Starting from scratch

Dannyboy1987

Hi All

I'm wondering what the story is regarding owning your own rifle. i intend to join a club. Rumor has it you have to buy a rifle first so you can put the serial number down on the application form. If so how true is this and where do i start.

Any help will be great

Thanks for your time

vixdname

Heres the procedure:

A./ Visit as many gun shops as you can and compare prices on similar guns. I'd recommend starting off with a .22LR or .17, they're great calibres for starting off with and both the guns and ammunition are relatively inexpensive. Depending on your budget, buy a new or decent secondhand gun.

B./ When you decided on the gun you want, you put a deposit down on it and this way the dealer will hold the gun for you pending you receiving the license. The dealer will give you a letter for the Gardai stating that you have purchased this gun of this calibre of this serial number and that he will be holding onto the gun until such a time as you arrive back in his shop license in hand.

C./ You will either have to join a gun club or get permission from at least two farmers and this permission must be in the form of a letter from each land owner stating that they give you permission to shoot on their land.
Its always good to have the land owner state where the land they are giving you permision to shoot on is, so as the Gardai will have exact detail.

D./ Go to the Garda web site www.garda.ie and download form FCA1, its in .pdf format so make sure you have adobe reader installed on your computer. You can go into any Garda station and get one of these forms there as well.

E./ Take plenty of time filling in the FCA1 form as theres lots of questions to be answered, including why you want the type of gun you intend to purchase etc. etc.

F./ When you have your letter from the shop, the letters from the land owners or proof of joining a gun club and the FCA1 form all filled out you bring them all into your local station and hand them in.
Your local Garda may want to meet you for a quick chat regarding the gun license this is normal (In my neck of the woods anyway).

G./ You will have to purchase a gun safe that is upto standard to hold your gun and these can be bought for around €100 and up.
The local crime prevention officer may pay you a visit to inspect the gun safe is installed correctly. It must be bolted to a solid wall and to the floor also. If all is well he will send off his report stating all is well on the safety front and the license application will continue on to the next step.

H./ The Superintendent is the man who will make the final decision as to whether you receive the license or not. If he refuses you a license then he must state as to why exactly he is refusing the issuance of the license.

On boards.ie theres a whole section about filling in the FCA1 form and new license FAQs I think its on the very first page of the shooting \ hunting forum at the top, its well worth a read.

Anyway, hope the info. is useful and that once you get licensed you come back to this forum and get as much info starting with SAFETY as possible regarding your new sport. The lads here have huge experience and knowledge and are always only too pleased to pass on some of that knowledge when needed.

Best of luck !!!

Dannyboy1987

Very helpful thank you . just to find the .22 for me i hear CZ are a great rifle for starting off

jap gt

there are a few .22 cz in the for sale section, all great looking rifles

Dannyboy1987

Cool thanks, also whats the best type of ammunition to buy also where is the cheapest

vixdname

Dannyboy1987 wrote: »

Cool thanks, also whats the best type of ammunition to buy also where is the cheapest

Have a look at the link below, its a link to Duffys Gun Shop in Galway.
A .17 or .22LR rifle shoots whats called "Rimfire" ammunition as opposed to "Centrefire" ammunition which larger calibre guns fire.
Rimfire rounds are very cheap (€5.50 and up for 50 rounds)
On the website below you'll see rounds called "velocitors", they pack a little extra punch over some of the other rounds.
You can also buy "Subsonic" rounds which basically dont break the sound barrier when fired and are usually used in conjunction with a "Moderator" which is a kind of silencer and are great for shooting rabbits without frightening all of the other rabbits in the local vicinity with the noise.
A moderator costs from €100 and up..Parker Hale is a very good make of moderator.
The muzzle of your barrell will have to be modified to accept a twist on moderator but your local gun shop will be able to point you in the right direction if that needs to be done.....again its not very expensive to get done.
Try and stay away from bulk boxes of ammunition where you get 500 rounds for €25, these rounds are inclined to fowl your barrell excessively more then your standard ammunition.
Any decent gun shop will be able to help you out when you want to buy rounds.

By the way CZ rifles are lovely to get started, theyre accurate, robust and well worth a look at.
Whenever you get your rifle and license sorted I advise you to come back here and talk to the lads regarding getting decent optics (telescopic sights), they're crucial....when you know your budget we can talk makes models and specs.

Have a look at my setup, its a Remington 700 .223 rifle with an Accuracy Internationl Chassis System stock, Picantilly rails and a NCStar 6-24X50 Illuminated Mildot reticule, (I got this scope for free off my mate before he went to Australia to live a few weeks back and still havent had a chance to try it out, it could be ****e but it may be ok, normally I have a Bushnell 5-15X50 scope.
Whenever you get confident with your .17 or .22LR you can always move on up the ladder and upgrade everything from gun to optics and everything else..the world is your oyster !!!!

Hope this helps !!!


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