I am a new AR owner and I live in Canada. As such, I can only shoot the AR (because it is a “Restricted Class” firearm) in an approved shooting range. Now, I just joined a shooting/range club, one of the few outdoor ones in my region, and just learned that they only allow shooting rifles at the 100 meter range (and 200 and 300 meter but not less than 100). I am mainly interested in learning how to effectively use the AR for defensive purposes and CQB distances but with this rule, I am shit out of luck. Since I am a new AR/rifle shooter, not much experience with any other firearms except shooting handguns, what can I do to make the best of this situation as far as training goes? Is it even reasonable for a beginner to start off practicing basic marksmanship at the 100 meter (110 yard) distance? I am not even sure if my rifle is zeroed right because I don’t know how much of it is shooter error in terms of shot groups. I am only allowed to sight in at the 50 meter range for a few rounds and it seems to be zeroed okay. We don’t have an abundance of outdoor shooting ranges and they have membership caps so I’m stuck to this one for now. Indoor ranges are 25 meters and only allow sighting in for rifles.
I have the Mapgul Tactical Carbine dvds and I can’t do any of that kind of stuff. And no, moving down to the U.S. is not an option for me.
Sorry, I should clarify. I’m not looking for suggestions at this point for a training regimen that’s CQB oriented. Since I can only use a 100 meter range and longer, what are good drills or training exercises I can do at these ranges that could translate to skills that could be used for SD. I guess I’m kinda reaching out in the dark here, sorry if nothing makes sense. I’m just not an experienced shooter at all.
Yeah, I guess it’s pretty obvious, all I can do is just basic stuff, at long distance. I don’t know what answers I was hoping to get. Sorry for a stupid thread I was just feeling hopeless and was hoping for some magic answer here. To make matters worse, there’s a new rule that we can’t shoot prone without prior permission from the President and there has to be an RSO. To be fair, this is not exactly coming from the club per se but the provincial Chief Firearms Officer, a bureaucrat who can basically make his own rules due to how our messed up Firearms Act is written. It’s so stupid with our gun laws here you guys should be vigilant you don’t give an inch more to stupid liberals or you’ll end up like us.
100 meters is great for nailing down zero and tracking zero shift.
If you can put steel targets down-range I would get a BCC type target and a 6" plate and work conventional and unconventional positions.
100 meters standing on either is completely do-able, though standing may tempt you to use more a more traditional (versus “combative”) position.
Standing to kneeling transitions are good for that distance, as is barricade/supported positions.
How much leeway do you have on targets and range furniture?
F2S, I Can Only Use Cardboard, Paper And AR500 Steel, Whatever That Is. What If I Make A Silhouette Target ScaLed Bigger To Simulate It Being At A Closer Distance? Kinda Like If You’re Dry Firing In Your Living Room And You Scale Down A Target To Simulate A Farther Distance, BuT The Opposite.
I can relate. I’m restricted to a 25-yard indoor range. Closest 200-yard is 2.5hrs drive from me.
I’m force to use SIRT AR Bolt in the basement to do my own drills with my cheap barricade (used shelving + base molding + scraps)
and whatever Magpul/ VTAC training of YouTube that can be applied with dry-firing.
Don’t under estimate dry-firing like I did. Someone here convinced me, and I surprised how effective it is. Good exercise too, make me all kind of sore the next day, like I used kettle bells.
AR500 steel is the type of steel that is suitable for shooting at. It’s what is sold by reputable companies. I would recommend thickness of not less than 3/8" for 5.56.
A BCC type target is something like this:
It covers all but the “D Zone” of an IPSC target (the -3 zone of an IDPA target), which is the A, B and C zones of the IPSC (-0 and -1 of an IDPA).
Scaling up a target doesn’t really work since the most significant aspect of close range shooting with a carbine is mastering offset (sight line is ~2.7 inches above bore at muzzle, with different zeroing schemes giving different trajectory slopes out to the zero distance).
Yeah, I just thought about that this morning, that the trajectories would be different so I would not be able to apply the appropriate holdover (i.e. if using a 100 yard zero) at CQB distances.
Start with basic marksmanship skills (prone, sitting, kneeling, squatting, offhand). A 100m - 300m range is great for this.
Get very familiar with operating the weapon. You can practice manipulations and dryfire at home. Once you are proficient with marksmanship and manipulation, you can look for another facility to work on close range stuff. It’s just my personal opinion, but I would not send somebody off on an autocross course before they know how to drive stick shift and handle a turn.
Ok thanks for all the replies everyone. I’ve been reading a bit more and found Paul Howe’s write up regarding battlefield zero (scoured your posts F2S :)). If I zero my irons 2-3 inches high at 100meters, does this affect holdover at 25 meters and in? I cannot practice and/or confirm POA/POI at less than 50 meters at my range as I am only allowed to fire rifle rounds minimum 50 yards. Also, for initial sight in, which I will be doing at 50 meters, should I aim for POA/POI at 50, if I will eventually zero at 100? I’m thinking that if one is to achieve POI 2 inches below POA if sighting in at 25, for eventually zeroing at 100, this would translate to POI one inch below POA at 50. Am I understanding this right? So, if I eventually want to hit 2-3 inches above POA at 100, then I should strive for POA=POI at 50?
Thanks but I’ve read all of those already. The 3rd link you provided, same article is provided here in M4C. They don’t apply to me as I cannot shoot rifles at the 25 meter distance at my range. For reference, this is the article I mentioned in my previous post:
