Better Question from a New Guy - Learning to Handle and Care for my new Shotgun

[SJJ]

Thanks again to all of you who gave me advice on the purchase of a shotgun in my earlier post. Now, I am looking for a local club or organization to learn how to use it safely and effectively.

I live in Montgomery County, Maryland, and have been considering joining one of the local Izaak Walton chapters. Any thoughts on that or on other options? My primary interest is learning proper handling and care, and shooting trap and skeet looks like it would be fun and a good way to learn to handle the gun.

(By the way, for those of you who are curious, I bought a Mossberg 500 pump that came with both a 28" barrel and a 24" rifled barrel with mounted scope. I am sure there are folks who will think that I could have bought a better gun, but the price was excellent (on sale at Dick's) and a neighbor has a Mossberg pump that he has had for years and is very happy with.)

SJJ

[fabsroman]

After reading your other post in the bows forum, you don't live too far away from me. Since you are familiar with the area, I live right next to the Milestone Center where Wal-Mart, Target, and Home Depot are located right at 118, 355, and 27 and I know exactly where Dicks is. I am willing to bet that you bought that shotgun at the Dicks in the Rio Center. The only other one around this area is in Columbia, Maryland.

There are several trap and skeet ranges around the area. There is one right up route 28 that I have shot at a couple of times, but the one I go to the most often is around Greenbelt, Maryland right next to NASA off of Good Luck Road. I think there is even a place by me off of Riffle Ford Road that throws trap and skeet, but when I checked their website they said the range is closed. Probably because they just built some million dollar homes over there. The rich complain and the trap range that has been there for 30 years is shut down.

I would be more than willing to give you some help with shotgun shooting. I'm not the best shot out there, but I have been doing it for a while and I know a little. Let me know if you would like to head to the range one day.

If you are interested in waterfowling, I might even be able to get you out on a goose hunt later this year or next year once you get the hang of swinging a shotgun. It is a lot easier to learn to shoot at the range than in a hunting situation where a bunch of things are going on.

[kt]

could you have bought a better gun...... for your peice of mind, that combo is a steal from dicks, i was in recently and my friend who works the counter had three transactions on that gun going at once!
kt