I'm looking at possibly moving to TN from AZ for the tax benefits and ability to homestead. I don't have a particular part of the state I'm moving to yet. I can move where ever I want at this point in life. In general I was looking at Nashville'ish and Knoxville, TN.

I'm looking for input on the following please:

1) In AZ, we have endless places to shoot and competitions to participate in. Are there specific places in TN that have a robust gun culture? Places to shoot 2 gun, 3 gun, USPSA, and PRS on a regular basis?

2) With Item #1 above in mind, is there a part of TN that I should look at has that gun culture, but is also warm? I HATE the cold and snow... which is why I currently live in AZ. Unfortunately, what AZ doesn't have is water... which is no-go criteria for me as I try to transition to a homesteading kind of lifestyle for me and my family.

3) In brief internet searches, it doesn't seem like there are many places to do long range shooting in TN. Generally speaking, it looks like 100-200yds on average. I did find the Strategic Edge Gun Range in Chapel Hill, TN. Which looks like an amazing facility. Are there any other facilities or ranges that I should be looking into?

I have been told by several of my Marine buddies to stay FAR away from Memphis. Aside from that, I've heard and read nothing but great things about TN. Any general insight would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

I've only been a member of Strategic Edge for a couple of months but it is a fantastic facility and everyone I've met there has been really friendly.

I know they have a USPSA match every month and regular NRL matches. I'm reasonably sure they have long range matches as well but I didn't see any on the calendar, maybe they just haven't made to the calendar yet.

“Here’s a great long distance range...?” Sorry, which range facility are you talking about? Are you referring to the Strategic Edge Range I mentioned?

As for the shunning... yeah, I really don’t give a shit haha. I’ll be minding my own business on my farm hopefully.

I'd also consider South of Clarksville, TN.  There's some decent places for homesteading and it's not far from Nashville if you really need something from the big city.  I live about five minutes from the local shooting complex.  There's land to be had if you are South of the Cumberland between Clarksville and Dickson and Dover.

I moved from Phoenix to Nashville in 2018 after spending my whole life there.  

1.  Avoid Nashville.  It’s insanely congested and expensive and only getting worse.  We moved outside Murfreesboro last year and couldn’t be happier.  I like Middle Tennessee, but I have an office I have to go to occasionally.  The East TN guys seem pretty happy over there.    
2.  Lower your expectations for shooting competition.  Between PRGC, Rio, and Ben Avery, you could shoot a match every day in AZ.  No matter what these guys tell you, it is not like that here, even at Strategic Edge, where I am a member.  I grab a pistol bay there and just run my own drills now.  If long range is your thing, Strategic Edge smokes the Phoenix ranges.  Running and gunning…nope.
3.  You’ll hate AZ weather after living here for just a year.  That dry heat BS…you’re in an oven.  Get used to layers and completely unpredictable temps, which make it interesting.  You’ll love the 4 seasons here vs AZ long summer and a short fall.

The closer you get to the major metro areas, the more costly the housing, property, etc, is. But also remember the further you get away from the major metro areas, the less amenities, internet, healthcare,  schools, etc. become. There’s a happy medium in there somewhere, but know this, everyone coming into TN is looking for the same thing(s) and this is driving up real estate prices along with this market.

i lived in cookeville and was a little over an hour drive to ORSA, which had 1000 yard range that hosts national level CMP/HP, Benchrest, plus has monthly 3gun, USPSA, IDPA and steel challenge.  I think hey still do cowboy action too but idk.

and 45 min drive to dead zero, which has 1000 yard range and monthly 3gun, and other action matches, plus fclass and more.  

and a bit over an hour to tullahoma NG range which is 1000 yards and hosts CMP/HP and occasional stuff on the popup range (or at least they used to)

and traffic is getting worse so maybe 1hr 45 min or so to strategic edge if you can get a membership, which is over 1000 yard range.  not sure what competitions they host.

and prob 2 hrs to chattanooga where a club would host monthly 3gun and other matches.

there are also ranges in KY, NC, GA, and AL where you can go shoot a match and be home same day.

I used to run PRS matches and sniper matches before there was a PRS a few miles south of cookeville.  there are occasionally still matches hosted there but not by me.

As for snow and cold, we have some but not really a lot. Compared to years ago, we do not seem to have the cold snowy winters, at least here in east TN in the valley. You see more of a winter on the plateau more than probably anywhere.

Good shooting range is oak ridge,tn windrock shooting range
Good area

Nashville is trying to catch up to Memphis.

New 3 story houses on lots not much bigger than the foundation and two parking spaces, selling for half a million dollars and getting tagged with graffiti, because they are in the parts of town where you aren't surprised to see graffiti and run down properties.  

This was extremely helpful. Thank you! I’m looking at the area around Spring Hill and Franklin as they are away from Nashville, but I can go there if I wanted. I can grab decent traces of land out that way, price is not an issue. I’m willing to pay to get what I want. Spring Hill and Franklin are also decently close to the Strategic Edge facility.

It’s a real shame that there isn’t a lot of 2 gun, 3 gun, and PRS. I love it here in AZ, and I may not end up moving... but TN has A LOT going for it!

You mentioned taxes as one of the reasons for moving.  Williamson county (Franklin is the county seat) has one of the best public school systems in the state, but it also has one of the highest (if not the highest) property tax rates in the state.  That can hurt, if you want enough land to farm.

My parents are trying to get out of Williamson now.  Good school district= kids everywhere, high taxes.  

OP, we were looking in Spring Hill and Columbia, but nothing fit the bill.  I was originally against Murfreesboro because it is so congested, but we found a pocket of houses 5 miles outside city limits that we loved.  Point being, keep an open mind on the city/area, because once you get out of Nashville, there are lots of options.  I’m super partial to Rutherford county the longer I live here.  I’m off 840 and can use either 24 or 65, which comes in handy with the traffic here.

Oh, the other piece of culture shock aside from no state income tax…car registration.  My car was $550 to register in AZ and now I pay about $100.

That can vary by county, due to the county fees.  The state collects around $30 for registration, and Davidson county (Nashville) adds another $50 to $60 to it.  

Counties can also vary in what they charge for motorcycle registration - if my memory isn't off, Davidson county charges the same for cars and motorcycles, while neighboring Cheatham county charges around half as much for registering a motorcycle, as they do for registering a car.

ETA:  TN does not have a state department of motor vehicles.  

If you need to do something with your driver's license or carry permit, you go to the driver testing centers operated by the TN Department of Safety.  

If you need to do something with vehicle registration, you go to the county government in the county you live in, and the county forwards the state's share of the fees to the state.

Also a new member there and love the range and facilities.

ETA: Lots of great info in this thread. Recent transplant myself and my family and I love this state

This is one of the best long range facilities in the South.
https://kmprecisionrifletraining.com/

As a decade long USPSA competitor, I will say that compared to AZ, the competition scene in TN is pretty weak.  Oak Ridge Sportsman's Association (ORSA for short) is probably the best monthly USPSA match in the state and they're just west of K'ville.  There's supposed to be a huge new complex opening up in east TN soon-ish that's big enough for Area level matches.  There's a middle Tennessee USPSA club that supposedly does a decent match but I've not shot there yet despite its being closest to me.  No info on 3-gun or PRS/Rifle matches.  I'm about half-way between Nashville and Chattanooga and that puts me exactly 3 hours from CMP Talladega.  If you do any long range stuff, you probably know of that facility.  It is amazing.

There's no state income tax here, but sales tax is 10+ % here depending on city/county.  7% to the state, the remainder to the locality/municipality.

Depending on your budget, look at the Greenbelt laws.  There's a huge tax advantage to having 15+ acres and growing crop on some of it.  My property taxes on 21+ acres are half of what I paid on a .15 acre lot and 1700 sq ft. home in Northern VA because of the greenbelt law.

If you want flat, wide open spaces, west TN is beautiful.  If you want gorgeous, rolling hills and valleys, middle TN will suit you nicely.  If you want the Smokies, east TN has what you're looking for.  All in all it's a beautiful state.  Good people who mostly have their heads on straight, but no place is perfect.

OP, I would avoid Franklin & Spring Hill, because 3 years from now they will be
Nashville-Lite.....especially as regards traffic. One thing that you can't tell about it,
because you aren't here enough, is how bad that traffic can be. Going up Hwy. 31 from
Columbia thru Spring Hill to Franklin is a nightmare. I-65 is not too bad, and 840
can be ok sometimes.

My recommendation would be to stay as far away as possible from Nashville &
Memphis. Watch out for counties that have a wheel tax. If you look at a map
of Middle TN, you will see a large stretch that goes from Columbia West towards
Memphis.... That is mostly nothing but farmland and small towns/cities. You will get
far more bang for your buck heading that way.

The owner is still active US Army, I think. At least he was when the place opened.

Jumping into this thread instead of starting a new one.  I just moved to Germantown, east of Memphis but still in Shelby County, the beginning of October.  Looking for ranges and shops on this side of the state. That K&M Precision Rifle range looks amazing and I will probably join them soon.  Anywhere else to look at or avoid?  Any folks with NODs that like to play in the dark?  

Thanks guys!

We like southern middle TN. We live in Maury county. I'm a member of Strategic Edge. It's all they say it is, and more. Awesome membership there.

Marshall, Lincoln, Giles, Lawrence, Wayne, and Hardin counties are where I'd look if I could live anywhere I wanted.

OP, that’s the other thing to get used to- counties.  I think about 75% of AZ population is in Maricopa county aka Phoenix Metro.  Here, there are 95 counties and people tend to reference them frequently, just like you would cities in AZ.

So I’m trying to find a place where I can buy 100-200+ acres. Myself and a few other AZ shooter families want to be able to shoot long range on our own property and compete in local matches. We love to shoot!

We also want to be within reasonable driving distance of civilization for practical reasons. We have young kids so they’ll be going to school, we need groceries (even though we will self sustain as much as we can on the property). I define reasonable distance as 30min from town.

If I want to have my own shooting range but not be too far off, what part of TN would be best?

Can you elaborate on this shooting facility? Experience there? Matches? What do you like?

Follow up question for you guys, are there public lands or places you can go shooting in the forest? Where I’m at in Yuma, I can drive 15 minutes and have my own personal 400yd range on BLM land. Does anything like that exist in TN?

The shotgun and archery ranges are sort of plain, but they have multiple handgun and carbine bays and a rifle range to 500 and another rifle range to 1250.

I'm a member, and I also have a 500-yard range at my house, on 50 acres. I'd LOVE to have more land but you should know in advance that land is high here, and it's even higher when it's open pasture/crop land. By 'high' I mean that it's 5k to 15k/acre. In the western part of the state it's hard to find natural terrain relief to build a safe range. In the eastern part it's hard to find big enough swaths of open land. Middle TN, land is high, but you can still find nice land for 5k/acre or less if you don't want to live really close to Nashville.

(please note: despite all of this, it's still possible to find shooting land in all 3 parts of the state - you just have to look at the aerial photos and terrain and surrounding land use for every potential tract you see. You can't just set up an MLS search and buy the first result you get that fits your budget)

I was a realtor for years. Retired my license this summer. I now am in the process of becoming an appraiser, and my wife still sells real estate, so between us we look at a bajillion listings per week. I probably spend at least an hour a week looking at stuff I'd like to buy myself, but haven't seen much lately that would include a good shooting range. You have to have the acreage to physically reach your target distance, then you have to consider how the potential range lays relative to the sun (which varies by season), what time of day you want to shoot (my range is awesome after lunch, but terrible in early mornings), and most importantly, what's behind it. I have a serious backstop and a mile of uninhabited land behind it. I'm about to build a second range (only 200 yards) that will still have over 1000 yards of uninhabited land behind it, in a ~30 degree cone, and well over a mile in a straight line. But I've seen tons of tracts that won't allow you to shoot over 200 to 300 yards despite having tens or even hundreds of acres. We halfheartedly tried (and failed) to buy a 230+ acre tract this summer where a 400+ yard range would have been problematic. Gorgeous hunting/fishing property, but poorly laid out for a range. And I've seen plenty of tracts that had a perfect range layout except for a house right across the property border that ruined the range potential. We almost bought one of those last spring - it was around 120 acres with a renovated house, surrounded by larger tracts, on a dead end road, in a more rural area than where we are now, already fenced, with a gorgeous creek running through the edge, and it would have allowed me to shoot 500+ yards......except for a mobile home sitting 100 yards past the property border in a way that would have made blocking it with a berm impossible unless the berm was 40' tall. Point being, it'll take some time to find the perfect shooting spot. And while it's legal to shoot on rural land in most counties, you always have to consider potential neighbor complaints. They may not stop you but they can complain and you have to deal with the complaints.

I was fortunate to find our place. I knew, as soon as I saw the listing, and doubly when I first drove over the land, that it was what I wanted. And 10 years later I still love it, despite its minor flaws.

There are limited numbers of places where TWRA or other entitles have public ranges set up, but they generally suck. It is NOTHING like the BLM land you have out west. You have to forget what you're leaving.

There may be some options I am unaware of, but target shooting on public land in TN is (as far as I know) mostly 'shoot on designated ranges/areas only'.  We just don't have much in the way of 'miles and miles of miles and miles'.

Those ranges vary in their reviews, but the range at the Cheatham Wildlife Management Area is a place where bringing a shooting buddy is very, very strongly recommended.  Most people would probably think this is mainly so that one person can keep an eye on the guns on the shooting bench, while the other goes downrange to change targets, and that is certainly a valid reason, but the main reason is so that the person that stayed at the bench can lay down suppressive fire to help their buddy get back from the targets, if one of the local idiots that don't understand the concept of hot and cold ranges walks in, loads their gun, then starts blasting at random debris on the range.

I haven't been back to the Cheatham WMA range, since I cleared enough space at home to do some plinking.

How big of a town do you need?

I'd look at the Giles County area, or Lincoln or maybe Marshall and Lawrence.

Wayne county is a bit too forested for good shooting. Maury prices are getting unreasonable.

There are members who'll see this thread who can chime in. We have members all over who like to shoot.

(Seriously - your question is near impossible to answer, and will take time, and, ideally, site visits, and a good local realtor wouldn't hurt, and yes, I know a really good one. I trained her and still assist her.)

This is the main reason I never go there.   It's either that or the MCSC for me.    I go to the latter.

Size of town: I need to be able to have the following within 30’ish min.... this requirement may be unreasonable considering I’m trying to get 100+ acres. Groceries, Walmart/Target, Home Depot, Bank, Decent local restaurants (nothing particularly fancy), Schools (preferably good private schools or charter schools if y’all do that in TN).

Would your realtor contact be able to assist me in finding land for range space (just understanding range fans, good backstops, and Safety Danger Zones)? If so, can you DM me her contact info?

Price isn’t too much of a concern for me. I’m willing to pay to meet my strict/unusual/difficult requirements.

What is MCSC?

How are the schools in TN? I hear they’re pretty good. Are there any noteworthy non-religious private schools? I have kindergarten all the way up to middle school aged kids. Are charter schools a thing out there?

The government schools here are government schools. They range from mediocre to terrible. Rural ones will be better than inner city poor neighborhood ones, and big city fancy neighborhood ones will have access to tons of tech programs, etc. 4-H is still a thing in this part of the world. The big-city counties do some really cool stuff with 4-H and they allow us homeschoolers to participate.

There's a significant homeschool community across the state, but, honestly, the majority of us (homeschoolers) are Christians and when you find secular groups (they exist) they tend to be very liberal. Bernie-bros, most of them.

Covid really split our local group into Christian-versus-liberal. And I genuinely hate that because I don't think those are the proper lines along which people should split. Anyway, there are lots of private schools around here, but I don't think you're going to see a lot of conservative secular schools. Again, this isn't Arizona and we do things differently here, sometimes for the better, sometimes not. Now, if we tweaked your questions a bit and said 'are there conservative groups where my difference of worldview would be accepted and not constantly challenged?' I think the answer would be yes. I know several people who aren't Christians who fit in quite well into various groups I'm part of. And at the end of the day it's really going to depend on which county you end up in and who lives next door to you. We aren't a homogenous group, at all.

Charter schools aren't a thing here, though some of us (self included) are very much in favor of them. Oddly enough, the homeschoolers tend to hate the idea of charter schools because we (and I say 'we' reluctantly because this really annoys me, but they're my people at the end of the day) are terrified that the state will use the charter movement to expand control of homeschoolers (which isn't wrong - the state always uses everything to expand its power - but that doesn't mean we should avoid positive steps, out of fear - but I digress). So that's sort of a hot-button issue, but I think we'll see movement in that direction, soon.

I'm gonna send you that contact info you mentioned via IM. I could literally write a book, and honestly maybe I should, about the nuances of finding a place to live, and learning to actually live, in TN. You need to sort of learn your way around the housing and land market before you jump in. Otherwise you'll either pay a crazy price for something or miss out on a great deal you didn't recognize because you looked at what it cost instead of what it was worth. We've seen people do both (probably half of the wife's business is moving conservatives from out of state - and sadly, we just moved a great rock-solid family to Arizona!) , and work pretty hard to steer people out of either end. But, anyway - I'll send the contact info. Feel free to keep asking questions in public or private. And don't just listen to me. The more you hear, the more you'll learn how to separate signal from noise.

With the possible exception of some very small areas in the west-central and eastern parts of the state, if you're ok with a Lowe's instead of a Home Depot, you can find all of that literally anywhere in the state. Looking at a map across the state there might be two or three small spots that aren't within 30 minutes/miles of a big box hardware store. Everything else, we have everywhere, though obviously some are closer together than others.

https://www.shoottn.com/

Great place. And land in that area is cheap. Strong conservative area as well.

@arowneragain,

I'm looking to get some property out there (in about 5 years, once I can retire from Kommiefornia).  About how much land would I need to get to have a 200 yard range that won't completely piss off my neighbors?  I plan to go full retard getting suppressors once I move, but it's going to take several months before the AFT will approve them and I don't want to drive my neighbors (or my wife) nuts.  Thanks.

ETA - looking at East Tennessee, somewhere around Knoxville / Maryville / Oak Ridge.

The lay of the land will dictate how much land you will need for a 200 yard range. A good backstop will also be needed. You definitely do NOT want to be within any city limits due to most have noise/shooting restrictions.

Best plan is to get a rural as you can with as much acreage as you can.

Yup. The more, the better. I've seen 5-acre tracts (and less!) that would handle a 200-yard range just fine, then I've seen tracts of 100+ acres where 200 yards would be difficult.

Another thing to keep in mind, noise laws vary from county to county - you can pretty much shoot in daytime on rural property in any county, with a few exceptions in the big metro areas, but night may be different. You *NEED* to verify with the county sheriff's office before you commit to purchase anything.

The thing to keep in mind, not only do you need to be able to see 200 yards, but you need a safe cone of uninhabited land downrange. And you could buy a great tract then have someone show up and build a house next door and ruin it.

FWIW, if you decide to buy in that area, we don't work there (we're 3+ hours from Knoxville - TN is a very big state east to west), but I made a friend with another realtor when we were having the 2A sanctuary county movement a couple years back. He got a chance to move back 'home' to the Maryville area and I believe he still sells real estate. Retired Marine, rock-solid conservative dude. When you get ready I'd be happy to send you his name.

Another thing to consider when shooting - you can very easily build a muffler of sorts to shoot rough (think a suppressor made out of plywood or a series of used tires, to make a tube you shoot through). I've been working on such a thing here lately. It's not needed with a 5.56 but with really big calibers or short barrels, I think it's gonna be handy (and perfectly legal as it's not attached to your gun). But even with that, it's just going to depend on the lay of the land, especially what's downrange. Fortunately the vast majority of rural people here are fine with gunfire. Rare is the day that I spend more than 2-3 hours outside without hearing some sort of gunfire here.

Here's a video I saw a while back, demonstrating the 'muffler' made from tires concept.



On the acreage for a range issue, my 20 acres is laid out so that I can get about 120 yards, with a backstop that is around 100 ft high.  If it was considerably flatter (and still having a good natural backstop at one end), I could probably get around 500 yards.

Regarding snow/ice/winter weather, the Chattanooga area should be high on your list.  Everyone around us gets it, and we don't.  I think the mountains around us block it from reaching us, at least in the valley.

Gun culture will be fine anywhere in the state.  Dead Zero is reasonably convenient from the Chattanooga area, and has long distance ranges available.

Wow, that was a pretty big difference!

Good info.  I see a lot of properties that say "unrestricted."  Is this something I should look for in a TN property?  Also, I assume I want to stay out of city limits as best I can, right?

I have less than five years to go until retirement.  If your friend is still doing real estate out that way then, I'd be happy to get his name.  Thanks again!

Don’t have to much information to provide but I just moved to Knoxville from Texas and have really enjoyed it here the past few months, plenty of outdoor stuff to do.
I haven’t joined a range here yet and haven’t found one that offers any kind of Tac-bay, I will be going out of state a few times a year for RunNgun events. Pm me if you end up making it out this direction and I’ll help or answer any kind of questions I can.

I apologize - I got distracted and didn't reply the other day.

But, yes, you want to be out of city limits. Virtually all cities make shooting illegal. As for 'unrestricted', yes, you want an unrestricted property, but do NOT depend on what the listing says. Assume that at least some part of every listing you see includes inaccurate information.

I just moved here from Utah in July and ended up joining ORSA in Oak Ridge. They host USPSA/Steel Challenge and have bays specifically for action pistol.


orsaonline.org