redkow97 Posted July 11, 2011 Report Share Posted July 11, 2011 The NEO guys have probably all been to A&A (right near Nelson Ledges), but yesterday was my first visit. I went in not knowing what to expect, and that place is awesome. Totally beat to shit (seems to be a theme in Garrettsville...), but awesome.My uncle is a big hunting and fishing enthusiast. Always has been. Anyway, a few weeks ago, I was forwarded an email from one of his neighbors (i've met these people at least 50 times throughout my childhood, but probably haven't seen them in 10-15 years) saying that they had reserved the "sporting" range at A&A.I'd say it's about 100 yards, but the fact that it was 20+ guys who all knew half the people there, and the range patrol basically left us alone all day made it a fun time.Counting my cousin (recently "retired" for medical reasons), there were at least 3 police officers with us. I think that probably helped our cause as far as being left alone.So i rolled in around 11:00, and there was already a healthy array of stuffed animals, bowling pins, an LCD computer monitor, cans, toys, dishes, bin-laden pictures, Justin Beiber posters, etc. scattered about the range. I added 2 rows of CD's screwed to some scrap lumber, and my original helmet from when I started riding in 2005.I started off just trying to not suck with my 22. Then my friend Ray handed me his 30-06. The largest caliber weapon I had previously fired was a .45 pistol (also Ray's).I took aim at the helmet, and put a large hole in it. The .22 wasn't doing much to the CD collection, so my cousin handed me a 20 gauge. Having never fired a shotgun before, I was expecting a lot of kick, but compared to the 30-06, it was pretty tame. My uncle insisted that I shoot some clays with his over/under 12 gauge. I hit my first few clays, then went into a slump before getting comfortable with it again.This went on for a while, and the bottom line is that I definitely want a shotgun as my next firearm purchase.Perhaps the biggest surprise of the day was shooting Ray's AR-15. I've always thought of showing up to the range with an AR as sort of like showing up to a beginner trackday with an 1198R, and a full pit-crew...Having shot it though, it is pretty much awesome, and I see why people like them so much. Minimal recoil, surprisingly accurate, and fucking fun as hell to shoot. Ray had a lot of .223 ammo that was starting to get old enough that he wasn't shy about getting rid of it But one of the highlights of my day was shooting my Grandfather's (now my uncle's) Ruger single-six. Fun little gun. Easy to shoot, and really accurate for a handgun. The history made it way cooler for me than the actual shooting, but there's something retro-cool about having to cock a single-action revolver that I kind of like too.So what did I learn? - a lot about shooting- even a cheap MC helmet will stand up to a buckshot. The wearer definitely wouldn't be happy about getting hit, but it doesn't penetrate the shell.- a 30-06 will do DAMAGE to a 1,400 page Constitutional Law textbook.- a .22lr will stop on page 852pics to follow: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkow97 Posted July 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2011 this was a relatively un-molested helmet when we started. It had some scuffs, but it had never been crashed.This was about half way through the day. It's in way worse shape now, and I can post more pics later.CD "tree" after shotgun intervention. .22lr round after penetrating 852 pages of Constitutional Law.I was surprised by how much the hollow point actually opened up upon impact. the hp on .22's looks like you took a mechanical pencil lead, and poked it into gum. Not large at all.I think I shot about half of these:Don't break into Ray's house... He must have been shooting the 12 gauge at this point.(30-06 and AR-15)the .45 and 9mm. I've shot these before, but didn't have time yesterday Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kawi kid Posted July 11, 2011 Report Share Posted July 11, 2011 Glad to see you had fun man! Keep shooting it only gets better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottb Posted July 11, 2011 Report Share Posted July 11, 2011 Looks like a fun day. A&A range is very "rustic". I usually bring a few plastic bags from the grocery store and pick up all the brass I can on the ground. Last time I recycled the brass, I had about half a plastic bag of brass. It is yellow brass, and the scrap value was $1.85 a pound. I think I got about $23, enough to buy a box of 22LR. When I went shooting for the first time, it was very helpful to have experienced shooters showing you the ropes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkow97 Posted July 12, 2011 Author Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 What's scrap at now? I could have picked up a lot .223 brass. There were 4 guys with AR-15's! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4DAIVI PAI2K5 Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 Good looking time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kawi kid Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 What's scrap at now? I could have picked up a lot .223 brass. There were 4 guys with AR-15's!Just mail it to me I'll reload it lol:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedytriple Posted July 12, 2011 Report Share Posted July 12, 2011 Glad you had a good time. Told you the hillbilly range was fun. Next time I go out there I will give you a heads up. Take some over ripe fruit next time fun to blow up also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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