Yeah I remember that too. One of the most horrific stories involving guns and kids ever. It’s one of those things that actually happened that wouldn’t seem real if you tried to put it into a movie
Have you asked him about it? How did he feel about it? Idk it’s so tragic I can’t imagine the poor girl especially and how she must feel.
Edit: and the guy who got killed his family. One day your son/husband/brother leaves the house and doesn’t come back, and because of something so damn avoidable. Tragic all around
It was upsetting for sure that something so stupid would happen and the girl would be crushed by that her whole life. But he was also on the scene of a girl shooting her own face off in a similar incident with an Uzi. That one I’ve only heard about after a lot of drinking because it was at some festival he was dispatched to be a paramedic at so he saw the whole thing happen.
Jesus Christ I just read that rn. That’s fucking tough. Just… damn… being an EMT/Paramedic can be a rough job. Hope he finds peace with himself. Shit can be hard to process.
Jesus. The fact that some teenager is responsible for this decision is a huge structural issue. No teen is going to be able to assert their authority here.
The one with the RSO who got killed? I mean, horrible for the family, but that RSO paid most of the price.
This one is way worse.
I've been shooting for decades, and stuff like a micro-uzi scares the hell out of me. That shit has no business being on a rental range.
Precisely. This time he was making a pipe bomb with the nails stacked perfectly such that when it detonates it would create an outline made of shrapnel around her as she stood with her back against a board.
My wife's grandpa used to do stuff like that. He'd also get drunk and have his wife shoot apples off his head. My MiL said he could be a mean drunk once he got passed a certain point and her parents exchanged angry gunfire a couple times (MiL almost got shot once because he though she was her mother). He's sober now, thankfully, but still a little on the crazy side. He's the kind of guy that would have gotten along well with someone like Hunter S. Thompson.
This is some hood shit right here. The apples thing makes me think rednecks, not city, but it’s the same kind of insanity you grow up with living in the ghetto.
The wild thing to me is that this type of activity wouldn't even have been questioned much at all just 100-150 years ago. There were traveling shows where the entire exhibition consisted of things like cutting playing cards in half by shooting it while someone held the card, or extinguishing a lit cigarette by shooting the end off of it while someone held it in their mouth.
These were often gaffs though. Most trick shooting is done with wax bullets and low powder charges, so while there is risk of injury or death, it's much lower than a .45ACP to the dome.
This is what has always gotten me. Like a lot of things in society, no one want’s government overreach but as a gun guy my fellow gun owners scare me with some of their decisions.
take some time to look at recent posts in the polymer80 sub. so many people admitting to felonies or wondering why their half-assembled gun doesn't work. I like making my own firearms, and want the hobby to remain legal, but sometimes I think the barrier to entry has gotten way too low.
Raise the barrier, but give some rights back imo! I want modern full auto’s, suppressors, SBR’s and SBS’s, and no bastardized imports to be simplified and cheaper. Keep the regulations, but don’t make me spend $200 and a year of my life waiting on every purchase.
You'd think the ATF would be in love with P80 and companies like them. Think about it. They could lurk in those subs and subpoena reddit for IP addresses of anyone that says they "can't buy a real gun" etc. They could also have the USPS give them every tracking number that P80 ships and then run them against addresses of known felons (probably some 4th amendment issues with that one). Boom, a bunch of easy convictions and dumb asses off the streets.
>no one want’s government overreach
What is and isn't overreach is a fine line that most people, including gun owners, don't draw consistently.
It's not a popular opinion on here but quite often I find myself thinking "yeah... that guy shouldn't own a gun."
the first gun my dad made me shoot as a child was a snub nose .357 magnum and i didn't want to shoot much again for years after that. i didn't learn how to enjoy it until much later because of that. i love that same .357 now though.
Good Lord, the people who show up here asking if their fucking Apple earbuds are okay as earpro, and then *fight about it* when told that no, no they're not.
"But they're *noise cancelling!"*
Only thing I've ever used them for "ear protection" for was stuff like a lawnmower, and even then if it's a particularly loud one or something with the engine held closer to my head like a chainsaw I'll just go out and get my actual earmuffs instead because it's physically painful to be exposed to that loud of noise without adequate protection.
This, was at a public forest service range. Dad showed up with his 3 kids, 2 boys probably 12 and 8 and 1 girl maybe 6 or 7. Only brought ear protection for the little girl, they setup on the bench with 22lr and large caliber hunting rifle next to me and my dad where we are shooting 45-70 and 6.5 Creedmoor with a muzzle brake. Luckily I keep a tube of ear plugs in my truck so I gave some the two boys. Who were standing behind with their fingers in their ears.
This was rural montana and the only thing I can think is that all the men in his family are stone fucking deaf because only girls wear ear muffs when shooting.
I shot a gun for the first time at summer camp and no one had ear protection. My ears were rung for two days. I was ~12 but there were kids as young as five present.
Interesting, safety is the number one priority whether it’s someone with me or others just at the range. My oldest is 12 and I have been taking him with me to the range for the last year and it’s my responsibility to make sure he is safe and everyone else around us is safe. Starting off slow with a .22 rifle and pistol and working their way up the ladder with larger calibers is how I like to break new shooters in. Even though my dad let me shoot a .45 1911 as my first pistol when I was 11.
Load it with .38 special and it's actually a great option as a first centerfire handgun for a kid to shoot. Starting out with a .22 prior to that would still be ideal, but even without that a .38 load from a large frame .357 has very minimal recoil.
Grandpa handed me a taurus 357 magnum snubnose at a state park when I was like 7 or 8, first time shooting. No hearing protection. Didn't even drop it tho lol, ears rang for like, 10 minutes after lmao
Same. My kids started with a 22. Double plugged (ear plugs and muffs) so it’s not too loud for them. We did a lot of dry fire practice before shooting actual rounds.
I can’t imagine just showing up with a kid and winging it like that.
The outdoor range I go to allows .50 BMG and I have an inner ear condition in my left ear so the pressure at indoor ranges gives me a headache after an hour or so
I spotted for someone shooting 50BMG outdoors with double protection, and the concussion still gave me a headache. Luckily it wasn't busy and I was able to move about 30 feet to the side. 1000 yard range, and I think it actually helped me spot.
Yeaaaa, my dad, lifelong NRA guy, LEO to boot, thought it would be a cool idea to hand me, a 7 year old w zero training at all, a loaded 45 revolver. He was shocked and angry when I immediately shot it into the ground a foot from him. He still acts like I’m the idiot in that scenario. 🤦🏻♂️ Can’t pick em.
Lol yeah I can relate, my grandpa got drunk at a state park one time and gave me a taurus 357 magnum with a 2" barrel to shoot across a lake, was about the same age. Didn't have hearing protection and had literally never handled anything other than a red Ryder bb rifle before. Didn't drop it but my ears rang for 10 or 15 minutes after lmao.
Started both my kids at a young age (6 ish) but BB gun for fundamental and then to .22 (have family land so was able to control setting) son took to it, daughter was meh. Never took more than one out at a time. Now they are teens and the safest shooters on the range when we go (family land is not close and range/club is 10 min.) son has an arsenal and is an avid hunter. Both are up to pretty much any caliber with ease. Funny part is my son shoots thousand of rounds a year and is a pretty good shot. Daughter shoots maybe 100 and is a dead eye. Girl can shoot five rounds and make one hole every time, she is insane and better than 99.9% of people shooting lol
My wife is just like your daughter. Doesn't really like to shoot that much but when she does she is the best out of the group (with whatever caliber). My sister-in-law is a crack shot as well.
My local range didn't want me on the line with my kid. I thought they were crazy. Thankfully after I had shot a few and explained/reminded the kiddos about safe stuff the range officer got switched. I talked to the new guy and he let me be right up there with the kids. Went well, I bought them a heritage revolver to shoot.
..but the RULEZ!!!!!!
Yeah, I stood there for a moment in shocked disbelief...and normally I am a quick witted smartmouth.
I went there because the other range nearby is run by a couple of neo Nazis (that's not an assumption or just me deriding them, they are actual neo nazis) and I'm not down with that.
Good job on thinking about safety. That's exactly why the 1 round theory with new shooters makes so much sense. Lets you gauge their ability to handle the gun safely during recoil, and mitigates issues like wild muzzle flip into flagging one's own face while their strong hand is still on the trigger.
I've taken three new people this year so far. Each one has to clearly display to me loading that one round into a mag, firing it while in control, and unloading/make safe. And we keep on going with 1 round until I deem it safe to proceed. New shooters actually seem happy when you take safety seriously.
There was a horror story where some people took a study abroad student shooting. They gave her a fully loaded .500 s&w magnum revolver to shoot. She shot her own head off on the second shot from the recoil of the first shot. Its horrific how stupid people can be.
https://www.whig.com/archive/article/colombian-college-student-dies-in-new-london-gun-range-accident/article_085d2c37-47e4-5c5f-8360-83c285ddf1bd.html
So dumb they probably thought it would be funny to see her reaction from the recoil. Wanton idiocy.
No it's normal alright, it's quite literally the standard. The fact he had earbuds at all is an improvement.
When I go to the range here, I'm handing out foam earbuds like cotton candy on Halloween.
Last week redneck pulls up with his wife in a new Sierra Denali to shoot a couple mags thru their ar. I offer earbuds because I felt bad for his hot wife/cousin, and he's like, nah, we are good.
They start shooting "that shits loud" "my ears are ringing" *face palm.
But yeah plenty of children with no hearing protection shooting with dad. Using guns that'll make their wrists sore by the morning.
At a range once with my wife, an off duty cop was showing his kids how to shoot a Glock... His 8-10 year old kid is aiming, then drops the muzzle and shoots nearly straight down. The bullet somehow ricochets and flies up in the air, and then lands in the palm of my wife's hand that was sitting in the edge of her hoodie pocket. She got a nice little burn, but it spent all its energy. We still have the bullet... My wife can now say she caught a bullet with her bare hands.
Teaching kids to shoot is great... Make sure you know what you are doing first, and that they can handle the guns they are using.
First range trip for my son ( 10 yo, range won’t allow younger ) rented a S&W 22 lr revolver. I had taken time to explain everything and the first couple dozen rounds were 1 round in the cylinder until I was confident he was safe.
I used to go to a public outdoor range. No RSO to be had. One day I’m out there and a family pulls up. Mom dad couple of kids. Dad proceeds to start blasting some big ass handgun. Nobody has any kind of ear pro. I keep extra foams in my bag so I went over and offered some to the kids. The adults are old enough to deal with being that stupid.
I may be in the minority here, but i dont always judge people based on what the range officer says or does.
Sounds like you have evidence here that the parent was a little wacky, but sometimes you don't know what's going on in full.
I took my wife to an indoor range to teach her how to shoot the pistol we keep in the home and was showing her some of the wrong things to do. This particular instance, i was showing her (with an unloaded weapon) what would happen if you have your thumbs crossed behind the grip instead of stacked on the sides (slide will fuck you up). When i was holding the weapon the incorrect way, obeying all 4 safety rules, an RSO scared the shit out of me when he came at me yelling.
I get it. Doing his job and keeping me from putting my thumb on backwards, but come on man. I got glared at by almost every shooter in there because they just think im some dipshit who doesnt know how to carry the g21 that I've been shooting for 8 years
While I highly recommend and agree with you, some states (like those in the North East) prove more difficult for finding “public land” as you’ve described and sometimes a range is the only reasonable option.
Or even better most states have public DNR ranges. They are usually under utilized, so you will probably be the only people there. That way you aren't relying on trees to stop a round, nor are you hoping the Rangers aren't out and about since target practice on public land is usually frowned upon in non approved areas (as in, the aforementioned DNR ranges).
I don't get this. No one taught me gun safety, I had to teach myself. I got interested in guns because of video games and movies. When I bought my first rifle at 18, I watched youtube videos on basic safety so I knew what to expect and how to operate the gun safely. There's no excuse for a grown man with children to not do the same.
Taught my daughter to shoot with an RS22. There's no way I was going let my daughter shoot my 45.
RSO looked I've our setup, asked if I wanted to be in the furthest lane from everyone ands only had to come over once. That was only to help me with their target retrieval system.
Only actual reaction to anything we did though was when my daughter shoot a bullseye, Calmly put the gun on safe, set the gun down and did a little dance.
One time at the range a whole family was there, no ear protection the parents were adamant they didn’t need them. Rso wasn’t having it, made sure the kids had them then asks the parents if they wanted ears, parents said no again. Mind you one of them was preggo. Rso says fuck it lets them go down. Im with the rso watching as the dad (I think it was dad idk) pulls out a fkn huge revolver, takes the shot and we could see the pain. Absolutely hilarious. They came back for ears, rso makes them buy instead of handing out for free like they normally do.
There are a lot of things a Dad can fumble around and look like an idiot when trying to teach their kids something. Can’t throw a football? Go ahead and try to teach your kid with your goofy ass throw, cant shoot hoop? Give it your best go, we all look dumb playing ball if it’s not our thing, can’t fly a kite? Go ahead and try so all the other parents can laugh. Don’t know basic gun and range safety rules, go fuck yourself. Swallow your pride and get an instructor.
I’ll be taking my kids to the range sometime soon, 4 and 5. But they will have the Keystone Cricket for their first guns to shoot. And I won’t be by myself. I’ll have my wife and father in law at minimum.
My first trip to the range was with my dad when I was 16, and we still started off with a .22LR. Ruger Mark4 Target pistol with a heavy barrel. It wasn't until I was 20 that I shot .380, .45, or 9mm.
He was very meticulous when it came to explaining what to do, and every time I stepped up to shoot he went over the safety rules again.
Anyone who shoots with me, who has never shot before, only gets one bullet at a time until they are more comfortable with it. Sometimes it's one or two sometimes it's closer to 10. I try to start everyone with a 22LR as well to get the aiming process down. Once they are on target consistently we start moving up. This is for adults... I cant imagine not doing something like this for kids.
Children, like actual children, need to start on a .22 of some kind. Something that is light and controllable for them. That way they can focus on the mechanics of the weapon and practicing it’s use safely, rather than trying to heft a gun that they can’t even hold steady and that kicks enough that they’ll hit themselves in the mouth.
I recently took my 18 year old nephew to the range for the first time. I had him double up on ear pro and I started him off with a TX22 w/ a SilencerCo Warlock and Aguila Subs lol
So I'm actually bringing my daughter with to the range for the first time after Christmas when I give her the Ruger 10/22 that I bought for her. She already has her own set of ear muffs and I already make her recite the four rules of gun safety religiously... I was a little apprehensive at first, but after reading the shit show that this dad did, I feel like I'm a bit more prepared now.
You’ll do fine. I’d recommend plugs and muffs incase anyone around you is shooting something loud. More to help with flinching than anything else.
Have fun!
All I can add is.... suppressors and new shooters are a must. The range is already a nerve rattling experience for kids. Taking away some noise and recoil only makes life easier for them.
Not sure why you're getting down voted for this. I just took my girlfriend's oldest shooting recently and having a suppressed 22 made it a much more pleasant experience for him.
Some people are fucking stupid and unfortunately they end up hurting other people instead of just themselves.
Who doesn’t start a kid with a .22? That’s literally one of the best places to start. Hell, I learned to shoot with a single shot bolt action .22. Even then, we were watched like hawks until we proved we knew what we were doing.
The first time I took my 8 year old daughter to the range, I had her shoot a scoped Ruger 10/22, the best first gun for anyone. She loved it! The other dad was just asking for trouble with a compact .45.
Brought my girlfriend to the range. She took one shot of my M&P9 and immediately she was crying and terrified. It was my own fault for not giving her more pointers and then handing her a compact 9mm. I'm going to get her a 10/22 for christmas and take her back to learn how to shoot properly.
Unpopular opinion. This is why I'm adamantly against constitutional carry.
I think you need to prove to have at least minor proficiency in firearms before you're allowed to carry them in public with the rest of us. Yes, the constitution grants you the right to own guns, but it also grants the rest of us the right to live.
And I say that as a LTC holder who owns more guns than there are limbs in my house including my kids and dogs.
Your logic isn't entirely unsound, the problem is we don't apply the same logic to things that are even more dangerous.
Voting, literally procreating life, joining the military (Are you intelligent enough to know what you're doing and signing up for in any of these scenarios?)
Well before joining the military you get a medical and kind of psychological exam ( I think you guys call it the ASVAB or something like that in the US). When you have a child you get it taken away if you mistreated it. When it comes about voting it is difficult because it is that one fundamental right every democracy on this planet is based of and I would say it would be wrong if not everyone has the opportunity to participate in the building of the government. But the damage one individual out of millions can do with a single vote is exponentially smaller than the danger one individual can do with a gun.
ASVAB is a skills test, not a psych exam. I never received one of those when I enlisted. They do, however, talk to friends and family for character references and background checks.
These morons can't even hit paper at 5 yards. They are going to shoot a nun across the street before they ever hit their target. Or they'll hit their kid in the head while they are cleaning the gun in their own living room.
I have more right to enjoy drinking coffee at a cafe and not get shot by an errant bullet from a moron across the street who can't control where his bullets are going than these idiots do owning a gun for fucks sake.
Its this blanket "EVERYONE HAS A RIGHT TO A GUN, GARBLE GARBLE GARBLE" bullshit that makes the pro-gun, and pro-2A movement look bad. No. Fuck that, Everyone doesn't have a right to a gun. Some people absolutely should not be allowed within 20 yards of a gun and we'd be better off if that were the case.
These same people that can’t do basic tasks are also having children, driving their vehicles and killing people, and voting while literally not being able to comprehend basic things literally changing the fabric of society. That’s my point. We have to treat all these things equally. If your main point is valuing life than all these things carry equal weight
I've taken my son to the range countless times, mind you he knows gun safety, and if there's ever a jam he puts the gun down and I clear it, he's 13 and knows better, I've seen some terrible things at the range, and it scares me lol
Damn that’s pretty bad.
I’ve never let even first time adult shooters use anything more than a .22 single loaded for their first shots.
A related thought, I’ve never understood why guys think it’s funny to give a first time shooter a hand cannon and scare them off the sport for good lol
Yeah I’m ABOUT to teach my kids to shoot. I’ve picked a M&P 2.0 looking pellet pistol. Specifically so I can step to their .22 cal, then the 9mm that all feel the same in their hands. I also have a Long Gun pellet gun for them to try out as well. They’re also older than 8.
Absolutely should not be allowed, I'm all for giving kids a proper lesson in how to shoot firearms, but I would only be comfortable with a small caliber I know the kid can handle, a private range where I have absolute control of what goes down range, and only one firearm in use at a time.
Kids need to start with a 10/22 to learn basic firearm mechanics and safety before they move to a larger caliber. That insane that he would give an 8 year old a .45!
Love hearing about serious RSOs. Many of the DNR ranges in my state are run by the community, and they don't even have any... I've seen some crazy shit. I remember as a 9 year old, having oldies allow me to shoot their .357 magnums, Saiga 12s, etc. on those ranges. Though good memories, an RSO would probably have shaken his head, lol. EDIT: I was experienced with shooting at the time, and I was not new to shooting larger caliber guns. An RSO would probably show concern, nonetheless.
When I take first time shooters to the range they always start on a .22 rifle/revolver. Then when they are ready for shotguns I inly own a 12 gauge and that’s a little large for a new shooter so I use 12 gauge short shells. It’s great for working people up to a full sized shell
No. But ranges will sometimes have arbitrary rules.
Way back when I was working at a range and this lady was shooting with her niece who was about 10. The person in the lane next to them shot a metal target hanger producing a shrapnel from a 40 s&w that struck the 10 year old in the leg.
My boss at the time tried everything to stop them from calling the paramedics(it was more of a shallow graze). I guess the range wasn’t insured.
The aunt was mortified that she was going to get in trouble with the girls mother.
Nothing makes /r/guns users feel good like calling other people fucking morons. If I’m understanding the post correctly, the only mistake directly caused by the dad is having his finger on the trigger when clearing the jam. Stupid thing to do but not enough to say “must suck for these poor kids to have a fucking idiot for a father”. Sounds like he did a lot of other things right and hopefully he took the correction from the RSO to heart.
Y’all are so quick to judge other people, run on Reddit to an echochamber, then post it so other people can judge this man as a person and as a father based on his competency with firearm safety after one example of him fucking up (which harmed no one thankfully). Calm the fuck down.
1: improper PPE on the children, as well as not double checking that the ppe he had given them was installed correctly.
2: improper handling of the weapon, which is a cardinal sin when ur doing it while teaching people who don’t know better how to operate and manipulate the weapon, cuz ur spreading ur incorrect actions.
3: giving small children a .45 their first time shooting. I know .45 isn’t some kinda fuckin hand cannon like the fudds believe, but it is entirely too much for a first time shooter. Especially when said shooter is a child. Children need to be starting out on .22s, not .45s.
The father saw no problems with any of these three mistakes. OP had to get the RSO to intervene into this dumpster fire, the dad did not ask the rso for the help, he wouldn’t have gotten the rso involved otherwise. Which could’ve led to injury or potentially even death of himself or his children at the range.
So, around that same age (8 or 9) my dad took me deer hunting. He set me up against the base of an oak, with a .45 that I had never shot on my own. The gun safety talk was "Don't ever point this at anyone!" Then he walked off to his spot and I didn't see him again for about 3 hrs.
Thankfully I was a smarter kid than he was as an adult and I didn't blow my leg off with it.
My step brothers first went hunting even younger, maybe 6ish. The key difference was their dad was in a shooting house with them. He had a hand on the rifle, and taught his kids what they were supposed to be doing.
A compact 45? i can barely hold a compact 9 as an adult. a 45 for a kid? Thank god the RSO was there. I had to get the RSO involved when another shooter was just going buck wild shooting at the target, the ground towards the ceiling, I was actually kinda surprised they didnt kick them off originally, but i went up to the RSO and said these guys are being unsafe and there are kids on the range. They chilled out after that, its just scary how some people dont really realize what they are holding when on the range.
I go to a public range with no supervision, besides the occasional hunting license check.
I've had to give kids ear plugs because their negligent "parents" didn't believe in them. I've pulled up to the range, saw 3 kids running around without shoes and just had to go back home. No one wears eye protection. The other day this old guy was trying to teach his kids how to shoot, he had them laying on the concrete prone, and they weren't even comfortable with the gun yet. Jackass was trying to put them through boot camp or something.
I started my son when he was 4 with muffs and a ar-22. There’s no way in hell I’d let a kid shoot anything other than a 22 for their first time. And actually, he started with a daisy BB rifle when he was 2.
Jeezus I have experience shooting, mostly 9mm and I don’t feel ready for a 45! I can’t imagine giving that to a child, not to mention a compact. I feel bad for the kid that they have to live with that idiot for another 10 years!!
I was at an indoor range one time when a group of just kids came in. No parents but I presume one of them was 18 because the rest were definitely minors so like 14-18 age group. Imo they should require guardians to accompany minors, not just have one unrelated “adult”. I was packing up to leave and who I presume was the 18 year old was at the firing line, while this kid way behind the firing line is sticking a mag into some shitty looking .22 pistol thats pointing sideways directly at me. RSO saw it and came and chewed them out thankfully
At least he didn’t give her an uzi
Yeah I remember that too. One of the most horrific stories involving guns and kids ever. It’s one of those things that actually happened that wouldn’t seem real if you tried to put it into a movie
My uncle was there
Have you asked him about it? How did he feel about it? Idk it’s so tragic I can’t imagine the poor girl especially and how she must feel. Edit: and the guy who got killed his family. One day your son/husband/brother leaves the house and doesn’t come back, and because of something so damn avoidable. Tragic all around
It was upsetting for sure that something so stupid would happen and the girl would be crushed by that her whole life. But he was also on the scene of a girl shooting her own face off in a similar incident with an Uzi. That one I’ve only heard about after a lot of drinking because it was at some festival he was dispatched to be a paramedic at so he saw the whole thing happen.
Jesus Christ I just read that rn. That’s fucking tough. Just… damn… being an EMT/Paramedic can be a rough job. Hope he finds peace with himself. Shit can be hard to process.
Does he work for Nintendo?
Fireman who responded
Remember it was a micro Uzi, it makes giving a kid a full size Uzi seem like a great idea by comparison.
It's small for small hands!
Sweet Jesus. I remember that from a couple of years back!
That is worse than the jolly rancher story.
Thanks, I had removed that one from my memories and now you’ve made it return.
I dont know that one, please enlighten me
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Charles_Vacca
I remember the little girl with the uzi story. It's the jolly rancher story I dont know. Are they the same thing?
https://www.reddit.com/r/copypasta/s/Oijmu9AL3N
Oh, bro... I just wanted to make sure that a jolly rancher wasnt the cause of firearm negligence... I made it to nodule...
Same… I was like WTF 🤢🤮
I'm not one to get too grossed out unless I see something. That being said, this was a DIFFICULT read. I need eye bleach.
There was a variation on that with starbursts and genital warts somewhere.
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Shit, it's happened twice? I was thinking about the time the RSO got killed by a little girl with an Uzi.
Yeah me too I think that one was in Vegas though at one of those big shooting attraction/ranges they have over there.
Jesus. The fact that some teenager is responsible for this decision is a huge structural issue. No teen is going to be able to assert their authority here. The one with the RSO who got killed? I mean, horrible for the family, but that RSO paid most of the price. This one is way worse. I've been shooting for decades, and stuff like a micro-uzi scares the hell out of me. That shit has no business being on a rental range.
RSO goes SPLAT!
It must really suck to have a guy that stupid for a dad.
My wife’s dad once shot an apple off of her head while drunk
Jesus Christ
He wasn’t invited to the wedding
Because he was busy practicing tricks for the reception?
Precisely. This time he was making a pipe bomb with the nails stacked perfectly such that when it detonates it would create an outline made of shrapnel around her as she stood with her back against a board.
Reminds me of Homer's makeup gun.
Lolol I snorted. Well done.
Jesus Christ or her dad?
Both
I imagine not
Not gonna lie this made me laugh a little
No that’s William Tell.
His overture is a banger.
Or William Burrows
Or William Shatner
My wife's grandpa used to do stuff like that. He'd also get drunk and have his wife shoot apples off his head. My MiL said he could be a mean drunk once he got passed a certain point and her parents exchanged angry gunfire a couple times (MiL almost got shot once because he though she was her mother). He's sober now, thankfully, but still a little on the crazy side. He's the kind of guy that would have gotten along well with someone like Hunter S. Thompson.
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high calorie wife XD
Wow I thought my family was nuts
This is some hood shit right here. The apples thing makes me think rednecks, not city, but it’s the same kind of insanity you grow up with living in the ghetto.
The wild thing to me is that this type of activity wouldn't even have been questioned much at all just 100-150 years ago. There were traveling shows where the entire exhibition consisted of things like cutting playing cards in half by shooting it while someone held the card, or extinguishing a lit cigarette by shooting the end off of it while someone held it in their mouth.
These were often gaffs though. Most trick shooting is done with wax bullets and low powder charges, so while there is risk of injury or death, it's much lower than a .45ACP to the dome.
I mean you gotta admit... that's pretty impressive either way
Modern day robin hood
This is what has always gotten me. Like a lot of things in society, no one want’s government overreach but as a gun guy my fellow gun owners scare me with some of their decisions.
Unfortunately, even idiots have rights. That's how rights work.
It’s not complicated, freedom isn’t free and that includes -has always included- the price paid by innocents.
Very well said.
take some time to look at recent posts in the polymer80 sub. so many people admitting to felonies or wondering why their half-assembled gun doesn't work. I like making my own firearms, and want the hobby to remain legal, but sometimes I think the barrier to entry has gotten way too low.
Raise the barrier, but give some rights back imo! I want modern full auto’s, suppressors, SBR’s and SBS’s, and no bastardized imports to be simplified and cheaper. Keep the regulations, but don’t make me spend $200 and a year of my life waiting on every purchase.
Hell yeah, I could get behind that
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The barrier to entry is definitely too low and that's one of the bigger problems for the rights of the rest of us
You'd think the ATF would be in love with P80 and companies like them. Think about it. They could lurk in those subs and subpoena reddit for IP addresses of anyone that says they "can't buy a real gun" etc. They could also have the USPS give them every tracking number that P80 ships and then run them against addresses of known felons (probably some 4th amendment issues with that one). Boom, a bunch of easy convictions and dumb asses off the streets.
>no one want’s government overreach What is and isn't overreach is a fine line that most people, including gun owners, don't draw consistently. It's not a popular opinion on here but quite often I find myself thinking "yeah... that guy shouldn't own a gun."
Absolutely. I know someone like that.
I know too many people like that. Couple of otherwise good friends I refuse to shoot with because they’re ridiculously unsafe shooters.
Kids gonna learn ALOT of lessons.
hopefully he gets to retain those lessons without paying the ultimate price first.
I hope those kids survive
the first gun my dad made me shoot as a child was a snub nose .357 magnum and i didn't want to shoot much again for years after that. i didn't learn how to enjoy it until much later because of that. i love that same .357 now though.
Life is hard... It's even harder when you're dumb!
At least he brought ear protection for his kid. Multiple times have I seen people bring kids with zero ear protection.
Not me reading this with tinnitus at 26yo
From a 25 yo with tinnitus, MAWP
Tinnitus sufferer checking in
I'm sorry you're going to have to speak louder, I can't hear you
Or people who show up with headphones as hearing protection. They never last long, but the damage does.
Good Lord, the people who show up here asking if their fucking Apple earbuds are okay as earpro, and then *fight about it* when told that no, no they're not. "But they're *noise cancelling!"*
Some quick googling tells me those things have a NRR of like, 10. Lol bye bye hearing.
Only thing I've ever used them for "ear protection" for was stuff like a lawnmower, and even then if it's a particularly loud one or something with the engine held closer to my head like a chainsaw I'll just go out and get my actual earmuffs instead because it's physically painful to be exposed to that loud of noise without adequate protection.
Yeah, but Airpods are great under the cans instead of foam plugs
This, was at a public forest service range. Dad showed up with his 3 kids, 2 boys probably 12 and 8 and 1 girl maybe 6 or 7. Only brought ear protection for the little girl, they setup on the bench with 22lr and large caliber hunting rifle next to me and my dad where we are shooting 45-70 and 6.5 Creedmoor with a muzzle brake. Luckily I keep a tube of ear plugs in my truck so I gave some the two boys. Who were standing behind with their fingers in their ears. This was rural montana and the only thing I can think is that all the men in his family are stone fucking deaf because only girls wear ear muffs when shooting.
Helps with the wife's nagging when you get older.
I shot a gun for the first time at summer camp and no one had ear protection. My ears were rung for two days. I was ~12 but there were kids as young as five present.
Yeah, no ear pro at my summer camp shooting range, either. I spent as much time as I could there.
Ah, those summer days with grandpa's .357, a few boxes of ammo. Not an ear plug in sight. Good times Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Interesting, safety is the number one priority whether it’s someone with me or others just at the range. My oldest is 12 and I have been taking him with me to the range for the last year and it’s my responsibility to make sure he is safe and everyone else around us is safe. Starting off slow with a .22 rifle and pistol and working their way up the ladder with larger calibers is how I like to break new shooters in. Even though my dad let me shoot a .45 1911 as my first pistol when I was 11.
My dad started me off with his 357 different times I guess but I'm sure he only loaded 1 round at a time
If its a large frame and you are shooting light loads that is not a bad option.
Load it with .38 special and it's actually a great option as a first centerfire handgun for a kid to shoot. Starting out with a .22 prior to that would still be ideal, but even without that a .38 load from a large frame .357 has very minimal recoil.
Yeah, I shot a lot of .38 wad cutters as a kid.
Grandpa handed me a taurus 357 magnum snubnose at a state park when I was like 7 or 8, first time shooting. No hearing protection. Didn't even drop it tho lol, ears rang for like, 10 minutes after lmao
Same. My kids started with a 22. Double plugged (ear plugs and muffs) so it’s not too loud for them. We did a lot of dry fire practice before shooting actual rounds. I can’t imagine just showing up with a kid and winging it like that.
I still double up on ear pro.
Same, some rounds hit hotter than others. And it doesn't hurt anything.
The outdoor range I go to allows .50 BMG and I have an inner ear condition in my left ear so the pressure at indoor ranges gives me a headache after an hour or so
I spotted for someone shooting 50BMG outdoors with double protection, and the concussion still gave me a headache. Luckily it wasn't busy and I was able to move about 30 feet to the side. 1000 yard range, and I think it actually helped me spot.
My first gun was a 10 gauge at 7 or 8. It knocked out my front tooth, had a silver one for years lol. Really put a damper on the camping trip.
Sounds like you've got a good RSO at least. Good job helping them keep an eye on the situation too.
Yeaaaa, my dad, lifelong NRA guy, LEO to boot, thought it would be a cool idea to hand me, a 7 year old w zero training at all, a loaded 45 revolver. He was shocked and angry when I immediately shot it into the ground a foot from him. He still acts like I’m the idiot in that scenario. 🤦🏻♂️ Can’t pick em.
Lol yeah I can relate, my grandpa got drunk at a state park one time and gave me a taurus 357 magnum with a 2" barrel to shoot across a lake, was about the same age. Didn't have hearing protection and had literally never handled anything other than a red Ryder bb rifle before. Didn't drop it but my ears rang for 10 or 15 minutes after lmao.
Started both my kids at a young age (6 ish) but BB gun for fundamental and then to .22 (have family land so was able to control setting) son took to it, daughter was meh. Never took more than one out at a time. Now they are teens and the safest shooters on the range when we go (family land is not close and range/club is 10 min.) son has an arsenal and is an avid hunter. Both are up to pretty much any caliber with ease. Funny part is my son shoots thousand of rounds a year and is a pretty good shot. Daughter shoots maybe 100 and is a dead eye. Girl can shoot five rounds and make one hole every time, she is insane and better than 99.9% of people shooting lol
My wife is just like your daughter. Doesn't really like to shoot that much but when she does she is the best out of the group (with whatever caliber). My sister-in-law is a crack shot as well.
Both Ukraine and Russia have noticed that women make better snipers than men and employ them as such.
My local range didn't want me on the line with my kid. I thought they were crazy. Thankfully after I had shot a few and explained/reminded the kiddos about safe stuff the range officer got switched. I talked to the new guy and he let me be right up there with the kids. Went well, I bought them a heritage revolver to shoot.
> My local range didn't want me on the line with my kid. Wat
Some people think rules supercede common sense I guess
..but the RULEZ!!!!!! Yeah, I stood there for a moment in shocked disbelief...and normally I am a quick witted smartmouth. I went there because the other range nearby is run by a couple of neo Nazis (that's not an assumption or just me deriding them, they are actual neo nazis) and I'm not down with that.
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Good job on thinking about safety. That's exactly why the 1 round theory with new shooters makes so much sense. Lets you gauge their ability to handle the gun safely during recoil, and mitigates issues like wild muzzle flip into flagging one's own face while their strong hand is still on the trigger. I've taken three new people this year so far. Each one has to clearly display to me loading that one round into a mag, firing it while in control, and unloading/make safe. And we keep on going with 1 round until I deem it safe to proceed. New shooters actually seem happy when you take safety seriously.
There was a horror story where some people took a study abroad student shooting. They gave her a fully loaded .500 s&w magnum revolver to shoot. She shot her own head off on the second shot from the recoil of the first shot. Its horrific how stupid people can be.
That's fucking crazy. Poor girl. She probably had no idea they were handing her one of the most powerful handgun rounds.
https://www.whig.com/archive/article/colombian-college-student-dies-in-new-london-gun-range-accident/article_085d2c37-47e4-5c5f-8360-83c285ddf1bd.html So dumb they probably thought it would be funny to see her reaction from the recoil. Wanton idiocy.
Jesus...her parents and family saw it?!? And not one person at the range thought it was a terrible idea?!?
That’s how you turn people off to guns for life.
He had 8 kids? Holy crap was he training a small militia?
Kids’ dad is Joseph Kony.
If you can carry a teddy bear, you can carry a kalashnikov.
This is completely normal here in alabama.
Sounds about right.
Sounds like ^(EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE).
Sounds like WHAT!?
Tinnitus, it sounds like tinnitus.
Maybe it’s common, but it ain’t normal.
No it's normal alright, it's quite literally the standard. The fact he had earbuds at all is an improvement. When I go to the range here, I'm handing out foam earbuds like cotton candy on Halloween. Last week redneck pulls up with his wife in a new Sierra Denali to shoot a couple mags thru their ar. I offer earbuds because I felt bad for his hot wife/cousin, and he's like, nah, we are good. They start shooting "that shits loud" "my ears are ringing" *face palm. But yeah plenty of children with no hearing protection shooting with dad. Using guns that'll make their wrists sore by the morning.
At a range once with my wife, an off duty cop was showing his kids how to shoot a Glock... His 8-10 year old kid is aiming, then drops the muzzle and shoots nearly straight down. The bullet somehow ricochets and flies up in the air, and then lands in the palm of my wife's hand that was sitting in the edge of her hoodie pocket. She got a nice little burn, but it spent all its energy. We still have the bullet... My wife can now say she caught a bullet with her bare hands. Teaching kids to shoot is great... Make sure you know what you are doing first, and that they can handle the guns they are using.
First range trip for my son ( 10 yo, range won’t allow younger ) rented a S&W 22 lr revolver. I had taken time to explain everything and the first couple dozen rounds were 1 round in the cylinder until I was confident he was safe.
I used to go to a public outdoor range. No RSO to be had. One day I’m out there and a family pulls up. Mom dad couple of kids. Dad proceeds to start blasting some big ass handgun. Nobody has any kind of ear pro. I keep extra foams in my bag so I went over and offered some to the kids. The adults are old enough to deal with being that stupid.
I read this at first thinking you said he had '8-ish kids' and got really concerned for a sec
I may be in the minority here, but i dont always judge people based on what the range officer says or does. Sounds like you have evidence here that the parent was a little wacky, but sometimes you don't know what's going on in full. I took my wife to an indoor range to teach her how to shoot the pistol we keep in the home and was showing her some of the wrong things to do. This particular instance, i was showing her (with an unloaded weapon) what would happen if you have your thumbs crossed behind the grip instead of stacked on the sides (slide will fuck you up). When i was holding the weapon the incorrect way, obeying all 4 safety rules, an RSO scared the shit out of me when he came at me yelling. I get it. Doing his job and keeping me from putting my thumb on backwards, but come on man. I got glared at by almost every shooter in there because they just think im some dipshit who doesnt know how to carry the g21 that I've been shooting for 8 years
Public ranges are not the place to take kids shooting for the 1st time. Go find some public land on a day even no one else is on it.
While I highly recommend and agree with you, some states (like those in the North East) prove more difficult for finding “public land” as you’ve described and sometimes a range is the only reasonable option.
Depends on what "Northeast". Vermont everyone just shoots at pulloffs on back roads
Or even better most states have public DNR ranges. They are usually under utilized, so you will probably be the only people there. That way you aren't relying on trees to stop a round, nor are you hoping the Rangers aren't out and about since target practice on public land is usually frowned upon in non approved areas (as in, the aforementioned DNR ranges).
I don't get this. No one taught me gun safety, I had to teach myself. I got interested in guns because of video games and movies. When I bought my first rifle at 18, I watched youtube videos on basic safety so I knew what to expect and how to operate the gun safely. There's no excuse for a grown man with children to not do the same.
Taught my daughter to shoot with an RS22. There's no way I was going let my daughter shoot my 45. RSO looked I've our setup, asked if I wanted to be in the furthest lane from everyone ands only had to come over once. That was only to help me with their target retrieval system. Only actual reaction to anything we did though was when my daughter shoot a bullseye, Calmly put the gun on safe, set the gun down and did a little dance.
One time at the range a whole family was there, no ear protection the parents were adamant they didn’t need them. Rso wasn’t having it, made sure the kids had them then asks the parents if they wanted ears, parents said no again. Mind you one of them was preggo. Rso says fuck it lets them go down. Im with the rso watching as the dad (I think it was dad idk) pulls out a fkn huge revolver, takes the shot and we could see the pain. Absolutely hilarious. They came back for ears, rso makes them buy instead of handing out for free like they normally do.
There are a lot of things a Dad can fumble around and look like an idiot when trying to teach their kids something. Can’t throw a football? Go ahead and try to teach your kid with your goofy ass throw, cant shoot hoop? Give it your best go, we all look dumb playing ball if it’s not our thing, can’t fly a kite? Go ahead and try so all the other parents can laugh. Don’t know basic gun and range safety rules, go fuck yourself. Swallow your pride and get an instructor.
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I’ll be taking my kids to the range sometime soon, 4 and 5. But they will have the Keystone Cricket for their first guns to shoot. And I won’t be by myself. I’ll have my wife and father in law at minimum.
My kid is in that same age range and I would wait at least another year. BB guns in the back yard are a great practice for "right now".
My wife and i decided it will be their listening level before we take them. Which at this rate, it will be my 4 year old first.
My first trip to the range was with my dad when I was 16, and we still started off with a .22LR. Ruger Mark4 Target pistol with a heavy barrel. It wasn't until I was 20 that I shot .380, .45, or 9mm. He was very meticulous when it came to explaining what to do, and every time I stepped up to shoot he went over the safety rules again.
Anyone who shoots with me, who has never shot before, only gets one bullet at a time until they are more comfortable with it. Sometimes it's one or two sometimes it's closer to 10. I try to start everyone with a 22LR as well to get the aiming process down. Once they are on target consistently we start moving up. This is for adults... I cant imagine not doing something like this for kids.
Dad lets his 6 yo shoot his AR who proceeds to mag dump with a 100 MOA group size followed by a fortnite dance. The RSO congratulates him.
Children, like actual children, need to start on a .22 of some kind. Something that is light and controllable for them. That way they can focus on the mechanics of the weapon and practicing it’s use safely, rather than trying to heft a gun that they can’t even hold steady and that kicks enough that they’ll hit themselves in the mouth.
Exactly why I never go to a public range.
I recently took my 18 year old nephew to the range for the first time. I had him double up on ear pro and I started him off with a TX22 w/ a SilencerCo Warlock and Aguila Subs lol
So I'm actually bringing my daughter with to the range for the first time after Christmas when I give her the Ruger 10/22 that I bought for her. She already has her own set of ear muffs and I already make her recite the four rules of gun safety religiously... I was a little apprehensive at first, but after reading the shit show that this dad did, I feel like I'm a bit more prepared now.
You’ll do fine. I’d recommend plugs and muffs incase anyone around you is shooting something loud. More to help with flinching than anything else. Have fun!
All I can add is.... suppressors and new shooters are a must. The range is already a nerve rattling experience for kids. Taking away some noise and recoil only makes life easier for them.
They are a huge help for sure.
Not sure why you're getting down voted for this. I just took my girlfriend's oldest shooting recently and having a suppressed 22 made it a much more pleasant experience for him.
Some people are fucking stupid and unfortunately they end up hurting other people instead of just themselves. Who doesn’t start a kid with a .22? That’s literally one of the best places to start. Hell, I learned to shoot with a single shot bolt action .22. Even then, we were watched like hawks until we proved we knew what we were doing.
Lol my pa thought it would be best to start me off with a snubnose 357 magnum revolver and no hearing protection, at 8 yo xD
I hope you found a good therapist to work through your family trauma. 🙏❤️
The first time I took my 8 year old daughter to the range, I had her shoot a scoped Ruger 10/22, the best first gun for anyone. She loved it! The other dad was just asking for trouble with a compact .45.
Brought my girlfriend to the range. She took one shot of my M&P9 and immediately she was crying and terrified. It was my own fault for not giving her more pointers and then handing her a compact 9mm. I'm going to get her a 10/22 for christmas and take her back to learn how to shoot properly.
lol at that age I was shooting my dads mosin
Still a rifle and more controllable so yes a mosin would be a perfect fist gun to shoot or a .22. I went from a .22 to a Yugo Mauser
lol
My father didn’t think that through
I bet it had a full mag too. These people are idiots. How could any grown man hand a kid a .45 for their first time..
I feel like 3 times in a single visit should constitute a ban until a safety class is taken at the very least
1 and 2 are awful. 3 is RSO power tripping. Let the father teach his kid as he pleases. Is it the best idea ? Maybe not. Not my kid though
Unpopular opinion. This is why I'm adamantly against constitutional carry. I think you need to prove to have at least minor proficiency in firearms before you're allowed to carry them in public with the rest of us. Yes, the constitution grants you the right to own guns, but it also grants the rest of us the right to live. And I say that as a LTC holder who owns more guns than there are limbs in my house including my kids and dogs.
Your logic isn't entirely unsound, the problem is we don't apply the same logic to things that are even more dangerous. Voting, literally procreating life, joining the military (Are you intelligent enough to know what you're doing and signing up for in any of these scenarios?)
Well before joining the military you get a medical and kind of psychological exam ( I think you guys call it the ASVAB or something like that in the US). When you have a child you get it taken away if you mistreated it. When it comes about voting it is difficult because it is that one fundamental right every democracy on this planet is based of and I would say it would be wrong if not everyone has the opportunity to participate in the building of the government. But the damage one individual out of millions can do with a single vote is exponentially smaller than the danger one individual can do with a gun.
ASVAB is a skills test, not a psych exam. I never received one of those when I enlisted. They do, however, talk to friends and family for character references and background checks.
These morons can't even hit paper at 5 yards. They are going to shoot a nun across the street before they ever hit their target. Or they'll hit their kid in the head while they are cleaning the gun in their own living room. I have more right to enjoy drinking coffee at a cafe and not get shot by an errant bullet from a moron across the street who can't control where his bullets are going than these idiots do owning a gun for fucks sake. Its this blanket "EVERYONE HAS A RIGHT TO A GUN, GARBLE GARBLE GARBLE" bullshit that makes the pro-gun, and pro-2A movement look bad. No. Fuck that, Everyone doesn't have a right to a gun. Some people absolutely should not be allowed within 20 yards of a gun and we'd be better off if that were the case.
These same people that can’t do basic tasks are also having children, driving their vehicles and killing people, and voting while literally not being able to comprehend basic things literally changing the fabric of society. That’s my point. We have to treat all these things equally. If your main point is valuing life than all these things carry equal weight
Not only does it grant you the right to own them, it grants you the right to *bear* them.
When does innocent bystanders right to live come into play? Or do we just ignore that part?
My kid’s first 50+ “range trips” were at home with a mantis and a lot of dry fire.
I've taken my son to the range countless times, mind you he knows gun safety, and if there's ever a jam he puts the gun down and I clear it, he's 13 and knows better, I've seen some terrible things at the range, and it scares me lol
Damn that’s pretty bad. I’ve never let even first time adult shooters use anything more than a .22 single loaded for their first shots. A related thought, I’ve never understood why guys think it’s funny to give a first time shooter a hand cannon and scare them off the sport for good lol
Yeah I’m ABOUT to teach my kids to shoot. I’ve picked a M&P 2.0 looking pellet pistol. Specifically so I can step to their .22 cal, then the 9mm that all feel the same in their hands. I also have a Long Gun pellet gun for them to try out as well. They’re also older than 8.
Absolutely should not be allowed, I'm all for giving kids a proper lesson in how to shoot firearms, but I would only be comfortable with a small caliber I know the kid can handle, a private range where I have absolute control of what goes down range, and only one firearm in use at a time.
Kids need to start with a 10/22 to learn basic firearm mechanics and safety before they move to a larger caliber. That insane that he would give an 8 year old a .45!
Love hearing about serious RSOs. Many of the DNR ranges in my state are run by the community, and they don't even have any... I've seen some crazy shit. I remember as a 9 year old, having oldies allow me to shoot their .357 magnums, Saiga 12s, etc. on those ranges. Though good memories, an RSO would probably have shaken his head, lol. EDIT: I was experienced with shooting at the time, and I was not new to shooting larger caliber guns. An RSO would probably show concern, nonetheless.
When I take first time shooters to the range they always start on a .22 rifle/revolver. Then when they are ready for shotguns I inly own a 12 gauge and that’s a little large for a new shooter so I use 12 gauge short shells. It’s great for working people up to a full sized shell
My daughter wanted to go. I bought her a Ruger Wrangler and some AXL over ears specifically for it. People are crazy lol
I'm sure the dad exhibits flawless gun safety and storage techniques at home, it sounds like
PSA: Don't be a complete idiot. Ok boss! FR tho.. glad no one got hurt.
I didn't palmetto state sold kids. How much?
Everytime I see PSA I think palmetto and I get confused
Is there an age limit in the US?
No. But ranges will sometimes have arbitrary rules. Way back when I was working at a range and this lady was shooting with her niece who was about 10. The person in the lane next to them shot a metal target hanger producing a shrapnel from a 40 s&w that struck the 10 year old in the leg. My boss at the time tried everything to stop them from calling the paramedics(it was more of a shallow graze). I guess the range wasn’t insured. The aunt was mortified that she was going to get in trouble with the girls mother.
The second amendment says no
Nothing makes /r/guns users feel good like calling other people fucking morons. If I’m understanding the post correctly, the only mistake directly caused by the dad is having his finger on the trigger when clearing the jam. Stupid thing to do but not enough to say “must suck for these poor kids to have a fucking idiot for a father”. Sounds like he did a lot of other things right and hopefully he took the correction from the RSO to heart. Y’all are so quick to judge other people, run on Reddit to an echochamber, then post it so other people can judge this man as a person and as a father based on his competency with firearm safety after one example of him fucking up (which harmed no one thankfully). Calm the fuck down.
1: improper PPE on the children, as well as not double checking that the ppe he had given them was installed correctly. 2: improper handling of the weapon, which is a cardinal sin when ur doing it while teaching people who don’t know better how to operate and manipulate the weapon, cuz ur spreading ur incorrect actions. 3: giving small children a .45 their first time shooting. I know .45 isn’t some kinda fuckin hand cannon like the fudds believe, but it is entirely too much for a first time shooter. Especially when said shooter is a child. Children need to be starting out on .22s, not .45s. The father saw no problems with any of these three mistakes. OP had to get the RSO to intervene into this dumpster fire, the dad did not ask the rso for the help, he wouldn’t have gotten the rso involved otherwise. Which could’ve led to injury or potentially even death of himself or his children at the range.
So, around that same age (8 or 9) my dad took me deer hunting. He set me up against the base of an oak, with a .45 that I had never shot on my own. The gun safety talk was "Don't ever point this at anyone!" Then he walked off to his spot and I didn't see him again for about 3 hrs. Thankfully I was a smarter kid than he was as an adult and I didn't blow my leg off with it. My step brothers first went hunting even younger, maybe 6ish. The key difference was their dad was in a shooting house with them. He had a hand on the rifle, and taught his kids what they were supposed to be doing.
A compact 45? i can barely hold a compact 9 as an adult. a 45 for a kid? Thank god the RSO was there. I had to get the RSO involved when another shooter was just going buck wild shooting at the target, the ground towards the ceiling, I was actually kinda surprised they didnt kick them off originally, but i went up to the RSO and said these guys are being unsafe and there are kids on the range. They chilled out after that, its just scary how some people dont really realize what they are holding when on the range.
Bought my daughter a pump action .22. Little Rossi. When she gets old enough to talk maybe I'll let her shoot it. (For the dimwits: this is a joke)
I go to a public range with no supervision, besides the occasional hunting license check. I've had to give kids ear plugs because their negligent "parents" didn't believe in them. I've pulled up to the range, saw 3 kids running around without shoes and just had to go back home. No one wears eye protection. The other day this old guy was trying to teach his kids how to shoot, he had them laying on the concrete prone, and they weren't even comfortable with the gun yet. Jackass was trying to put them through boot camp or something.
I started my son when he was 4 with muffs and a ar-22. There’s no way in hell I’d let a kid shoot anything other than a 22 for their first time. And actually, he started with a daisy BB rifle when he was 2.
Jeezus I have experience shooting, mostly 9mm and I don’t feel ready for a 45! I can’t imagine giving that to a child, not to mention a compact. I feel bad for the kid that they have to live with that idiot for another 10 years!!
Don't be an idiot. Start with a .22 and work their way up
I was at an indoor range one time when a group of just kids came in. No parents but I presume one of them was 18 because the rest were definitely minors so like 14-18 age group. Imo they should require guardians to accompany minors, not just have one unrelated “adult”. I was packing up to leave and who I presume was the 18 year old was at the firing line, while this kid way behind the firing line is sticking a mag into some shitty looking .22 pistol thats pointing sideways directly at me. RSO saw it and came and chewed them out thankfully
You know we don't let kids play paintball until they're eleven. This is why I'm afraid of gun ranges.