Shooting Misfire

I packed up two of my pistols and hiked over to my old range yesterday. I like my new range better, but it's outside and it's darn cold out right now. No thank you.

As I was about to give them my money, the clerk said "Don't you remember why you stopped shooting here six months ago?"

Actually he didn't say that. He said, "You can't shoot those bullets here."

Why? He said "Because we want wring every last cent from your worthless hide by making you buy our ammo for your guns."

No not really, he said "Because our ventilation system sucks and we won't spend our money to fix it."

Really? No actually didn't say either of those things. He said "Lead bullets are hazardous to your health, blah, blah, blah."

I said, "You know what, I'm in no mood to take your crap. I'll be taking my business elsewhere."

Shooting ranges run by cheap tightasses really annoy me. For the record, lead bullets aren't hazardous to your health, even in a closed environment like an indoor range. The hazardous lead salts that are formed during shooting come from the primers (the little percussion caps at the base of the cartridge), not from the bullet. Any lead coming from the bullet, comes off the base and most jacketed bullets still have an exposed lead base.

Now casting lead bullets in an enclosed environment, that can cause unhealthy lead exposure. And the amount of heavy metals lodged in a typical backstop is impressive and ecologically troublesome. But actually shooting the damn things is pretty darn safe as long as you are on the proper side of the gun when the trigger is pulled.