One of the considerations, when you come to a shooting range is, what should I wear? It sounds like a simple question, but it is definitely worth considering. Mainly, you want to start with your safety equipment, which starts with eye and ear protection.
Eye Protection
So when it comes to safety glasses, you have various choices. There’s a simple pair that costs just a couple of dollars. We also offer others for about $10 that you can put over your glasses. So you get the best of both worlds. With either, you have protection from hot brass. That protection is especially important in an indoor range with a stall where the brass will bounce back, and it can go in glasses if they’re open.
Ear Protection
Another critical consideration for what to wear at the range is hearing protection. Hearing protection is rated in NRR, which is your noise reduction rating. And as with eye protection, there are a variety of options. First, we offer simple foam plugs. Those are usually just a dollar or two, and they do an effective job if you get them installed properly. From there, you can go to passive muffs. These would be the muffs you put over your ears, and they just drown out the noise. And then there’s an even better option, particularly for training: electronic ear muffs. They have noise canceling at a higher decibel level when a gunshot goes off, but you can hear conversations in the range. So you have a variety of options for hearing protection, and we strongly encourage you to get the best protection that you can. Your hearing is worth protecting.
Clothing
Another thing to consider when you come to the range is what clothing to wear. Again, it sounds simple, but there are a few factors that some people don’t think about, particularly for safety. One of the things you might want to wear is a hat. When shooting, spent casings will come back toward the shooter, and a properly fitting hat will keep those casings off your face and away from your eyes and ears
Next, what kind of shirt do you want to wear? I prefer to have something with a close-fitting collar on. With a loose-fitting shirt, hot brass can get beneath your shirt and burn your skin. Tank tops are especially dangerous from a hot brass perspective. And we ask people not to wear them to the range. We also highly recommend pants as opposed to shorts to avoid burns from brass.
Footwear
The final consideration is footwear. Always wear closed-toed shoes. Hot brass often finds its way between toes and under feet when people wear sandals and flip-flops.
If you have any questions about how to choose the proper safety equipment, we’d be happy to help make sure that you come prepared with the right clothing in so you can have the most enjoyable, safe experience on the range.