Firearm Etiquette

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DudeMan

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Just want to clear up an altercation I had this past summer while out shooting with some friends.

I was visiting my friends acreage and we decided to go do some shooting nearby one afternoon. Everything was fine at first, some were shooting skeet, some targets, some just plinking at random objects.

I noticed nobody was using ear protection, which I mentioned, but everyone seemed to laugh it off. I even offered ear plugs, my truck is always full of disposables in case someone needs them, I usually use my Impact Sports ear muffs.

So at one point I stepped up beside my friend and fired a round from my SKS. He immediately freaked out, claiming I 'muzzle blasted' him or something. There was a girl next to him that was also very upset.

Kind of bewildered, I reminded him that he (and the girl) were not wearing ear protection and I had offered some earlier. He claimed that I was at fault because I did not stand ahead of them while firing.

I was parallel with them, like any shooting range would position you. This upset me and not wanting to hurt anymore unprotected ears I packed up my guns and stopped firing.

This has always bugged me since then, I consider myself a new shooter (got my PAL late, last year) and I find myself wondering if there is any merit to this 'muzzle blasting' or whatever he referred to it as since he has been a firearms owner much longer than I have.

So CGN, what is your take on this?
 
This thread could go either way! Epic first post.
Ok, you were being a responsible shooter to start noticing that your friends were not wearing ears and you offering them some.
If your friends were shooting .22, target loads from a shotgun etc, the noise to the shooter is not bad on open ground. That may be why they declined your ear protection. Don't get me wrong, in the long run, their hearing will gradually erode so everyone should use ears.
The problem is, and as a new shooter, you may not realise, is that the noise of gunfire is a lot louder to people standing NEXT to the shooter than to the shooter him/herself.
Your SKS shoots a particularly loud round. Standing next to someone without ear protection and shooting one off can be painfully deafening especially if they are not expecting it. You probably should have warned your friends and make sure they were behind you rather than beside or, heaven forbid, ahead of you!! Best is to stand away from anyone without hearing protection or better yet, don't shoot around people who won't help themselves.
 
If you went to work and damaged your hearing from not wearing proper PPE, you'd be at fault. Why do people not use the same common sense when shooting? We don't have the courtesy of silencers in Canada, and your hearing is worth more than the $1 for a set of ear plugs.
 
Thats why you have a firing line, even if its just a line you pissed on the ground that way problem solved if your not shooting gtf of the line.
 
You're in the clear. You have dumb friends.
They missed the "guns can be loud." memo.
Hand them a beer (In a 'sippy' cup of course) and tell them to stand beside their jacked-up trucks while you fire.
 
Was there an established firing line?
Were the two of them on the firing line?
Were they also shooting at the time, or other shooting going on?

If you've got an established firing line, and they were on it, and the range was hot, it's their problem. You offered ears and they declined.

If you don't run your bush range the same as an official range, you're asking for problems. If you answered no to any of the above Qs, maybe you share blame, if only by association.

I don't understand the mentality behind not wearing ears. My daughters boyfriend tried playing the tough guy, and declined ears. I thought fair enough, you're a grown man. Come stand beside me, pay close attention to that muzzle brake.... Yes, the ears are right over there, moron.
 
I think all parties are to blame. Yes, you should ALWAYS wear hearing protection. Read some of my other posts and you'll see I'm a HUGE advocate of this. You're friends are (there's no other word) stupid for not wearing proper protection. That being said, you have culpable responsibility as you know your SKS is very loud and are knowingly putting your friends hearing at risk. You should have warned your friends about how loud it was going to be. At many ranges, it is common courtesy to let other shooters know if you are going to fire something loud like a 500 or something.

My 2 cents.
 
Firs time I heard an SKS was at Silver ale, outdoors but covered. Man that sucker was loud! I was in the next bay, figured this should not be too bad, I had my .308. Friggin almost jumped out of my shoes when he started firing. Had muffs on too.

Shooting guns in a range situation without eyes and ears is not wise. Your friends are responsible for their own wellbeing. That said, I would not walk up next to an unprotected person and shoot a loud gun. As a minimum, warn them it will be loud and give them a chance to plug up or move away.
 
relic38 said:
Firs time I heard an SKS was at Silver ale, outdoors but covered. Man that sucker was loud! I was in the next bay, figured this should not be too bad, I had my .308. Friggin almost jumped out of my shoes when he started firing. Had muffs on too.

Shooting guns in a range situation without eyes and ears is not wise. Your friends are responsible for their own wellbeing. That said, I would not walk up next to an unprotected person and shoot a loud gun. As a minimum, warn them it will be loud and give them a chance to plug up or move away.
Click to expand...

Coupla answers like this get my vote. "Something" is never "one person's" fault.

Golden rule, rules.
 
Find yourself some new friends/shooting place/new toys. i would have packed up and leave once they refused to wear any safety equipment it's your licence and personal safety. Knowing the fact that your buddies refused to wear earpro is clue 1 to GTFO, asking you to step further to shoot your SKS (ignoring a firing line) with them in behind firing a firearm is clue 2 to GTFO, Trying to blame you for their stupidity is clue 3 to GTFO so yeah get some new friends to shoot with because sooner or later these bone heads are going to put you in the ####s.

Even at an approved range when ever I fire a larger caliber than my neighbors I always warn them especially if I know my muzzle blast is huge or firing anything with a heavy concussion blast.
 
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