Boy Scouts at the Range

[Full MeTal Jack]

Saturday, April 5, we took 17 scouts to the range at American Shooting Center, Houston, Texas. This has been an annual event called Shootsfest. The troop has been doing this the last 7 years or so. It's the brainchild of our retired scout master. He wanted to take the scouts to the range to teach basic marksmanship focusing on his muzzle loader. Myself and another leader, Phil jumped at idea. I have a collection on military rifles and Phil has several U S rifles. Usually some other dads will bring some type of long gun. It's not only rifles, we've done a shotgunfest twice. Shooting trap.
We do two meetings on safety, aiming, handling and range rules/proceedures. We have one adult per two shooting positions while on the range. This time we had 4 adults and 8 scouts on the fireing line. Two adults supervised the shotgun trap.
The scounts think it's a blast! This time the scouts shot trap and a variety of long guns; 4 M1 Garands, 2 AR-15, 1 AR M4 full close tactical weapon w/ geotech aimpoint sight, M1 Carbine, SKS, FN FAL L1A1, SVT44 Tokerev, Mosin 44, 1903 O3A3, Swiss K-31, Swede 38 and my custom Turk Mauser w/ Madsen 30-06 machinegun barrel (absolute tack-driver).

Most new scouts haven't even been near a "real" gun must less shot one. The new boys just had fun pulling the trigger and finding out a bighuge M1 Garand doesn't kick too hard. Now the 180 grain bullets out of the bolt 06s gave some em thump. One new scout that just recouped from a facial fracture, his father didnt want him shooting anything more than a .22.
Well! We had a 22. The AR-15. The father thought we were nuts when I said we put our nose on the charging handle. Kid loved shooting it. He also tried the Garand too. No Biggie.

During the course of shooting, we could hear the boys regurgitating some type of anti gun propaganda probly from the media or school. Like; it's military ammo illegal? Isn't Russain ammo against the law? You have too much ammo? Isn't that gun illegal? Stuff like that.

Personally, I'm honored to donate time, effort and ammo to open some minds full of muss and promote the sport of shooting.

[squirrelbaster]

no fair!! they got to shoot guns i havent got to shoot ye
.22 and 410s are all we got to shoot in the scouts, those boys are lucky to have access to guns and people like that!

[GlockMeister]

Sounds like a great time FMJ. I'm not sure if your chapter is in the same shooting organization as the one I saw. I was watching either Shooting USA or American Rifleman a while back and they did an episode on the scouts and that they have this shooting match that they do and that there is quite a big following for it and scouts have a great time and some actually do quite well at it.

When I first saw this show, my first thought was, gee, had the scouts around my area offered that when I was young, I'd probably of joined rather then make fun of them. I know, big meany. lol The many things I hope I'd do different if only given the chance.

From the sounds of it though, these scouts had one heck of an assortment to choose from? Glad to see in some areas the youth are being given the chance to be around guns and shoot them.

It seems in many areas now-a-days they are told and taught to just stay away from them and if you touch them you'll die or kill someone. That all they are used for is to kill people and they shouldn't touch or go near them. I'm so glad that you guys have taken the initiative and a positive approach in teaching the youth to be responsible and safe and have a great time shooting firearms and that it is and can be an enjoyable and most excellent sport...

[Full MeTal Jack]

Thanks guys. I'm glad to help.
It's a hoot to teach these guys to load singles on the Garand. Better do it right or the bolt will bite your thumb off!
No we are not that group. We would have to have couple more adults that are competition shooters to do some consistant rifle matches. We've talked about using our 200 yard range w/ full target pits to do a scout rifle match but like stated before, need more competitive shooting adults. Phil and I try every year to get new blood into high power shooting.

[GlockMeister]

Well no matter FMJ, I still think it's great you guys do get out there and do this with the youth. Kudos to you all.

[texnmidwest]

Congrats FMJ! I was beginning to think that the Boy scouts had wimped out on marksmanship. It is a lot of fun to introduce new shooters to the sport. Especially, when you introduce them to trap and a couple weeks later they are shooting better that you!!!! I just love that! Problem is they never let you forget it! LOL!

[Cyrano]

Our club has an arrangement with the local Scout troops. Three or four Staurdays a year we close the range to the membership and the Scouts come in and do the shooting portions of the Rifle & Shotgun Shooting merit badges. The NRA has given us grants to purchase target rifles (.22LR) and shotguns (12 gauge) and pay for ammo for this in the past. We have a couple of safes where the Scout guns are kept and only the RSOs can open them. This year, we are supposed to be getting a grant that will allow us to buy a few high-power rifles for the program, too.

For practicing, if a parent is a member of the club or the Scout has a family membership, they can come and practice any time the ranges are open and the parent is there supervising/coaching him on the firing line. Some of those kids shoot better than I do!

[Full MeTal Jack]

Cyrano, If possible could you send me a PM on the details of that arangement. If that is something within your scope of knowlegde? I could bring that up to my club's BODs, providing I'm willing to chair the postion.
Thanks for supporting Scouting.

Originally Posted by texnmidwest

Congrats FMJ! I was beginning to think that the Boy scouts had wimped out on marksmanship. It is a lot of fun to introduce new shooters to the sport. Especially, when you introduce them to trap and a couple weeks later they are shooting better that you!!!! I just love that! Problem is they never let you forget it! LOL!

Thanks Tex. Maybe one of them will be the next Charlston Heston holding a Mosin Nagant 91-30 overhead.

[Dookiebutt]

You are doing a great thing. Many of our youth are taught that guns ar evil. I see how my nephews have been taught.

[Mosin Shooter]

well, up here in NY,
i got offered a summer program, 6 weeks in the summer and I can use MY own guns.

I get to scare the other kids away with Mosins....hehehe

[ScouterJoe]

In our scout camp we have a .22 range and a shoot gun range. The camp got a NRA Grant a couple of years ago to build the shoot gun range. There is a camp just south of here that is considering a pistol range.

My troop goes to the local Trap and Skeet range once a year. They are instructed on safety and technique. They have a great time at it.

[Otter]

When I was a Boy Scout we had a change of command, our new scout master wouldn't allow us to shoot, no one was going to have a marksmanship merit badge while he was in command. I went on a campout on the edge of a lake where there was a sand pit that my brother worked for. I had permission to shoot in the pit and brought a takedown .22 with a brick of ammo and some targets, along with the marksmanship merit badge handbook. The scout master through a fit and when our parents came to the school to pick us up, he lit into my father about me bringing a gun on a campout. My father told him that when he was the scoutmaster of the explorer troop, everyone got the marksmanship merit badge on the range in his basement, and what was his malfunction?
The scout master told me he had excepted my resignation, and I was out. To which I say, Fuc% those A$$holes who think their policies govern the orginazation as a whole.

[FS00008]

I would have told him to shove it up his ass if he expected your resignation. My exact words would be,

"Shove your policy up your ass."

[ScouterJoe]

a. there is no "marksmanship" merit badge. Rifle Shooting or Shotgun Shooting
b. Explorer's don't have scoutmaster.
c. if you'd been in my troop, I'd have tossed you too.

You may be trained, but what about the youth around you? Could you as a youth guarantee the security of your gun at all times? I doubt it with other kids around. Are you saying you'd approve of walking kids into a range without proper safety in place?

[Idaho Dave]

When I was a kid our scout group went shooting once a month in the summer. we would reload shells after each time for the next times trip. most of us lived on farms and we would just go to someones farm and shoot clay pidgens and targets, after we would clean up the mess. as an explorer our posts' speciality was firearms/gun smithing we entroduced lots of other kids to the world for firearms, safely, with no accidents, and nery a one became a crazed lone gun man. Just to show you how times have changed back then each year our entry in the scout o rama (from boy scouts on up)was a firearm related entry with guns, reloading equipment and other such paraphinellia on display. We were fortuante to have a gun maker living near our area and went on tours of actual gun making and design. we even did a little pellet gun shooting booth at the scout o rama. imagine how that would go over in this day and age.

by the by scouter joe there used to be a marksmanship merit badge that was discontinued in 1966 and replaced with the rifle and shotgun badge

Rifle and Shotgun Shooting19671987Replaced Marksmanship, replaced by Rifle Shooting and Shotgun Shooting in 1987

Discontinued merit badges (Boy Scouts of America - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

propbably discontinued by folks that thought it was threatening that a boy might get it


course that was back in the day when a boy with his .22 was not instantly considered a threat to humanity that needed to be quickly tossed. our leaders often brought firearms on camping trips and we were allowed to try them out. my last scout master/explorer post leader (what ever the technical name is) bought each of us in the group (7 in all) a brand new remington speedmaster .22 rifle for an award for something we did. still have the gun and still understand what commitment means. there were/are/will be kids younger then explorer scouts fighting in many of the wars throughout history and they seemed to be able to control thier firearms well enough to fight and not kill thier friends.

I am an eagle scout but niether of my boys went to scouts at all really round here it has been sissified to a bunch of kids going to play basket ball each week and never go camping or anything.

speaking of which are there any other eagle scouts that keep getting that letter about the eagle registry they are supposedly making?

[ScouterJoe]

I currently have 78 boys registered in my troop. I'm not sure what the eagle registry is. I'll ask my son. He got his eagle last year.

by the way, I'm all in favor of teaching every boy in the program how to use and respect all firearms.

Thanks for the info about the merit badge. I was born in 66. I knew there wasn't one in my time as a scout.

[Full MeTal Jack]

Otter, sorry your scoutmaster didn't think that leaders should promote one of the most prized Rights of our USA. That being said, yeah, I'd have a big prob with a scout bringing a firearm. Big proB. Water ballon slingshots-OK.

Scouter Joe, 78? DANG? Hope your parent participation is 50% or better. Our troop is right now up in the 40s. Fairly easy to manage outings.
We have an open invite to go to ranch bordering a Texas Hill Country river. The ranch has two shot gun "lanes". We'll see? Outing planning is comming up in September.
Glad all you guys are/were involved in scouting. It's a great program for mentoring your sons on their road to manhood. Real men.

[cremley]

Wow! that is great. when I was in scouts a few years ago I only shot .22's and a 20 guage for the rifle and shotgun merit badge at a summer camp. I wish we had the opportunity to do that. I sometimes still go to the scout meetings. thanks for that post, I might be able to give them ideas for more activities.

[ScouterJoe]

We've got great participation from parents. We've never had an issue with not having enough help. There is a real spirit of volunteerism in the town I live in.

[Scoutmaster]

Thank you Sir! Those Scouts will remember the lessons you teach them at the range long after they forget the anti-gun propaganda they learn at the hands of the politically correct.
One of our local Summer camps had nearly lost their .22 program. They had problems finding a qualified Range Master and the .22s they had were in bad shape. My local FFL had sadly recently lost his 17 year old Son, an Eagle Scout, to a car accident. He decided to jump in and help the Scouts. He donated all new Marlin .22 target rifles and ammunition enough to last through Summer camp.
Thanks again,
Don