I want to get into shooting. what do i do?

lukiej

i am 18 years old and from county galway. i want to get into shooting. i have no knowledge really in the area.
should i join a club?
do i get a license first?
how do i get a license?
what are the different types of licenses and what ones am i entitled to?
should i start with target shooting first?
where do i get a gun?
do i need a license before i buy a gun?
do i start with air soft or real guns?
sorry if some of these questions sound stupid, but this is probably the best place to find answers so hopefully someone can help me.

thanks,
Luke

A Country Voice

The first thing I would do is to talk to somebody in a club.
Before you go buying an expensive piece of kit you should see what is involved.
If you get in touch with a club you'll gain all sorts of knowledge from guys who have been shooting for years.
If they're running a clay pidgeon shoot or a target shoot of some kind they might even let you come along and see what goes on.
The N.A.R.G.C. should have a list of gun clubs in your area.
If you need any help give me a shout.
I'm sure there'll be plenty of help available from anyone on these boards too.

Regards
A Country Voice

Half-cocked

First you need to decide what area of shooting you want to get involved in:

Rifle or Pistol or Shotgun
Target (rifle or pistol) or clays(shotgun) or hunting(rifle or shotgun) etc

Best to join a club that caters for your chosen area. Or visit a few different clubs to see what grabs you. You can pick the brains of the members and make an informed decision about what type of gun you want etc.

deeksofdoom

I know this isn't going to answer all your questions but if you browse aroungd the board here you will find the answers you are looking for. As has been said it depends on what kind of shooting you want to do. I'm a game shooter, my interest is purely to do with game shooting, dogs, releasing birds and vermin control.

Shooting isn't as easy as you might think to get into, What you need to do is talk to someone in a gun club, there's a gunclub in practically every parish in the country, whereas target shooting and clays there may not be the facilities in your area.

We get a lot of young guys in our club who join up, primarily to get a gun. But then they don't get involved in any of the other club activities, they don't get to know anybody, they complain that they don't get asked out for a days shooting and subsequently loose interest and leave. Shooting is a dangerous activity and shooters shy away from taking complete novices out because of the danger that they may potentially pose.

If you are thinking of starting shooting join a Gun Club get involved and learn all there is to know about the countryside from the other members.

Cass

Hey Luke,

should i join a club?

Firstly, a country voice has the right idea. Go to a gun club, be it game or target. look around and ask the lads plenty of questions about the guns, cost, events, game etc. Shooting can be an expensive sport especially the target side of it, so don't jump into any aspect of the sport without having a good idea of which end of it you would prefer the most.

how do i get a license?

To apply for the licence you need two permission slips from land owners or be a member of a gun club.
Getting a licence used to be easy enough but with the new guidelines the process has gotten slightly more complicated but overall its straight forward enough. The new form (FCA1) has alot of info to be filled in but all of the necessary info and help is available at the top of each section on this forum (hunting, sale/wanted, Target). You need to pick a gun (shotgun/rifle) hence the reason for visiting clubs before picking. Get the application form (FCA1). Fill it out, attach all necessary photos, permission slips, explanation of reasons, etc. Drop it all of at your local Garda station and sit back and wait.

what are the different types of licenses and what ones am i entitled to?
should i start with target shooting first?

You are entitled to apply for any type of firearm you like. There are rifle, shotgun, air rifle, pistol, etc. licences available. Before doing so you need to be aware of the cost of purchasing the gun, home security requirements, maintenance of the firearm, accessories, where you can fire said firearm (land or club) membership cost, etc. If you are a novice my advice is don't jump of the deep end. Don't go for a .338 target gun if you have never fired a rifle before. Start small and work your way up.

Each discipline of shooting has its own governing body so if you are interested in clay pigeon shooting you should look at joining a ICPSA affiliated club. For long distance target work a club like MNSCI would suit. For air rifle target work DRC and such are good.

do i start with air soft or real guns?

It really down to personal choice. Go to clubs that shoot air soft, Air rifle, .22lr, Fullbore, pistol, shotgun. By looking at the different types of shooting that are available you will get a better feel of what you would like to pursue.

sorry if some of these questions sound stupid, but this is probably the best place to find answers so hopefully someone can help me.

No such thing as a stupid question. Better to ask than go at it blind. The lads at the clubs and ranges will be more than happy to tell you whatever you would like to know be it target work or game. Best advice i can give is go out, try different ranges and game clubs, go to local dealers and ask him to show you a few of the guns you saw at the clubs. Work from there and never be shy to come back here and ask the lads or myself any questions you have. We all started the same as you but some were not lucky enough to have boards as a fall back.

Best of luck.

lukiej

Thanks for your help guys, much appreciated.

burke08

i am 18 years old and from county galway. i want to get into shooting.

Im also applying for my first lisence. I was in the garda station eaylier this week and was told as i dont own the house (live with parents) i have to give in a letter saying that the parents dont mind guns been in the house.

Cass

burke08 wrote: »

Im also applying for my first lisence. I was in the garda station eaylier this week and was told as i dont own the house (live with parents) i have to give in a letter saying that the parents dont mind guns been in the house.

Garda is correct. Just type out something simple, stating your father and mother have no objections to firearm(s) being kept/stored on the premises. Get them to sign it and bob's your uncle.

moose112

burke08 wrote: »

Im also applying for my first lisence. I was in the garda station eaylier this week and was told as i dont own the house (live with parents) i have to give in a letter saying that the parents dont mind guns been in the house.

I never had to do that they must only enforce this in some regions

Cass

moose112 wrote: »

I never had to do that they must only enforce this in some regions

Maybe, but it is the law.

Dusty87

ezridax wrote: »

Maybe, but it is the law.

Never asked me for it either. I was told they would so i had it written out wit the signatures and forgot to stick it in the envelope. Never asked for it. I know a station a few miles up the road from me looks for them though.