It's vital to check rifle, sights before opening day

[Paladin]

Article, plus a nice list of San Antonio ranges:

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/stor ... 23d86.html

Outdoors: It's vital to check rifle, sights before opening day

Web Posted: 08/31/2006 07:20 PM CDT

Ron Henry Strait
Express-News Staff Writer

Strange things can happen to riflescopes when they spend the summer in a closet or gun safe.
For sure, a reticle can wander and the crosshairs can drift around inside the tube like a clueless retriever looking for a gone bird. I've also seen tiny screws come loose and rattle around inside a scope.

Those unlikely circumstances happen to older scopes or scopes that have had a chance encounter with a hard knock — such as a slamming truck door or a long drop onto the rocky ground.

The bad fact is that the hunter does not discover the defect until deer season is near, and then the rush is on to find a fix, which can be a difficult task. Worse, the defect may not be discovered until the first shot at a big buck goes yards astray.

Now is the time to check riflescopes, and not just for defects. A hunter whose firearms have been put away since last season should test fire the guns, if for no other reason than to reacquaint his senses with the noise and feel of each gun.

Anyone who is adding or replacing a rifle scope will need to get the scope bore sighted, which is a valuable half-step to accuracy that will save ammunition and money in the long run.

Local public ranges include:

A Place to Shoot (628-1888, online aplacetoshoot.com) Located 2 miles south of Loop 410 off Moursund Boulevard near Mitchell Lake. Hours are 10 a.m.-7 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m.-6 p.m. weekends. Rifle range distances are 25, 50, 100 and 200 yards. There is a gunsmith at the range, and the shop sells guns, ammunition and reloading supplies. Bore sighting is $3 per gun. Fee: $9 per person and one gun for single-distance targets and $11 per person/one gun for combo-distance targets.

Bullet Hole Shooting Range (679-6781, bullethole.com) Located west of San Antonio on Grosenbacher Road, outside Loop 1604 and north of U.S. 90. Open every day, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Rifle range distances are 50, 100, 200 and 300 yards. Pistol ranges are available. The shop sells guns and ammunition. Bore sighting is $3. Fee: $7.50 per person for members, $10.50 for non-members. Memberships are $3. No limit on guns.

Bracken Rifle and Pistol Range (651-9009, brackenrange.com) Located northeast of San Antonio off Nacogdoches Road about 2 miles north of Rolling Oaks Mall. Closed on Wednesday. It opens at noon three days a week (Monday, Thursday and Friday) and at 9 a.m. other days. Rifle range is 50 and 100 yards. Pistol range is 7, 15 and 25 yards. Separate concealed carry practice range. Also has a range for patterning a shotgun. Only pistol ammunition sold. Bore sighting available. Fee: $7 per rifle, including target.

Bexar Community Range (830 914-2182) Located east of San Antonio and south of Interstate 10 at Trainer-Hale Road. Closed Monday and Wednesday. Open other days noon-7 p.m. and at 9 a.m. on Saturday. Rifle range is 25, 50, 100 and 200 yards. Pistol, trap and skeet ranges available. Guns, shells and reloading supplies sold on site. No gunsmith. Fee: $10 per person and one target, no limit on guns.

Blackhawk Shooting Range (622-9620) Located on Jarratt Road southwest of San Antonio 4 miles outside Loop 1604. Open 9 a.m.-7 p.m. seven days a week. The rifle range is 100 yards. Handgun ranges from 3-50 yards. Shells sold on premises, but no guns sold and no gunsmith available. Fee: $4.75 per pistol and $5 per rifle, plus tax.

Texas Thunder Range (509-2273, texasthunderrange.com) This indoor San Antonio range requires the purchase of a membership. The range is air-conditioned. Range is about 50 feet long and good for shooting pistols or for bore sighting a rifle before going to an outdoor range.

Dietz Gun Shop and Range (830 885-4662) Located west of New Braunfels on Texas 46 at Range Road. Open seven days a week. Guns and ammunition sold. Gunsmith available. Range distances are 25, 50, 100 and 200 yards. Fee: $10 per shooter.

[Texasdoc]

I have been to Bullet hole range and its a nice set up Rifle range out to 300yds with lots of Room to move around in. the Guys there where nice and helpful.


I totally Believe in sighting your hunting and shooting guns and spending a bit of time working with them. you owe the Game you hunt that much.

as a Wildlife Biologist I have seen my share of wounded game and game that was shoot to hell from guys that think its shoot good last season and its still on target.


300shooter