Home Shooting Range

[NumberCruncher]

I'm not sure that I'd ever do this, but is it illegal to build a shooting range in your basement? I had the thought and just wondered. If you could soundproof your exterior walls and build a safe environment...

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Most municipalities have ordinances about discharging firearms inside their city limits. If yours does, I would imagine you'll find an officer at your door sooner or later.

 

[Jack Burton]

Indoor ranges have very strict ventilation rules for a good reason. One shooter firing a couple of dozen rounds may not have the same need, but it is still an important consideration.

 

[CTS]

Most municipalities have ordinances about discharging firearms inside their city limits. If yours does, I would imagine you'll find an officer at your door sooner or later.

Plenty of indoor ranges are inside of city limits, so it's obviously doable, he's asking if it's possible for a private individual to get permission. I have no idea myself. My biggest concern would be proper air circulation/filtering. Breathing in vaporized lead isn't too healthy.

 

[Jack Burton]

We might have had, just as a purely theoretical consideration, a BB gun range in the basement. It probably was a lot of fun.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Plenty of indoor ranges are inside of city limits, so it's obviously doable, he's asking if it's possible for a private individual to get permission.

Right. I think that was what I was addressing with my post.

 

[BogWalker]

With proper ventilation you could probably shoot .22 colibris, wax pistol loads, and air rifles without anyone hearing the noise. May not be legal, but if nobody knows it's there they can't really turn you in. Could wave the extra ventilation as for workshop or other at home hobby manufacturing that would require ventilation.

 

[dailylc]

I'm considering the same thing, but it would be built under my pole barn/Shop. I would have a dedicated ventilation system and I would have enough room for 2 lanes @ 20yrds.

 

[sloughfoot]

If it is not open to.the public, why does anyone need to.know? Pound some nails. It sounds just like gunshots from outside a bouse.

If the LEO comes to the door, go to the door with your hammer.

 

[bb37]

My thinking is that it might be handy to have a range set up just for occasional test firing. It would be a lot more convenient to go to the basement to fire off a couple of rounds than go to a range. At it's longest point, my basement is about 18 yards long. I agree that ventilation is a concern. Bigger concern is how the neighbors would react to hearing a gunshot.

 

[MMRUSH]

No one has mentioned anything about what would happen if you was to hit the concrete wall with a bullet. something you should strongly think about.

 

[Tombs]

Unless it's a shotgun, short barrel full power rifle, or magnum caliber handgun, it's not very likely it'll sound any different than a firecracker in open air from a distance.

Add walls, and it's not going to sound like much of anything.

I'd say anything up to a 9mm you can shoot indoors without too much effort put into a backstop. Of course if you're going bigger I'd highly recommend sound deadening the room and one hell of a serious back stop.

Still, for a 9mm, don't laugh off the backstop, it just doesn't need to be 1/4" target steel encasing the entire room. I'd use a crap load of plywood, and get your "miss zone" up to at least 6-8" thick, and make sure you're aiming downwards to a degree. For your target, few phone books behind what ever your shooting at. As a side note, if you get that back stop full of lead stuck in the plywood, it's very likely you can end up with a ricochet right back at your head, so it's solely a just in case measure and shouldn't be your target.

Sounds silly and will get a bunch of negativity directed at such a thing, but it will work. Legality depends entirely on whether you've read your local laws or not. I'm assuming you're in the middle of no where and just don't want a bunch of holes in the side of your house.

Another note, don't read this post if you would fail a sobriety test.

 

[grasshopperlegs]

I know you would have a ventilation problem in a basement. I am a retired officer and I had to shoot in the winter time on a range that was under the police station. It had to have the ventilation pull the smoke down range so it didn't come back in your face and you inhale it. The sound would be another problem like some else said. I feel even a 22 would be a sound problem and the neighbors would call the police for sure.

 

[mikescetme]

I remember shooting guns in our basement when I was a kid near east side indy -- now days we would have police there for sure -- even in your basement still in city limits

 

[Tombs]

I know you would have a ventilation problem in a basement. I am a retired officer and I had to shoot in the winter time on a range that was under the police station. It had to have the ventilation pull the smoke down range so it didn't come back in your face and you inhale it. The sound would be another problem like some else said. I feel even a 22 would be a sound problem and the neighbors would call the police for sure.

If it's a super sonic load, outdoors it'll noticeably be a 22lr in sound.

If it's sub sonic, from any distance at all, it's seriously going to sound like a weak fire cracker.

I can't imagine even one simple house wall not severely deadening that to the point of being un-noticable.