It's a trophy animal preserve mainly, the last time I was there they had a covered shooting area that could allow 3 prone shooters. The range is about 30-40 yards wide and goes out to 1000. Eric is the guy that heads the shooting part. It's a nice place I haven't been in s year or so, so there may be some changes. They also have a 3d archery course that's pretty nice.
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Yes Eric is the one to talk to out there. it's open pretty much every Friday. It's a two mile pass town on the left if you are heading west.
As far as here in CF, our range is still open, but no matches if any sort. Guv says that recreational travel is acceptable. At least that’s my understanding
Lol I just read their keeping golf courses open as a essential activity, damn why could I just be into golf. I'm in northest fl, it's a 45 min drive for me to the long range and 30 to my home range. I think I'll have a high probability of being stopped if I try and visit either.
Hey All,
Wife has orders to NS Mayport, so I'm relocating to the St John's area. Looks like I'm about 15-20 mins from Ancient City and Saltwaters, and about an hour from Bradford and Volusia.
Is Volusia 1000 yds now? Can you actually shoot 435 yds at Ancient City? If you were going to have a "home range" for sighting in and shooting pistols does AC offer something that Saltwaters doesn't?
Also, it seems like the "long" ranges within an hour are Volusia, Saltwaters, and Bradford, but Saltwaters is only open Mondays and Tuesdays? Are all of them a $40/day range fee? Which one has the most steel?
Thank you for taking the time to answer!
Wife has orders to NS Mayport, so I'm relocating to the St John's area. Looks like I'm about 15-20 mins from Ancient City and Saltwaters, and about an hour from Bradford and Volusia.
Is Volusia 1000 yds now? Can you actually shoot 435 yds at Ancient City? If you were going to have a "home range" for sighting in and shooting pistols does AC offer something that Saltwaters doesn't?
Also, it seems like the "long" ranges within an hour are Volusia, Saltwaters, and Bradford, but Saltwaters is only open Mondays and Tuesdays? Are all of them a $40/day range fee? Which one has the most steel?
Thank you for taking the time to answer!
Gateway is my home range, after initial fees its 135 per year, rifle up to 200, pistol pits with steel or bring your own for the pistol, rifle is paper only except rimfire.
For long range I go to Bradford's 40 per visit for the 850, I bring my own steel and it goes out to 850, I haven't been to the others yet.
For long range I go to Bradford's 40 per visit for the 850, I bring my own steel and it goes out to 850, I haven't been to the others yet.
I used to be stationed at Kings Bay until 2002 and have a great friend who lives in the Mandarin area. He was USMC then went SF and used to run most Highpower out of N FL, including matches at Gateway and Camp Blanding, in Starke. I used to help him and ran a couple matches at Camp Blanding. They have 2 600YD ranges, KD-A and KD-B.
His comments to me about ranges local to him recently:
"We now have two private 1000 yd ranges here. One is south in Hastings FL about 40 miles from home. One is west of Jax and maybe 50 miles from the office. The one in hastings did not renew my membership in May. ($500 yr) they returned my check. That range is very narrow and maybe 100 ft wide and lined with tall pines so it is very dark in mornings and afternoons. It points 181 degrees and has a 30 ft berm in back but is too narrow. They have steel plates to shoot at 12” x 18” every 100 yds. They have a 40x60 metal building and a 25x50 doublewide mobile home directly behind the berm 30 yds back. They cant understand how they get bullet holes in the buildings....duh. People drive down the long access road without knowledge of shooters on the range, shooters dont know either. There is no berm on either side. People walk around down range and a couple of vehicles have been hit.
I talked the owner into stacking semi-truck tires behind the plates but all of the shooters there are careless. I was told to take out a chamber flag because “it was dangerous” since it was an obstruction to the bore. Another told me once that “bolts have to be closed when going down range ‘for safety’ so nothing accidentally gets in the chamber”. Huh?
About half are cops and call themselves “snipers”.
The owner saw my box of ammo one morning and started to lecture me about Solid lead bullets’ will come apart in mid air and hit his buildings. For a moment i was confused. It occurred to me that he thought my danzac coated bullets were all lead.
Still... i tried to help them. I drew plans to bunker the plates and fortify berms and add safety. I dont think he liked that much. They have no idea what a hazard it is to be downrange on a hot range.
Of course, the only steel i have ever shot at was old russian tanks in one place or another and at vehicles... i shoot paper with shotmarker and they do not like that. Thanks to practice at the full range i can usually shoot 98% or cleans at 600 and 97-98% at 1000 with data backed up on shotmarker. I gave the owner a copy of the stats in excel format from the previous 12 shooting sessions there but i do not think he could read it.
Oh well.
The other range is not much better. It faces 269 degrees and the afternoon sun just hurts. 400 yards behind the 10 ft tall back berm is a home with dense trees between. The owner says the home is not always lived in. He knows the neighbor but not well. Recipe for disaster.
They shoot some matches at 600 and 1000 yds using paper in F-class format. All on rests ,all big scopes. They like the NRA targets and not the F-class targets but some do it right
You can look up both.
Shadd Farms is the range to the west and currently where i started shooting. Ascot Shooting Club is where the folks from Hastings FL are"
No, according to Volusia's website the clowns charge $100 for non members to shoot. 900 yard and open two days per week: https://www.volusiacountygunclub.com/long-range/
No, Ancient City doesn't have that long of a range. I've been to two pistol classes there and there was nothing that long. I believe there is a police (St Johns County Sheriffs?) range next door that might have that distance or longer. But it isn't open to public.
AC offers nothing Saltwaters doesn't have. Saltwaters has sporting clays too.
I like shooting at Bradford, just wish it was closer.
Ascot has around 1K but is private. But you can see from their website it is just one long narrow shooting lane. I haven't gotten the impression from others posting on here that it is as hillbilly as the quote above. But it is Palatka so not too hard to imagine.
Last I looked Saltwaters long range (maybe 750) was only open on Mondays and by apt. But that could have changed since the guy told me that at the Club like two years ago. I can't go down there on a Monday so never shot it. Looking at their website it looks like Monday & Tuesday (http://www.saltwatersshootingclub.com/faq/).
Sounds like Saltwaters is the place that's going to make the most sense for us. Kind of a bummer that the longer range is only open on Mondays and Tuesdays...
I recommend Bradford. It’s a little tucked away in the woods, but have never had an issue there. I went to Gateway once, and that was enough. Between some Fudd who didn’t understand basic safety/ended up flagging the entire line with a loaded rifle, and the RO not doing anything about it, they won’t see my money again.
It seems like Bradford charges you $40 to shoot their long range, and Saltwaters does as well. If I have to pay $40 to shoot longer than 200 yds no matter what, I might as well join the range that's 20 minutes from my house instead of an hour and just pay by the day to go long when the opportunity arises.
Glad to see some north fl shooters bring this back to life.
bradford now has a long range membership for the 850 only for 300.00 per year. There are berms at 2,4,6amd 850yds. Open every day except mon and tuesday.
tucker schmidt is running some prs matches at volusia every other month or so this year. Rick scrivins is running some prs stuff every other month at jtac down near tampa.
bradford now has a long range membership for the 850 only for 300.00 per year. There are berms at 2,4,6amd 850yds. Open every day except mon and tuesday.
tucker schmidt is running some prs matches at volusia every other month or so this year. Rick scrivins is running some prs stuff every other month at jtac down near tampa.
Does Bradford have steel targets at the berms on the 850 yd range or is it all bring your own?
Last time I was down there i paid $20 for the day to shoot 50-300 yards at Bradford; the 850 is $40 as previously mentioned.
So are you shooting their long range? Is it still by apt on Mondays only and/or Tuesdays?
I qual'd 2 Sunday's back (shot under an inch at 206 yds). Obviously not in the below position but that was the setup.
My date with the 770 yd range is 2 Monday's from now. I don't know if they're doing appointments on "every Monday" or "every Tuesday" but appointments get made on those days of the week.
@Ikeman83
What’s the qualifications process?
Also run down of your equipment? Looks like a good setup. Tikka Tac a1?
Go on any day other than M/Tues, tell them you want to qual. They'll put a paper target out at 200 yds, and you need to shoot a 5-shot group that is under 2" at 200 yds.
Rig is a T3X Tac A1 in 6.5 CM, 20 MOA Spuhr, with a Kahles K525 LSW SKMR3.
Well looks like Shadds closed down and Bradford's is going to get alot busier, has anything changed or are the same options available?
I've got my own steel just want something that's not packed with shooters shooting at the same target I am.
Anyone shoot at saltwater often? What's the long range like?
I've got my own steel just want something that's not packed with shooters shooting at the same target I am.
Anyone shoot at saltwater often? What's the long range like?
Are you saying Bradford is going to get busier because Shadd closed or another reason?
Never shot at Saltwater as last I knew the long range was only open on Mondays by apt and groups only. Was down there last week to browse the shotgun shop.
i shoot gainesville target. has anyone tried the range in lecanto?
not sure how far you are away from
https://jtacranch.com/
but they have a 2k range also did not thoroughly read about there membership requirements , but what ever you do or where ever you go to shoot send pics I love seeing pics of new place that one day I could travel to and shoot .
https://jtacranch.com/
but they have a 2k range also did not thoroughly read about there membership requirements , but what ever you do or where ever you go to shoot send pics I love seeing pics of new place that one day I could travel to and shoot .
Not a member but went many times with friends.
Can you pm me info to get in touch with the overseers please? I can't find any contact info.
Thank you.
Bringing this thread back to life.
Anyone been to Bradford on the 850 recently? Im going to be making a trip back soon, and wanting to see about the qual to shoot it.
Im either going to join them as a member, or Volusia.
Anyone been to Bradford on the 850 recently? Im going to be making a trip back soon, and wanting to see about the qual to shoot it.
Im either going to join them as a member, or Volusia.
100 to qualify, check the website for availability.
i shoot at gainesville but it is only 200yd. lake city has a public 200 if you can tolerate the FWC bullshit. any contact on shadds? it might be doable and for more southern no.cent. fl. location there is a newer range at lecanto that i have to go see. heard it was 600yd with electric targets.
Shadd is down. Eric moved ops to Bradford sportsmans farm near starke. Really has some plans for improvement there. Check the website for info on that
I’m heading to Bradfords this Saturday with my new to me AI. Going to be on the 300yd side zeroing in. Eventually will be qual’ing for the longer side.
I have been there a few times since eric took over the long range qualifying stuff. Didnt have to requalify or anything special. I have been qualified there since around 2012 but still had my original card. They did start an electronic database for those that are qualified so you may not be in it if its been a while since you qualified
Yep I qualified about 2 years ago I went there today and shot sporting clays, I got to shoot the 850 as well, I was hoping g they wouldn't make you requalify.
