went to the range today---

[piller]

Went to the range today. I found out that I really need to spend more time practicing. 50 yards and with my Guide Gun, second time at the range with it, I was having a hard time keeping the rounds within a 6 inch circle. Toward the last of the 24 total rounds fired in it, it was starting to look better. Anyone else having trouble finding enough time to go to the range?

[Old Ironsights]

I schedule one sunday a month for Steel/Sillouhette from March to October.

[RKrodle]

Between work and the weather I don't get as much shooting done as I need for sure. Right now would be perfect accept for the 40 mph cross wind.

[piller]

Ricky, I guess I could blame the wind, but where I was the berms stopped the wind. I had only fired 8 rounds out of the rifle previously, and stopped at sixteen today. The last four were the best it had done. It wasn't the wind, it was me. I put it away and played with a Henry .22 leveraction and pretty well perforated the white circle at the center. I still think I need a lot more time at the range.

[Griff]

Yep... I could certainly stand a LOT more practice. I shot at the Billy Dixon Levergunners gathering in July, then last Wednesday and today. Plan on going to a CAS match tomorrow... Dern this "JOB" thingie anyway!

[AJMD429]

I think I work about 30 hours a week MORE than I'd otherwise have to, in order to have my "own" range - we live in the sticks, and have enough acres and hills to shoot 100 yards at targets or gongs.

If I had those 'extra' thirty hours a week, would I go to a public range and get more shooting time than I get now? Sure, I have the luxury of my "own" range, but the chances of getting home in daylight on a halfway decent weather day, without the "Honey-Do" list dragging me into some repair project, results in maybe SERIOUS range time about every 3 months. Four times a year. Cool, but not enough.

Still, we ALL could use more time to shoot, practice, relax, and if possible, do so with other like-minded folks.

I don't think it is as much an issue of maintaining some level of 'proficiency' as it is just the relaxation and cameraderie.

Perhaps those of us fortunate to have our own place to shoot could do three things:

1. Invite more people to come over and shoot (gunnies and non-gunnies alike).

2. Join a local public/club range, even just to help swell their membership, but also to go THERE sometimes to shoot and meet and 'network' with other shooters.

3. Help lobby for pro-gun and pro-shooting range laws, even though we have our own facilities - there aren't enough of us to sustain the pro-gun movement, so we NEED public and club ranges, even if "we" never use them ourselves.

[J Miller]

I made it to the range maybe a half dozen times last year. Only once to the outdoor rifle range and that was in April when the wind was so bad we just couldn't shoot worth a darn.

I've all but given up shooting here in IL. That outdoor range is 45 + miles away, almost a 100 miles round trip. Expensive on gas, expensive on range fee, and I just don't want to shoot alone.

What can I say?

If I had my own acreage like some of you guys the honey do's could just go hang.


Joe

[Borregos]

I guess I am one of the lucky ones, I shoot silhouette (handgun & lever gun at 25 & 50 yards) at an indoor range every Thursday evening and my daughter comes with me as often as she can. And we run silhouette matches at an outdoor range, we have 10 matches thro’ the winter (basically every other week) and 8 matches thro’ the rest of the year (basically one a month with 2 in June and September) at all these silhouette matches both handguns and leverguns are allowed.
If I don't shoot I get the shakes

[Hillbilly]

Yesterday ...

I was all set to bug out about 1430. Planned on working a couple of horses when I got home, maybe airing out a .22 for a little bit.

Phone rings about 1330 " I am in XXXx ... can you get XXXX from school on your way home? I dont want to double back yada yada"

Ok... he gets out at 1515 right.

So much for getting a haircut ON the way home.... Pick up XXX... go by the barber.."got to stop by Wally world" be home soon..."

I beat her home by at least an hour... and didnt want to start anything because as soon as I do she always wanders home and needs help with the groceries or some other issue... so I have learned not to saddle a horse or anything unless I know I have at least 3 hours of lead time or more.

I got to ride more when I kept my horses boarded. I got to shoot more when I didnt have a place to shoot.

Like most men...my time is used at the whim of others....

[airedaleman]

Yesterday ...

I was all set to bug out about 1430. Planned on working a couple of horses when I got home, maybe airing out a .22 for a little bit.

Phone rings about 1330 " I am in XXXx ... can you get XXXX from school on your way home? I dont want to double back yada yada"

Ok... he gets out at 1515 right.

So much for getting a haircut ON the way home.... Pick up XXX... go by the barber.."got to stop by Wally world" be home soon..."

I beat her home by at least an hour... and didnt want to start anything because as soon as I do she always wanders home and needs help with the groceries or some other issue... so I have learned not to saddle a horse or anything unless I know I have at least 3 hours of lead time or more.

I got to ride more when I kept my horses boarded. I got to shoot more when I didnt have a place to shoot.

Like most men...my time is used at the whim of others....

Hillbilly:
You picked up XXX okay, but what happened to XXXX? Did you get the wrong kid?

[Hillbilly]

stuff. Wrong kid

[86er]

I recommend that you get snap caps and spend a lot of time mounting, aiming, and concentrating on trigger squeeze and breathing while dry firing. About 100 trigger pulls a week. 3000 repetitions is the magic # for muscle memory on average. It will make a huge difference when you finally get to the range and pull the trigger on live rounds.

[J Miller]

I dislike dry firing immensely. I don't have deep pockets to get them fixed when they break. And I've had them break due to dry firing, that's why I quit doing it.

Do snap caps REALLY work good enough to prevent damage from dry firing?

Joe

[airedaleman]

stuff. Wrong kid

Been there, Done that. Six kids were hard to keep track of at times...

[JReed]

I dislike dry firing immensely. I don't have deep pockets to get them fixed when they break. And I've had them break due to dry firing, that's why I quit doing it.

Do snap caps REALLY work good enough to prevent damage from dry firing?

Joe

Yes they do. I make mine my self using empty brass I shave down pencil erasers until they fit in the primer pocket. I have been doing it for years with out any problems.

[O.S.O.K.]

I made it to the range maybe a half dozen times last year. Only once to the outdoor rifle range and that was in April when the wind was so bad we just couldn't shoot worth a darn.

I've all but given up shooting here in IL. That outdoor range is 45 + miles away, almost a 100 miles round trip. Expensive on gas, expensive on range fee, and I just don't want to shoot alone.

What can I say?

If I had my own acreage like some of you guys the honey do's could just go hang.


Joe

I don't know what your situation is, but maybe you should think about move the heck out of Illinois - I know that the cost of living is rediculous there. You lived in AZ before right? That's where I'd move back then if you liked it. Why torture yourself?

[86er]

In preparation for a trip I dry fire the rifle or rifles I am going to use probably 1000 times each with snap caps. Over the course of a year I probably dry fire 5000 times. Never had a problem.

[J Miller]

I made it to the range maybe a half dozen times last year. Only once to the outdoor rifle range and that was in April when the wind was so bad we just couldn't shoot worth a darn.

I've all but given up shooting here in IL. That outdoor range is 45 + miles away, almost a 100 miles round trip. Expensive on gas, expensive on range fee, and I just don't want to shoot alone.

What can I say?

If I had my own acreage like some of you guys the honey do's could just go hang.


Joe

I don't know what your situation is, but maybe you should think about move the heck out of Illinois - I know that the cost of living is rediculous there. You lived in AZ before right? That's where I'd move back then if you liked it. Why torture yourself?

O.S.O.K.,

I've said this several times right here on this show .... 'er forum: "I have been trying to move from here for several years." I need three things to move -
A: A place to stay while we get jobs
B: A job ahead of time would help,
C: Money to move there and live on for a while as we get set up.

I am not staying here because I want to. I despise this place with all my heart. We had help, both financially and physically when we moved here. We also had a place to stay while we found a permanent place. Those that helped us died in 2000. We are on our own, and considering my physically limits now, I'm not much use to anybody.
..................................................................

86er

I guess I'm not into this like you are. I used to do all my practicing out in the desert with live ammo. I was out there almost every week, sometimes two or three times a week. Never gave it a second thought. Ah, the old saying: You never appreciate what you had till you loose it.

Anyway, I'll see about ordering in some snap caps. Can you use them as dummy rounds for practice cycling of the actions too? Which ones would you suggest?

Joe

[J Miller]

I dislike dry firing immensely. I don't have deep pockets to get them fixed when they break. And I've had them break due to dry firing, that's why I quit doing it.

Do snap caps REALLY work good enough to prevent damage from dry firing?

Joe

Yes they do. I make mine my self using empty brass I shave down pencil erasers until they fit in the primer pocket. I have been doing it for years with out any problems.

How long does the eraser last?

Joe

[86er]

For the money the A-Zoom brand is a bargain. 2 snap caps in a package for around $10. I cycle the action and go through all the motions along with dry firing - they work fine. These are anodized and have a plastic primer cup. I find that they are good for 5000 -10000 dry fires before they need replacing. There is a wide variance from cap to cap in when they need replacing. You'll know. You can also just replace the plastic primer with something else and keep on using them. I just replaced one with a piece of nylon sheeting and it is back to working fine.

[mescalero1]

Joe,
All those places you used to go to in the desert?
There are houses there now, don't move back to the valley, you have to drive for 60 miles to get " out "
Try one of the smaller towns, not Prescott Valley that place is full of California people, you would not recognize it.

[J Miller]

86er,
Thanks, I'll see if I can't find some.

..............................................................................

Joe,
All those places you used to go to in the desert?
There are houses there now, don't move back to the valley, you have to drive for 60 miles to get " out "
Try one of the smaller towns, not Prescott Valley that place is full of California people, you would not recognize it.

Yes they were in the desert. And I'm aware of what's happened in the Valley of the smog. I have a friend in Glendale and he pretty much keeps me up to date on what's going on there.
My wife and I have decided that we do want to go back west, maybe AZ, but not the Phoenix Valley area.
We are the most familiar with AZ, so that is what I talk about most. But I've got people in WY, and forum friends in in several states out west. If we could just get ahead enough to put back some cash to move on ...... "if" the most used word in the English language.

Joe

[JReed]

I dislike dry firing immensely. I don't have deep pockets to get them fixed when they break. And I've had them break due to dry firing, that's why I quit doing it.

Do snap caps REALLY work good enough to prevent damage from dry firing?

Joe

Yes they do. I make mine my self using empty brass I shave down pencil erasers until they fit in the primer pocket. I have been doing it for years with out any problems.

How long does the eraser last?

Joe

Depends on the density of the eraser I have made up some for 45colt that I have snaped at least 1,000 times and they are doing fine.

[Hillbilly]

I made a few snap caps out of empties and used silicon caulking to plug the primer hole... never kept count but I'd guess over a 1000 reps on the .38 special set alone....

Jeremy's pencil erasers...good idea... but I was too lazy to fit the erasers to the hole.

Joe... keep thinking about moving. Been in your spot before.. but if you can have a vision and turn it into a goal sometimes the darndest things work out.