NRA range, Fairfax Virginia

[flowmaster]

anyone been to the NRA range at their headquarters in fairfax virginia? if you havn't, you go in from the road, make your first left, and go around back, underneath the parking garage. VERY nice range in my opinion, best i've ever shot at. superb ventillation (at each shooting station), good visibility from the lobby area to the firing line (much better than the view you get when you're in the lobby at blue ridge or silver eagle group). having glass partitions between the shooting lanes seems kind of strange to begin with, almost like a toilet with glass walls, but it was easy to get used to. i'm used to more privacy when i shoot, where others aren't necessarily checking out my guns.

the place is lit well, the flooring is nice, and there are rangemasters there that watch you like a hawk, which is great because i've seen them bark at people who were not being safe.

no gun rental, but ammo prices are cheap. for a while there, bricks of 22 were cheaper at the NRA than at the gun shows, let alone any retail establishment. the same goes for 38 special reloads, 50 per box. recently they imposed a 200rd 22LR max because people were buying it all up.

you have to take a range test in order to shoot there, which costs ten dollars per person. an ID of some kind is required to take the shooting safety test. its an easy test though, they give you one piece of paper with all the rules on it and another that asks you questions about the rules. its open book, so you can just match them up. not ideal if you're taking a new shooter there for the first time because you're paying almost the same (per hour) as you'd be paying at blue ridge, plus that ten dollar fee for them to get their range card.

the NRA has a very long distance range for an indoor range and allows big rifles. i even saw someone in there shooting 338 lapua. great place to shoot, knowledgable staff, and well-thought out hand washing station right when you exit the firing line.

[jpoolsmyd2]

Yep. Probably the best indoor range in the state, if not the US. Go figure, it is the NRA.

You have to take a safety test if it is the first time you shoot there. It's easy, but plan for an additional half hour wait to take it. It is also usually very crowded so plan for another 1/2 to 1 hour wait on weekends.

This range is high-tech. computerized target travellers that I don't even know how to use half the features.

Anyway, very nice range and highly recommended if you are in NoVa. You can shoot your rifle/zero it to a pretty good distance and it's all indoor.

[SamAbbe]

With Obama's stimulation to the firearms economy I've had to wait up to 2 hours for a lane. Its now pretty much standard for my son and I to go sign in and then go out to eat or to check out the National Firearms Museum upstairs. Wish they had beepers like Outback that would let you know when your lane was ready.

They're really touchy about the targets. I was shooting the repair center for a military competition target that has the black and white outline of a hand on it and got told I couldn't use that target even though they sell full size silhouette targets.

50 yard range that lets you shoot nearly anything, well lit, generally comfortable temperature. No wonder its so popular.

[alby]

The NRA Range at their HQ in Fairfax rocks. I highly recommend it to anybody in the area.
Now as for making a trip from the far ends of Virginia to shoot at this range, well, its not worth that type of trip.
But if you plan on visiting the area, make plans to visit the range.

[flowmaster]

go at night, you'll never have to wait. they're open until 10pm on weekdays (closed to the public on tuesdays) and if you get there at say 730, you can walk right onto a lane and stay there until they close if you want, without paying any extra. if there's no one in line waiting to take your place, you can stay. its also not that busy that time of day, but lately friday nights have been filling up. if i get there at like 530 or so its usually dead.

the whole planet wants to go out and shoot guns on a saturday or sunday so i don't even mess with that anymore.

[flashman]

go at night, you'll never have to wait. they're open until 10pm on weekdays (closed to the public on tuesdays) and if you get there at say 730, you can walk right onto a lane and stay there until they close if you want, without paying any extra. if there's no one in line waiting to take your place, you can stay. its also not that busy that time of day, but lately friday nights have been filling up. if i get there at like 530 or so its usually dead.

the whole planet wants to go out and shoot guns on a saturday or sunday so i don't even mess with that anymore.

Actually on Mondays they're open during the day and close at 5:00. Great range, you can draw from a holster and the targets can be timed to present for as long or short a time as you like. No problem policing up your brass.

As far as the ROs watching you like a hawk, I saw a guy knock down one of the target carriers a couple weeks ago and the RO was yelling at him and threw the shooter and his group out. It's a very safe place to shoot and you never have to be constanctly on guard for someone sweeping you with their muzzle like at the old Shooters Paradise.

[kle]

I have an annual membership there and I go almost every day (except on Tuesdays, as noted, when it's closed to the public). I shoot in the .22-caliber Bullseye league (the Metro Pistol League) on Mondays after 5PM. It's the nicest indoor range I've ever been to (which includes Blue Ridge Arsenal in Chantilly and Gilbert Small Arms in Lorton). The staff is professional and friendly (even friendlier to me, it seems, because I'm there all the time and they know me by name now), and their prices for ammo aren't too bad ($11 for 20 rounds of .223 plinking ammo, $15 for 50 rounds of .38 plinking ammo), though there is a limit per customer.

Downsides? The target carriers, while very nice and programmable, also seem to break all the time. People also seem to hit them all the time, so there might be some correlation. They're supposed to be putting in some new carriers in the Fall (September or October)--I've seen a prototype of it in their test range, and it's really nice and much more robust than what they're using now. I can't wait!

As noted, the wait times (especially on the weekends) can be pretty bad, but things seem to be letting up a bit. The staff has said that as the temperature warms up, the wait will decrease, probably due to people spending more time outdoors. Saturday I got on as soon as I showed up at 4PM, and shot for an hour, and there were still open lanes when I called it a day. Today, again, I got on as soon as I showed up at 1PM, shot for about 30 minutes, coached my neighbor with her first ever gun (a Glock 26) for another 25 minutes, and then packed up and left, again with open lanes.

A lot of newbies (and their shiny new, panic-purchased pistols) shoot on the weekends, and a lot of them don't follow all of the rules and handle their guns behind the shooting booths or don't keep the muzzle downrange. This isn't a problem with the range itself, but it is a problem with the clientele they attract. The ROs, while generally attentive, can't be everywhere at once, and I often have to lean over to my neighbor's booth and remind them to keep the guns pointed downrange (and often because the guns are pointed at me while they're on the table).

All in all, I'm very satisfied with the NRA HQ Range. It's very clean ("sterile" was the term used in another thread), I like the staff, and I find its range fees (both hourly and annual) to be reasonable for the features (50 yards, calibers up to .460 Weatherby, electronic target carriers, good lighting). It's also on my way home from work, which is an added bonus!

[Bobtail1911]

It is my local range. Nothing to add except if you get there at 8am on Saturday or Sunday you usually will be one of the first to go into the range. 15 or so rows. If you get there at 8:15 am you have to wait for some one else to finish.

[bossgvr4]

It is 15 lanes because they ALWAYS put me on 1 or 15 when I shoot my .308

[gregj]

As others have stated, great range. Only complain I have is the tables. They roll around, and if shooting from a rest, it's very difficult to get the table steady. About the only nit I can find.

[kle]

What I do for that is to find a spent piece of brass (.38/.357, 9mm, or .223) and lock the base up with the table top (I raise it to where 2.5 holes are showing above the base tube). Next, I push the table against the divider. Finally, I lightly kick the base against the divider so that it stays stable-ish and doesn't move too much.

They also have one of those three-legged rifle shooting tables in there sometimes. Almost no one ever uses it for its intended purpose, but I've seen it from time to time.

[Sweetpea]

A+ to RO Recardo at the NRA HQ range. He is so helpful! If you ever need assistance, he is the best!

[vbrtrmn]

I try to go once per week, if not more. The range is usually very clean, most of the people who go there are friendly and interested in talking about whatever. Some people, including myself, will even let you shoot their guns, if you're interested; last week I let a younger guy shoot my Saiga-12, he loved it.

Range Masters are friendly and will instruct you if you are not following the rules, they're not going to come out and treat you like an ass; most of the time it is, "Hey, please make sure you leave your bolt open, thanks!" If you have an issue with a firearm, they will do their best to help you out.

Sometimes you're going to wait, sometimes you're not. I've gone and seen a 2-hour wait, then left, this was right after a gun show. Other times, the place is empty and they'll ask if you want more than one lane. Sometimes, there are so few people there, they let me shoot as long as I want. Toward the end of your hour, a range master will generally come by and give you a 5-minute warning.

1. Safety Course & Range Card - $10
The first time you go, you need to take a very basic safety test, which they provide you the answers for. The range card is your identification card, it is not an NRA membership card, it basically so they know who took the test.

The test is basically to make sure you're not too stupid to handle a firearm safely. I met a younger guy who said, "I had a girlfriend who was so stupid that they didn't let her shoot here." She must have been as smart as a bag of hammers.

There are three types of range cards:
Green - for non-NRA members.
Blue - for NRA members.
Black - for Annual members.

2. Pricing
Annual Pass (not required)
$350 for non-NRA or $300 for NRA members for one year (discounts for families, LEO, and military), this allows you to shoot for an hour anytime you want. You still have to wait in line, for a lane, though.

Everyone Else
NRA members - $14 per lane for one hour / plus $8 per extra person
Non-NRA - $18 per lane for one hour / plus $12 per extra person

Under 18 - shoots free with an adult, not sure if they need a card.

3. Hours
http://www.nrahq.org/shootingrange/nrahqrange/hours.asp

They close out the registers at about 9pm, so get in before that.

4. Restrictions
- No: steel core, tracers, oddball ammo
- Caliber must be lower than .50
- They will ask to see your Form 1/NFA paperwork for relevant items.
- Shotgun slugs only.
- Carrier shooting fee, if you damage the target carrier, you pay something.
That's about all I can remember.

[CowboyT]

It's a nice range, and I used to go all the time. But it's $14/hour, even for NRA members. That adds up fast.

Also, they're kinda jerks sometimes. They seem to act like they're the only range in the area. Also, while safety obviously must be a big deal at *any* range, they seem to take the attitude that you *proactively* are going to want to pop someone. I just got uncomfortable with their "f--- you" attitude.

Now I go to Gilberts/Sharpshooters. Way less money, and nicer people too.

[kle]

It's a nice range, and I used to go all the time. But it's $14/hour, even for NRA members. That adds up fast.

Also, they're kinda jerks sometimes. They seem to act like they're the only range in the area. Also, while safety obviously must be a big deal at *any* range, they seem to take the attitude that you *proactively* are going to want to pop someone. I just got uncomfortable with their "f--- you" attitude.

Now I go to Gilberts/Sharpshooters. Way less money, and nicer people too.

Some Range Officers are like that. Never get on their bad side (i.e. do everything right), and they'll generally leave you alone. They're the NRA, after all, with all of the political stuff that goes with that, and they need to maintain a good image. If it doesn't look good for us when someone gets shot at a target range, then it is worse when it happens at the NRA, who is trying to promote an image of good, safe, responsible shooters.

If you shoot twice a month, it makes more financial sense to purchase an annual membership. At $300 for NRA members, you'll break even after visiting the NRA range just 22 times in a year ($300/yr / $14/hr = 21.43 visits). I visit the range 22 times per month, so I've put my annual membership to good use.

[zephyp]

The funny thing about the NRA is you are forbidden from carrying a loaded gun in the general HQ building...what's up with that...dont they know that rules like that are only obeyed by law-abiding citizens...I guess thats why they call us law-abiding and criminals criminal...go figure...

[kle]

The funny thing about the NRA is you are forbidden from carrying a loaded gun in the general HQ building

Seriously? I didn't see a sign all those times that I visited the museum =)

[zephyp]

Hmmm...I was informed loaded carry is not allowed in the building unless you are on the range...am I wrong?

[Student12]

The funny thing about the NRA is you are forbidden from carrying a loaded gun in the general HQ building...what's up with that...dont they know that rules like that are only obeyed by law-abiding citizens...I guess thats why they call us law-abiding and criminals criminal...go figure...

I was wondering about that I really was. Humm... I gotta agree with the comment about law abiding citizens

[zephyp]

The funny thing about the NRA is you are forbidden from carrying a loaded gun in the general HQ building...what's up with that...dont they know that rules like that are only obeyed by law-abiding citizens...I guess thats why they call us law-abiding and criminals criminal...go figure...

I was wondering about that I really was. Humm... I gotta agree with the comment about law abiding citizens

I've heard different things about carry of a loaded HG at NRA...I just sent them a note...