[searcher451]

OK, you are heading out to the range for a little relaxation or in preparation for your next mandatory qualifying shoot. You pack your favorite firearm, of course (more than one if the day is meant to be just for fun) and more than enough of the appropriate ammo. But then what?

What else do you take, besides shooting glasses and ear protection? Do you carry anything for emergencies -- to your person or to your firearm? And if so, what exactly are you packing? Can you share any of your tips, learned from long experience or personal situations, that can help your fellow forum members?

In my bag, for instance, I always carry some band-aides and ibuprofen, a jeweler's screwdriver, a couple of dental picks (really handy for some particularly nasty FTEs), a silicon rod and reel cloth (I don't like fingerprints to linger even between the range and the time it takes me to get home and start the real cleaning process), and a small bottle of good gun lube/oil (outdoor ranges can be windy and dusty). I'll bet that you own range bags have all sorts of other gogdies that are essential to your own needs.

How about it, guys? What's in the bag?

 

[uncut]

So I just got back from the range.... only shot 150 rouds through my P99 and P99c
in my case I only had mags, ears, eyes, magloader, holster and mag carrier....
I don't need no stinking tools for my P99's

 

[searcher451]

Excellent, Uncut. I never carry tools for my Walthers, you understand. It's that poor fella down the line that I'm concerned about. Yeah, that's the ticket!

 

[Pitmaster]

What else do you take, besides shooting glasses and ear protection?

UpLULA magazine loader always goes.

 

[Deputy]

Depends....and I AIN'T talking about the piss-proof underwear!!

I have a .30 caliber ammo can that has all my cleaning/repair/lubrication stuff. That usually goes with. Nothing worse than being out at the range and not have a left handed recirculating wrench.
Thanks to Uncut I have the Uplula gizmo as a permanent part of my range gear. I have a bunch of those Shoot-n-See stick on target pasters that let you see the hits much better. Also a Soviet KGB spotting scope (small and effective).
In the truck I have first aid stuff. I also keep a plastic container of those disinfectant towlettes. My fingers are usually black with powder crud and oil when I am done shooting, so they come in handy to remove the crud. Definitely a jug of water. It gets dang hot at the outdoor range and dehydration is bad news. Oh yeah...an Army boonie hat to keep off the sun. I'm not bald, it's a solar panel for a sex machine . But getting sunburned on the noggin makes for a real unpleasant night's sleep.

That's about it for me.

Dep

 

[Phelptwan]

On a trip to the police range I just bring my gun, mags, holster, eye and hearing protection. If I brought my UPLULa I would be laughed of the range (troubles with training with swat types).

On a trip to my parents range I usually take a few longs guns as well. I grab my pistol, mags, uplula, ammo, targets, bore snake, bucket, folding bench, holster, and eye and hearing protection.

 

[ShipWreck]

My bag weights like 20lbs. I have my cleaning kit - a tupperware container that holds all my mags, my tools, a stapler, my targets, the guns I am carrying that day, and a bunch of other stuff. WAY too many times I have had to drive home to get 1 thing. I take everything with me to the range now.

I have a huge S&W dufflebag.

 

[Deputy]

I have a huge S&W dufflebag.

Ditto for me. Dang thing weighs a ton when it's loaded with ammo and guns. Oh yeah...I ALWAYS bring more than one gun. Mr. Murphy likes to throw monkey wrenches at guns at the range, and you never know when one will conk out and be unfixable.

 

[searcher451]

You guy are doing great -- some excellent ideas here. It's like the TV commercial: What's in your wallet?

Some of the other things that I carry, also in an S&W range bag: paper plates and a staple gun (for posting over the initial 5-spot targets); Benadryl (bee stings are the pits anywhere but nasty on the range); and generally more than one type of ammunition (various brands of FMJ, plus hollow points).

A good spotting scope is an excellent idea (thanks, Deputy; I'll work on that). I've currently got a Butler Creek mag loader on backorder -- can't wait to add that to the duffel.

Keep 'em coming, guys.

 

[Parabellus]

Great thread.

I usually bring my cleaning kit and spotting scope (sometimes with a tripod). I have a mag bag, some Shoot-n-see targets, and an Army surplus ammo box with ammo ranging from .22LR to .45ACP. For the outdoor range I have a safari-style hat for sun-shade while changing targets.

I have a chopstick to clear a frozen failure-to-extract like I had twice with my P99. (I finally figured, because my fingers got so black from loading magazines, that the batch of S&B I was using had been left with a lot of powder on the exterior of the cases that was fouling the chamber). I couldn't extract manually so now I used a cleaning rod or a chopstick down the bore. I also wipe down the ammo with a shop rag (another necessary item) before loading and that has helped alleviate the problem.

Shooting is often a family event so we make sure everyone has ear and eye protection.

The only loading tool I have is standard Luger take-down&loading tool. I figured out how to load my P99 magazines with relative ease by pressing my left thumb down on the heel of of the loaded round and pressing the next round at a right angle on the front of first until it is down far enough to then turn the next one and press it the rest of the way in. I'm sure if I ever get a Glock that I will need the Uplula.

When we shoot my C96 of course I bring stripper clips.

Sometimes we bring a digital camera for recording target results or seeing what a particular gun looks like when fired i.e. whether the flash escapes the breach.

I think I will start bringing a small first-aid kit. It sounds like a really smart idea.

Russell

 

[SELFDEFENSE]

350 rounds of ammo, first-aid kit, cold compress, pencil, pen, Breakfree, baby wipes, OFF spray, .30 cal jag and patches, 3 different bore snakes, small cleaning rod, combination kubotan/9mm dejammer, extra eyes and ears, spotting scope, scope trpod, targets, paper plates, target repair adhesive dots, 3X5 index cards, binoculars, sunblock, baseball cap, recoil pad, M1-A combination tool, AK gas and sight tools, bubble level, Loctite, range and membership cards, IDPA, IPSC, and SASS rule books, lithium/9 volt/and AA batteries, earplugs, ballistics cards, sniper data book, spare mags, mag loader, screwdrivers, open bolt indicators, plastic gloves, tape, emergency reflective foil blanket, and a partridge in a pear tree.

 

[SELFDEFENSE]

P.S. And a frozen canteen of water that is draped over the range bag (not room in the bag for it; plus it sweats inside the bag).

 

[153]

I have my shooting gear divided into two "bags" one is a tool box. In this I keep my targets, ammo, extra mags and a small tool kit. I also carry a silicone cloth and a toothbrush (for the guns). In this box I also carry my extra targets. For targets, I buy small paper plates about 8" across. I also carry a roll of masking tape and usually a couple of sticks - at long ranges I have been known to tape a plate to a stick as a target then place it on the 100 yard berm. Still in my tool box is a set of color markers and blank paper, when my kids were little I used to let them sit behind me and make targets or pictures. I haven't had the heart to remove these, they have grown up some and don't make pictures anymore.

My other "bag" is an old Samsonite brief case. It is 30 years old, I had to get it when I was an LEO, kept reports, bullitins and stuff in it. It was always tossed in the back of the patrol car, its scuffed up - but I have a sentimental attachment to it. I keep my handguns in this case, along with my club and NRA ID cards. The handguns are in rugs.

Because I live in CA, on the trip to the range both cases are kept locked, ammo seperated from the handguns. That way on the way to the range my gear is not endangering the public at large.

I recently bought a small cooler, keep a sandwich, banana, and some cold drinks for the trip back home, its about 45 min - hour drive.

 

[searcher451]

I'm thinking that with all of the excellent suggestions in this thread thus far, I'm going to need a second range bag. The one I'm using now was a gift from S&W for some summer promotion or other: buy a gun, get a free range bag. Looks like it's time to get another S&W ... just for the extra range bag.

Keep 'em coming, guys -- good ideas all.

 

[Pitmaster]

I'm thinking that with all of the excellent suggestions in this thread thus far, I'm going to need a second range bag. The one I'm using now was a gift from S&W for some summer promotion or other: buy a gun, get a free range bag. Looks like it's time to get another S&W ... just for the extra range bag.

Keep 'em coming, guys -- good ideas all.

This second range bag sounds like a good idea. I've got a large range bag and keep everything in it, but having a second one for "stuff" sounds like a good idea. I can just leave it in my trunk to lighten the load of the pistol/ammo bag a little.

 

[Naterstein]

I have a i-Shot Deluxe bag that I carry both of my pistols (USP and 92 Centurion, no P99 yet ), all my mags for said pistols, my cleaning kit that is in a small tackle container plus 2 rods, miltec oil, cloth patches, extra ear protection, extra eye protection, extra rounds in i-Shot brass bags, HKS speedloader, stapler, staples, duct tape, and I think thats pretty much it.

 

[searcher451]

Duct tape and masking tape are two more excellent items that I'll need to start packing along on range visits. At this rate, two range bags and a grocery bag might be necessary.

Keep 'em coming, guys. I'll wager that lots of folks on the forum are making lists or stuffing the pouches on the sides of their bags.

 

[SELFDEFENSE]

Going to turn into a SHTF bag pretty soon.

 

[searcher451]

Going to turn into a SHTF bag pretty soon.

No question, that range bag can turn into something resembling a shopping cart before long. For those who are looking for some alternatives to their current bag, or who might want to look at some solutions to help pack some of the good suggestions that we've seen thus far with this thread, you might want to visit this site:

http://www.bagmaster.com/

All sorts of interesting choices await you. Happy hunting.

 

[153]

I recalled that amoungst my range gear is a cheap $20 Bushnell Monocular, its not much bigger than a roll of quarters and it makes reading targets alot easier!

Using one eye, you don't have to worry about adjusting Binoculars, as they always seem to get squeezed when you pick them up and put them down.