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PaperclipPerfector  1d ago (text post)   1479 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for April 26, 2026

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

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Hey I went to a gun range yesterday and thought of you because they had full-auto stuff for rentals. I'll have to try it sometime and let you know how expensive it is.

For $10, they let me rent multiple pistols in the same caliber for an hour, though ammo was like $25 for 50 rounds. I rented a Ruger Security 9, a Sig P365 in .380, and a S&W Bodyguard 2.0. The P365 was the real winner, it shot just like a full size gun. Only issue I had was that the magazines were hard to load. The Ruger felt pretty cheap and I didn't like the sights. The Bodyguard was very tiny! However, similarly, the sights felt very bad, I couldn't hit very well with the shots I took. I like shooting .380, but from my experience yesterday, it appears I don't really have too much use for a pistol in that caliber since I can shoot 9mm just fine.

Hey, given how hard it'll be for me to visit the States, and how rare an occasion that would be, I'm willing to shell out for some... shells. While I'm happy to give handguns a try, do keep an eye open for anything intermediate caliber or larger! If I don't mag dump an AR-15 once, I don't think I've really lived. Thanks!

I ran a bachelor party for an old friend in Texas, and among the activities was a group machine gun rental. I got the whole party of five trigger time on a H&K MP-5k, a G3 rifle, and a MG-42 light machine gun for a couple hundred bucks. The MG-42 ended up malfunctioning, so they swapped us to a M240-B medium machine gun as well, which in my view was pure bonus. Pricing for an individual would have been around a hundred bucks if memory serves, and significantly less for only one gun. The range had a "full-auto Fridays" special where specific guns could be rented for even cheaper.

If you're ever in the states, ding me and let me know where. I'd be happy to take you to the range if you're in my area, and get you some experience with handgun, shotgun and rifle.

I'm saving this comment for later, you're not the first person to offer to take me out shooting in the US, but I remain just as grateful as ever. $100 is nothing in comparison to the cost of a proper US vacation, let alone what might be a once in lifetime rare experience. I've spent more on a night out with friends, and I didn't even get to shoot anyone.

Well, many ranges won't let you shoot rifle calibers indoors. But some do. Whatever city you visit, search the gun ranges nearby to see if they will let you do so or not. At the one I was at, you could shoot an SMG, and maybe even a full auto SMG, which is probably fun in its own way. Good luck.

Thanks! Would they make an exception for frangible ammo or is it a blanket ban? Not that I particularly mind going out to a more rural range, shooting hogs from a helicopter is something I'll absolutely sign up for if I end up in Texas.

Almost every range has A Policy on ammo, and enforcement varies. Generally steel case ammunition is on the no no list, tracers are flat banned and will get you banned from that range, and some ranges don't like FMJ.

often it's that they don't allow FMJ ammo in rifles, and that is usually because it's hard to distinguish standard FMJ from some of the more exotic rounds with greatly-increased penetration, like rounds with a steel core or bronze solids. stronger backstops are more expensive, and shooting through the backstop would generally be a very bad thing for everyone involved.

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