Range etiquitte?

[sicboy13]

I figure this is in the right spot, as I was at the range with my Ruger P95

I have a sincere question, I am new to handguns and new to the shooting range; I have visited my local (public) range twice and last time I went I met some real nice fella's who offered to let me shoot a couple of their guns. The one guy loaded up his .32 revolver with some .327 slugs and also loaded up his Keltec .380 and said "go for it"... so I emptied both of them, but that was my question, is that proper etiquette, i.e. safety, respect, etc? Should I have pulled the trigger just once or emptied them like I did?

I was polite & reciprocated by offering to let either one of them shoot my P95 and/or the my .22 revolver, but they politely declined. I am probably overthinking it, but I plan to visit this range often and was kinda wondering how one should respond to others offering to let you shoot their gun or asking to fire yours.

 

[Cheesewhiz]

Most guys are proud of their guns and letting you shoot them was their way of showing you something special, in their opinion. I always do the same as you did but my guns are always far superior :lol: :lol: :lol: , to those guys.

I should add that I am kidding here.

 

[96/44]

I would have done exactly what you did, I am always willing to let someone else try out my guns. In fact I started talking to a guy at the range a few years ago, and he was really eyeballing my flattop .44, so I let him fire a cylinderful. To my surprise when he finished shooting, he asked if I had ever fired a Thompson, I said I had, he said "a real thompson" and pulled out an original full auto, and handed it to me with a full stick mag. Wow! It seems most people who enjoy this hobby really like to share it with others, lets all keep it up.

 

[tookalisten]

Agreed; when I offer, I always expect them to empty the mag/cylinder.

 

[sicboy13]

thanks for the feedback, everyone!

 

[snakespit]

I would empty mag. If they offer.

+1 I would never ask anyone to shoot their guns.

 

[Snake45]

+1 I would never ask anyone to shoot their guns.

Me neither, but I've found that if you "admire" one, or sometimes even just casually comment on it, more often than not the owner will offer to let you shoot it.

Come to think of it, that's true for handguns but rare for rifles. I can only think of one time in the last few years someone offered to let me shoot his rifle, and that was a good friend from the club. But handgunners I've never seen before will often offer me their pistols.

 

[Jumping Frog]

I was at a range a couple of years ago and two young men (early 20's) were shooting a newly-purchased semiauto AK.

I commented, "nice looking gun, you'll be happy with that purchase".

The new owner offered to let me shoot it, so I did.

It was close to deer gun season, and I was there to check my sighting on my Remington 1100 w/ slug barrel and saddle-mounted red dot scope. I warned him ahead of time that a 12 gauge shooting slugs was going to have signiicantly more recoil that his AK, and to get a good firm grip on the shotgun and make sure he mounted the butt firmly into his shoulder.

He shot one shot and the shottie flew up into his face and gave him a bloody lip. Although I offered, he didn't want to try any more shots.

 

[fez]

Proper Range ettiquette requires you to buy them 300 rounds of each type af ammo you shot plus lunch and dinner at a fancy restauraunt.Just kidding.As long as you did not shoot them you're ok.

 

[gommee]

By all means, sharing is a great thing. I have no problem letting some-one try one of my toys, who knows they may run out and buy one. I find this gives others a chance to try something new that otherwise they may never had a chance to. This goes for my rifles as well as my pistols.

Now my Harley is totally different. My motto for it is: "If you can afford to buy it, you can afford to ride it!"

Cheers and good for you!

 

[revhigh]

By all means, sharing is a great thing.

At my range, my friends and I spend FAR more time shooting each other's guns than our own. We all feel that we can shoot OUR guns any old time, so we tend to bring different guns each time for everybody to try out.

This is really a great time, as we're constantly shooting literally hundreds of guns over the years. As new friends join in, they learn how we do this, and tend to alternate bringing in different guns for everybody to shoot. I can shoot my guns any time, but it's great being able to shoot different guns in an unlimited manner that I may be considering buying. Almost all of us reload, and we all trust each other, so it's no issue shooting our own reloads in other people's guns.

There's probably 10 of us in the group right now, and we all have at least 20 handguns each, many of us have a lot more. Of course some are doubles, but it's even fun shooting someones else's Gold Cup to compare to your own.

REV

 

[DA_TriggR4Ruger]

I usually expect the individual to empty the gun i let them shoot. I like to shoot a whole mag too from one that is handed to me.

 

[aaronrb204]

I have always looked at it this way: shoot what they load. If it is some insanely expensive caliber or difficult to load then I completely understand if they only give me one round. Because I don't own anything like that I always give a full mag or cylinder.

 

[sicboy13]

...

He shot one shot and the shottie flew up into his face and gave him a bloody lip. Although I offered, he didn't want to try any more shots.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Steve Myers]

If I fill it and offer it, empty it. Safer than handing it back loaded... lol. Seriously, what is a clip or cylinder. I have been offered a ton of different weapons to test shoot at the range. Why I own a bunch of milsurps and espc Swede's, and a Win 101! I even tell guys they can shoot all the ammo they can buy and put it through my gun if they want to shoot it a bunch.

Now, OTH - guess I may be a bit rude. I HAVE asked to fire one once or twice. The one I specifically recall was a 458 Win Mag. Rare as hen's teeth. Been shooting for 35+ yrs - and only ever seen one on the range. I asked. And I will NEVER shoot one from the bench EVER again! Hardest I have ever been hit! I have a 'hook' cheek bone - it lays out over a stock comb. I actually reached in and grabbed 3-4 teeth to see if they were still there and/or loose! The Germans who's rifle it was damned near pissed their pants!

Some neat ones I have shot include the 458, a 375 H&H, 500 S&W Mag, collector milsurp Lugers and Mausers, and some collector LC Smiths and other shotguns whose purchase price would nearly equal that of my truck.

Now, if anyone has a double rifle or a Barrett 50 cal out there they want to watch someone get smacked by, pm me and I will coordinate a range session!

 

[MTH2600]

I make a point of firing the whole mag/cylinder now after I contributed to a ND a few years ago.
A guy at an indoor range was teaching his wife to shoot and asked me if I'd like to take a couple shots with his 9mm. I politely took a couple shots, clicked the safety on and laid the gun on the bench.(Yes, I should have dropped the mag and ejected the round in the chamber, but I was pretty new to the sport myself). Before I could thank/compliment him and warn him that there was a round in the chamber, the young lady snatched the pistol up and bounced a round off the floor.
After everyone had checked themselves for holes she exclaimed those famous words "I didn't think it was loaded. I thought he (me) shot them all."
Thankfully the only injuries were to our underwear. :wink:

 

[sicboy13]

I make a point of firing the whole mag/cylinder now after I contributed to a ND a few years ago.
A guy at an indoor range was teaching his wife to shoot and asked me if I'd like to take a couple shots with his 9mm. I politely took a couple shots, clicked the safety on and laid the gun on the bench.(Yes, I should have dropped the mag and ejected the round in the chamber, but I was pretty new to the sport myself). Before I could thank/compliment him and warn him that there was a round in the chamber, the young lady snatched the pistol up and bounced a round off the floor.
After everyone had checked themselves for holes she exclaimed those famous words "I didn't think it was loaded. I thought he (me) shot them all."
Thankfully the only injuries were to our underwear. :wink:

Holy Schnikes! I'll say! I agree with you both, much safer to empty the mag/cylinder, I just wanted to make sure, with the scarcity of ammo these days....

 

[sicboy13]

so I was at the range again today and a guy next to me asked me if I wanted a 9 box and offered me his empty ammo box...(cardboard box from a 50pack of ammo).... i politely declined, but was curious why someone would offer or acept an empty box? am I missing something?

 

[tookalisten]

so I was at the range again today and a guy next to me asked me if I wanted a 9 box and offered me his empty ammo box...(cardboard box from a 50pack of ammo).... i politely declined, but was curious why someone would offer or acept an empty box? am I missing something?

He probably thought you were a reloader and would want the box for storage of "reloads".

 

[sicboy13]

so I was at the range again today and a guy next to me asked me if I wanted a 9 box and offered me his empty ammo box...(cardboard box from a 50pack of ammo).... i politely declined, but was curious why someone would offer or acept an empty box? am I missing something?

He probably thought you were a reloader and would want the box for storage of "reloads".

right on.... thanks!