This has happened to me three times now,,,

A

aarondhgraham

New member
After work yesterday I trundled on out to the range,,,
I was going to test the new Cheetah magazine Beretta sent to me.

It is miserable hot here in OkieLand,,,
It was no surprise that I was the only one there.

But someone had been shooting there earlier,,,
I knew this because they had left a scoped Savage 200 leaning on the rack. :eek:

It was in direct sunlight and I thought the stock might suffer,,,
So I moved it to another rack in the shade.

I was halfway through a 100 pack of mini-mags,,,
When a car came hauling @$$ up the range driveway.

The guy got out and ran to the rack where his rifle wasn't,,,
He just stood there like a deer in the headlights.

The cruel part of me was going to make him sweat it a bit,,,
But he really was going pale so I called to him and pointed to the other rack.

He thanked me for moving it,,,
Cased the rifle,,,
And left.

The first time this happened a man left a very nice over-under on that same rack,,,
The owner came back very quickly to get his shotgun.

The second time it was a young couple who left a Ruger MK-? .22 on the shooting table,,,
I didn't touch it but instead called the park ranger who came and collected it.

She told me nothing would happen to the owner other than a stern lecture,,,
But they would need to prove ownership to collect the gun.

They also showed back to the range before I left,,,
I told them that the rangers had it in their possession,,,
Fortunately they had the plastic case with the paperwork inside.

At first blush I think anyone who walks off and leaves a gun at the range is stupid,,,
But then the rational side of me reminds myself I've made a ton of bonehead blunders in my life.

I wasn't tempted to steal any of the guns,,,
In all honesty the thought did cross my mind,,,
But my code of ethics is strong so I didn't transgress.

If it would have been a nice S&W 19 or Colt Python?,,, :o
I wanna think I would not let the Devil on my left shoulder prevail.

After finding that first shotgun though,,,
I am extremely careful to make sure I am leaving with everything I take.

Has anyone else ever left or found a fieryarm at a range?

Aarond

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I found a Colt Vest Pocket .25 thrown behind an open door at the police station once.

Saw it as I was walking toward the door.

The cops thought it was probably ditched by an arrestee.

I didn't get keep it. :(
 
Bummer Microgunner,,,

I didn't get keep it.
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Whatever happened to the age old concept of Finders-Keepers?

That story reminds me of the Amnesty Boxes we used to go by when boarding a military charter flight,,,
I believe they were originally set up to give people a last chance to ditch any drugs they might be trying to take home.

I knew some AP's at Osan AFB who told me,,,
They often found grenades and pistols in the boxes.

GI's with grenades and guns,,,
Who woulda thunk it?

Aarond

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The only things I have forgotten at the range thus far have been my target stands. Range I shoot at is about 45 minutes from where I live so I wasn't going back for it.

Was still there the next weekend, just had a few extra holes
 
Temptation

I can understand how someone might be tempted to nab a free gun, but I don't believe I could do it either. I would hope that if I left a gun or something at the range and someone found it it would be an honest person like Aarond. I have never found anything other than a few loose rounds lying around and a scope adjustment cover. I did keep those because of the likelihood of the owner coming back for them was small. I think if I found a gun I would probably take it and try to find the owner if they didn't come back before I left. My range has no officer or office. It is just an old gravel pit with benches and backstops. I would probably notify the store where we pay our "club" dues and post in the local paper.
 
Yeah, left my 52C bull gun outside in the rack after winter league practice around 10 P.M. while locking the door up -TWO weeks in a row! - at our indoor range.
Luckily I only live about ten minutes away, so back I went.

Closer call, and my best learning experience was the time I was at another range much further away.

I had been both shooting and taking photos of some stuff I had brought.
All done packing the rig up, I started to leave and realized I had left my cigarettes on the bench.
Went back in to get them when the wind pulled the door shut behind me.
That startled me and as I turned at the sound, there sat my pair of war two samurai swords that I had been photographing sitting in the rack behind the door!


Lesson learned.
1. Don't take so much crap.
2. Account for the crap you did bring.

Since that day, every time I go out and even when I know I am all picked up, I will go back in and do a slow walk around the entire area.

Just being honest, JT

P.S. I put in quite a bit of volunteer time at my local club that is open to the public. Our lost and found box always has stuff in it . Forgotten guns get taken home at the end of the day and turned over to the Chief RSO for recovery by the owner.
Our crews are an honest bunch. We've never had a gun totally lost out here.
Longest time for recovery was a P-99, plastic case and all, that took two weeks for the owner to realize was missing!
We are Human and it happens.
 
That's a good practice JT-AR-MG42,,,

I will go back in and do a slow walk around the entire area.
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I do the same thing before I leave,,,
Back before I quit smoking cigarettes,,,
I sat and smoked a slow one while I looked.

So far the only thing I have left was a $19.95 set of metal spinner targets for .22 rimfire,,,
I went back a few days later and they were still there,,,
But absolutely shot to pieces. :rolleyes:

Aarond

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Nothing left behind or found yet. I imagine though if I ever join one of the local clubs/ranges it might happen. Right now I shoot on BLM land, so I don't bring much, range bag which doubles as a place to set stuff, targets and target stand(s). Not a lot of things to forget or places forget them. Everything but the expended bullets and a few lost pieces of brass comes back with me.

I would imagine if I did forget something, I would be extremely lucky if it weren't taken or shot up, by the time I remembered and returned.
 
One early morning my hunting partners and I were preparing for a chuckar hunt. We all gathered at a parking area before sunrise and began checking gear. One friend, removed his Citori from it's case and placed it on the hood of his truck.

Right before daylight, we all jumped in his truck and drove to the hunt area. When we arrived, his gun case was empty! Backtracking a few miles, we found the poor Citori laying in the road, with sever road rash on the stock and barrels!

Don't ever leave a gun on the hood of a vehicle and drive off! If you are going to leave it someplace, leave it at the range!

Good news was that Browning replaced the barrels and stock, the action was ok but it has reminder marks on it to this day!
 
Ouch Wyoredman,,,

Backtracking a few miles, we found the poor Citori laying in the road, with sever road rash on the stock and barrels!
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Oh man,,,
Hurts me to think about it.

I've never done that,,,
But I did drive off with a $3,500 Mamiya RB-67 left sitting on the tailgate of my truck.

I stopped in less than 100 yards and found I had the luck of a leprechaun,,,
The camera did fall off the tailgate but the strap caught on a corner,,,
The camera had a new ding in it but wasn't damaged functionally.

Mamiya would not have been as generous as Browning.

Aarond

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I found a spotting scope. My friend took it home so it wouldn't get ruined or stolen, and we left a note on the bulletin board with his phone number on it. I've never thought to ask him if anyone called.

My sons bought me a very nice spotting scope for a birthday present a while ago. It was a Leupold and came in a black case. I thought I left it at a range and went nuts looking for it. It took months before I noticed it hiding under an end table in the living room. Black case in the shadows.

My wife denies hiding it there, but I still wonder if she spent several months laughing at me as I wandered around looking for it.
 
I wish someone would leave a Barrett M82A1 with a Nightforce NXS Scope and 5 spare magazines to the range where I go...
 
Thanks for the god thought KMAX,,,

I would hope that if I left a gun or something at the range and someone found it it would be an honest person like Aarond.
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But maybe it's just that I've never been tempted enough. ;)

Like I said before,,,
If it were a nice Model 19 or Python?

I'll leave it at that. :o

I worked retail for many years and never stole a penny from my employers,,,
I always said if I was ever going to chance jail it would have to be for a lot more than a days receipts.

Aarond

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I wasn't tempted to steal any of the guns,,,
In all honesty the thought did cross my mind,,,
But my code of ethics is strong so I didn't transgress.

If it would have been a nice S&W 19 or Colt Python?,,,
I wanna think I would not let the Devil on my left shoulder prevail.
Click to expand...
I would hope all the members here would share your code of ethics. For those who might seriously consider otherwise and subscribe to "finders keepers," consider that some states have laws which do make such actions illegal. In my state for example:
KRS 514.050 Theft of property lost, mislaid, or delivered by mistake.
(1) Except as provided in KRS 365.710, a person is guilty of theft of property lost, mislaid, or delivered by mistake when:
(a) He comes into control of the property of another that he knows to have been lost, mislaid, or delivered under a mistake as to the nature or amount of the property or the identity of the recipient; and
(b) With intent to deprive the owner thereof, he fails to take reasonable measures to restore the property to a person entitled to have it.
Click to expand...
The theft can be a misdemeanor or felony depending upon the value of the property.
 
Hello KyJim,,,

I would think most states have a statute similar to those you cited.

They also have provisions for the finder to claim found property,,,
But only after a certain amount of time has passed.

My dilemma would be to find that Python,,,
Turn it in to the proper authorities,,,
Claim it after the required time,,,
And then meet the true owner.

I would probably hand him the gun,,,
But he might have to pry my fingers open to get it. :o

Even as a kid I always thought finders-keepers sucked,,,
Especially after one kid "found" my pocket knife on the floor of the school bus.

We had a strong encounter over that,,,
He kicked my tail but I eventually got my knife back.

Hello FrosSsT:

I know you're kidding us here,,,
But at least you're a man with a well defined dream. ;)

Aarond

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I do a lot of shooting on remote BLM land. One day I was setting up and noticed something sticking up from some cactus. Upon investigation I found a chrony still mounted on a pretty nice wooden camera tripod tipped over into a large patch of prickly pear cactus. From the looks of it, the whole thing had been left there for a while and probably rained on. No way to know who it belonged to so I took it home, later tried the chrono and discovered it didn't work, so maybe that's why it was left out there. However I did refinish the tripod and still use it to this day.

My lesson learned here was to put my name and telephone number on all equipment I take out when shooting. :)
 
I've never found nor forgotten anything.

However, the rumor is that cased guns tend to slide off the tailgate at a particular turn near the firing range.
 
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