Mackay Rifle Club Inc.
The Mackay Rifle Club Inc. was first formed in 1885 and, except for the duration of World War One and World War Two when the Club went into recess, has been active each year since inception.
The Club is a target rifle club affiliated with the North Queensland (State) Rifle Association and the National Rifle Association of Australia. All such clubs shoot at targets of either the conventional type which is lowered by a 'marker' after each shot, the position of the bullet hole is marked and the score indicated, before raising the target for the next shot, or the increasingly popular electronic target system where each shooter is provided with a monitor that electronically indicates the shot position and score. Mackay Rifle Club has yet to venture into this electronic era.
The Club conducts shooting matches on most Sundays at the Mt Vince Rifle Range located at 659 Victoria Plains Road at its intersection with Rocky Waterholes / Wollingford Road, about 9.0 kms to the south-west of Walkerston.
These matches which commence at 8.30am are shot over distances ranging from 300 yards through 800 metres which is called “Long Range Target Shooting”. Each shooter fires 2 sighting shots and 10 scoring shots twice each day, and shooting is usually completed by 11.30am
Shooters at Mt Vince Range have the choice of a number of different classes which are:
*Target Rifle (TR) - .308 or .223 calibre single shot, bolt action rifle with peep sights
shot in the prone position, with the rifle held completely by the shooter
*F Class – Standard (FS) - .308 or .223 calibre single shot, bolt action rifle with
telescopic sight normally shot in the prone position with the aid of a front rest which
may be a pedestal or bipod type and a rear detached rest (eg a sandbag)
*F Class – Target Rifle (F/TR) – As for F Class Standard except that front rest must be
attached, plus a number of other variants to FS
*F Class – Open (FO) – Any calibre up to 8mm, single shot, bolt action rifle with any
sights (almost invariably telescopic) normally shot in the prone position with the aid
of front pedestal or bipod and rear detached rests
*Black Powder – Muzzle loading, Percussion Breech Loading and Metallic Cartridge
single shot rifles from .45 to .58 calibre normally shot in the prone position with the
aid of a front rest.
Note: Shooters who suffer a disability that precludes shooting from the prone position may
shoot from a bench provided that a doctor's certificate is produced. There are a
number of wheelchair-bound members in Australia.
Eligibility:
Target Rifle Shooting has no gender distinction with both men and women ranked
amongst the most proficient shooters in Australia and the World. Although there are
some State/National/International competitions for Ladies Teams, all other competition
from club to world level is open to both sexes.
The majority of shooters are adults however a minor, aged 11 to 17 years, may be
issued with a Minor's Weapons Licence, be a club member, and shoot while supervised.
Contact:
For further information about Mackay Rifle Club Inc. or to arrange to “see if this sport is
for you” visit our informative website at , send us an email at
, or speak to Ted Mullan (Captain/Secretary) on 49424649
or Bevan Appleby (Vice-Captain) on 0429988509.