My Private Shooting Range/New Saiga .223

[monomonk 0]

It took me five months to buy this 38 acres because the owner was in jail for growing pot and there was a state tax lien on the land. It is clear that he was growing pot on the land I bought and probably had plans to expand his operation. But I surmise that early on he decided it would be easier to grow at his home in a nearby town. That is where he was caught.

 

This land serves my purposes very well, but not perfectly. It is a hollow between steep hills with a pretty creek flowing through it. The fact that it is a hollow means that it is very safe and there is no need to put up berms. On the other hand, the southern border is a county road that is probably only a couple of hundred feet up the hill. I have good access to the center of my property from the county road by way of my own fairly level dirt road, which runs beside the creek.

 

I have considered some kind of noise-deadening structure but my nearest neighbor recently told me not to worry about noise. There is very little level land, but enough for my shooting. There is a small swampy area where a target stand can be easily stuck into the wet earth. I just got an inexpensive magnetic broom--the kind used by roofers. It is helpful to me in picking up Wolf cases as well as detecting nails which can cause flats.

 

I bought a 20 foot steel shipping container and had it installed near my shooting area. I have used a wood frame and three storm doors to create an inner wall which lets in light but provides some protection against the elements when the steel doors are open. I recently bought a small wood stove and have put it into my "cabin." The big advantage of using the container is that it locks up like a safe when I leave. There are some malicious people wandering around and I don't want to be a target for them.

 

I am very happy with what I call "Camp Copperhead" because it is beautiful and about half as far from my house as the public range I have been using for several years.

 

Today I fired my first shots out of my Saiga .223 with factory dragunov stock. I used the factory 10 round mag and one of the Surefire polymer 30 rounders I bought with the rifle from Gilbert's in Kentucky (got to my dealer in less than 24 hours). The mags and the rifle functioned well in this initial test. The bolt locks back after the last round, but closes when you remove the mag. Still a nice feature.

 

In case my photo violates the rules, you can see a couple at The High Road, in the rifle forum.

 

Drakejake

[Afrikaner 2]

Congrats on the land! Hope you have fun with it.

[Bvamp 604]

cool man! You can post anything you want, shooting-wise, and then some.

[ultragooey 0]

damn, that's so sweet to have your own shooting range. can I be your friend?