Learn · Guides
All guides
Plain-English guides to target shooting in Australia, each checked against its sources and dated.
24 guides
- Disciplines
Action shooting
Practical and action pistol shooting, where accuracy and speed both count, the bodies that run it in Australia and how newcomers get started.
3 min readReviewed - Disciplines
Air rifle and pistol
10 metre air rifle and air pistol, the Olympic precision events usually shot indoors with .177 calibre target guns, who runs them and how to try them.
2 min readReviewed - Getting started
Air rifle and pistol first
Why air rifle suits young beginners, how air pistol fits in, what the 10 metre events involve, and what parents should know before the first session.
3 min readReviewed - Disciplines
Black powder
Target shooting with muzzleloading and other black powder firearms, the classes and distances, who runs it and how to find a club.
2 min readReviewed - Disciplines
Choosing a discipline
Pistol, rifle, shotgun, action and air compared by pace, what drives the cost and where you can shoot, to help you pick what to try first.
3 min readReviewed - Disciplines
Clay target
Shotgun shooting at moving clay targets, including trap, skeet and sporting clays, the bodies that run it and how to try it.
2 min readReviewed - Equipment
Eye and ear protection
Why gunfire can damage hearing straight away, how earplugs, earmuffs and electronic muffs differ, how Australian ratings work, and when ranges expect eye protection.
4 min readReviewed - Getting started
Finding a junior program
Where junior shooting programs are run in Australia, what a good one offers, and the questions to ask before your child joins.
3 min readReviewed - Disciplines
Fullbore rifle
Long-range target rifle shooting, including Target Rifle and F Class, the distances involved, the national body and how to have a go.
3 min readReviewed - Licensing
How licensing works in Australia
The general steps from trying the sport to holding a firearms licence for target shooting, who sets the rules, and the kinds of things that differ between states and territories.
5 min readReviewed - Licensing
Joining a club and getting licensed
How clubs take on new members, what a probationary period usually involves, and how club membership fits with applying for a firearms licence.
4 min readReviewed - Disciplines
Metallic silhouette
Knocking down steel animal-shaped targets at known distances with rifles or handguns, the main formats, who runs them and how to try it.
2 min readReviewed - Disciplines
Pistol shooting
Target pistol in Australia, from 10 metre air pistol to 25 and 50 metre events, who runs it and how to try it.
2 min readReviewed - Safety
Range commands and etiquette
The commands you'll hear on the firing line, what each one asks you to do, and the etiquette that keeps everyone safe between strings.
4 min readReviewed - Safety
Range officer accreditation: ask your club
How clubs and associations train and accredit range officers, what the schemes have in common, and why your first step is to ask your club.
3 min readReviewed - Competition
Reading a score card
How precision targets are scored, what happens when a shot touches a line, what inner tens, Xs and Vs mean, and how ties are broken.
4 min readReviewed - Safety
Running a detail
How a range officer runs one detail of shooters from briefing to cease fire, checks the line, sends people forward and rotates the next detail in.
4 min readReviewed - Safety
Safe handling rules
The core firearm safety rules that appear in Australia's national safety code, a state police safety code and club range rules, with a printable checklist.
6 min readReviewed - Disciplines
Smallbore rifle
Precision .22 rimfire target rifle shooting, its main events and distances, the national body and how to get started.
2 min readReviewed - Safety
Storage and transport basics
The principles behind firearm storage and transport in Australia, and why the exact requirements come from your state or territory registry.
3 min readReviewed - Safety
Supervision on the range
How clubs supervise junior shooters, who is responsible for what, and what parents and guardians should expect and ask.
3 min readReviewed - Safety
The range officer's role
What a range officer is responsible for, what they do before, during and after shooting, and what makes a good one.
4 min readReviewed - Getting started
What target shooting involves
A plain-English introduction to target shooting in Australia: the main disciplines, how clubs and sporting bodies are organised, what happens on a range and how newcomers get started.
4 min readReviewed - Getting started
Your first come-and-try day
What happens on the day, what to bring, and how to get the most from your first supervised session on the range.
4 min readReviewed