VeeGanSausageR wrote: »

Hi lads, I suppose I'm not so much a beginner as I've been shooting since I was 15 (I'm 19 now) with different friends here and there. But now I want to get into it on my own, and have a few quick questions for ye.

1) So I want to get into target shooting, and want my first gun to be a lever action rifle, something by Henry Repeaters or similar. I have been shooting .22lr for years and would like a little step up from that, as money is fairly tight and I want my first rifle to last me a few years. I have my heart set on a .22wmr repeater of any kind, but I'm just wondering if that would be considered unrestricted? Looking at some previous posts on this forum it is unclear to me whether or not they are restricted or not.

2) If they are freely licensable, how hard is the licencing process? My friend got a .22lr rifle at age 16 fairly easily but that was probably 5 years ago now. Let me know how hard it was for ye. Also how long should I expect the process to be at this time (due to pandemic, backlog, etc.)?

3) Finally, if anyone knows of any dealers selling .22 magnum lever action repeaters down south, please let me know. I'm living in Waterford near Clonmel. The closer, the better. Also looking for ranges for rifle/pistol as the closest one to me got closed and I have no idea where the next closest one would be.

A lot of questions I know. Thanks in advance for any help/advice.

Firstly, welcome to the wonderful fun of firearms licencing!

1 - have a gander here, NI dealer with them in stock
Alternatively in the South you could try Patrick O'Mahony Firearms in Kerry, since he is a savant in that area.

On restricted vs non-restricted, so long as it is smaller(bullet diameter wise) than .308 and holds 10 rounds or less(easily plugged) then you are non restricted, for lever actions.
The reason you see a lot of restricted talk about leverguns here is because they are usually chambered in pistol rounds(.357, .44, .45 colt), all of which are larger than .308 in bullet diameter, and are thus restricted.

You will pay a bit more for .22wmr vs .22lr mind you, so factor ammo costs into your purchase.

2 - Licencing in Ireland is very stringent, but so long as you have no criminal record and a "good reason"(target shooting is a good one but would require you to be a member of a target shooting range which costs 600+ for the initial year on average, with subsequent years ~300-350).
You might have a think about putting down pest control and getting a few landowners permission(or parents if they are the farming sort), in case you fancy pursing that avenue.
How hard it is will entirely depend on the Garda District you are in, since they are each entirely independent of each other in terms of stringency & timescale with firearms licencing.
Some are fantastic and some would rather the unwashed masses not own anything stronger than a catapult

Here is a good write up of the licencing situation in more detail:
http://10point9.ie/how-do-i-apply-for-a-firearms-licence/

3 - see point 1 for dealers(one in NI and one in Kerry ASFAIK carry them or have done so), for ranges I think the closest to you would likely be:
http://www.mtsc.ie/
https://fermoyrifleclub.com/

All depends on what facilities you want and how far you are willing to travel, but a quick google maps search for "shooting ranges ireland" will put you right.

Hope that helps and if you have followup questions then fire away!
Pun very much intended

VeeGanSausageR wrote: »

Another question, what would be the next caliber up from .22lr that can be used in competition.

Entirely depends on the competition. The NASRPC has most of the national comps done in Ireland.
Most have specific calibers, ie 22lr for benchrest, gallery rifle can be .22lr, 30 carbine, 357/38, 44 magnum, 45 LC, etc.
All depends on the competition rules.

Also, what's the story with plinking off range (ie, shooting steel plates etc on private land)? Heard it was illegal but that was some years ago. Surely if hunting is allowed then target shooting should be okay with an appropriate backstop and general common sense.

By the law illegal in Ireland as target shooting can only be conducted on a licenced range.
However a lot of folks will zero their firearms on private land with a suitable target and backstop, or on their permissions when hunting.
I think the main thing is not to set up a shooting range and you are probably alright, but by the legal definition no target shooting outside a range.

Yes it is moronic, but firearms legislation here often is.

I'm not all that interested in hunting but I've been told by a few fellas to put it on the licence application form anyway just in case.

The reason for that is if you put down target shooting on your application, get granted for that reason and then use the firearm for hunting you would be violating the terms of your licence.

Best bet is to go for target shooting, hunting and other(pest control).
Get the gamut and then in future(licences run for 3 years a pop) if you want to go and sample another of the above you can.
Otherwise you would have to re-apply to get the other uses/reasons added.

Obviously the first Mod warning above hasn't hit home or left some with the impression that they can continue to ignore it.

So let me be clear.

Any more allegations/accusations of illegality against a named person/company/business will be met with infraction and ban. Any arguing with a Mod's decision, on thread, is also grounds for infraction.

If you have something to say you take it to PM.

Final warning.