Are all indoor gun ranges hot?

[baldeagle]

I've now been to two different indoor ranges in the Dallas area (Targetmasters and DFW Gun Range), and both of them were hot. Targetmasters was almost insufferable. DFW Gun Range was a little better but still hot, and the range wasn't well lit. (That's one reason why I"m getting night sights. I discovered I can't see the front sight very well in dimly lit conditions.)

Is there an indoor range where the temperature is comfortable?

[sjfcontrol]

As to the question whether all indoor ranges are hot...
The answer is -- not in the winter! Liked to freeze my tail off at the bullet trap in march.

[baldeagle]

Then it would likely be hot in the summertime, right? Why is that? Do the ranges not think people want to be comfortable while shooting? It's especially bad for the women. They didn't last more than a few minutes before they wanted to get out of there.

[Manfred]

I have been told that the air conditioners have trouble keeping up with the exhaust fans. I suppose I would rather be hot that huff lead and smoke for several hours during a practice. It seemed to make sense to me.

[Charles L. Cotton]

Manfred is correct. The age-old problem with indoor ranges is trying to cycle the air in the range fast enough to keep it clean, while heating or cooling it. It's possible to heat and cool that much air, but it is incredibly expensive to do it. The NRA's indoor range at headquarters stays warm in winter and cool in summer, but the HVAC system could heat/cool an aircraft carrier! (This is what I was told when I asked how we keep the temp correct and the air clean.)

Chas.

[jester]

Ha! I thought this was going to be about running a "hot range" rather than a "cold range."

Is there an indoor range where the temperature is comfortable?

I've shot at private ranges with good climate control, but ranges open to the public tend to be hot inside when it's hot outside. As others said, they have to keep venting the smoke and lead-filled air and replacing it with air from outside, and it's not feasible to cool that fresh air quickly enough when it's pushing triple digits outside.

[The Annoyed Man]

I've now been to two different indoor ranges in the Dallas area (Targetmasters and DFW Gun Range), and both of them were hot. Targetmasters was almost insufferable. DFW Gun Range was a little better but still hot, and the range wasn't well lit. (That's one reason why I"m getting night sights. I discovered I can't see the front sight very well in dimly lit conditions.)

Is there an indoor range where the temperature is comfortable?

The indoor range at Bass Pro in Grapevine seems to be reasonably well ventilated, but it's a pretty small range. I almost never go there though, since I have a DPC membership. If it's hot, too bad. I just tough it out. Same when it's cold.

[OldCannon]

It's almost always hot in summer and cold in winter at Red's in Pflugerville. Then again, a 100yd indoor range is going to naturally need a ton of air scrubbing to keep it environmentally clear.

[carlson1]

DFW Gun Range has AC.

[Texas Size 11]

That's why I just go to the Garland range in the summer...if I am going to be sweating it out either way, I might as well enjoy being outdoors.

[ChuckW]

DFW Gun Range has AC.

That is true and they do a reasonable job of cooling the range but has already been said they need to bring plenty of fresh air to exhaust the smoke and lead. In hot weather the cooling just can't keep up with the intake of warm fresh air. Actually, on a hot dry day the cooling still works pretty good but in very humid weather like we have been having the fresh air intake is much more noticeable.

[baldeagle]

That's why I just go to the Garland range in the summer...if I am going to be sweating it out either way, I might as well enjoy being outdoors.

That plus outdoor ranges are what I'm used to from my Navy days.

[secure]

The primary reason is the range owners will not spend the money to install efficient and proper ventilation. When you visit the range and shoot for an hour and come out blowing black snot out of your nose this is not good. The only range in DFW that has good ventilation is Bass Pro Grapevine. There are companies that specialized in air handling for ranges. Bass pro is the only range in town that actually uses a system meant for a range. The others like bullet trap, DFW, target masters, etc are using standard HVAC which simply will not cycle the air fast enough. Man we sure do need a nice gun range. :)

[bnc]

Ventilation is a huge reason why I prefer outdoor ranges. Even if an indoor range is cool enough, I'd rather not have a nose full of gunpowder. And this is Texas, I'm going to end up hot & sweaty no matter where I shoot. That 10ft walk from the door to the car is enough to require a shower this time of year.

[garcia946]

Targetmasters is always hot , like it was stated , Id rather go to Garland oudoor since Im gonna sweat anyway.
I cant remember about Bullet Trap , been way too long since I was there.