A Couple of Range Days

I have been hoping to do my mouse gun testing, but that hasn't happened yet. I have been to the range for other purposes that are in my opinion, just as good. This post has taken me a couple of days to write and publish. Busy-busy don'cha know!

Day 1 on Monday 11-20-23 

While I got to the range on this day, I did not get to shoot any of my own stuff. I only brought my range box with some tools, spotting scope with tripod, eyes & ears, and proper targets. Over the weekend, a fellow club member asked if I could help him zero a scope he recently mounted on a Savage Model 340 bolt action in .30-30 Winchester. The scope is a simple Simmons 4X and the turrets move in 1/4 MOA per click. He wasn't sure how to do it and wants to use it to take Whitetail Deer on his property at ranges of 100 yards or less, so I suggested going on my scheduled day off on Monday. I started by bore-sighting it in a rifle rest and then took a shot. First shot was real low but the windage was good. I cranked the elevation and took another shot. Closer but still low. Third shot after another guesstimate adjustment and I was on the target card. I use a Birchwood-Casey MOA grid target centered against a background of plain brown paper so its easier to see shots off target. I adjusted the scope one last time to get close to the center, but since this is not my rifle, I wanted the final adjustments to be done with him shooting the three shot groups. It became apparent that he needs some practice with his rifle in order to make the final adjustments. He was unable to shoot a decent 3-shot group. He said he will buy some more ammo and practice some more to get a good group for final adjustment he should be able to do himself.

While I didn't shoot my own stuff as planned today, I got to help a friend out so the day at the range was a good one, although cold. Doing any kind of gun stuff is a win in my book.

Day 2 on Friday 11-24-23

While at my brother's home for Thanksgiving, our favorite subject of guns and shooting naturally came up. My brother and his wife have several handguns (all S & W I believe), my Dad's Marlin Model 60 in .22 LR and a gorgeous Henry .22 Magnum her Dad had bought brand new prior to his passing that was still new in the box. They had not been shooting for a few years and used to go to the indoor range at Hoffman's Gun Center. The problem with indoor ranges is they don't allow holster draw or rapid fire. Plus Hoffman's makes you purchase their ammo that day to shoot on the range, so no hand loads. My SIL asked about my range and I explained the rules and regulations which are very few. It was decided that the two of them and our family friend would meet me at the range Friday morning at 10.

I got there first to open up the clubhouse since all guests are required to sign a waiver on their first visit before using the range. The waiver is good for the calendar year so after January 1st they'll have to fill out another for 2024. They showed up a few minutes later, filled out the forms, got the nickel tour of the clubhouse, and we headed out to the range. It's about a half mile drive out to the parking area by the firing line. We parked and unloaded our gear.

They liked the set up immediately. The firing line consists of a cement pad with 3 shooting benches and 3 walls and a roof with the side facing down range open. The back wall has rifle racks and a workbench. Target stands can be moved around as necessary. Swinging steel plates at 25 yards, backstops with rubber mats to staple targets to and a single 12" steel plate at 50, 75, 100, 150, and 200 yards. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Range rules are pretty simple.... Col. Cooper's Four Rules in effect at all times. All actions open and no one handles a firearm when shooters need to go past the firing line. I insist on using bright yellow chamber flags so there is no question. No glass targets and no shooting targets off the backstops. No full auto, no incendiary or A.P. rounds, and all calibers smaller than .50 BMG. Clean up your targets and brass when you're done. All shooting ceases by sundown. Our club has a bar so the NO ALCOHOL RULE is strictly enforced. None of them had a problem with any of the rules, so we got busy.

When they got the Henry I had bought a box of 50 CCI Maxi-Mag in anticipation of shooting it at some point. Well, I got my chance and it didn't disappoint. I repeatedly smacked the gong at 50 and 100 yards using the iron buckhorn sights. That action is so smooth and that brass receiver is so pretty. Afterwards, I had set up 3 target stands at 7 yards for defensive shooting practice. My brother broke a "Golden Rule" of mine by carrying his S & W Bodyguard .380 for a couple of years but never firing it.... EVER! Prior to him shooting it, I field stripped it, cleaned out the gobs of pocket lint, ran a dry patch down the bore, lubed it, and reassembled it. The gun ran great for him. Our friend Kevin shot his S & W 1911, his 9mm Shield, and his Governor using moon clips and .45 ACP. My SIL did not shoot. She had been away from it so long she was nervous and apprehensive about shooting, so she just watched everyone else. Next time I WILL MAKE SURE she shoots. She really needs to shoot, because she occasionally carries, and any hesitation could be fatal.

I had some .22 CB Shorts I purchased from a guy at the club to try. In all my years of shooting, I had never shot any. First, I loaded up my S &W K-22 Outdoorsman revolver with .22 LR and popped off six rounds. OK, now the shorties. Pretty quiet and dinged the plates at 25 yards with an audible sound since they were slower and weren't drowned out by the crack of the sound barrier. I then tried them out of my rebuilt J.C. Higgins Model #101.16 which is a rebranded Savage Model 87A from about 1947 since it has the Tenite plastic stock. These rifles are also called "gill guns" because the vented receiver resembles fish gills, and "Klick-Klack rifles" because of how they sound when fired. The bolt doesn't close to load the next round until the trigger is released. Here's a video from Youtube showing the operation. That rifle also came from my brother's FIL's estate, but was missing parts. My guess is someone took it apart to clean it, did not know how to put it back together, and lost the parts. I was able to scrounge all the parts to put it back in operation. Mine actually sports the smaller charging handle used on the Savage rifles instead of the large knob on the Higgins rifles. The tubular magazine holds 15 rounds of .22 LR, and about 30 of the .22 CB Shorts. I chose this rifle because even as a semi-auto, it has provisions for firing .22 L as well as shorties by locking the bolt closed. Plus it has a 22 inch barrel so I was curious if the shorts would make it all the way through. They did just fine, and are even quieter than if the rifle was suppressed. I tried shooting it without my hearing protection and the ding of the bullet hitting the 50 yard gong was louder than the shot. Chipmunks in my front yard are all going to die this spring from lead poisoning.

I had also brought my shot timer to play with and explained to the others what it was for. No one wanted to take me up on using it because they had not been shooting in so long. I demonstrated a timed Mozambique Drill without the holster at a B27 full size silhouette target. I held at the low ready looking down at the ground, and had the timer set for random start from 1 to 9 seconds and a par time of 10 seconds. Each time I was able to put two rounds center mass and one in the head in about 3 seconds at 7 yards. They thought it was neat but maybe next time. Not sure if they were impressed or not, but showing off was not my goal anyway. We spent about 3 hours total and everyone had a good time.