Where did you learn to shoot

[North East]

Thought there may be some serving or ex members or also military here, former or serving, they must be keeping a low profile, huh? They must have some great stories.

If you call walking 15k with a heavy son of a bitch L1A1 SLR, in the late 70's, and a heavy back pack a story…well it wasn't…it was a pain in the arse.

[cavok]

Thought there may be some serving or ex members or also military here, former or serving, they must be keeping a low profile, huh? They must have some great stories.

If you call walking 15k with a heavy son of a bitch L1A1 SLR, in the late 70's, and a heavy back pack a story…well it wasn't…it was a pain in the arse.

As it was in the mid to late sixties, character building.

[AussieTimmeh]

In the military. I hated it with a passion, just another box to tick, spent most of the day cleaning the damn rifle and being yelled at.

I remember one qualification shoot where I think the score was out of 30, my target ended up with 56 odd holes in it and the target of the high ranking officer next to me ended up with zero. He shot my target the entire time. The range corporal took one look at the targets and us, said 56 / 2 is 28, you both pass. I was like wtf! And to make matters worse, back at the armory the high ranking officer handed me his rifle and instructed me to clean it because he had to go.

[North East]

In the military. I hated it with a passion, just another box to tick, spent most of the day cleaning the damn rifle and being yelled at.

I remember one qualification shoot where I think the score was out of 30, my target ended up with 56 odd holes in it and the target of the high ranking officer next to me ended up with zero. He shot my target the entire time. The range corporal took one look at the targets and us, said 56 / 2 is 28, you both pass. I was like wtf! And to make matters worse, back at the armory the high ranking officer handed me his rifle and instructed me to clean it because he had to go.

Let alone getting gassed, just to show how the mask worked….well that freaking sucked.

[AussieTimmeh]

Thought there may be some serving or ex members or also military here, former or serving, they must be keeping a low profile, huh? They must have some great stories.

Oh, some more memories to share, why not.

With the Steyr assault rifles, they had a single shot lockout button on the bottom to ensure only one shot was fired per pull. The smallest guy in the group forgot to check this was down when doing a standing shoot, and pulled hard. The unexpected recoil of automatic fire lifted the rifle up into the air and he almost put some rounds through the roof - well that's how it felt anyway. Immediate ceasefire for all and he got a royal going over.

On the topic of that lockout button, we never were given the opportunity to go full auto and we knew we wouldn't be given the chance, so it was not uncommon during the last exercise in the bush to accidentally push the button in and shoot what would probably be your one and only full auto burst in your life, which would be hastily followed up with 'WHO DID THAT!?!?!' and angry men running in your general direction.

One last story from when I was doing my initial qualification shoot. This had us shooting at all kinds of different targets in different firing positions, and the one I was doing at this point in time was the pop-up targets from a standing position. They had told us earlier that if your arms were getting tired, to try folding the front grip from the vertical to horizontal position. Well, my arms were getting tired, so I waited for a target to pop up, shot it, then immediately changed the grips position and readied myself for the next shot. I had never done this before and it changed my arm position so I figured all was well.

The next target pops up, I aim and fire, and holy hell, WTF just happened?!? Pain immediately shoots through my forward hand and my eyes start watering like crazy. I had no idea what happened, so I quickly pulled the grip back down to the vertical position and tried to blink the tears of pain from my eyes to see the next target which would pop up any second now. I keep going with my shoot in immense pain without saying anything and return to the bunker after I finish. Turns out that when I gripped the rifle with the forward grip up, I put my little pinky finger over the gas port, which had snapped my finger back when I fired and left one hell of a carbon stain that took months to go away.

[AussieTimmeh]

Let alone getting gassed, just to show how the mask worked….well that freaking sucked.

Oh yeah, that was one of the worst parts. Damn I would hate to end up in stronger stuff in a war.

[North East]

If I could get hold of an unfired Lithgow L1A1 SLR I would buy it if I could. Not a Belgium version who designed it….but the aussie model. I'll bet there are some stashed away at the Lithgow factory.

It would be a great investment if it was unfired. A classic rifle…but still a son of a bitch.

[Westy]

In the military. I hated it with a passion, just another box to tick, spent most of the day cleaning the damn rifle and being yelled at.

I remember one qualification shoot where I think the score was out of 30, my target ended up with 56 odd holes in it and the target of the high ranking officer next to me ended up with zero. He shot my target the entire time. The range corporal took one look at the targets and us, said 56 / 2 is 28, you both pass. I was like wtf! And to make matters worse, back at the armory the high ranking officer handed me his rifle and instructed me to clean it because he had to go.

Sadly Timmy the ADF is full of them. Now days I shoot at the QMRA here in Brisbane and let my rifle do the talking!!!!

[North East]

As it was in the mid to late sixties, character building.

Unless you were born in the late 50's or early 60's I suggest you would have no idea about what was going on then.

Cuban missile crisis…the world on the brink of nuclear annihilation.
Kennedy assassinations and the Vietnam war.
Man lands on the moon and soldiers are dying in Vietnam.

Those days were real, not Call Of Duty computer war games.

You are freaking lucky this country and planet is even around after those tumultuous years.

I was there and it was scary.

[North East]

Wars are not character building…they suck.

[cavok]

Unless you were born in the late 50's or early 60's I suggest you would have no idea about what was going on then.

Cuban missile crisis…the world on the brink of nuclear annihilation.
Kennedy assassinations and the Vietnam war.
Man lands on the moon and soldiers are dying in Vietnam.

Those days were real, not Call Of Duty computer war games.

You are freaking lucky this country and planet is even around after those tumultuous years.

I was there and it was scary.

What if you where born December 1945, yes I would have a very good idea, in high school when the Cuban crisis began, and then some.
Nam, what is it you fail to under stand. The moon landing, I know I was in Melbourne central, and you were; where?

A TIME AGO.

In Nam there are so many places that we alone know well;
To friends at home who little care of stories that we tell.
They were not there to see our pain, so how do they decide
Just who was right and who was wrong, of how to stem the tide?
But judge us then they surly would, when only we came back
so little did they understand of why we ever walked that track.

Three clicks to reach the village, beside the paddy field
a river ran a clump of trees and nothing was revealed.
The jungle lay behind us, the sun was to the east
contact right was all we heard when all hell was unleashed.
This hour was my hell on earth, you cannot understand
but thirty other friends with me will never trust that man.

They said to kill and take a life, to burn their homes was right
perhaps it was, I just don’t know, but I can’t sleep at night.
At night I sometimes dream a dream, of things I’ve seen and done
so where were they when people screamed, when someone used a gun?
Perhaps there was no right or wrong, perhaps we only learn
but if the chance should come again, I think it is their turn.

But we’re Australians who believed whatever we were told,
and questioned not what governments would over time unfold.
So there we were in patty fields when bullets took a life,
a friend had died, what will I say, to his poor loving wife.
To say goodbye a fond farewell, to men who shared your dream
who now are gone to sleep alone, their eyes no longer gleam.

So now we march alone on days, that governments decide
they were not there, they did not see, but ask us now abide.
We miss our friends, those men we knew, who never will return
Their wives, their lovers all alone, alone to only yurn.
What can I say to you that you may understand
we tried so hard to do a task, in some forsaken land.

You alone who were my friends, who asked to travel there,
we never asked, they didn’t say, that never was it fair.
The task was bold, the risk immense to save us from the foe
who only wished to live their lives and force us all to go.
We all were young, perhaps naive, our lives ahead for all
our job was done, we stood so proud, and equally as tall.

But now back home with friends we know, on finer richer soil
to lives that time and hate had tried, but always failed to spoil.
To build a better life for all, young children never see
but very sure I’m really not, we helped to set them free.
In early light, in granite carved, there I can see a name
we will remember all you mates, there is no one to blame.

Who were we then, what are we now, must only we decide
to see the trees, to smell the smoke, another life has died.
In places that we knew so well, if only for a time
but hell on earth, there was this place, and I did make it mine.
We will remember you our friends, who never will return
you gave your lives, we shared your life, let others slowly turn.

[Jack V]

Many years In the scrub on my own. In the Army , advice from pro roo shooters , station hands and graziers while working on cattle stations and from a few older mentors when I was a teenager , got a lot of shotgun advice from Mick Smith. Read everything I could lay my hands on about guns and hunting in general. Very useful hunting tips from indigenous hunters also .
I can't remember half the time where I left my car keys but I remember every single thing I ever learned about shooting .
I wonder when the average non gun owning Australian will recognise that shooting is part of our cultural heritage ?

[cavok]

Many years In the scrub on my own. In the Army , advice from pro roo shooters , station hands and graziers while working on cattle stations and from a few older mentors when I was a teenager , got a lot of shotgun advice from Mick Smith. Read everything I could lay my hands on about guns and hunting in general. Very useful hunting tips from indigenous hunters also .
I can't remember half the time where I left my car keys but I remember every single thing I ever learned about shooting .
I wonder when the average non gun owning Australian will recognise that shooting is part of our cultural heritage ?

Great experience, mentors are a gem. Indigenous hunters are a great survival skill that is still taught.
As a comment on your last point, the greens will never understand, they understand nothing, as for non gun owning Australian know, we now number over 750,000 shooters and the number is growing.

[scrolllock]

Think I might borrow my sons Xbox.

The feds are coming for those too soon if you're listening to all this digital security stuff and anti-terrorism stuff on the radio at the moment

[Jack V]

Great experience, mentors are a gem. Indigenous hunters are a great survival skill that is still taught.
As a comment on your last point, the greens will never understand, they understand nothing, as for non gun owning Australian know, we now number over 750,000 shooters and the number is growing.

+1 on that. A good mentor can really set you on the right path and reduce mistakes and expense along the way . Unfortunately the role of the mentor is now not as appreciated as it once was . I can understand why , as society is more dangerous for the young now and parents can't trust people like they could in my day . People are so cynical now If a grown man pays any attention to a young man they all suspect he is a paedophile or something bad like that .

It's a shame because it creates a gulf between experience and youth. Some young shooters are hard to mentor because they constantly compare your advice to the internet and in many cases the internet could be wrong or not pertinent to the subject and the inexperienced person can't tell the difference.

I have successfully mentored several people over the years mainly by email but one I just had to give up on because they just would not follow the advice given and when they failed came back and blamed me . In the end it all became too annoying and stressful . My big success story was a new gun owner in Texas USA . Spent 3 years mentoring him by email and now he is one of the best shots in his club . Much of the credit goes to him as he was a dream to advise . Americans understand mentoring better than we do.

[chacka]

one I just had to give up on because they just would not follow the advice given and when they failed came back and blamed me.

That's always a gem.

[Jack V]

one I just had to give up on because they just would not follow the advice given and when they failed came back and blamed me.

That's always a gem.

It was very disappointing as I felt bad about failing this person . However they left me no choice but to back off . Some people you just can't help no matter what you try .

[handofcod]

I'm completely self taught because I'm the only shooter in my circle of friends and family. I went on YouTube, read a lot of forum posts for questions that I had and then went to the range quite a lot.

[Jack V]

I'm completely self taught because I'm the only shooter in my circle of friends and family. I went on YouTube, read a lot of forum posts for questions that I had and then went to the range quite a lot.

Know the feeling well. My dad was an actor and singer back in the UK before I was born and I never met any relatives outside my brother and sisters who don't own any guns when I was learning .

I know lots of local shooters now but unfortunately being a non smoker , non gambler , non extra marital woman chaser and a pub hating non drinker , no one wants you along . Hence my life time of mainly solo hunting. I have a nephew on my wife's side now that hunts but he is a heavy drinker and gets aggressive when drunk , think he smokes pot too so I stay right away . Pity though . Finding a good hunting partner is harder than finding game in my situation .

[mausermate]

non smoker , non gambler , non extra marital woman chaser and a pub hating non drinker

[Westy]

I'm completely self taught because I'm the only shooter in my circle of friends and family. I went on YouTube, read a lot of forum posts for questions that I had and then went to the range quite a lot.

What are you into???????

[handofcod]

Benchrest but just tooling around. Nothing serious. And stomping around in the bush like a fool to give the sambar something to laugh about.

[chacka]

It was very disappointing as I felt bad about failing this person . However they left me no choice but to back off . Some people you just can't help no matter what you try .

Geez you're looking at that backwards IMO.

You're failure? I'd say not.

[Jack V]

I know you are right but it still felt bad at the time.

[Triang]

I know lots of local shooters now but unfortunately being a non smoker , non gambler , non extra marital woman chaser and a pub hating non drinker , no one wants you along.

Doesn't sound like a barrel of fun I've got to say

[Westy]

I know lots of local shooters now but unfortunately being a non smoker , non gambler , non extra marital woman chaser and a pub hating non drinker , no one wants you along.

Doesn't sound like a barrel of fun I've got to say

I don't take anyone with me I haven't know for over a year now days!!!! Jack your not alone mate I'm all of those things and more and very happy about it!!!! Last thing I need is a drug f***ed pisshead ruining a good weekend, been there done that doesn't happen anymore!!!! Last thing I need is someone else losing my hard earned property's because their a asshole!!!! Who knows Jack in 12 months we might get a hunt going

Cheers Westy

[North East]

I'm completely self taught because I'm the only shooter in my circle of friends and family. I went on YouTube, read a lot of forum posts for questions that I had and then went to the range quite a lot.

Know the feeling well. My dad was an actor and singer back in the UK before I was born and I never met any relatives outside my brother and sisters who don't own any guns when I was learning .

I know lots of local shooters now but unfortunately being a non smoker , non gambler , non extra marital woman chaser and a pub hating non drinker , no one wants you along . Hence my life time of mainly solo hunting. I have a nephew on my wife's side now that hunts but he is a heavy drinker and gets aggressive when drunk , think he smokes pot too so I stay right away . Pity though . Finding a good hunting partner is harder than finding game in my situation .

Nothing wrong with hunting alone, I always do. Less chance of getting shot by your mate, a lot quieter. Just carry a PLB.

[Jack V]

I know lots of local shooters now but unfortunately being a non smoker , non gambler , non extra marital woman chaser and a pub hating non drinker , no one wants you along.

Doesn't sound like a barrel of fun I've got to say

I don't take anyone with me I haven't know for over a year now days!!!! Jack your not alone mate I'm all of those things and more and very happy about it!!!! Last thing I need is a drug f***ed pisshead ruining a good weekend, been there done that doesn't happen anymore!!!! Last thing I need is someone else losing my hard earned property's because their a asshole!!!! Who knows Jack in 12 months we might get a hunt going

Cheers Westy

Mate I have lost two great properties from taking idiots away with me . Two work mates that I thought were ok well they were at work but in the bush they went crazy , did dangerous things , got pissed all the time . In the end I took them home early but when I tried to get back on by myself no go .
That was the last time I ever took anyone away . I know exactly where you are coming from . I would be happy to shoot with someone who had similar values to me. Maybe I am a bit boring but nobody ever got hurt on one of my trips .

[headspace]

I got started about age 10 with a mate and his air rifle. Then went straight to 303 at Liverpool Range. Then back to a 22 chasing rabbits, then got a job in a gunstore in George St, got the callup and then spent 2 years shooting everything from a 9mm Browning to a 40mm Bofor. Personal weapon was an AR, the heavy barrel version of the SLR with a 30 round mag. Did a tour to Malaya, South China Sea and Thai Border during the Indon Confrontation and learned to hate the jungle. My rifle was always a lot cleaner than I was. There were a lot of great rifles along the way, and few duds.
Now I just like to hunt a bit and punch a few holes.
JD

[Lorgar]

Mate I have lost two great properties from taking idiots away with me.

I've had one, a 2,000 acre property in north Vic.

Unfortunately the mate that got me the invite was also the one who cost me it.

Shot out wires on the owners fence and hit one of his gates driving in the fog