Flying after a range trip?

[walking wolf]

Apologies if this has been asked before, but if it has, I can't find it. So...

I'm planning on flying somewhere next week. If I've been to the shooting range in, say, the last week, do I need to worry about the TSA possibly detecting gunpowder residue on my hands or clothing?

 

[crispnipz]

No

 

[jbert27]

Wash your hands. Keep your luggage off of the range. You will be fine.

 

[Fixxah]

If they want to use a finger on you, ask for the hot chick. There's always one.

 

[jct61765]

Did you shoot at your luggage?

 

[whacko]

Not a week after a range trip no way.

12 hours after absolutely can be detected. I got searched going into hanscom and the bomb dog hit on my car going through the gate. When the dog searched he alerted on the trunk and the back seat....I had shot trap the night before and had stored my shotguns on both of those locations. Guard simply smiled and asked if I had my guns with me today and replied no......last night I was at the trap range....he said have a nice day.

 

[appraiser]

My wife has been in the presence of the things that launch nuke payloads and elements that make them achieve flight and she has been on a plane 5 hours later with no problem. TSA is theater of the mind.

Her phone call to me in Florida telling me not to shut my phone off because she was getting on a plane and had been in the explosives room all morning was funny. I told her to bring her BATFE Explosives License with her just in case.

 

[mousegunfan]

Just check your pockets for brass. I've found shell casings in my front pocket, hoodie and breast pocket after I got home.

 

[millbilly]

I took a course once where we handled all sorts of explosives and we were given letters to take with us for our return flights just in case

 

[greencobra]

last time i flew i used both my range bags as carry ons. i never gave it a thought until now. for some reason they were more interested in my left shoe than the bags.

 

[bsaks]

It would probably depend on the kind of screening. I know when they randomly pick people for additional screening and they swab things down it can get set off. I flew one way from Logan to NYC so that triggered a search. I had went to range day before and had cell phone out to take pictures. Swabbed the phone and set off the machine. Answered some questions them went on to my plane.

 

[1919FAN]

You would probably get in more trouble fertilizing your lawn.

 

[NHKevin]

Just check your pockets for brass. I've found shell casings in my front pocket, hoodie and breast pocket after I got home.

Years ago, a bit post 9/11, I flew commercial home from a TDY where we did a lot of shooting. Last class of the fiscal year and they wanted to maintain their ammo budget. Shot M16s mostly, plus some M240B. We went through a massive amount of ammo and the only accountability was use up the rest of the inventory of ammo. Got home and found live ammo in all different pockets that I forgot they were stashed in. Including carry on.

 

[Horrible]

Wash your hands. Keep your luggage off of the range. You will be fine.

This. I have flown and accidentally left spent casings in my carry-on as it doubled as a range bag from time to time. Keep the travel bags separate from the range bags

 

[appraiser]

I have had TSA miss spent ammo in my bag, but they fondled my junk because of 3 bananas in the same carry on... ignoring the 2 laptops and the 3 highly charged lithium Ion batteries for the drone that were in my carry on.... I am TSA Pre check, CDL Haz/Mat tank, TWIC'd, Part 61 non current, Part 107 current, and they are worried about me bringing bananas on a 3 hour domestic flight but the batteries, which can be made into hand held IED's were just fine with them..... The TSA is so incompetent they make 30,000 monkeys with typewriters seem like MENSA members

 

[TomMontana]

last time i flew i used both my range bags as carry ons. i never gave it a thought until now. for some reason they were more interested in my left shoe than the bags.

Why would you use your range bags as carry-on luggage? Seems like too much potential for something to go wrong. That's not taking into account all the lead dust on the bags "contaminating" your clean clothes, laptop, snacks, etc.

 

[greencobra]

Why would you use your range bags as carry-on luggage?

just what i have available. they work perfectly.

 

[Drix]

My camera bag flies with me. Been to flame thrower events, airshows, reenactments, shooting ranges, you name it- it's been swabbed by TSA because what the f*** wouldn't they (I'm 10/10 on swabbings btw) and I've never had an issue.

 

[Reptile]

last time i flew i used both my range bags as carry ons. i never gave it a thought until now. for some reason they were more interested in my left shoe than the bags.

Maybe that left shoe was ID'd doing an Astaire in one of the stalls.

Do you have a wide stance?

 

[Broc]

Apologies if this has been asked before, but if it has, I can't find it. So...

I'm planning on flying somewhere next week. If I've been to the shooting range in, say, the last week, do I need to worry about the TSA possibly detecting gunpowder residue on my hands or clothing?

I cant remember of a single time TSA screened for gun powder. The closest Inhabe seen is a dude walking around with a dog at Newark and Atlanta.

F***, I could have had several kilos of coke taped to my body and would have made it through every time. I never go through the scanner.

Edit: there is one place you get searched for powder ... for some reason in Buenos Aires, they do a second screening right before you board the airplane. The flight attendants go through your bag and a lucky 10 get to go through a different screening where they swab your bag and put the the swabs in a scanner. They say it is random, but I get this "random" BS every time.

Unless you go shooting in Buenos Aires and then try to fly back, you will be fine. Even then you might be fine. Once I flew back with the U.S shooting team. They were coming back from some tournament.

 

[NickJ]

I got swabbed the other day, the TSA guy said the swab was for explosives, not gunpowder residue.

 

[DPR]

I have had TSA miss spent ammo in my bag, but they fondled my junk because of 3 bananas in the same carry on... ignoring the 2 laptops and the 3 highly charged lithium Ion batteries for the drone that were in my carry on.... I am TSA Pre check, CDL Haz/Mat tank, TWIC'd, Part 61 non current, Part 107 current, and they are worried about me bringing bananas on a 3 hour domestic flight but the batteries, which can be made into hand held IED's were just fine with them..... The TSA is so incompetent they make 30,000 monkeys with typewriters seem like MENSA members

so 3 bananas must be code for grab my junk. Next time I fly I’m throwing 4 in. Will report back

 

[MAJoe]

Just check your pockets for brass. I've found shell casings in my front pocket, hoodie and breast pocket after I got home.

Especially if you are flying internationally.

 

[Junior314]

I’ve gone through TSA the same day as a range trip.

Had a spent casing in the front pocket of my hoodie that I didn’t discover until I was through security and sat down to eat my bagel.

Words cannot describe the incompetence and security theatre that is TSA.

 

[looser38]

Just check your pockets for brass. I've found shell casings in my front pocket, hoodie and breast pocket after I got home.

This happened to me, I discovered a spent 9 mm case in my pocket while emptying them into the bins in Charlotte, it was an O - shit moment, but I stepped out of the line, saw a trash barrel, tossed it in and no one said anything, works for me.

 

[Glockster30]

I have had TSA miss spent ammo in my bag, but they fondled my junk because of 3 bananas in the same carry on... ignoring the 2 laptops and the 3 highly charged lithium Ion batteries for the drone that were in my carry on.... I am TSA Pre check, CDL Haz/Mat tank, TWIC'd, Part 61 non current, Part 107 current, and they are worried about me bringing bananas on a 3 hour domestic flight but the batteries, which can be made into hand held IED's were just fine with them..... The TSA is so incompetent they make 30,000 monkeys with typewriters seem like MENSA members

The TSA fondled your junk? How many times did you ask to go through the line?

 

[Lone Wolf McQuade]

My computer bag got swabbed in Bos testing positive for explosives. When they asked why I told them their marching was faulty. Second test same result, again told them it was their defective machine. They did not like that one bit Mega search of my bag, and up against the wall search ( yes I did ask for a female none provided ) nothing found.

Changed planes at BWI pulled out of the line for another bag check nothing found but no search of me.

 

[Emacs]

Not a week after a range trip no way.

12 hours after absolutely can be detected. I got searched going into hanscom and the bomb dog hit on my car going through the gate. When the dog searched he alerted on the trunk and the back seat....I had shot trap the night before and had stored my shotguns on both of those locations. Guard simply smiled and asked if I had my guns with me today and replied no......last night I was at the trap range....he said have a nice day.

Did the dog truly detect something or did the handler signal the dog as a pretext for a search? I suspect it's more often than not the latter.

 

[Garys]

Smokeless gun powder does not register on the explosive detector swaps. Black power might, but I don't know for sure.

 

[AntiHippie]

I took a course once where we handled all sorts of explosives and we were given letters to take with us for our return flights just in case

I went to a demo day (explosives show and tell kind of thing) and they just wanted everyone to leave plenty of time if they were flying that day in case TSA accidentally uses their Ionscan competently.