Range Etiquette

[lowriderjim]

It is hard to say that you can be to safe but reason is necessary. I seems logical that if you are not in touching distance of the weapon it is very safe.

This being said if you are military you are drilled in locking the action open and this is not a time consuming or difficuly task.

I usually shoot on a private range and sometimes you take different actions but I usually lock open in in this single lane situation.

Be safe bu tdon't be ridiculous.

 

[rambone]

I would have probably got chewed out too. The range I go to doesn't have this rule. I think they should spell out anything they consider "common sense" as well as anything they plan on hassling shooters about. Spell it out.

 

[Bill of Rights]

At Appleseed, we have a little mantra that people get sick of by the end of the day:

Mags out
Bolts back
Safeties on
Flags in!

which is a reminder of the whole safe-rifle clearing procedure:

Magazines out of the rifle
Bolts drawn back and locked
Mechanical safety engaged
Chamber flag fully inserted into the chamber
Rifle grounded
No one touching the rifle.

Every rifle is inspected by a RSO after every string of fire, some rifles get inspected twice every string. Until the line is cleared, no one moves forward of the firing line, and while people are forward, some shoot bosses won't even allow a shooter to pick up an empty magazine that's next to the rifle. It's nit-picky, it's tedious, but knock on wood, Appleseed has never had a GSW injury in four years of shoots, doubling (sometimes more than doubling) in number of shooters trained each year.

I can find no fault with these procedures. YMMV.

Blessings,
Bill

 

[Jack Ryan]

Long story somewhat short.... I was at the range and when I arrived there are 3 guys from Michigan there. They called a cease fire to do some work downrange, so I put my rifle on safe, stood up and walked away from the firing line. I was then informed that I should have opened my bolt, so I said sure and racked it open. I then said, they should put that in the range rules, to which the MI man replied "well, it's just common sense."

Now his reply got me thinking. Why exactly is that common sense? Is my Remington 700 prone to self firing? Is the .300 Win Mag cartridge prone to self ignition? Is this one of the dangerous "assault weapons" that go around killing people all by themselves?

I understand that with the bolt open there is no possible chance of accidental firing, however I was away from the rifle. Short of burying the rifle in the ground behind the clubhouse, it could not have been safer. I looked for a range etiquette page that mentioned this. I also know that it is required to prove a cleared weapon in competition.

My questions are Was I in the wrong? and Why?

I have heard several people say "I always do it" that's not what I'm looking for.

On any range with any other shooters I always want the action open when any one is down range or any weapon is behind the line.

This let's any one in several yards see a weapon is safe or not safe. If the action is open it's safe and not much else matters. If the action is closed, is it loaded? Cocked? The safety on? Is it pointed a safe direction? You can't see those from the 25 yard line or even a few lanes over but you can see a bolt open and laying on the table.

I don't trust you behind me, don't you dare trust me. On my range the action is open or the gun is not safe, I'll call it. Second time it'll P me off, if I find my self looking down a barrel of a gun with a closed action we are done shooting together for that day at least.

The trap ranges where I learned to shoot every one would hit the dirt if you turned around toward the club house with a closed action and it would be a good razzing in the least until some one else pulled a dumb stunt like that.

 

[mammynun]

As I'm former military, I always open the action.

Truthfully, I get a little edgey at public ranges. The "Rambo's" or whatever they're called these days that know so little about their weapon that they don't know HOW to lock the bolt to the rear do not add to my enjoyment. Certainly, there are other, more insidious, boneheads, but not knowing how to operate your firearm is a huge red flag. I'm NOT suggesting that the OP falls into this catagory. That said, I make sure the bolt or slide is "to the rear" at any range I visit, written rule or not.

 

[Marshall Dillon]

Not to be a wise guy, but how do you make a black powder muzzle loading rifle "safe"? I'm talking traditional, not in-line.

 

[Bill of Rights]

As I'm former military, I always open the action.

Truthfully, I get a little edgey at public ranges. The "Rambo's" or whatever they're called these days that know so little about their weapon that they don't know HOW to lock the bolt to the rear do not add to my enjoyment. Certainly, there are other, more insidious, boneheads, but not knowing how to operate your firearm is a huge red flag. I'm NOT suggesting that the OP falls into this catagory. That said, I make sure the bolt or slide is "to the rear" at any range I visit, written rule or not.

Thanks for your service!

This is one of the things I like about Appleseed... I get to show people who don't know their rifles things like how to lock a bolt back, along with the regular course of fire. They struggle, trying to figure it out without asking, someone sees it and you lie down next to them in prone and show them the little lever on the 10/22 that lets that bolt be locked back.

Question: Those of you who are militant about the action being open (not that that's a bad thing!), what do you do when one guy at the line is shooting an AK-pattern rifle? Those bolts don't lock back unless the rifle's been modified.

Thoughts?

Blessings,
Bill

 

[Lanser]

Being uncomfortable with a chambered round pointed in my direction seems perfectly sensible to me, even if it's unlikely that the round will actually go off.

 

[boman]

Not to be a wise guy, but how do you make a black powder muzzle loading rifle "safe"? I'm talking traditional, not in-line.

no cap on the nipple for precussion guns-hammer on half cock and no powder in the pan-pan open for flintlocks--

Steve

 

[KDUBCR250]

I alway lock my slide or leave my bolt open. But my AK just doent like to stay locked back

 

[DRob]

Lanser nailed it

I guess the bottom line in the OP is that there were guys there who didn't know each other. I'm a lot more comfortable with people I know and trust. If you're shooting near me and I don't know you, I will take every precaution to make you feel safe and I expect the same from you. I'd consider it not only common sense but also common courtesy. At Crosley, where they have large side berms, I'll not only open the bolt but I'll also place the gun on the bench angled toward the side berm so you'll never have to walk anywhere near in front of the muzzle. If I'm there by myself, I'll just open the bolt and go on down range. But, I do keep a watchful eye on those ARs. You can't trust them ya' know!

 

[slackerisme]

Thanks for the replies all. I just reviewed the range rules, it only mentions clearing the bolt if leaving the firearm unattended. Seeing as how clearing the bolt seems to be a universal rule of sorts, I am going to contact the range owner (there is no RO) and recommend this gets put into the rules.

I was more embarrassed than anything else, as I consider myself a very safety oriented fellow. The safety was on, I forgot to put that in.

 

[Jack Ryan]

Thanks for the replies all. I just reviewed the range rules, it only mentions clearing the bolt if leaving the firearm unattended. Seeing as how clearing the bolt seems to be a universal rule of sorts, I am going to contact the range owner (there is no RO) and recommend this gets put into the rules.

I was more embarrassed than anything else, as I consider myself a very safety oriented fellow. The safety was on, I forgot to put that in.

If it get's put in the rules and every one knows it, how is every one else to sort out the newbies and know who to watch out for?

 

[Indecision]

I don't think i can count the number of ND's we had at basic with blanks. Guys would go to the barrel and instead pulling back the charging handle would just pull the trigger then start the clearing process...

That's disconcerting. We had 1 ND in basic at a clearing barrel. We had a bad rest of the day and it didn't happen again.

 

[Donnelly]

I have shot at three different public ranges and none of them have ever had this in their rules. See, this is why I appreciate the INGO community; I learned new (to me) range ettiquette because even though I have been enjoying the shooting sports for 15 years, almost all of those times were when I was alone and did not need to worry about clearing the chamber.

 

[Jack Ryan]

Not to be a wise guy, but how do you make a black powder muzzle loading rifle "safe"? I'm talking traditional, not in-line.

Don't point it at me, set the hammer down on the nipple, and stick the ramrod down the barrel.

 

[gund]

It may be common sense, but replying your question with "it's just common sense" is just rude. Maybe it's just me.

 

[figley]

Bolts back
Mags out
Safety on
Flags In
Rifle grounded, nobody touching it

just ask ATM

ETA: I just scanned the whole thread, and Bill of Rights beat me to it. If anyone should, it would be him.

 

[whiskeytangofoxtrot]

Bolt open is good practice, as it lets others verify from a distance that it cannot be fired. Bolt closed and on safe is not good practice, I've seen a Remington 700 fire when the safety lever was pushed forward to fire.

Better safe than sorry.

 

[U.S. Patriot]

Atterbury is the same way. I have always done, as a habit!