Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire College kids and an AR15

I was the only person on the range at noon until two college kids rolled up and asked to hang a target. I was shooting the 6x47 and taking my time since the barrel was too hot to hold after a few shots. I knew they had a scoped AR with a bipod but didn't pay attention beyond that.

I heard a few shots over the hour and when I did look at their targets I didn't see a hole, I turned to them and and asked if they were on paper and they got up and walked over. They said they could not see anything but thought they were shooting high and I confirmed they were not on paper, over the berm is sporting clays so I asked if they bore sighted it.

Short story, no, he said his Dad did but it was a new rifle and scope and he did not know how. I offered to help, hell, if someone at sporting clays gets shot and the range is shut down I will have to drive 75 miles to shoot...I know, I am a selfish basturd.

The kid handed me the rifle and I pulled the upper and bcg and set it on my bag, it was indeed high about 4' and wide a few feet more. It had a Nikon P223 3X so I spun the dials to get it on target and gave them a sheet of 30x42 drafting paper and a dot and went to pull my own target.

I noticed they had not reassembled the bcg so I asked if they needed help and they did. I waiting around long enough for them to get a shot off, left of center about 3".

Generally I don't offer to help unless I see some indication a person wants input, unless they are dangerous and I guess we all should step up in those instances.

Hopefully they remember how to bore sight an AR.

They did say thanks, good enough for me.

Thank you sir.

I didn't grow up around guns, but had enough experience with scoped BB guns to know how to sight one in, but not bore sight it. Coulda used someone like you at the range when I bought my first rifle.

Never hurts to be nice is my general experience with people.

Good on you.

Gotta love the guy that sights in (first shots) at 100 yards. I always fire at least one at 25 just to make sure when its a new mount. It's a bitch getting on if your not on.

Hope the kids learned something. Everyone can use a mentor. The knowledge is not automatic...and good thinking to keep the clayshooter's safe, I hope they have more than 4' of protection though! I'd hate to be downrange without some SUBSTANTIAL berms. Seems like a setup that Murphy would approve of.

Everyone did something the first time. Good of you to help.

you can sight in a ar at 25yards.

we should take advantage of opportunities to advance our sport, those kids are the future of our Country and like it or not they "represent" us.

Good job sir! I hope you mentioned youtube or an owners manual to learn how to maintain their rifle in the future.

Mike

Excellent Job!

And you are correct, we should always step up if we see something potentially dangerous going on and to do it in an unintimidating manor.

You just know they went back and are telling their friends of the cool old geezer they met at range.

Good on your part for helping them out.
Good on their part for getting involved in a sport that needs a constant influx of new shooters.
Hopefully they'll find a mentor to help them be safe and get the most out of their shooting. Gun nuts in training!
7mm

It's hard to realize all the knowledge we've accumulated over the years/decades and I have to catch myself before I say out loud, "How could they not know....?"

We have to jump at every chance to build the future of the sport and you did your part!

+1, we were all nubies at one time, remember those that helped us and pass the knowledge along.

I never pass up a chance to keep the range I belong to safe. Shooting is a passion for me, so I typically try to help a noob if they are struggling with something.

Great job teaching and helping!

We had substantial berms at a range once.... while checking targets a round deflected and came out of the pistol range and hit a target someone was scoring at the same time.... luck... both ways, that the deflection could get out and then back down enough... luck no one was hurt.

RE bore sighting, done correctly, I"ve never had it off far enough at 100 that it wouldn't have killed a deer.... shooting a single at 25 never hurts, but if bore sighting is done correctly there is no need really.

For years that has been my experience. That is until I had a Christensen Arms barrel. I discovered the barrel was crooked! The gunsmith should have noticed the bore was not right.

Several years as a rangemaster taught me that many people don't know much about their guns. Some folks think they do, so folks don't have a clue, and some folks just need a helping hand.

From the guy with with $30.00 scope on his 336 that wants to start at 200 yards and tells me it's boresighted only, to the guy who says 3" high at 25 yards will put him dead on at 100 yards, to the guy who politely asks for help with a new gun. I've seen 'em all.

So many stories. The kid who's dad was taking him hunting that fall. Tragically, the dad died from a car accident. The 16 year old kid wanted to go hunt to honor his dad's memory but had no idea how to sight in the rifle. We sat and talked for a long time after getting him sighted in. He was really taking his situation very hard, and just needed to talk about it. I don't know if he ever did get a deer or not, but at least I know his rifle was good to go.

Some folks just need some help.

Even if the bore is crooked, you are looking down the center of the bore if you are doing it right... crooked or not, you are still setting the sights to where the barrel points.

Harmonics can affect, and likely a pressure point could more serioulsy affect, but I doubt that you'd be off a target ever at 100.

If you were trying to "point shoot" a barrel with no sights and such, then I could see a crooked barrel making an issue.

I've not heard much good about Christensen Arms ever really. I"m sure there is good out there, but I"ve heard a lot of not great things about them to start wiht.

I keep my $30 Cabela's laser bore sighter in my range cart. I've lent it to others more than I've used it myself.

Good on you for giving a helping hand.

Aqualung

You were there also???

Oh wait... you said "cool".