Taking an unfamiliar shotgun to the club

[Claybuster]

Is it too much to ask that a shooter with a new gun learns how it operates BEFORE coming to the club?

While shooting five stand yesterday another shooter on our squad was struggling with his new autoloader. His unfamiliarity with how to open and clear the gun and his tendency to fumble and drop his shells made the round a bit unnerving. It's hard to keep your focus when a guy leaves the shooting stand with a gun that may not be empty and repeatedly racks the action to make sure it's clear.

Every gun has its little quirks and it's a good idea to get some snap caps and practice loading and clearing the gun if it's unfamiliar to you. Something as simple as which pocket you put your shells in makes a difference. Loading an autoloader or pump goes more smoothly if the shells are in my right hand pocket but the opposite for an over/under.

Also, if you drop a shell leave the damn thing on the ground and pick it up later. Muzzle control becomes a problem when you are stooped over and I saw a couple of guys including the one mentioned above become sloppy with their muzzles while attempting to pluck shells from the snow.

Afterwards in the clubhouse, the new gun owner apologized for delaying the squad. He said he had a lot of experience with over/unders but not much with autoloaders. No harm done and the apology was accepted but a few minutes learning how to load and clear his new gun would have made life on the range a easier for everyone.

 

[m12man]

Major PIA at every club no matter what the discipline! Mall Ninjas and Cornfield Commandos seem to leave our safe handling gun courses very ill prepared for the real world of shooting!! Sorry folks but the truth is most of these idiots giving these courses have no more incentive than the almighty dollar!!

 

[jacky]

Claybuster is absolutley right and not that I am anti-autoloader but these shotguns tend to cause the most problems if the shooter cannot operate it effectively. It is a real concentration breaker when someone is fiddeling with their gun and yes safety becomes an issue.

Just as important any new shooter should work with their gun, pattern it and learn the point of impact. This will not only help their scores but also avoid any problems while shooting with others on the line.

Jacky

 

[bmcrae]

In a perfect world, absolutely, the polite thing to do would be to know your gun before joining a squad.

You really have to take into account the shooter in question though. If it is a seasoned veteran shooter who should know better, then shame on them. If however it is a new shooter (or new to somewhat organized shooting) you've really got to give them a break and help them out. The procedures/rules when you are shooting with a squad of people at a range are not that intuitive, and this shooter may not know better. You may need to go out of your way to explain the way things work. 98 times out of 100 this shooter will be very receptive to the help.

Some times even seasoned shooters need reminders.

'Mall Ninjas and Cornfield Commandos' just want to put lead down range like everyone else. I'm more than happy to have them shoot at my club, and when ever I can I'll take them out and show them the right way to do things.

It's pretty easy to offer a little help, and it usually goes a long way to making the shooter feel at home, and keep them coming back.

Brad.

 

[gbmarsh]

Hi Guys,
Been lurkin' here for a while and this may seem a strange topic to jump in on as a first post but here goes....
Ever heard the expression "pay it forward"? Wouldn't it be more constructive to offer a little advice to the guy who's struggling a bit rather than #####ing about his "newbieness" and how it effects your enjoyment of the hobby. I agree safety can be a big concern with beginers but as experienced club members it is our responsibility teach and guide the new guy.... or we can be elitist snobs and really stifle the growth of the hobby.

not trying to ruffle any feathers, just some observations.

 

[pfosted]

Thanks for saying that. While most shooters are helpful i want to relate a story for you.
My father a long time shooter, past president, past secretary, past treasurer CFSC instructor, black badge, military range officer(i could go on but will stop) a very experienced rifle and pistol shooter, decided to try out trap shooting.
He got my single shot 12 ga, and signed up for a weekend shoot/seminar.
Many of the guys from our local club were there and much experienced shooters were there. My father was new to trap shooting and during a 250 shot weekend had no end of trouble with the shotgun slapping his shoulder. with the extra shotguns and expertise there you would think that someone would have mentioned that the stock of my shotgun was to short for this 6'2" frame. No one said a word and many of them were laughing at his problem. After a weekend of shooting he was unable to lift his right arm and was brused from shoulder to ribs black and blue and green . when it would have taken one of the other shooters two seconds to help him and fix the problem they decided it was more fun to see and old guy need a trip to the hospital.
Since then he has never been trap shooting again. And i have held off even trying it. It only takes one incedent like this to sour someone from a sport.
every time you see a new shooter, or someone having trouble, take the damn time to help. it is the only way you will be able to maintain a club, a range, and a sport.

PFO

Hi Guys,
Been lurkin' here for a while and this may seem a strange topic to jump in on as a first post but here goes....
Ever heard the expression "pay it forward"? Wouldn't it be more constructive to offer a little advice to the guy who's struggling a bit rather than #####ing about his "newbieness" and how it effects your enjoyment of the hobby. I agree safety can be a big concern with beginers but as experienced club members it is our responsibility teach and guide the new guy.... or we can be elitist snobs and really stifle the growth of the hobby.

not trying to ruffle any feathers, just some observations.

 

[BJP]

I don't think Claybuster was complaining about anyone's "newness" to shooting. It makes sense for anyone to know how to handle their gun (new or old) safely. I've never seen or heard anyone ##### or complain about someone that has a legitimate problem, they usually offer to help. when you get a new gun, or one that you are not familiar with, it makes sense to learn it first. most advanced/experienced shooters will go out of their way to help a new shooter, but remember, they are probably practising themselves and they are probably used to the routine of experienced shooters and have developed a rythm that they follow. Anyone can have a problem (doesn't matter what type of gun), as long as they control the muzzle and stay safe thay certainly won't get grief from me. When folks show up to shoot an "assault skeet" round with a tricked out 870/590/1300 (and I'll admit to being one of those types on occasion, I'll try anything!!) and it's their first time it might be a good idea if they were not squaded with a group of guys (or ladies) that are preparing for a competition. Everybody deserves the opportunity to shoot how/with what they like, they also deserve to feel safe while doing so. just ny $0.02 worth.

 

[Claybuster]

Hi Guys,
Been lurkin' here for a while and this may seem a strange topic to jump in on as a first post but here goes....
Ever heard the expression "pay it forward"? Wouldn't it be more constructive to offer a little advice to the guy who's struggling a bit rather than #####ing about his "newbieness" and how it effects your enjoyment of the hobby. I agree safety can be a big concern with beginers but as experienced club members it is our responsibility teach and guide the new guy.... or we can be elitist snobs and really stifle the growth of the hobby.

not trying to ruffle any feathers, just some observations.

No feathers ruffled here. However this guy was not a rookie shooter just someone who didn't understand how his new gun worked. New shooter or not if you don't know how to make your gun safe spend a few minutes to find out how it works before you enter the box.

The gentleman in question approached a couple of us after the round and apologized for his problems. I told him there was no need to apologize and there wasn't. We had a good discussion about his new gun because I was shooting the exact same model.

I've helped a lot of new shooters. Everyone has a first time and it's up to the experienced guys to help the new people. They deserve a little slack on everything except safety. There are no exceptions for unsafe handling.

 

[gbmarsh]

I've helped a lot of new shooters. Everyone has a first time and it's up to the experienced guys to help the new people. They deserve a little slack on everything except safety. There are no exceptions for unsafe handling.

Agreed, safety first, always.

 

[vetteman]

Claybuster,I couldn't agree with you more.My 15 year old daughter was familiar with the safe handling and possible problems that she might encounter with her(MY) 1100 trapgun long before she ever stepped up to the trapline.That being said,I feel comfortable sending her to the line by herself knowing that she won't be a distraction or a hazard to anyone else.It's reached the point where she prefers to shoot with the AA guys because of the smooth flow of the squad.I also feel a lot more comfortable when she's on a squad with them as well.I've seen too many guys who claim to be experienced shotgunners end up dropping their shells and stopping to pick them up(and when doing so,inadvertently pointing the muzzle of their gun at someone) and then forgetting to set the safety on FIRE.I've seen too many guys load a second shot into their pumps or autoloaders and tell me that the shell is not in the chamber so that it's safe to move to the next post.(They're quickly told that the next move will be towards the gate on the way out).Probably the worst scenerio is when Dad,who tells us that he knows his stuff is trying to teach his 8 year old kid(and I'm ALL for teaching kids how to shoot) how to shoot his full size 30" barrelled 1100 which the poor kid can't even hold up.It jusy goes on and on.This past weekend,a friend of mine who is an seasoned but inactive trapshooter brought some friends and their kids to the club for the first time.Because the one little guy was so small,my friend asked if he could take him to an inactive field to try a few shots on his own and to learn how to operate the gun.That's the considerate and SAFE way to do it.We don't even charge guys for targets when thay want to do that.Unfortunately,the gun was just too big for the little guy and they walked back together after a few shots,smiled and said that they had decided to let him grow a bit more or find a 28 or something like that to shoot.
Learn to use the gun first,or at least ask questions.There's always someone around who'll be willing to help.
Dave

 

[tug]

Well this is a subject I do know a little bit about I shoot at a little club we welcome fngs this is the only way to keep the shooting sports alive this club has a desinated range officer for the day and he will go to the line with the shooters to make sure all is safe in a friendly but firm way being a new scaterguner i still remember how intimidated i was but no one made me feel embarased safty is number one what are you shooting for a morgage payment

 

[tug]

sportmanship

Well this is a subject I do know a little bit about I shoot at a little club we welcome fngs this is the only way to keep the shooting sports alive this club has a desinated range officer for the day and he will go to the line with the shooters to make sure all is safe in a friendly but firm way being a new scaterguner i still remember how intimidated i was but no one made me feel embarased safty is number one what are you shooting for a morgage payment