Old Glock guy

Dtwn223, I feel your pain. It's annoying to pack up the car, drive up there, find the place is closed, and then be given the brushoff. On the other hand, I knew about the work weekend closure, and I'm not even normally up on stuff like that, so the info was out there. Lots of things for which one can criticize CR. But the setting is beautiful, the people there are mostly very nice, and the price is right. Nothing in life is perfect. If you like it there, don't be like the guy who loves a particular restaurant, but gets rude service by a waitress (or waiter) there one time, and vows, "We'll never go there again!" Swallow your pride, maybe take a couple of weeks away from there, and accept CR for what it is. Just my two cents.

Thank you gentlemen for your replies. Sounds like there would be nothing inherently illegal in what I described. (The law against shining a light on a deer only prohibits one from doing so while hunting them, I'm pretty sure.) But it looks like the consensus agrees with me that it would be a pretty dumb idea, as I alluded to in my original post. So I guess popping the deer with an AirSoft gun would be out of the question.

I was walking through a nearby park by myself this evening at dusk. The place was desolate and peaceful. As I was strolling along, I started thinking that it would be a lot more fun if I was able to carry my SIRT inert training pistol in my IWB holster (http://nextleveltraining.com/content/sirt-specifications), and use stealth, cover, and concealment to get close enough to use deer as targets for dry fire with the laser. Is that totally crazy? Or is it just crazy here in NJ? I'm in my early 60's, but young at heart and dumb enough to try something like this. Other than possibly getting shot by police, who might think I had a gun (although I've never seen them in this particular wooded arboretum), would I risk a nuisance charge like "creating a public menace"? Any thoughts from my knowledgeable colleagues?

Isn't that just a way of emphatically agreeing?

Short answer: No. Longer reply: There are so many other issues we have been fighting in this godforsaken state, that hollow points have not been at the top of the list, especially since most of us can't carry anyway.

I've had similar issues sighting in a new gun. Yes, by all means get a bore sighter, and you will save a lot of ammo. Also, once you get an idea of where your bore is pointing, consider using a really large paper target, either as your primary target or as a backing (as plode noted), so you will be able to see where your misses are going. If you really think it's your sights, you could have a more experienced shooter try your gun to see what happens.

If you're looking for a bolt action, how about the brand new Ruger American Rimfire? I have no familiarity with it, but with an MSRP of $329, seems like it would be tough to go wrong. http://www.ruger.com/news/2013-08-29.html

Beat me to it! Yes, that's truly the AR-15 of the .22's, same controls and all. But tell me, where do you plan to find .22LR ammo?

Put another couple of boxes through it yesterday, and it fired every time (except for once when I forgot to take the safety off). Thanks again for everyone's help.

Yes, and if the antis are serious about reducing gun violence, it's places like that where they should be focusing their efforts. (But of course, all of you already know that.)

Another poll result that will never see the light of day, while NJ.com was quick to post the results of a poll purportedly showing that a majority of NJ citizens disapproved of the governor's veto of the recent gun bills.

Yes, I realize that, but that was all I had time for yesterday. I'll go up to the clay range sometime soon and blow through a couple of boxes or so to see how it does with that. Thanks again for your help.

Nice write-up HE. Sounds like it was a great class. I'll have to watch for future offerings.

Thank you gentlemen (ladies?) for your helpful suggestions. I took it all apart and gave it a good cleaning. (How did people put guns back together before You Tube?) It did not look particularly dirty, BTW. Put a dozen or so rounds of buckshot through it yesterday without a hitch.

I've seen recent polls showing overwhelming support for concealed carry in NJ, and against the need for more background checks, among others. But you will never see an article in this state about those polls. Thank god we live in a constitutional republic, where the majority is not able to vote away the rights of minorities.

I don't know anything about Joe Reidy (although it sounds like I might want to do some training with him), but you can't go wrong with MDTS.

So according to that Daily News front page, the AR-15 just got up off the floor again (or climbed out of the closet) and started killing people? Damn, they better hurry up and ban those things!

Wouldn't that be great! But don't hold your breath waiting for it to happen. He has some kind of bug up his ass about AR-15's. I think he just likes to say stuff like that to piss off people like us, who otherwise wouldn't watch him.

Piers Morgan was beating his drum again last night for a ban on AR-15's. "Why would anyone NEED one of those killing machines?" He completely ignored Ben Ferguson, who was trying to tell him that it's not AR-15's that are getting people killed, it's those Gun Free Zones.

I'm sure the antis are already getting all excited about launching another attack on the Second Amendment. It should be clear to them by now: You want to prevent mass shootings? Get rid of Gun Free Zones. Seems like all of them happen there. First things first though, my sympathy to the families of those killed and wounded.

Wait, I'm supposed to clean it? Seriously though, are you suggesting I might have disturbed something when I cleaned it, or just that it might need to be cleaned (which could be the case). Smoke Eater, it's just a couple of years old, but I probably have over a thousand rounds through it. (And yes, I have cleaned it occasionally.)

Not sure about the rentals, but a new shooter will be made to feel quite comfortable at either RTSP or the Gun for Hire range in Woodland Park. If you have not shot before, I would strongly recommend a First Steps Pistol class, which is available at either place.

My Mossberg 500 will occasionally fail to fire when I press the trigger. There will be a round in the chamber, but it will feel like the safety is on. I will immediately check the safety, thinking I have forgotten to place it in the fire position (which I certainly have done on occasion), but it will be off and ready to go. I have not actually checked the shell, but the guys pulling for me have looked, and said it looked like a light strike. It happens pretty infrequently, but yesterday I had it occur twice in 25 rounds. It's only a minor inconvenience when shooting clays, but I would sure hate to have it happen when I'm facing an armed assailant. Any thoughts on what to check?

Interesting observation. Yes, that's been my experience as well with every gun store I've been to in north Jersey.

I believe I have the exact same gun (possibly minus the tri-rail). It's a great choice for HD. I have it loaded, next to my bed. It's fun to shoot at the range, and for clays from shorter distances, like skeet and the practice trap field at Thunder Mountain. I added an XS Big Dot front sight, which gets epoxied right over the bead. Now for the bad news. You cannot swap out the barrel for a 28" one for shooting trap. The seven round magazine precludes that, as RF suggested. I learned that the hard way by ordering one from Midway (after speaking with a customer service rep about it), then having to send it back. The solution is actually quite simple. If you want a similar gun with a longer barrel, just get another one. They are available for around $300, and that way you won't have to swap the barrel on your HD gun every time you want to shoot clays. Oh, and as for the weight compared to an 18.5" barrel, I believe the difference is insignificant. I have a 590 A1 with the shorter barrel, and it's much heavier. Nonetheless, I've used both at all day classes without any problems. (And I weigh less than 150 pounds.)