Flintlock Valley Shooting Range

Price now $7. Steel targets not allowed

Pros: The range itself is wonderful and cheap for a day pay or even a year pass, great covered bench areas, racks to set rifles and holders at the pistol section. Huge back stops and you can set up targets up to 100 yards easy. Bathrooms there, and nice clean area and grounds. Great range for teaching kids and new comers as well as amazing for sighting in before a hunt, or for honing in your top skills. Cons: The range master (if that's what you wanna call him) is probably the most unsafe person at the range, he gives out horrible advice to new and inexperienced shooters such as telling some to just shoot the little zip tie out of the gun instead of fishing it out when it got stuck in the chamber. He runs the who 'hot' 'not hot' system totally backwards (red light should mean stop not go). He also has a tendency to close the range super early if there is only a couple shooters. Hopefully you catch a day the range master is napping in his shed and everyone else is running the range more efficiently and safely. He needs to be replaced by someone who isn't a gun show marine wannabe.

I try to get to this range about once a week. It is one of the few outdoor ranges within the greater Charlotte area. After a couple miles journey down dirt roads, you will be pleasantly surprised by the quality of the range when you get there. Both rifle, and pistol ranges have covered benches on concrete slab, with good backstops and rubber chips. And for only $5 a day or $40 per year. The range officer, Rick, is friendly and professional. He's always good at being conscientious of when people need to go down range. If the range is slow, he keeps an eye out for when someone is ready to go down, if not he lets you shoot until someone is. If it is busy, he calls hot and cold about every 15 minutes. He maintains a safe range, enforcing the rules that matter, and keeping a relaxed presence. Rick is a good guy to talk to and he does not have a superiority complex like you might find in some RSO's. I have watched a handful of people argue with the range officer over rules or their actions. In my experience, he has always been fair and only become less than kind when the person continues to be unreasonable and unsafe. But every range has those type of people, and if you can't be responsible and accountable for yourself, you should not be there. -Nick