New Range!

After the dismal trip to the state-run range a few weeks ago, I was eager to try somewhere new. I made time this morning to head down to Frontier Justice and check things out. It's a bit of a drive and will be even further from the house we're buying, but for an occasional trip? Worth it.

They're still in "soft opening" for a week, so there were a few pallets of "stuff" here and there, and they were still mounting signs on display cases and the like. That said ... man, what a gorgeous facility!

Big sign on the entry door, "All firearms must be cased or holstered." Fair 'nuf. I made my way to the back of the store where the range check-in is located, filled out a standard liability waiver form, and then sorted out which range I was going to: they have three.

The first range is the "rifle" range. 50yd, rated for all centerfire calibers up to 4000fps; no AP(/I/T), no steel-core. Handguns are allowed but must be "hunting" handguns with optics.

The second range is the "pistol" range. 25yd, ditto the caliber and ammo restrictions.

The third range, which I ended up on, is the "tactical" range. Also 25yd, same caliber/ammo restrictions, with the addition of auto-turning targets. Fully electronic, with timer sequences, adjustable lighting, and so forth. Want to set up the target to be at 30ft, turn towards you for two seconds, turn away, wait five seconds, and repeat? No problem, how many cycles?

Ventilation was magnificent - I was able to watch the smoke from my muzzle drift downrange as I shot.

One of the staff gave me a quick overview of how things worked and left me to my devices. They have no restrictions on rate of fire, "But you need to keep every shot on paper; sight picture..."

At some point in my time there, one of the staff came in holding a shiny-new MP5. He got our attention and announced he was testing a full-auto piece so don't be surprised by the noise... followed by a few three-round bursts and then most of a mag dump. (I just stopped shooting and started laughing.)

Price-wise, the range is a little expensive: $25 "lane rental", but they don't boot you if there's no line. I shot for almost two hours, went through most of a brick of .22, and there were still plenty of lanes available. If I'd taken more guns, I might have stayed longer. Targets are for sale, for about a buck apiece (more for shoot'n'see-style), but you're welcome to bring your own paper targets as well.

(A side note on the price: this is going to keep down a lot of the bubbas that want to fart around with their thutty-thutty, and the mall ninjas that show up in MOLLE-ish airsoft gear.)

I took the newly-threaded Ruger 22/45, and the newly-shortened and -threaded 15-22, and the Sparrow. I re-zeroed the 15-22, then played. I did a lot of double- and triple-tap with the turning targets, mostly from low-ready, did a few mag changes "on the clock", and just had FUN. The end results were nothing to write home about, but that's fine.

I was shooting Federal bulk high-velocity .22, and in the Ruger (4" barrel) it stayed subsonic, functioned fine, and with the suppressor was nearly movie-quiet. In the 15-22, the 9" barrel was enough to bring things supersonic, so there was a bit of snap to the shots - but it was still far quieter than unsuppressed. I'm looking forward to having the Savage back so I can try out the Quiet22 ammo I got!

Other things of note...
- there were multiple tubs of the D-Wipe handwipes around the range.
- there is a sticky lead-removal floor mat on the door between the range and the store.
- there is a handwash station immediately outside the range door.
- this is NOT a "lost-brass" range; you can recover anything behind the line. Forward of the line is gone.
- sweep up your own brass. There are brooms and a floor grate to catch it.
- an archery range, somewhere. Didn't see it. Rated for crossbows as well as regular bows.
- a MILO simulator range. Spendy, but perhaps a good way to try out scenarios...

And the store ... oh my, the store. All major brands represented, they are a SilencerCo/SWR stocking dealer, and it looked like everything was marked at pretty close to full MSRP. But ... beautifully laid out, lots of inventory, and plenty of accessories of all flavors. And yes, clothing and jewelry and even a café.

Will the place survive? I think yes. They're hitting an underserved niche market that has disposable income. If I were going to live closer, I'd seriously consider an annual membership ($500), as that waives the range fees. As it is, for a place to shoot out of the cold and not have an RO on a power trip screaming about rate of fire ... well, that's worth a lot too.