Their Facebook page still shows it not opening for another week or two.
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Manchester Firing Line
- Thread starter nhtimba
- Start date
Their Facebook page still shows it not opening for another week or two.
During the winter (basically anytime it's under 40 degrees out) it is slamming on weekends, you will want to have a member reservation. Even right now it is very busy on weekends.
-Mike
Been wanting to check out MFL for a while now--I'm especially interested in their rentals as I would like to try out a bevy of handguns before making my next purchase.
I checked their web site and was unable to find a list of the makes and models they have available for rental.
I'm also a little unclear on how the rental works:
I guess you pay for the lane. You also pay for the rental and the ammo if you are using a rental gun.
I would like to know if you have to pay the gun rental fee for every gun you wish to shoot or if you can shoot a couple mags worth in say an M&P .45, return it and swap it for a Sig, a 1911, etc.
Maybe I will give them a call and ask.
I checked their web site and was unable to find a list of the makes and models they have available for rental.
I'm also a little unclear on how the rental works:
I guess you pay for the lane. You also pay for the rental and the ammo if you are using a rental gun.
I would like to know if you have to pay the gun rental fee for every gun you wish to shoot or if you can shoot a couple mags worth in say an M&P .45, return it and swap it for a Sig, a 1911, etc.
Maybe I will give them a call and ask.
Definitely a good place to go and shoot if you're restricted on venues, but the price adds up if you shoot often and you pay out the ass for ammo there. Better off going to walmart or something first to stock up.
If you rent their guns you must use their ammo.
Went to MFL for the first time last weekend. Got there about 2 hours before they closed so they were pretty quiet. I brought my own guns and ammo so I cant say any thing about their rental prices. After shooting I must of spent an hour just chatting with the guys there. Wicked cool guys one guy even got out his personal rifle to show me.
So I had my first experience at MFL today. Got there around 11:30a and had about a 30-40 min wait time to get it. I was pretty impressed with their showroom. I have only been to a few small stores, but this by far was the nicest one yet (havent been to FS yet but everyone seems to rave about it!) Their prices seemed reasonable to me, but I'm just a beginner! They had a large selection of Glocks to rent, a few 1911 Kimbers, several revolvers in .38, .357, and a .454!!! An M&P9c and a decent selection of Springfield XD's. I'm sure there were a few others that were rented already. Saw several rifles and semi/auto guns also for rent. Couldn't even begin to try and identify them. The RSO's were very helpful (seems they get a lot of people who are not familiar with firearms.....) The only thing that concerned me was that there were two groups of foreign college students who obviously had zero previous firearms training or experience. Not to mention they had rented a fully auto rifle!! Aside from that I had a great time. The money does add up. 6 people, 2 hours, 2 handgun rentals +ammo ($22+ for 50 9mm), a couple targets. . . . . $300+ (FYI if you rent from them you must purchase a box of ammo, however you could also bring your own so that you have more. There didn't seem to be any direct supervision on if you were using their ammo or your own.) There's my unprofessional review! TIFWIW!
While it can be pricey, especially when renting, I have found MFL to be a top notch range to shoot at. I brought two first time shooters there Thursday afternoon for ~1 hour. Rented a G17, Uzi(naturally with the giggle switch), and an AK. Got 3 boxes of 9mm and 6 of 7.62x39. Add in the targets and it set me back around $250-275. Well worth the investment to bring 2 new shooters into the fold who are telling all their friends how guns aren't infected with cooties, as well as with an understanding that MA gun laws are f'd up. If I wasn't in such a rush to get back due to some other plans that evening, I'd have signed up for a membership. Looking at the numbers, I realized that if I bring a new shooter a month there and rent, the discount on rentals/time/ammo will more than pay for the membership.
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My two cents...
I have a more or less neutral opinion, It is a nice facility with decent stock, but prices can be a bit on the high side campared to other shops. That being said the higher prices could be a result of having to run the range as well. Even though the prices are sometimes higher I purchased my last handgun there, and can say they were very busy but the service was still good.
Personaly I shoot outside all year long for two reasons. It's good practice to shoot in the cold, and I own the land where I shoot so it doesn't cost me anything. I haven't shot indoor since Wolf (the old MFL building).
It would be dishonest of me to say I shop at any one place exclusively. When I need something I shop where it is most convenient and cost effective for me at the time. I would purchase there again if it suited my needs, but when I need ammo or reloading supplies MFL is not the first place that comes to mind.
I have a more or less neutral opinion, It is a nice facility with decent stock, but prices can be a bit on the high side campared to other shops. That being said the higher prices could be a result of having to run the range as well. Even though the prices are sometimes higher I purchased my last handgun there, and can say they were very busy but the service was still good.
Personaly I shoot outside all year long for two reasons. It's good practice to shoot in the cold, and I own the land where I shoot so it doesn't cost me anything. I haven't shot indoor since Wolf (the old MFL building).
It would be dishonest of me to say I shop at any one place exclusively. When I need something I shop where it is most convenient and cost effective for me at the time. I would purchase there again if it suited my needs, but when I need ammo or reloading supplies MFL is not the first place that comes to mind.
I think a lot of that is going to change once the Outpost opens up. They are going head to head with Rileys and I would make an educated guess that the pricing on a lot of similar items is either going to be in the same wheelhouse or better than Riley's.
-Mike
I think that building was a gunshop/outfitters shop some years ago (can't remember what it was called though). Gunshop was upstairs and clothing etc was on the first floor. I am looking forward to checking it out.
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Did a big road trip to check out MFL for the first time today. Brought my 16 year old and 1 big new .223 we made from the DGW lower. We also wanted to shoot a MG today.
MFL was easy to get to & find from MA and when we walked in about 11...we were quickly greeted and then filled out the very basic forms. Only 4 or 5 people ahead of us in line, though one patron was a little too callous with a Glock he asked to play with...he was very much a newbie and the guy behind the counter and I were both a little worried about him. We connected well on the "be alert nod" and tried to get this guy away from the counter as soon as possible. My son and I were told that it was an hour wait, so we decided to bring our stuff back out to the car and slowly peruse the crazy NFA inventory on the wall. What a wall. We were almost finished looking at the wall (20 minutes later) when our names were called, so we went right back out and grabbed our targets, rifle and range bag. We did not even have time to look at all the many pistol cases. BTW, no AR's in sight. Lots of pistols we can't have.
For our rental, we chose the UZI. Felt right... We picked up 200 rounds of ammo (why can't they give you a 2nd mag, especially when you are there with a shooting buddy?). We got our 2 minute UZI instruction and were off to the lanes (non member side obviously).
We got lane 1 and it is always nice when you are next to the wall...especially when firing an automatic weapon and a big 20" bull barrel. We had a nice RO on our side (a young guy and he showed a nice interest in our build while we set up). Bigger lanes than the Attleboro, MA range, nice lighting and really exceptional ventilation. Love the automatic target lanes, just wish they went out longer.
We then had a whole buncha fun running through mag after mag on the UZI. Really no big recoil...it just drives your arm up as you hold down the FA trigger. 8 mags later (and a nice command of the short burst (3-4 per mag) action)...we had our fill....for now.
We then went about the task of function testing our .223. The big Nikon scope has trouble in this short range and the table is not set up optimally for a very heavy gun, but soon we were putting round after round down the range with our newest toy. Easy to make a very tight grouping at this distance, fun to use the 30 round mags (free at last, free at last, free at last) and soon we had a nice crowd behind us admiring the DGW. My son was psyched at the attention on his build.
After 2 hours and 300 rounds later...we called it a day. Packed up, paid the tab (all seems fairly priced...except that rental ammo) and thanked everyone for the time. As we left about 1...had to be 20 people in line. We did finally take a quick pass through the pistol cases. Oh, do I want a M&P PRO 9mm 5".
Just because we were in the area for the first time, we also went to Shooter's Outpost, Riley's and even stopped by FS on the way home...crazy crowds...no AR's in sight...no .223 ammo in sight (even at my local Walmart), limited 9 mm...low amounts of .22lr and the only good bulk deals for .22lr are at Carl's. The pistols have now taken the post Xmas and panic hit...they cases are getting very light (though a lot of pistols at MFL). Give FS credit...prices on new have not changed.
All in all, it was a great day with the boy...shot guns, looked at a lot of guns...bought none (we do not have a shotgun) and had great windshield time with the boy.
I hope we do it again real soon...
MFL was easy to get to & find from MA and when we walked in about 11...we were quickly greeted and then filled out the very basic forms. Only 4 or 5 people ahead of us in line, though one patron was a little too callous with a Glock he asked to play with...he was very much a newbie and the guy behind the counter and I were both a little worried about him. We connected well on the "be alert nod" and tried to get this guy away from the counter as soon as possible. My son and I were told that it was an hour wait, so we decided to bring our stuff back out to the car and slowly peruse the crazy NFA inventory on the wall. What a wall. We were almost finished looking at the wall (20 minutes later) when our names were called, so we went right back out and grabbed our targets, rifle and range bag. We did not even have time to look at all the many pistol cases. BTW, no AR's in sight. Lots of pistols we can't have.
For our rental, we chose the UZI. Felt right... We picked up 200 rounds of ammo (why can't they give you a 2nd mag, especially when you are there with a shooting buddy?). We got our 2 minute UZI instruction and were off to the lanes (non member side obviously).
We got lane 1 and it is always nice when you are next to the wall...especially when firing an automatic weapon and a big 20" bull barrel. We had a nice RO on our side (a young guy and he showed a nice interest in our build while we set up). Bigger lanes than the Attleboro, MA range, nice lighting and really exceptional ventilation. Love the automatic target lanes, just wish they went out longer.
We then had a whole buncha fun running through mag after mag on the UZI. Really no big recoil...it just drives your arm up as you hold down the FA trigger. 8 mags later (and a nice command of the short burst (3-4 per mag) action)...we had our fill....for now.
We then went about the task of function testing our .223. The big Nikon scope has trouble in this short range and the table is not set up optimally for a very heavy gun, but soon we were putting round after round down the range with our newest toy. Easy to make a very tight grouping at this distance, fun to use the 30 round mags (free at last, free at last, free at last) and soon we had a nice crowd behind us admiring the DGW. My son was psyched at the attention on his build.
After 2 hours and 300 rounds later...we called it a day. Packed up, paid the tab (all seems fairly priced...except that rental ammo) and thanked everyone for the time. As we left about 1...had to be 20 people in line. We did finally take a quick pass through the pistol cases. Oh, do I want a M&P PRO 9mm 5".
Just because we were in the area for the first time, we also went to Shooter's Outpost, Riley's and even stopped by FS on the way home...crazy crowds...no AR's in sight...no .223 ammo in sight (even at my local Walmart), limited 9 mm...low amounts of .22lr and the only good bulk deals for .22lr are at Carl's. The pistols have now taken the post Xmas and panic hit...they cases are getting very light (though a lot of pistols at MFL). Give FS credit...prices on new have not changed.
All in all, it was a great day with the boy...shot guns, looked at a lot of guns...bought none (we do not have a shotgun) and had great windshield time with the boy.
I hope we do it again real soon...
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