How much would you pay for a good gun club membership?

[clunker]

Since I'm moving closer to the West Coast, I started looking at the availability of gun clubs in the area. No one within a reasonable distance has more than a 100-yd range. There's a 1,000-yd range on the opposite side of the city, but that is an ugly commute. There is also another gun club that is closer and much nicer. Only problem? . . . First-year membership is $440, and it is a members only club. My current club costs $30 per year, and I almost never see anyone else there.

First question: Is it worth paying more for a well-managed and huge campus, all-hours staff, mandatory safety training for members, and the exact matches that I want to participate in?

Second question: Is this nicer membership going to be more like a golf club membership . . . but with guns, or will there actually be some normal people there?

 

[bobinpa]

How much is it after the first year?

 

[hogpatrol]

In my area, there are indoor short range pistol venues open to the public that have yearly memberships around that cost. Then again there are outdoor clubs with a thousand to fifteen hundred members that are less than a hundred bucks a year. My 2¢, for $440 a year, it had better have an open clubhouse, vending machines, indoor toilets, enclosed shooting lines, a full time range officer/attendant and a ban on mag dumping jitterbugs.

 

[HillBilly98]

i think that would be a personal opinion that would vary depending on the individual and his or her wants and needs. For me I would jump all in. I pay 150 a year for a really nice range that’s 45 mins from my house. A great place and great people. It goes out to 750 yards. I have been looking for others around this area and seems to be if you find a nice one that goes out past 500 yards you are going to have to pay a lot more.. at least in my area.

As far as the type of folks... who knows. There again for me if it was convenient and nice I would try it for a year to see. It would be worth the gamble to me.

Do they ever have any open to the public matches you could attend and meet some of the folks?

 

[Someoldguy]

I'm in the midwest, and split between 4 other guys we pay less than that for a 2,000 acre year 'round lease.

Location, location, location.

 

[Falfan2017]

Are matches included in that? If so that’s pretty good. Our club is 100 but match fees are extra so if you do a lot of matches it’s easily 400+

 

[dcali]

At a lot of ranges, matches do not require membership. Only you can say if the price is worth it.

For reference, our club (Eastern Nebraska Gun Club near Omaha) is a little over $100/year. ($120 maybe? I can't remember), and it's a typical, well run club with a 600 yard range, silhouettes, shotgun, multiple pistol bays, three rifle ranges, etc, with roughly 2000 members last I checked. $100/member seems like a lot, but it does not go very far towards everything it takes to run a good, large range, especially if membership levels are low.

I think some of the fancy indoor ranges that are in fashion now are closer to 100/month or more. No thanks, but they seem to find people who are willing to pay it.

 

[KenOath]

Since I'm moving closer to the West Coast, I started looking at the availability of gun clubs in the area. No one within a reasonable distance has more than a 100-yd range. There's a 1,000-yd range on the opposite side of the city, but that is an ugly commute. There is also another gun club that is closer and much nicer. Only problem? . . . First-year membership is $440, and it is a members only club. My current club costs $30 per year, and I almost never see anyone else there.

First question: Is it worth paying more for a well-managed and huge campus, all-hours staff, mandatory safety training for members, and the exact matches that I want to participate in?

Second question: Is this nicer membership going to be more like a golf club membership . . . but with guns, or will there actually be some normal people there?

Give it a try you got nothing to loose, if you like it it’s worth the money if not move on to another club. Currently I’m in 3 clubs, one is $525 plus $20 every match, the other two are $220 per year each total. They all have something different to offer me..

 

[ShootDots]

Depending on how nice the amenities are, how long the ranges are and if it's a "closed club", as in members only, and outside of weekend matches, is it possible to use the clubs equipment.. Cost could vary widely. But if it was a first class club, members only and full use of the entire club, I would be glad to pay up to $500.00 per year! Having "good" facilities and the use of the entire club, I would go to $250.00 per year. If you have very poor facilities, I don't want it at any price!

 

[JFrank]

Typically your first year includes orientation, after that the yearly fees are much less.

 

[Clam]

I think a club that is close by/convenient is certainly important. Second would be quality and third, price.

I maintain a family membership at my club and donate a little additional $ every year, comes out to $300/yr.

I think it is imparative to the future of our hobby that we join and participate in our local clubs.

 

[gambleone]

I pay 100.00/yr at http://www.shootlcsa.com/index.html. They have a 600 yd range, indoor & outdoor pistol range. Indoor pistol is an extra 20.00 activation fee. They also have a registered skeet program. Located in western pa. They hold groundhog shoots 2x month except winter.

 

[corning]

Clubs are important.

I am a member of a state association, but access to the military base where we shot has become difficult. Cost of a life membership was negligible, so much so, that I forgot what I paid.

I've joined a club out of state that has 200 to 1000 yard high power range, and an outdoor smallbore range. Great bunch of guys. Unfortunately I don't use it as much as I should, and it is about 85 miles away. Cost is $50/year, but I have a place to go with good people.

I was a member of a club in an effort to shoot smallbore closer to an out of state residence. 20 miles away. First year cost was $200, any every year thereafter was $100. Work hours are required. Had to put in 20 for year 1, and could pay thereafter for whatever you didn't work. No indoor rifle range, and only 100 yards outdoor. I did not renew my membership.

Evaluating one more club in an effort to shoot more smallbore. 25 miles away, ranges out to 200 yards, good for smallbore, and some high power. $100 the first year, $50 every year thereafter. No mandatory work hours.

Net? I am willing to support a club in order to have a place available to go to. I think it is important to have club membership, and to support the shooting sports. I would also like to have some place available/convenient where I can shoot. Its important that the private clubs be supported, with the right membership, it will be a feeder to competition, and fostering new shooters.

John

 

[IdahoSharpshooter]

When I moved to Idaho 40 years ago, we had a great R&G Club where members could shoot out to 600 yds for $50 a year. Then houses began to sprout on two sides, and the hierarchy opted to close most of the range, except to themselves (HiPower shooters). We could only shoot at 100 yds, and there were only four benches. Every year, it seemed, another developer wanted to build next door, and membership dues climbed to $100 a year to pay for attorney fees to represent the club at P&Z hearings. Then, about six years ago; a good friend that is an attorney figured out that if a stray round injured or killed someone off the property, EVERY member could be found liable. That deep pockets thing.

With more than a dozen places to shoot over a thousand yards on BLM ground within 15 miles of the house, I quit. I also had three clubs within 25 miles where I could shoot out to 600 yards, and one a full thousand. The club did have two outhouses, that was the extent of the amenities. Their indoor range just got closed to the club, the officers have the ability to irritate nearly every govt agency they come in contact with the past decade.

 

[Doug Beach]

To the OP: Where on the west coast?

 

[newbieshooter]

To the OP: Where on the west coast?

.......I'm in Eastern WA State, but I'll be moving to Portland, OR in the near future.

Looks like OP posted (in another thread) he's moving to Portland, OR in the near future....

 

[Dusty Stevens]

Its worth a bunch to have higher fees to keep the riff raff at bay

 

[Dgd6mm]

First, how far from home is the 1000 yard range, second how long is the commute? Also the annual cost for the 1000 yard range on the opposite side of town? How often do you shoot?

 

[DngBat7]

I would also think is worth going to a club that has all the types of matches you want to compete in.

 

[Richard Campbell]

I have a different situation, I live on a 640 acre farm in SW Nebraska. On my property, I have two ranges. A 50 yd range located between my house and my barn which I fire rim fire benchrest. Located in my pasture, against the berm of a dam, I have a 100 yd and a 200 yd range where I fire center fire benchrest. I fire alone, as often as I can, weather permitting. My goal is to improve my shooting score every time I go out. I don't have to pay any range fees, only Nebraska's outrageous sky high property taxes.