The firearm thread

[Mr Merde]

[FONT='Times New Roman','serif'][/FONT]

[FONT='Times New Roman','serif']Not fair on those poor bunnies.[/FONT]

[The Pastor]

Anyone know a good gun club / rifle range in auckland / north shore I can join? Im thinking about getting my firearms licence. Printed out my application and arms code.

being auckland/north shore, I imagine most of my shooting will be at a range, what type of rifle would be ok for a beginner? Im thinking a 223?

What sort of price range would a 223 (or simerlar) go for? I don't want to spend mega bucks on some wanky rifle. (a la pistol club members hehe) but a scope would be nice

[jrandom]

Anyone know a good gun club / rifle range in auckland / north shore I can join? Im thinking about getting my firearms licence. Printed out my application and arms code.

You don't need to join a gun club to get your basic firearms licence. Just go to the Takapuna police station (call ahead to check when the Arms Officer will be in) and fill in the form to start the process.

Get onto it sooner rather than later. It takes 3-4 months from the day you walk into that office to the day your firearms licence arrives in the mail.

being auckland/north shore, I imagine most of my shooting will be at a range, what type of rifle would be ok for a beginner? Im thinking a 223?

Once you finally get that firearms licence, buy a .22LR.

You can get a nice little Norinco JW14 bolt action .22 with a Tasco 4X scope for $350 at most Auckland gunshops. I recommend dealing with Sportways Gun Shed in Mt Eden.

A cheap first .22 will let you get your hand in, learn the basics without spending gobs of money, and figure out where you want to go next in your shooting career.

[The Pastor]

You don't need to join a gun club to get your basic firearms licence. Just go to the Takapuna police station (call ahead to check when the Arms Officer will be in) and fill in the form to start the process.

Get onto it sooner rather than later. It takes 3-4 months from the day you walk into that office to the day your firearms licence arrives in the mail.

I know I don't have to join a club, but where else will I shoot it? I'd prefer to own a farm, but im a city boy

Once you finally get that firearms licence, buy a .22LR.

You can get a nice little Norinco JW14 bolt action .22 with a Tasco 4X scope for $350 at most Auckland gunshops. I recommend dealing with Sportways Gun Shed in Mt Eden.

A cheap first .22 will let you get your hand in, learn the basics without spending gobs of money, and figure out where you want to go next in your shooting career.

Yeah you have a good point, Everyone has a 22 so its probably a good idea to start out on one.

[Mr Merde]

I know I don't have to join a club, but where else will I shoot it? I'd prefer to own a farm, but im a city boy


So where do you live? There are people here in Auckland who have space to shoot. How far would you travel?


Yeah you have a good point, Everyone has a 22 so its probably a good idea to start out on one.

.22 is perfect to start out. Cheap to maintain, cheap to feed, accurate, not punishing on the shooter.

It also allows you to learn basic safety and handling before going on to the heavier calibers. Not that I can say much as I was started on .303 at 300 yards.

[The Pastor]

.22 is perfect to start out. Cheap to maintain, cheap to feed, accurate, not punishing on the shooter.

It also allows you to learn basic safety and handling before going on to the heavier calibers. Not that I can say much as I was started on .303 at 300 yards.

I live on the north shore. I don't know anywhere to go shooting at, although i guess I'll meet some at the rifle range.

I think i will start out on a .22, I would like a rifle with a bit more range but I guess I'll have to be able to shoot accuratly on the small calliber before i can move up.

My mates sks was a blast tho

[Mr Merde]

I live on the north shore. I don't know anywhere to go shooting at, although i guess I'll meet some at the rifle range.

I think i will start out on a .22, I would like a rifle with a bit more range but I guess I'll have to be able to shoot accuratly on the small calliber before i can move up.

My mates sks was a blast tho

When you get your licence and rifle give me a call. I have a small 100 m bit of land I use for sighting in.

Just had the go ahead by the local farmer to do some 500-1000 yard shooting.

[jrandom]

I think i will start out on a .22, I would like a rifle with a bit more range but I guess I'll have to be able to shoot accuratly on the small calliber before i can move up.

Good call. Learning to shoot with a heavy caliber is a great way to develop a lifelong habit of flinching and jerking the trigger, which is a Bad Thing.

And you'll never regret owning a .22LR. Buy one now, and you'll keep it forever, regardless of what other calibers and styles of rifle you purchase in the future.

My mates sks was a blast tho

Great fun to shoot, eh? I'm not really a fan of SKSs and AKs myself, though.

If you do make plans to visit Mr Merde's place for a plink or head to, say, the NZDA's Riverhead rifle range (that's what you should do - join the NZ Deerstalkers Association) let me know, and I'll either lend you (if you have your licence) or bring along (if you don't) my Norinco M305 (the M14 clone). Now there's a proper rifle.

[The Pastor]

Good call. Learning to shoot with a heavy caliber is a great way to develop a lifelong habit of flinching and jerking the trigger, which is a Bad Thing.

And you'll never regret owning a .22LR. Buy one now, and you'll keep it forever, regardless of what other calibers and styles of rifle you purchase in the future.



Great fun to shoot, eh? I'm not really a fan of SKSs and AKs myself, though.

If you do make plans to visit Mr Merde's place for a plink or head to, say, the NZDA's Riverhead rifle range (that's what you should do - join the NZ Deerstalkers Association) let me know, and I'll either lend you (if you have your licence) or bring along (if you don't) my Norinco M305 (the M14 clone). Now there's a proper rifle.

so the river head range is a good one? I'll give them a call sometime and have a chat. Infact I think I may just know somone who goes there.

Thanks merde and jrandom, i'll call you up on your offers when I get my stuff sorted.

[deanohit]

Yea RM, a .22 will be a great starting point for you man. In fact a .22 is all I have at the mo'.
Gave my shotty and .222 to my brother as I don't use them much.
How ever the .22 gets used as much as possible as it is such a versatile little rifle, indoor or outdoor range, silenced or not, bunnys and possums, and once you've got some skill, goats, wallabies and small pigs are reasonably easy.
And they're cheap to buy and shoot! Cheap ammo ($50-500 rounds) lets you shoot heaps and heaps of rounds to get used to it and shooting straight.
Good luck mate.

[Mr Merde]

I am trying hard to finish my rebuilt 1874 Remington Rolling Block.

I have had the action cleaned and smoothed internally, I have had a 34" full octagonal Badger barrel fitted an had the inlets made for the front sight and the forearm tenon. I have ordered a Shutzen buttplate from the US. 2lb of sand cast brass.

I have purchased some very nice walnut blanks. Air dried for 10 years.

Now I need to have the stock either made for me or major advice as to how to go about doing so myself.

So I am posting here for any help I can get.

Anyone here a stock maker or an accomplished woodworker?

Help !!!

[Wolf]

Good call. Learning to shoot with a heavy caliber is a great way to develop a lifelong habit of flinching and jerking the trigger, which is a Bad Thing.

Add to that the fact you will never get in the amount of practise with a heavier cal that you would with the humble .22lr - a $50 ammo budget equates to bugger all in the heavier calibres but 500 rounds of .22lr. If you shelled out 500 bucks on heavy cal ammo to become proficient with a firearm you could have put 5000 rounds through a .22.

Later, the skills you've learned on the "humble" .22 mean it'll take you significantly less ammo to become a deadly shot with a heavier calibre weapon (you'd already know how to shoot, you'd just be getting used to the different weapon.)

And you'll never regret owning a .22LR. Buy one now, and you'll keep it forever, regardless of what other calibers and styles of rifle you purchase in the future.

Regrettably, I don't have my first rifle- a .22 single-shot Gecado. I sold it so I could afford a .22 semi-auto Anschutz.

Then I sold that because I'd purchased a 5-shot bolt action .22 Brno threaded for a moderator and I found the Brno was a far better weapon for dealing to pests than the semi (the killing of one didn't scare off all the others when I put sub-sonic ammo through the Brno with moderator attached).

I swear by the .22 - definitely a tool not a toy. I'd love another single-shot like my old Gecado that can quickly be broken down for easy transport - it'd be a great survival tool.

Best of luck getting your licence, RM. Get yourself a nice reputable .22 (the Brno is really good) and whack a couple of thousand rounds through it. That'll get you a good grounding in firearms handling that'll set you up for life.

IMO - and others' mileage may well vary - forget getting a scope at first and learn with the iron sights. The scope magnifies the target but it also magnifies every minute wobble of your hands when you're starting out learning how to shoot. It can be very distracting and disheartening, watching the cross hair cavorting and bouncing across the target, and lead to frustration. Don't put a scope on the weapon until you're already fairly accurate with the open sights.

[deanohit]

IMO - and others' mileage may well vary - forget getting a scope at first and learn with the iron sights. The scope magnifies the target but it also magnifies every minute wobble of your hands when you're starting out learning how to shoot. It can be very distracting and disheartening, watching the cross hair cavorting and bouncing across the target, and lead to frustration. Don't put a scope on the weapon until you're already fairly accurate with the open sights.

A good low powered scope can be more beneficial IMO, as it gives a good clear sight picture to aim at.
4x32 is a handy size, I find mine good for close up shots while I can still use it for the longer shots, but my eyes are shit and I cant focus with iron sights.

[ghost]

I still run a 2.5 on my BRNO .22. Shoots a straight as the next thing and it dont wobble so much. The only down side is the long shots at possums are harder to take cos the recticle covers most small targets at longer ranges. I've got a 2-7 leupold on my ruger, but mostly shoot on x3 or x4.
If you want to do some spot lighting a scope is far easier than open sights, but depends what your after, easier to shoot moving targets with open sights............ I should stop prattling on, it not like I shot anything in that last few months.......

[Wolf]

If you want to do some spot lighting a scope is far easier than open sights,

Anything's got to be easier than having the rifle stock against your shoulder, held "stable" only by the right hand as the left hand is holding the torch above the head so as to hopefully cast some light on the iron sights as well as the possum, and hoping that the random jiggling of your hands would line up the light and the sights on the red eyes for long enough to take a shot.

Dunno if it was me or the possum that was most surprised that I managed to hit it. I figure the possum's surprise was pretty short-lived.