Ranges that allow .44 Magnum Rifle shooting

Hey everybody,

I live near Fort Meade and want to find a range where I can shoot my Henry .44 Magnum rifle. I just learned the AGC range and the Meade range don’t allow that round. Does anybody know where I can shoot this round?

Many thanks,

Walt

The Machine Gun Nest

When I was a member at On Target, I shot both my pistol and rifle in .44 magnum with no problem.

You can shoot the .44 mag at the AGC. Who said otherwise?

Razorback_Walt said:

Hey everybody,

I live near Fort Meade and want to find a range where I can shoot my Henry .44 Magnum rifle. I just learned the AGC range and the Meade range don’t allow that round. Does anybody know where I can shoot this round?

Many thanks,

Walt

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I'm pretty sure you were misinformed. I was just at agc with my .44 Henry with no issues at all. Even the rso remarked about how nice a rifle it is.

brownspotz said:

I'm pretty sure you were misinformed. I was just at agc with my .44 Henry with no issues at all. Even the rso remarked about how nice a rifle it is.

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Yeah, I was surprised when the OP wrote that. Then again I really don't know their rules. Anyway, you can also shoot it at Hap Baker.

I probably misread then. It says on the AGC site that it doesn’t allow magnum rounds. Please be gentle, I’m a newbie to the shooting scene LOL.

Possible confusion with steel plates at AGC.
No restrictions at shooting paper.

You can shoot anything from 22 short to 50 BMG at the AGC, as said before the only ammo restriction is when shooting steel.
Oh, and no tracers!

Razorback_Walt said:

Hey everybody,

I live near Fort Meade and want to find a range where I can shoot my Henry .44 Magnum rifle. I just learned the AGC range and the Meade range don’t allow that round. Does anybody know where I can shoot this round?

Many thanks,

Walt

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You can't shoot 44 Magnum at steel at AGC. Paper with 44 Magnum is fine. Steel with 44 Special would also be fine.

If so the 50 cal desert eagle a guest of mine brought must have gotten me thrown out!

Already saw this was corrected. Just had to say something.

Uncle Duke said:

You can't shoot 44 Magnum at steel at AGC. Paper with 44 Magnum is fine. Steel with 44 Special would also be fine.

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I really don’t understand this rule at all. There is far more energy in a 308 round than a 44 mag. I think they need to clarify that they don’t want people shooting magnum rifle rounds.

In southern Maryland :

Fred’s outfitters &

Myrtle Grove MVA

GolfR said:

I really don’t understand this rule at all. There is far more energy in a 308 round than a 44 mag. I think they need to clarify that they don’t want people shooting magnum rifle rounds.

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I agree with you sir. I've made this very same argument, so far unfortunately without success. I would however hope, and would indeed anticipate, this rule being changed given further scrutiny one day.

Uncle Duke said:

I agree with you sir. I've made this very same argument, so far unfortunately without success. I would however hope, and would indeed anticipate, this rule being changed given further scrutiny one day.

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yeah that's pretty much retarded. guess it's easier for them to just say no magnums vs having to spell out which are, and are not, allowed.

Luckily " .50 Action Express ' doesn't include the word " Magnum " .

Below is a reply from the AGC President to an inquiry I made regarding steel shooting with "magnum" cartridges. His advice is to work with the club trustees on this.

I really do think that if we do indeed work collectively through the club trustees on this, we'll get a ruling that makes sense, and the one that I have to believe was originally intended.


[Originally Posted by Uncle Duke

Tom,

I do have a question, specific to the 100 yard Barnes range at least, and Thanks in advance for the opportunity!

There's obviously been a lot of discussion about steel target shooting at the AGC. My apologies if this question has been specifically addressed elsewhere, but if so I haven't seen mention of it.

It would appear that .327 Magnum, .357 Magnum, 41 Magnum, and 44 Magnum chambering are not allowed (even on Barnes) by virtue of Item 3 below. All are indeed centerfire rounds, and all indeed include the word "Magnum". None however even remotely approach 3000 fps muzzle velocity, when chambered in either handgun or rifle. But .30-06 Springfield is ok, by virtue of specific mention in Item 4.

I would THINK that the wording of the below rule may not correspond exactly with actual intent, at the time that steel target policy was written. But I'd like to know for sure, with all parties in agreement regarding what is and what isn't allowable, before I were to show up on Barnes with a newly purchased .44 Magnum lever action as an example.

GREAT to see steel target shooting at AGC! The above wording and "reading between the lines" would seem consistent with a "walk before we run" steel target thought process, and a desire to keep safety paramount throughout the learning curve. That's a mindset to be applauded as well. Yet the policy as written is......well.....the policy as written. Written policy ideally isn't subject to conjecture.


================================================

K. Ammunition restrictions.

1. No round, regardless of configuration or caliber, with a muzzle velocity over 3000 feet per second is permitted.
2. No round with a muzzle velocity less than 750 feet per second is permitted.
3. No centerfire magnum rounds may be shot at steel.
4. Maximum rifle caliber is 30-06.
5. Maximum pistol caliber is .357 SIG as rated by energy. .45 ACP and .45 Colt are permitted.


Sorry, unfortunately I do not have a great answer for this question. The guy who developed the initial steel target rules is building a house in WV and is hard to reach. The best I can tell is that we put together a set of rules to accommodate all the various opinions, for and against, of shooting steel targets. For now, these are the rules. You are right, "we are trying to walk before we run". Things change when we get enough Trustee support. So, start there and we could end up changing these rules in the future.

They should increase the rifle caliber up to 8MM (323).
Lord we are only looking at an increase of .015 in bore diameter.
This change would allow 7.62X54R (311).

SKIP said:

They should increase the rifle caliber up to 8MM (323).
Lord we are only looking at an increase of .015 in bore diameter.
This change would allow 7.62X54R (311).

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7.62x54R should be fine at 100yds. The maximum rifle caliber at rated by energy is 30-06, and less that 3150 fps. Its not a diameter restriction.

Looking at ballistics tables, even 8mm Mauser (7.92x57) would be ok. 30-06 on the high end has 3300 ft-lbs.

Uncle Duke said:

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Unfortunately, those rules are out of date. handgun-caliber rifles are not allowed on the pistol range any more.

I do think is odd that 308 on the Barnes range is fine (at 100 yds), but 44 Mag is not.

For the OP, most ranges that I know of WILL allow pistol caliber rifles. Don't get hung up on the ACG and the steel reqs. Just make sure your ammo is not steel core for indoor ranges. A simple call to where ever you plan to shoot will answer your question.