Discharging firearms on your own property in Bastrop County (San Marcos: renters, houses)

[texdav]

The law is the law and usually ones lke this are for a good reason.Most ranges have much more land and a back stop and insurance to cover just such probelms that often arise. 3 acres is nothing really in this case.Even the NRA insurance won't cover you if enaged in a illegal act.

[centralaustinite]

Has your insurance agent agreed to this plan?

[love roses]

My dad target shoots on his land, but then again, that's in Tyler and it's 15 acres and there's no neighbor behind them. He has neighbors to either side of him however, so goes to the far end of his property to do it.

[je2000]

I'm not even sure if there is a cut off or not.

If I didn't meet the acre cut-off I wouldn't do it. I wasn't implying I would be breaking any laws.

[1housemouse]

My daughter has an archery set and wants to practice with that on some land as well. I wonder how much damage she can do.... I can relate to the question.

[je2000]

Originally Posted by 1housemouse

My daughter has an archery set and wants to practice with that on some land as well. I wonder how much damage she can do.... I can relate to the question.

3 acres is more than enough for archery. Go buy some bales of hay and set up a backstop. Shoot in a safe direction taking into account what will happen if your daughter missed the backstop completely. I'm not sure you have to worry too much about ricochet. For me that is a big issue.

People here seem to act as if I'll be shooting across my neighbors lawns. Or even that my gun will get up and shoot someone by itself.

Probably the same people who don't support CCW permits in this state.

When I find out what the exact law is I'll update the thread.

[achtungpv]

Originally Posted by je2000

3 acres is more than enough for archery. Go buy some bales of hay and set up a backstop.

Buy WAY more bales than necessary. Hay's way cheaper than an attorney.

[Trainwreck20]

Heh....a bow will hardly make it into the hay...unless it is a crossbow

I am curious as to what the laws are, though, so let us know what you find out....

[ATXIronHorse]

Originally Posted by je2000

Exactly. So you should not drive your car tonight! Why even bother dealing with the liability if you hurt someone?

Anyway, I wouldn't be shooting into any adjacent property. There are precautions and safety measures that would be set in place to assure overshoot and ricochet do not occur.

I'd be too paranoid about hitting a kid or someone wandering around in an adjacent property. Even a .22 can travel 500 yards or more. Not worth the risk when you can so easily go to a shooting range and not have to worry at all. But hey, to each his own.

[got the t-shirt]

AFTER YOU FIND OUT THAT IT IS NOT ILLEGAL, I would still take every precaution if you have neighbors on 3 acres. A 22 can travel a lot farther than the longest distance on your property, 9mm is even more potent downrange. You can probably find a place to get some used tires which make a pretty decent backstop if you stack them and fill them with dirt. It takes up a lot less space than building a berm. You should probably stagger two rows so that they nest together and overlap each other. I would probably also make the shape a crescent with the your firing line inside the imaginary circumference. Build it at least 3-4 feet higher than you will every mount a target. Do your best so situate the backstop so that there is nothing directly behind it on an imaginary line from your firing line through the target area for as far as you can see. If you have a buddy with a back hoe you can also look at digging a trench to use as your range, although it can be a problem during the rainy season.

Always wear ear/eye protection.

Just for general good neighborliness, if your neighbors are outside don't shoot that day, unless they want to come shoot with you.