Building a Personal Shooting Range
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A shooting range is the perfect place to get in a little target practice and for hunters and others who need to keep their marksmanship skills up, a good range is always a welcome sight. Unfortunately for many, going to range may not be a convenient alternative to target practice. Whether it’s because of the distance you live to a shooting range or just the fact that you prefer to target practice on your own time rather than a set range time, building a personal shooting range can be a great way to have a safe area to target practice and work on your marksmanship skills.
Before you even think about getting started on building a personal shooting range at your house or on a piece of property you own, you need to check your local laws to make sure it will be legal to have one for use on your property. If you’re in the heart of the city, chances are there will be restrictions against having a shooting range, but if you have property in a rural area, you may have an ideal spot to build.
If your property is legally able to host a shooting range, you can proceed with your plans to build. If you’re starting from scratch and want an indoor range, you may need to hire a building crew including a general contractor, a professional roofer and an electrician. You’re also going to need to be able to let the building crew know what type of guns you plan to shoot at your range. Yes, the type of guns that will be used will make a difference on the length of the range, but you also need to determine how many people other than yourself you might need space for at the range to shoot. For instance, if you’re only going to use handguns, you may need a shorter range than if you plan to use rifles or shotguns. There are many types of handguns as well as rifles and shotguns, so know the range they can fire before you plan your build.
This will help when determining not only the length, but also the width of each shooting lane. Here are a couple more things to think about when you are building a personal shooting range on your property.
Safety
Above and beyond all else, maintaining a safe environment for you, other shooters who may use your range and your neighbors or other people who might be in the area is the single most important factor of building a shooting range whether it is an indoor or outdoor range. Firearm safety, whether on the range or off should always be at the top of your list of important things to remember anytime you plan to target practice.
First, the range needs to have a clear line of sight between the lane and the target. You also need to make sure you can clearly see when/if anyone is approaching the range from any direction. It is highly important to make sure no one will be able to just wander into the path of fire during target practice, so barriers of some sort will be a necessity.
You must also have barriers in place to prevent ammunition from leaving the range area. In most shooting ranges, a hefty pile of dirt is usually sufficient to use as a barrier behind outdoor targets. It is advisable to make sure the dirt mound is at least 20 feet high and no less than double the width of the target area. When shooting, you want to make sure the bullets don’t stray outside of your target range area where they could present a danger to someone else. These dirt mounds are known as berms and once they are in place, they will need constant maintenance to make sure they are solid and have not collapsed due to rain or erosion. Damage to a barrier can cause bullets to pass through or even ricochet back into the range.
Legal
There will be some legal matters that you’re going to have to face when building a personal shooting range. From public ordinances to personal safety for yourself and others, you’re going to need to take time to carefully look over all laws and safety regulations to make sure your range complies with the law and will be safe for use.
If you live near other homes, you’re going to need to let your neighbors know your plans to build a range. You are also going to need to make sure you set times to shoot that won’t cause a disturbance to others in the area, especially if the range is outdoors.
You will also have to make sure the building codes for your area don’t have restrictions and if they do, you’re going to have to abide by them when planning the construction.
Once you have your personal shooting range constructed and ready to go, be sure you are courteous to others in the area, if you have neighbors, and always keep things safe in the range. With so many things happening in the world around us today, having a safe space to get in a little target practice is not only great for hunting season, but also to help be prepared to protect our homes and the lives of those we love.
Jason grew up around firearms at a young age going hunting with his father. He learned that using a firearm comes with great responsibility. On his spare time, he enjoys reading an writing. He is currently writing for Shelton Roofing.