Any public rifle ranges allow standing fire?

[chooks9]

I think some of the tomfoolery that's happened at Elk Neck warranted the safety crack-down. Lots of idiots doing stupid crap (shooting the restrooms, hanging targets on the baffles, putting a target 10" off the ground at 20 yards and shooting an AR into it). It doesn't help that a new family moved into the area and started complaining about the range. However, it seems some of the RSOs are talking down to everyone, to the point that they criticize your guns ("don't you need more lube for that") as well as new or females shooters (actually had an RSO try to tell my friend what to do- she's an LEO).

If I'm solo, I'll go. If it's the weekend or I want to take a new shooter out, forget it. Too much BS.

 

[rseymorejr]

Hap Baker allows position shooting so long as the muzzle is forward of the firing line.
Standing, sitting, prone, kneeling etc.
Never tried urban prone there though.

What is urban prone?

 

[Varnski]

Looks like Hap Baker is going to be my best bet. My one friend has been there before and said he liked it, but he had told me that it had been bench shooting only. Maybe he just meant that the only people he saw that day were shooting from the bench. I'll give them a call and double check.

As far as travel goes, it's more to do with time and gas then anything else. So while the ranges might be better, the majority of people who are going have either never been shooting before or only shoot once in a blue moon and just can't justify driving all the way.

 

[mopar92]

What is urban prone?

It's the "tactical" term for lying on your side and firing your rifle over a small curb like an actual curb or small (height) obstruction.

 

[Varnski]

So I'm suddenly learning that at some point in the past, someone had a catastrophic failure with a Mosin-Nagant at Hap Baker and now they don't allow the rifles? Is this true?

 

[ShafTed]

I haven't had my Mosin there since the "incident" but the last time I was there (with other rifles) I did see a sign that now Mosin's can only be fired single shot. (Apparently there was a newby who didn't understand rim lock and ended up with a jam and got an out-of-battery discharge while trying to clear.) I didn't inquire further at the time because I didn't have a Mosin there.

 

[mopar92]

So I'm suddenly learning that at some point in the past, someone had a catastrophic failure with a Mosin-Nagant at Hap Baker and now they don't allow the rifles? Is this true?

http://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=180151&highlight=hap+baker

 

[Varnski]

It says I do not have permission to view that thread.

 

[mopar92]

It says I do not have permission to view that thread.

Oh, long story short, dude blew off a chunk of his hand using a Mosin and encountered rimlock. I was there wasn't pretty.

 

[lazarus]

So I detest bench shooting, I just want to say that up front. I find it uncomfortable and unnatural. So I was very disappointed when I found that they were really hammering down on safety at Elk Neck and not allowing anything other than bench fire. Now I can understand WHY they are doing this, but it's still annoying. A buddy of mine went to Hap Baker and said they did the same. So I'm wondering if there are ANY public ranges where I can fire a rifle standing. I won't be living in Maryland for much longer so I can't justify paying for a membership anywhere, so I'm looking for someplace I can just walk into, slap down a few bucks, and shoot.

Happ allows standing rifle fire. There might be an RSO who doesn't, but I've seen guys prone and also standing and the one time I asked they told me so long as my barrel was over the red safety line I was fine. I shot sitting at the 25yd with my 22lr for awhile. That was last month

 

[lazarus]

http://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=180151&highlight=hap+baker

Thanks! I've been wondering about the sign for awhile. I figured they meant SKS (and slam fire) and when I asked, they said no, they meant Mosins but the guy didn't elaborate.


One consideration with Hap, get their at LEAST 30 minutes before they open or you'll wait 60-120 minutes for a rifle bench. At least on the weekends.

 

[Indiana Jones]

Yea no, I'm not paying for any sort of club period. I'm moving to Texas in a few weeks and would like to have a little fun with some friends before I do.

Just wait until you move to Texas, or find someone with private property. Anywhere you shoot in PRoMD will have arbitrary rules to help nanny you into not killing any puppies while shooting.

 

[Varnski]

Thanks! I've been wondering about the sign for awhile. I figured they meant SKS (and slam fire) and when I asked, they said no, they meant Mosins but the guy didn't elaborate.


One consideration with Hap, get their at LEAST 30 minutes before they open or you'll wait 60-120 minutes for a rifle bench. At least on the weekends.

Ugh, I did not want to hear that. I had been planning make a day of the trip. I have a LOT of ammo to shoot, and if they are only going to let me load one round at a time, it's going to take me a while. If there are going to be THAT many people, and I'm planning on bringing a group of 4-6, it's going to be an absolute nightmare.

 

[rico903]

Oh, long story short, dude blew off a chunk of his hand using a Mosin and encountered rimlock. I was there wasn't pretty.

I have to confess that I don't know what rim lock is.

 

[Varnski]

I have to confess that I don't know what rim lock is.

7.62x54R is rimmed, that's that the R is for. Rimlock is when the rim of one case get stuck behind the rim of the case below it, preventing it from being stripped out of the magazine when you try to cycle to bolt. The Mosin has a cartridge interrupter that prevents this, but the spring it operates on are notoriously inconsistent (wartime QC wasn't that great). This leads to a lot of people having to load their guns in a very specific way in order to prevent Rimlock from happening.

 

[JamesCanby]

(snip)
I would challenge anyone who only shoots from the bench to take off the training wheels and stand on your hind legs like a man and be humbled.

(snip)

Don't you think that may have been a bit harsh? There are regular members at AGC who shoot from the bench because they are trying to determine the very best reload combination for a given rifle, and they use the bench-only area and "lead sleds" or other supports to remove all of the variables that might affect accuracy. I don't think any of them would consider the benches to be "training wheels."

 

[PapiBarcelona]

Depends on what your schtick is. Some people like shooting at a bullseye. Not saying it's better or worse, I'm a private property/farm shooter myself.

 

[clandestine]

...damn...I haven't been to a range where you couldn't stand- but I'm not in MD either...Im kinda surprised they don't ban rifles and make your opportunity by going to the range where it's chain locked/ cable locked to a post to prevent you from moving it anywhere...

Its obvious that D.C. has much more freedom.

 

[alucard0822]

Drive to Delmarva, or join a private range, most every public range in MD has goofy rules "ever since some guy did X". It's not completely without merit, shoot around the general public enough, and they will scare the hell out of you. Used to be a Hap Baker member for a year or two, I got fragged from a guy firing a GLOCK into the floor, witnessed a couple runaway mag dumps, a reloader kaboomed a revolver next to me, and all the dirt and soot in the rifle range caught fire from a muzzle loader and burned it to the ground, all while getting yelled at for shooting faster than one every 3-10 seconds depending on who was working. Now, my private club costs $50 a year, and I can shoot what I want how I want, and the vast majority of other shooters are safe and courteous without being Range Nazis, can barely stomach going back to public ranges now.

 

[lazarus]

Ugh, I did not want to hear that. I had been planning make a day of the trip. I have a LOT of ammo to shoot, and if they are only going to let me load one round at a time, it's going to take me a while. If there are going to be THAT many people, and I'm planning on bringing a group of 4-6, it's going to be an absolute nightmare.

That is only for a Mosin. hap and a few of the other public ranges require you to wait 2 seconds between shots, so loading 1 round at a time isn't a big handy cap from a bolt gun. I can do about a round every 2 seconds with aimed fire from the magazine of most bolt guns or about every 3 or maybe 4 seconds if hand loading each round. Now I don't mind putting some heat in to my 22lr, but I personally don't like heating my barrels up too much on most of my guns. So from anything, I might do one or two magazine "dumps" where I fire at that 1 every 2 second clip till the magazine is exhausted, but I'll usually only do that once or maybe twice in a range visit. I also like to take my time about things. At any rate "fast firing" for me over a typical range session is probably 3 rounds a minute on average once you include the cease fire time. If I have my 22lr it might average more like 5 a minute.

I haven't seen anyone "kicked out" of hap for spending too much time at a bench, but few people seem to stay more than about 3 hours at the outside.