the status of your gun and maintain it when it's not a hunting season. Because of this, many guns degrade due to rust, etc.
-Only air rifles and shotguns are allowed for hunting; no pistols or rifles powered by gunpowder are allowed.
-Spent cases must be sent to a local police station after shooting at ranges (not sure if this rule is valid for hunting). Losing/keeping spent cases is illegal.
-A scope with a reticle and zeroing/windage features is considered as a part of a gun and can only be legally owned/used for hunting with air rifles. Even if you don't have a gun, it's still illegal to own such scopes.
I'm 24 and I enjoy shooting a lot. The guns I've shot are:
S&W 686
Beretta 92FS
Pardini SP
Px4 Storm
Glock (don't remember the model but was chambered in 9mm.)
Walther P22
Desert Eagle .357
Browning & Miroku shotguns.
Of course, gun laws of my country are very strict compared to those of the USA. So in order to do some shooting in South Korea as a civilian, you have to visit a shooting facility and pay money to use guns & ammo stored in it.
I will start by labeling some facts about price & gun ownership in S.Korea.
-It's quite expensive to enjoy shooting in South Korea.
Unlike in the US, where you prepare your own ammo and just pay for using the chosen range and shoot no matter how long you want, the amount of money you pay to a shooting facility is linear to how many cartridges you are gonna shoot, and the price per shot is pretty high. The cheapest shooting range I've visited (it is located in Changwon and 2018 ISSF World Championship was held there) charges you as follows:
14000 Won (11.55 USD) for 10 rounds of 9mm
16000 Won (13.2 USD) for 10 rounds of .357 Magnum or .38 Special
20000 Won (16.49 USD) for 10 rounds of .45 ACP
10000 Won (8.25 USD) for 10 rounds of 12 gauge clay trap
22000 Won (18.14 USD) for 25 rounds of 12 gauge clay trap.
But the range is neat and firearms there are pretty well maintained.
In Seoul, there are many shooting facilities and they all charge you much more. One of the ranges was the worst I've ever visited. People there charges you like 40000 Won (32.98 USD) for 10 rounds of 9mm/.357 Mag/.38 Special/.22 LR if you are not a member if the range. Even if you pay some money to become a member, it's still 20000 Won (16.49 USD) for 10 rounds of pistol ammo. It's too expensive, yet people there don't care about maintaining their firearms properly; when I had a chance to shoot Pardini SP in .22 LR, the pistol grip was not tightly attached and was literally dangling to the mainframe. The gun failed to fire/eject/feed like 6~7 times for every 10 trigger pulls. I've never went there again.
-To legally own a gun, you have to be registered as a hunter or a professional shooter.
Police officers will do some background checks and will determine if a person who wants to register oneself as a hunter or a shooter is qualified. If you are qualified, then you can order your gun by paying domestic importers the price of the gun + some fees and letting them import the gun.
Asking for firearms ownership for self-defense is formally possible, but in reality, the request is almost always rejected.
-You cannot keep your gun at home unless it's powered by compressed air.
If your gun is for hunting, then it should be kept at a local police station. If it's for competition shooting, it should be kept at a local competition shooting range.
-Hunting guns can only be taken out from a police station only during hunting seasons. You may also not check the status of your gun and maintain it when it's not a hunting season. Because of this, many guns degrade due to rust, etc.
-Only air rifles and shotguns are allowed for hunting; no pistols or rifles powered by gunpowder are allowed.
-Spent cases must be sent to a local police station after shooting at ranges (not sure if this rule is valid for hunting). Losing/keeping spent cases is illegal.
-A scope with a reticle and zeroing/windage features is considered as a part of a gun and can only be legally owned/used for hunting with air rifles. Even if you don't have a gun, it's still illegal to own such scopes.