Gun owners vs. Shooters

[DeadEyeDan]

I would say that the percentage of gun owners that regularly practice with the firearms they own is relatively small. I would also conjecture that the small percentage of shooters most likely overlap with the small percentage of Mega Gun owner, the 3% of the population that owns 50% of the firearms in the US. For example my gun club has about 250 members, but the number that I see with any regularity at the range is less then a dozen... and that is a group of people that have a membership to a club, how many gun owner don’t even bother with that?

 

[DJBrad]

I would say the the percentage of gun owners that regularly practice with the firearms they own is relatively small. I would also conjecture that the small percentage of shooters most likely overlap with the small percentage of Mega Gun owner, the 3% of the population that owns 50% of the firearms in the US. For example my gun club has about 250 members, but the number that I see with any regularity at the range is less then a dozen... and that is a group of people that have a membership to a club, how many gun owner don’t even bother with that?

I agree. Looking at the clipboard at my range there are only a few that regularly shoot. A lot of those are actually from other clubs too so the percentage should be dropped a bit. Nonetheless, many gun owners don’t put in the time and the ammo shortage has exacerbated that situation. I bet most gun owners can’t field strip their own gun let alone perform drills with target acquisition. My trunk is loaded with trucker chains, 2x4’s and steel plates all day every day.

 

[Arto]

They are not being "Well Regulated" if they are not practicing their marksmanship...

 

[76Too]

Looking at the clipboard at my range there are only a few that regularly shoot

Jesus Christ...people actually LOOK at the logs? That's creepy dude status right there.

I was so happy when I lived 15 minutes from my range...it was (almost) on my way to/from work and I could stop by whenever I wanted (24 hr indoor range). But I never even THOUGHT that someone was looking at my 'log-in/out' data.

Now that I'm a billion miles from my range and there's no sign in, I don't care so much...but I was on the roster at my old club at least once or twice a week.

Moral of the story is...don't sign in, because weird people are looking at/for your name.

 

[DJBrad]

Jesus Christ...people actually LOOK at the logs? That's creepy dude status right there.

I was so happy when I lived 15 minutes from my range...it was (almost) on my way to/from work and I could stop by whenever I wanted (24 hr indoor range). But I never even THOUGHT that someone was looking at my 'log-in/out' data.

Now that I'm a billion miles from my range and there's no sign in, I don't care so much...but I was on the roster at my old club at least once or twice a week.

Moral of the story is...don't sign in, because weird people are looking at/for your name.

Meh, I just check in to see if my friends have been there recently. I get the no signing thing bro. Believe me. My eyes remember names and numbers when I see them.

 

[FalArAk]

Observations from a relatively new shooter ?

 

[MisterHappy]

The problem of us being weak, politically, is succinctly put in the thread title: We're not a group, we're a collection of mini-groups, some with antipathy towards each other.

Operators hate Fudds.

Action pistol shooters hate Trapezoids

Every-day range users hate people that don't show up for a daily mag dump.

The only consensus that I've seen is that everybody hates .40s, and nobody needs a pedestal sink.


I understand that there's a broad generalization there, but the number of judgemental threads and comments that I've seen here about, "Group X does not do enough for the Cause...." is huge.

Hell, the only friends that we have on Bacon Hill are in Northborough, and 90% of the gun owners in the DPRM don't pony up the chump change for them to keep the lights on.

As for a lot of the club in question's members not shooting "with any regularity," perhaps there are other things in their life. Hell, at my Club, a large percentage is....old. They did their shooting, and built the Club, a few decades ago. Some of the guys at my club...well....I've never seen them on the range, unless it was to fix it up.

If a Club member wants to pay the dues, and not use the place....great. $ comes in, and there's no wear and tear. It's a personal choice to practice, or not. If you choose to practice, it's your choice to practice the amount that you think appropriate.

It's better to have gun owners that don't shoot much, than no gun owners.

ETA: As for looking down on people who "don't put the time in," what's the standard to meet? I generally don't carry; when I do, it's a PPK. I took it out, and out a mag's worth of holes in a target with minute-of-badguy accuracy at a range that's acceptable for a can't-see'the-tiny-sights pistol. Does that meet spec? And, as for field stripping, I do that when I clean it; if I have to do that under fire, I'll have more problems than a .32 can handle, and I'll switch to another platform. Or harsh language. Either way.

 

[DeadEyeDan]

Observations from a relatively new shooter ?

Well I think I first started shoot around age 10... so 42 years later I’m not sure you can call me a new shooter... I’m at the point where I’m not really trying to improve so much as slow down my decline as much as possible now...

 

[DeadEyeDan]

The problem of us being weak, politically, is succinctly put in the thread title: We're not a group, we're a collection of mini-groups, some with antipathy towards each other.

Operators hate Fudds.

Action pistol shooters hate Trapezoids

Every-day range users hate people that don't show up for a daily mag dump.

The only consensus that I've seen is that everybody hates .40s, and nobody needs a pedestal sink.


I understand that there's a broad generalization there, but the number of judgemental threads and comments that I've seen here about, "Group X does not do enough for the Cause...." is huge.

Hell, the only friends that we have on Bacon Hill are in Northborough, and 90% of the gun owners in the DPRM don't pony up the chump change for them to keep the lights on.

As for a lot of the club in question's members not shooting "with any regularity," perhaps there are other things in their life. Hell, at my Club, a large percentage is....old. They did their shooting, and built the Club, a few decades ago. Some of the guys at my club...well....I've never seen them on the range, unless it was to fix it up.

If a Club member wants to pay the dues, and not use the place....great. $ comes in, and there's no wear and tear. It's a personal choice to practice, or not. If you choose to practice, it's your choice to practice the amount that you think appropriate.

It's better to have gun owners that don't shoot much, than no gun owners.

I wasn’t judging, just observing... maybe getting to the point that most gun owners are casual gun owners and that the enthusiast is that the exception and may not have the support that the larger number of gun owner would suggest...

 

[enbloc]

I would say that the percentage of gun owners that regularly practice with the firearms they own is relatively small. I would also conjecture that the small percentage of shooters most likely overlap with the small percentage of Mega Gun owner, the 3% of the population that owns 50% of the firearms in the US. For example my gun club has about 250 members, but the number that I see with any regularity at the range is less then a dozen... and that is a group of people that have a membership to a club, how many gun owner don’t even bother with that?

I hate math...

 

[drgrant]

At most smaller clubs johnny one box is the norm rather than the exception.... if you start going to different clubs or hanging out with different groups of people, competing Etc you start to find out who the people are that are putting a lot of lead down range. Also bear in mind there are some of us in the middle of it all that would shoot more given more time. Of course A lot of it too is you just have to make time. When I started doing this stuff a typical Saturday was going to a gun shop for an hour or so and then going to the range and basically shoot on and off there for a few hours or until the sun broasted me whichever came first... of course I would have practice but also the chronograph with me and some friggin load to test....

It's also worth noting that a lot of the hardcore guys if they're not bound by work or some other issue will often show up when the range has nobody else on it..... you meet some cool people that way as long as you go with their flow Etc....

 

[Bodhisattva]

It's also worth noting that a lot of the hardcore guys if they're not bound by work or some other issue will often show up when the range has nobody else on it..... you meet some cool people that way as long as you go with their flow Etc....

This! Our group shoots Sunday mornings around 08-09. No one is there, we get the whole bay to ourselves (outdoor), and if anyone else wants to shoot with us, that’s fine. But don’t impede us, and definitely don’t endanger us as we typically run with a hot range.

 

[Tinkermatic]

As someone else asked, what’s the threshold between casual and enthusiast? I get to my range on average about twice a month. Sometimes more, sometimes less. My range is 40 minutes away and I only go Wednesday mornings as it’s the only day I have available, so I’m sure I’ve seen very few other members and don’t exist to most. I’d love to shoot more and get in to IDPA as it’s hosted there, but it’s not possible given my schedule. The rounds I do get to put downrange are meaningful and deliberate (mag dumps are still fun though) but I still shoot less than 1,000 rds. a month. I could be wrong, but I still consider myself an enthusiast.

Who decides?

I get the feeling there are varying degrees of enthusiast. Those that dump buckets of bullets into the berms, those like me who maybe don’t have the time and resources to shoot as much as they’d like, but are still active, and then the johnny 1 boxes. They may only pop 50 rds. a trip, but they’re still at the range once a month and their friends think they’re a “gun nut” because they’re always taking about 1911’s.

 

[BrianWilson]

At some point one does have to shoot the damn thing, but the bigger part of improving/staying current can be/is better done in the basement with out putting any ammo in the gun or making any booms.

 

[whacko]

This! Our group shoots Sunday mornings around 08-09. No one is there, we get the whole bay to ourselves (outdoor), and if anyone else wants to shoot with us, that’s fine. But don’t impede us, and definitely don’t endanger us as we typically run with a hot range.

"definitely don’t endanger us as we typically run with a hot range."

What does this mean?

 

[greencobra]

when i was young i lived at my club. the club was 1/2 mile from work so every afternoon at 3 pm...you'd know where to find me...outdoor pistol range. weekends, i never saw my house. in those days beer was the norm on the premises' of most clubs then, so when the guns were put away we socialized, called out for food and argued if jack o'conner knew what he was talking about regarding the .270 into the night. we were enthusiasts and shooters to the n-th power and we shot tons of lead per week.

things change. i'm f***ing old, can't breathe, legs don't work and i hold up the line for 15 minutes trying to walk the 25 yards down and back to hang a target. i may only show up 3x a month, i may leave after 50 rounds cause i get exahusted trying to breathe, i may not shoot at all and chat with my friends or watch young kids leaning to shoot with their dads. i watch the operators do mag dump after mag dump and wish i had their energy. point is, shoot or not...utilize the ranges or not, i'm still an enthusiast and shooter. i'll always be one.

since the day i came into recreational shooting, the ugliest people who try to pigeonhole us, shooters, are gun owners themselves. i've hated it all along. i don't care if the guy/lady next to me shows up once a year, we still have something in common and something to lose. i'll welcome and support them trying not to to classify at the same time.

now, after all that, i wonder if i really understood the theme of thread.

 

[BrianWilson]

.................................... i'll always be one.................................... we still have something in common

Went to a match last year after a long hiatus. Standing on the edge of the crowd waiting for the briefing various bits of conversations drifted by me. "Yup" I thought in response to one, "Nope" to the next..:"Well that guy is full of shit" to the following. Then it dawned on me.....I felt right at home, at a club I was not a member,with folks I didn't know...but.....the thought in my head?,,,...these are my people.......

 

[Deleted member 12999]

My personal opinion i as that I go once in a while now to maintain skills. As I get older, there are tons of other things I want to learn. I'm good at shooting, that's not to brag, its just a reality that I get diminishing returns on my training now. The amount of time that I need to spend to shave a tenth of a second off a Bill drill isn't worth it to me when I can get way bigger returns for same time in other areas

 

[HARRYM]

I would say that the percentage of gun owners that regularly practice with the firearms they own is relatively small. I would also conjecture that the small percentage of shooters most likely overlap with the small percentage of Mega Gun owner, the 3% of the population that owns 50% of the firearms in the US. For example my gun club has about 250 members, but the number that I see with any regularity at the range is less then a dozen... and that is a group of people that have a membership to a club, how many gun owner don’t even bother with that?

 

[ScottS]

I would say that the percentage of gun owners that regularly practice with the firearms they own is relatively small. I would also conjecture that the small percentage of shooters most likely overlap with the small percentage of Mega Gun owner, the 3% of the population that owns 50% of the firearms in the US. For example my gun club has about 250 members, but the number that I see with any regularity at the range is less then a dozen... and that is a group of people that have a membership to a club, how many gun owner don’t even bother with that?

That's a bullshit stat (and term), put out by an anti-sponsored "survey" of self-reported "gun owners." It's designed to mislead the public into believing that the massive increase in gun purchases are fueled by some small percentage of "hoarders" who own hundreds of guns, and not the rank-and-file Average Joe who wants a gun to protect themselves.

I don't believe the concept for a minute.

 

[Supermoto]

Action pistol shooters hate Trapezoids

Who are the Trapezoids? I'd hate to think I'm missing out on a group to look down on

 

[ScottS]

Who are the Trapezoids? I'd hate to think I'm missing out on a group to look down on

I had the same question, but from context I've decided it refers to trap shooters, so I'm covered. I already look down on them.

 

[MisterHappy]

Got it in one, ScottS.

And I didn't even mention in my original list that Trap people hate Skeeters. Of course, that's a professional hatred, not emotional, when you're a Trap Chairman, and you see $ spent on Skeet as taken away from the Trap revenue.

 

[Supermoto]

Got it in one, ScottS.

And I didn't even mention in my original list that Trap people hate Skeeters. Of course, that's a professional hatred, not emotional, when you're a Trap Chairman, and you see $ spent on Skeet as taken away from the Trap revenue.

Do sporting clay shooters still look down on both Trapezoids and Skeeters? As an Action shooter and Sporting clay shooter, should I be doubling down on my snobbery to Trap shooters?

 

[MisterHappy]

That's a good question- We have SCs at my Club, but it's an occasional thing, being a woods-walk that's a PITA to set up, and most, if not all, are Trapezoids and Skeeters that are walking on the wild side, before Trap or Skeet start for the day (SCs start at 10, it's over by Noon, when the normal stuff opens.)

I'll have to check, with some SC-centric people.

Oh, I like your "location"

 

[Spider Jerusalem]

Now might not be the best time to try to figure out these stats, only because the last few months have seen a shift for most shooters.

For example, I used to shoot regularly. Every week, on the range, with a few pistols and calibers.

Now, with the scarcity of ammo and general unrest, everything is stored- clean, oiled, ready. But I can't blow through my meager (to most people here) supply. So I look like an owner, not a shooter. But it's circumstances that dictate my freedom to enjoy.

 

[Picton]

I live a ways from my range, so I'm not able to get there more than once every couple of months; often enough to maintain what little skill I have, but not enough to improve. I've also got a Real Life I need to live, meaning I can't get up there as often as I'd like.

Plus, I make an effort to get there when I'm likely to be alone. I like having the range to myself.

 

[Medicine Man]

There are five ranges within ten minutes of me. On a good day I can hear activity at three of them.
This has been the quietest summer I can remember.
Everybody seems to be saving what they have.

 

[NH_Realtor]

I agree. Looking at the clipboard at my range there are only a few that regularly shoot. A lot of those are actually from other clubs too so the percentage should be dropped a bit. Nonetheless, many gun owners don’t put in the time and the ammo shortage has exacerbated that situation. I bet most gun owners can’t field strip their own gun let alone perform drills with target acquisition. My trunk is loaded with trucker chains, 2x4’s and steel plates all day every day.

I only go to my range to sight stuff in cause they don't allow you to draw from a holster or even have more than one gun on the line at a time. The next closest place I shoot is an hour away but it's a sandpit and I can do whatever I want. Problem is with 2 kids, ammo shortage and all it's tough to get the time. I need to take more classes at Sig academy and force myself out there.

 

[Tinkermatic]

Plus, I make an effort to get there when I'm likely to be alone. I like having the range to myself.

I try to do this as well, hence, early Wednesday mornings. However, my range seems to find it necessary to reserve the useful bays (rifle/pistol/shotgun where you can get in some real training at real distances) for not just the local PD, but surrounding towns as well. Multiple days a week, for months on end, all summer long. The only open bays are 7 yard(?) small pistol bays and the 100/200 yd. range.
There had to be 3 departments there and a good few dozen popo Wednesday before last. Nothing like paying a not insignificant amount of money to not be able to use the ranges you want to for months end. Something also tells me that these PD’s don’t pay what I do and this is done as a service to keep relationships good. I could be wrong and I don’t know the details, but the wear and tear isn’t something to disregard.
Maybe I’m just bitter that I haven’t been able to take the shottie out, (aside from slugs at 50 yds.) for any useful training in a few months.