ArizonaShooting.com

The wife and I went in there at 9 am today to give it a try.

When we went in the door, there was a package of large cookies sitting on the table just inside the door. There was one there Saturday also so I guess this is a normal everyday thing and you can take one for free if you want to raise your blood sugar a bit.

When you shoot, they hold your membership card and your Drivers' License both while you shoot. Since the two of us were shooting, they took both of our membership cards and Licenses.

They visually inspect your ammo to make sure it isn't tracer or steel or AP. If you brought lots of ammo they get tired of this after the first box and take your word for it from then on. (They only took 1 round out of the middle of the first box for this inspection.)

They write down the calibers you'll be shooting on a card for their reference. (I have no idea why they do this and I didn't ask)

They've got a target holder (steel) sitting on the counter with 4 bullet holes in it. They've only been open around a week and already some idiot shot up a holder. There's no way you could hit that thing 4 times accidentally either.

The motor that takes the target out is continuous and uses a double pole center off momentary contact switch to move it. You just hold the switch in the direction you want to go and release it when it gets where you want it. It stops instantaneously or thereabouts. There are also speed controls (rheostats) so you can make it go fast if you're going back and forth at 25 yards or so. The walls are marked at 3 yards, 5 yards, 7 yards, 10 yards, 15 yards, 20 yards and 25 yards.

They say they're going to replace the wires that run the target out with tracks as the wire bounces. I really didn't notice bouncing to speak of so that doesn't bother me one way or another. If you can't shoot because a target's moving half an inch or so back and forth you have other problems.

The air conditioning was good and set for around 78 as a guess, same as my house, so I didn't freeze my butt off while there.

I bought silhouette targets for the wife and I and they charged 75¢ apiece for them plus tax so our total shooting experience was $1.64 for the two of us.

The targets are held onto the backing with blue tape, the kind professional painters use and the roll is around 2" wide. The wife and I are going to bring some steel clips next time as we thought this sucked. You can also use the tape to cover the bullet holes if you want.

There's a couple of signs there that state due to a recent mishap only members will be allowed to shoot shotguns there in the future. I didn't ask what the mishap was as I prefer to shoot shotguns outdoors only so it doesn't impact me.

I dealt with Michelle, Mr. Cunningham's wife going in and a younger smallish guy going out. Both were extremely pleasant and B.S.'ed with us for a while. Michelle remembered the wife and I and our names when we went in. (I'm not sure if this is a good thing or not)

All in all a good overall experience.

Flash

I went there on Friday and guys 2 lanes down were shooting a shotgun, an AK, and an AR. All 3 are excellent reasons not to go back. I realize they need to make money and appeal to a broad range of shooters, but that space is too small and has no sound proofing for rifle calibers.

Overall it's a nice little range. If they are going to anything they should make the shelf in front of the shooter deep enough so you can set a standard size pistol on it completely and not have it hang over the edge. Carpet on the shelf and side walls would be nice to; would cut down some noise and keep the flying brass from bouncing all over the place.

Glad they didn't ask to see my ammo, it was all in mags.

Got scolded for double tapping.

They're really gonna dislike the Thompson.

D.

So then I am assuming they are a no full auto range.

Big signs everywhere about how much everything costs if you shoot it inadvertently...this I can respect.

"rule 12" no double tapping or rapid fire.

But FA is OK.

Nice folks, but it's apparent to me that they've never managed such an endeavor before. Doesn't mean that they're bad or wrong, just that they're learning.

D.

So how fast do you think you were shooting when you got scolded? When I was there I was shooting 5 rounds in around 2-1/2 or 3 seconds, as were the two guys next to me. Chris Cunningham was in the range with us and didn't say anything.

I also wondered why they would have this rule when they allowed FA but I didn't ask.

I have also fired at this rate many times over the years at Caswells with no scolding and so I kind of figured they used it to stop someone who was shooting faster and couldn't control it.

Flash

Do they allow drawing from holsters?
I've been "advised" at other ranges that they wouldn't allow me to practice my draw due to safety concerns.

As of "opening day" that was a no. i suspect some things might change there. Nice folks but not really my cup of tea, a little to sterile. Wish them the best, hoping to use their range soon.

no double tapping, well so much for realistic anything...

Went to check the place out today and shoot.
It’s a nice little gun range, though I get the feeling they are a little over protective. I had to sign like 5 pages of “rules and waivers of liability,” along with several signs saying how much they would bill me for damaging this or that. It does cause a bit of an unwelcoming feeling, but not enough to stop me from coming back.

Rental gun choices are few, maybe 10 total, and oddly enough I didn’t see any Glocks for rent.

The only two staff there were Mr. Cunningham and his wife. Didn’t talk to him as he was on the phone must the time. His wife was nice and helpful, although I kept getting eye balled from him almost I was going to pocket something (maybe it’s my age, who knows).

The sales choices are again small and mostly used handguns and some long guns. Not sure if the long guns were used or not. Didn’t see any deals that were supper great but nothing was way over priced either.

Free hearing protection and safety glasses with the lane rental if you need them. This was a nice touch because I forgot my glasses.

A/C in the range area was set at 74 but it didn’t seem cold to me, just right.

The last thing was, I rented a gun, and Mrs. Cunningham got the gun from case and inspected it. However she handed it to me with mag out but the slide closed. Not a big deal, but I’m all about handing someone a gun you just checked with the slide still locked open, just as a safety thing.

I would visit again, but I do hope their selections increase soon.

At my store if I hand someone a gun with the slide open about 30% of my customers will flip the lever and let it slam closed on an empty chamber [I guess they see this in the movies] which makes me wince. I check it and hand it to the customer closed as well.

Guess I take for granted that people know better, which I shouldn't because I work with the public.

I shot there last week. All the paperwork and stuffiness is a bit much but I'm sure it will lighten up as time passes. I asked if they kept all the paperwork on file for the next time I shoot but they said they only keep it for 30 days and then you need to fill it all out again I was trying to bench rest while sighting in a couple guns I use for competition and was rather annoyed that I had to wait a few minutes before the target would stop bouncing up and down after I sent it down range. They need to ditch the cable system they are currently using. besides that I thought the range was nice and the lighting and temperature was perfect. As for their gun selection, I'm sure the inventory will increase as time goes on but their prices are rather high (almost bordering on ridiculous) I thought Guns Etc. in Chandler was high; they surely give them a run for their money. I did use them for an FFL transfer and had to explain to them that they can't charge sales tax to do a transfer. They agreed and were trying to figure out how to remove the tax from that category on their system. Overall, I would and will go back. They are new to the business and have only been open a month. I will give them the benefit of the doubt for being rookies in this venture. They are very polite, nice, friendly and really seem like they want to do the right thing for their customers. I wish them the best of luck and hope they are successful.

A friend and his girl friend were there two weeks ago and both said good things about the place.

Maybe their cable system got fixed mine didn't seem to move around once it stopped. Granted I was the only one on the range so that may have helped as there no other moving cables. I agree on giving them the benefit of the doubt, and that’s why I'll go back. Despite my "complaints" I really did like the place overall.