Range Report: Silver Eagle in Ashburn, VA

[TurboHeloDriver]

While I go to On-Target in Severn occasionally because it's close-by, sometimes, I just want to go somewhere that's more accommodating, so I've been going to the Silver Eagle Group in Ashburn, VA. They opened in the late fall of 2008, so they're relatively new. The place is very clean, and almost country-club like. Here's a link to their website: Silver Eagle Group
The staff is very friendly and helpful, they stock most kinds of ammo, and have a good selection of firearms and accessories. They will rent guns by the hour, and there's always an RSO close-by to help out. The sound baffling in the range itself is great! I can actually hear myself think while shooting! They also offer training courses of various types and have a scenario area for training that is used by various law enforcement agencies in the area. They also (being in VA) allow open carry INSIDE THE FACILITY. While they frown on weapons-handling outside the range area, if the weapon is holstered, you're cool. Check it out! I wish we had one of these in MD!

 

[jmira]

I will have to check this place out.

edit: pistol caliber only? how long was the range and how busy was it..

 

[Boondock Saint]

$25/hour!

 

[Chris L]

I've been avoiding the place because the owners supported Obama.

 

[smores]

$25/hour!

There is a reason for this. Anyone who works in service industries knows that when prices seem a bit over ridiculous, it means "they don't want to do it", and if you're so inclined to pay the high fee - they'll be happy to service you because they're making so much money. In this case, the high range fee may be there to discourage your average n00b/thug/not-very-adept-around-firearms crowd from popping in just to see what shooting a gun is like.

Shooting clubs like this offer memberships because they value returning customers, and customers who join like a safe place to shoot where they won't be surrounded by idiots (MD Small Arms Range comes to mind). There's a public range here up near PGH that is horrendous when it comes to others violating safety rules.

I'd gladly pay a fee to shoot in a safer area. Just think of it as buying peace of mind.

 

[K-Romulus]

I've been avoiding the place because the owners supported Obama.

I think that was Blue Ridge Arsenal?

 

[Chris L]

I think that was Blue Ridge Arsenal?

They also did as well. Here is some information I found in a post on Arfcom:

Marquez, Scott HERNDON, VA20171 $400 05/12/2008 P HILLARY CLINTON FOR PRESIDENT - Democrat
Marquez, Scott HERNDON, VA 20171MVM, Inc./Security Services $2,300 01/28/2008 P GERRY CONNOLLY FOR CONGRESS - Democrat (1)

Marquez, Dario Jr. MVM Inc./President VIENNAVA22182 500 11/8/2007BECERRA FOR CONGRESS - DEMOCRAT (2)
Marquez, Dario OMVM Inc/CEOVIENNAVA22182 2,300 1/31/2008HILLARY CLINTON FOR PRESIDENT - DEMOCRAT
Marquez, Dario O Jr ––IR 1,000 6/30/2007OBAMA FOR AMERICA - DEMOCRAT
Marquez, Dario O. Jr.MVM, Inc./Security ServicesVIENNAVA221822, 300 1/28/2008GERRY CONNOLLY FOR CONGRESS - DEMOCRAT
Marquez, Dario O. MVM Inc./Executive OAKTONVA22124 300 5/3/2002FRIENDS OF CONNIE MORELLA FOR CONGRESS - REPUBLICAN (3)
Marquez, Dario –– OAKTONVA22124- 1,140 12/30/2003KATE HANLEY FOR CONGRESS - DEMOCRAT
Marquez, DarioMVM Inc/President and CEOOAKTONVA22124 2,000 6/10/2003KATE HANLEY FOR CONGRESS - DEMOCRAT (4)

(1) "The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, along with its Virginia Million Mom March Chapters, today endorsed Gerry Connolly for Congress in Virginia's 11th Congressional District." - (http://www.bradynetwork.org/site/MessageViewer/&printer_friendly=1?em_id=31361.2)

(2) Rep Becerra is the sponsor of a bill requiring "microstamping" for pistols, a technology proven to be flawed and easily defeated by criminals. The bill's co-sponsors were a who's who of gun grabbing totalitarians, including Rep Rahm Emanuel (he who has shown allegiance to a nation other than the United States during a time of war by serving as a civilian in their armed forces, Rep Jesse Jackson, Jr., Rep Carolyn McCarthy (sponsor of HR1022), Rep Charles Rangel, and Rep Chris Van Hollen

(3) "Morella opposes her party's positions on...gun control (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connie_Morella#Congressional_career)

(4) In a unanimous vote by its board, FAIRFAX COUNTY recently banned its police department’s practice of trading seized guns back to gun dealers, according to The Washington Post. Instead, the guns will be destroyed so they don’t end up in criminal hands.
The supervisors also voted to prohibit the police department from exchanging their used service weapons for new ones, a practice that has become controversial.
“I believe that Fairfax county residents have a right to believe that guns seized by police should be returned to their legal owners or destroyed,” Board Chairman Kate Hanley told the newspaper. - (http://www.naco.org/cnews/1999/99-9-27/newsfrom.htm)

See also:
More info

The donation to Obama may not be that large, but look at the sum of the donations to Democratic candidates vs. the sum of donations to Republicans.

 

[Infosec Guy]

OK, so if there were a non-Obama-supporting range of that caliber in Columbia, with the same $25 per day rate, would there be sufficient support for it? Because I can easily name 2 locations to put one...

 

[snavematt]

OK, so if there were a non-Obama-supporting range of that caliber in Columbia, with the same $25 per day rate, would there be sufficient support for it? Because I can easily name 2 locations to put one...

its $25 per hour!! not per day, thats just nuts

 

[boothdoc]

25.00 per hour= no visit

 

[Infosec Guy]

its $25 per hour!! not per day, thats just nuts

Well, when Chopper4Pilot, myself, and three others were there on Sunday for nearly 4 hours, the total bill was $112. I believe their posted rate is in error, because it was explained to me as $25 for the day. To that end, you pay before you shoot, not after, so they are not billing by the hour, that's for sure.

 

[K-Romulus]

OK, so if there were a non-Obama-supporting range of that caliber in Columbia, with the same $25 per day rate, would there be sufficient support for it? Because I can easily name 2 locations to put one...

I would be game, esp. if there were memberships like SEG offers (at least the low-end ones).

1) Allow bring-your-own ammo
2) Either TMJ/lead-free like Horst or offer a locker room like SEG for showers/changing before leaving
3) Allow draw-from-holster
4) Allow rifle-to-pistol transitions
5) 50yd availability if needed

ETA:
6) Allow SBR/suppressors
7) Allow bring your own targets.

 

[snavematt]

ok $25 per day makes more sense

 

[Rough_Rider]

OK, so if there were a non-Obama-supporting range of that caliber in Columbia, with the same $25 per day rate, would there be sufficient support for it? Because I can easily name 2 locations to put one...

That's funny!
Good luck finding anything in Columbia that is "non-Obama supporting"

Silver Eagle ( and clubs like it ) are not designed for "walk-in" shooters.
Their business model is to get corporate accounts and govt agencies.
Their walk-in rate is a ridiculous $25\hour to deter walk-ins.
If you show up at SEG and tell them that you represent the Northern Virginia office of defense contractor XYZ with 700 employees and you want a tour and to shoot for an hour then they will probably roll out the red carpet ( and rightfully so ).

If you want to shoot at a really nice facility in Northern Virginia go on out Rt. 50 to the NRA Headquarters. In the basement of their building they have a great range that is open to the public. Reasonable prices, great staff, and you can shoot almost anything.

 

[mayor_quimby]

Sounds interesting might have to check it out sometime if it is actually $25 a day. Plus its not too much further for me vs the NRA range. As a side note I know the NRA is by the hour but when its not busy I think I have shot a good 2 hours

 

[TurboHeloDriver]

I will have to check this place out.

edit: pistol caliber only? how long was the range and how busy was it..

They have 3 separate range areas. One is really long. I don't know the exact distance, but I'm guessing about 150-200' or so. The other two are 75' (25 yrds) each. You can fire any caliber up to .50 BMG there, be it pistol, rifle, etc. Shotguns are slugs only (to prevent damage to equipment). When I've gone, it's usually not terribly busy. Sometimes there are more people there than others, but the longest wait time for a lane I've had was 5-10 minutes. The ranges are supervised by well-qualified RSO's, and almost all the employess in the place open-carry (as can you as long as it's holstered).

 

[TurboHeloDriver]

There is a reason for this. Anyone who works in service industries knows that when prices seem a bit over ridiculous, it means "they don't want to do it", and if you're so inclined to pay the high fee - they'll be happy to service you because they're making so much money. In this case, the high range fee may be there to discourage your average n00b/thug/not-very-adept-around-firearms crowd from popping in just to see what shooting a gun is like.

Shooting clubs like this offer memberships because they value returning customers, and customers who join like a safe place to shoot where they won't be surrounded by idiots (MD Small Arms Range comes to mind). There's a public range here up near PGH that is horrendous when it comes to others violating safety rules.

I'd gladly pay a fee to shoot in a safer area. Just think of it as buying peace of mind.

Exactly. And that's why I like to go there. I'll gladly pay a few more bucks for a safer, cleaner, no BS place to shoot. Besides, like I said in my first post on this thread, the facility is worth it. The sound insulation is MUCH better than other places I've been. The staff is FAR more knowledgeable and friendly too than most other ranges. Go there once, try it out. It's far nicer than anything I've seen in MD so far.

 

[erwos]

That's funny!
Silver Eagle ( and clubs like it ) are not designed for "walk-in" shooters.
Their business model is to get corporate accounts and govt agencies.
Their walk-in rate is a ridiculous $25\hour to deter walk-ins.

Yes and no. They clearly have a preference for contract work, but they are unfailingly polite and helpful to EVERYONE. You feel welcome there even if you're not super-rich or well-connected, believe me.

I shoot there on a regular basis, like 1-2 times a week, and have done so for almost six months. Let me give some impressions.

The $25 an hour thing is just so they can toss you off the range if it gets too crowded. They're perfectly content to let you shoot all damn day for $25 if circumstances permit (and they almost always do). If you bring a buddy and share a lane, they pay $15 ($40 for the two of you).

The annual membership is $100 up front plus $35 a month. It's an _awesome_ deal, and you can add a family member on for another $10 a month.

The place is immaculately clean, the ranges are well-ventilated, and you can shoot anything up to and including a .50BMG rifle on _any_ of the three ranges (2x 25yd, 1x 50yd). They also don't whine if you're using some of the soft steel core milsurp that Mosins tend to like - no stupid magnet tests.

The RSOs are cool and do not hassle the hell out of you (which I've heard happens on the NRA range) over trivial things. They _do_ keep an eye on folks, and will call you out politely if you violate range safety. They are almost astonishingly friendly, and, yes, will gladly fire a couple rounds from your Mosin for fun. There are also what appear to be bulletproof glass dividers between the lanes, so you might avoid getting shot if someone _does_ do something really stupid.

Did I mention that it's exceedingly rare for the place to get crowded, even during peak hours? Most of the contract training gets shunted to one range or the scenario area, so you've usually got a couple 10-lane ranges open.

Someone there told me that they're already quite profitable, so they should be around for a while, too. Yay!

If the support for Obama by the owners (and it wasn't THAT much) bothers you, let it be known that they have a ton of NRA-ILA literature lying around. They're on our side.

 

[TurboHeloDriver]

Yes and no. They clearly have a preference for contract work, but they are unfailingly polite and helpful to EVERYONE. You feel welcome there even if you're not super-rich or well-connected, believe me.

I shoot there on a regular basis, like 1-2 times a week, and have done so for almost six months. Let me give some impressions.

The $25 an hour thing is just so they can toss you off the range if it gets too crowded. They're perfectly content to let you shoot all damn day for $25 if circumstances permit (and they almost always do). If you bring a buddy and share a lane, they pay $15 ($40 for the two of you).

The annual membership is $100 up front plus $35 a month. It's an _awesome_ deal, and you can add a family member on for another $10 a month.

The place is immaculately clean, the ranges are well-ventilated, and you can shoot anything up to and including a .50BMG rifle on _any_ of the three ranges (2x 25yd, 1x 50yd). They also don't whine if you're using some of the soft steel core milsurp that Mosins tend to like - no stupid magnet tests.

The RSOs are cool and do not hassle the hell out of you (which I've heard happens on the NRA range) over trivial things. They _do_ keep an eye on folks, and will call you out politely if you violate range safety. They are almost astonishingly friendly, and, yes, will gladly fire a couple rounds from your Mosin for fun. There are also what appear to be bulletproof glass dividers between the lanes, so you might avoid getting shot if someone _does_ do something really stupid.

Did I mention that it's exceedingly rare for the place to get crowded, even during peak hours? Most of the contract training gets shunted to one range or the scenario area, so you've usually got a couple 10-lane ranges open.

Someone there told me that they're already quite profitable, so they should be around for a while, too. Yay!

If the support for Obama by the owners (and it wasn't THAT much) bothers you, let it be known that they have a ton of NRA-ILA literature lying around. They're on our side.

Thanks for getting my back erwos. Anytime you want some company, Infosec Guy and myself will gladly tag along. PM me for contact info. if you feel so inclined.

 

[mayor_quimby]

erwos/chopper

I would be up for going once to check the place out in a few weeks.