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    California Tactical Academy

    4.6 (227 reviews)
    Open 8:00 am - 4:00 pm

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    CTA 1000 yard range
    Leroy P.

    A great addition to my shooting range favorites. What drew me to this range from South Orange County was the chance to shoot 1000 yard targets, avoiding the six hour travel time out to and back from BLM land. These targets are at an elevated position of 13 degrees. Not ideal but you get what you get in SoCal. On the positive side there are targets all the way out to 800 yards that are moderately elevated. Part of the fun was trying to locate targets out past 600 yards up the canyon, some on the left but most on the right. CTA does have posted information on the locations and ranges if needed. I preferred to locate them through a 4X range finder. I learned that a pair of hunting binoculars would be a handy addition. CTA provides a number communal spotting scopes behind the firing line for your use. Most targets out to 600 yards, 3 degrees elevated, are the hanging variety so you get instantaneous feedback, both movement and sound. No resetting needed. Laura (check-in) and Tom (RSO) have been working for CTA 10 plus years. They are both very friendly and knowledgeable. Tom was handing out shooting tips like it was candy. The cost is very reasonable considering I was paying $40 to shoot at Pala Shooting Range out to 850 yards, hitting 9" MOA steel. I love their bench toppers, best ever. They are made of recycled tire rubber, chipped, compressed and glued. They were one and a half inch thick. These had a great feel, no slip. You won't have to worry about wood rot and splinters. I will be back soon. Hoping to participate in their long range precision shooting course soon.

    Rafael M.

    Came here for the first time with my wife and was helped by an amazing worker named Tom, answered all my questions, help me adjust my rifle and helped me get my first hits over 1000 yards. Made my experience at this range feel like home and got excited at my hits when I got close. This is gonna be my new go to range!

    Communal spotting scopes provided courtesy of the range!
    Dan L.

    Where do I begin with this awesome range ... PROS 1) This range goes out to a whopping 1000 yards! In comparison, ASR only goes out to 600, and Burro Canyon only goes out to 200. 2) Parking is VERY close to the benches - particularly convenient for solo shooters. 3) I saw no fewer than 4 "communal" spotting scopes (Leupolds, no less!) provided by the range - there is no fee or deposit required for using them. 4) I saw at least 2 wind socks downrange, which shooters may find help helpful in estimating windage corrections. 5) The staff seems chill yet very strict on safety - while I did not witness this myself, my range buddy said he saw a cohort of guests ejected from the pistol-side of the range by the staff during our visit (presumably for committing one or more safety violations). 6) The entry paperwork is quite minimal compared to ASR - just a simple sign-in sheet. It's almost like you are getting treated like (and held responsible as) an adult who can read massive signage. 7) Let's just say the clientele here seems to be on the more "experienced and responsible" side compared to some other ranges I have been to ... CONS 1) No flush toilets on-site, only porta-potties (huge plus in favor of ASR, tie with Burro). 2) No cellular phone reception on the premises - to be fair, there's none at Burro either, and it's spotty at ASR. That said, there *is* wi-fi on-site. 3) During my visit, I found at least one of their rifle range benches (#17) was wobbly (hopefully it was just an outlier - the others I sampled - #18 and #19 - were sturdy). I advise asking to be assigned to a different bench if you are assigned to a wobbly one. 4) You must travel on a gravel driveway for ~2 miles before arriving at the range. MISCELLANEOUS NOTES 1) Benches are assigned by the RSO, and not selected at the discretion of patrons. 2) Targets and target stands appear to be pre-setup by the range staff. During my 6-hour-ish visit, there was only one cease-fire called by the RSO (not counting the final one during closing) - apparently at the request of a patron to setup a closer target at around. Unlike ASR and BC, there are not pre-scheduled cease-fires declared at regular intervals. 3) The longer-distance rifle targets (e.g. 1000 yards) are situated at a *very* high elevation relative to the benches - I maxed out the height adjustments on my bipod and I still had some difficulty with obtaining a comfortable and suitable rested shooting angle (I saw other shooters using blocks of wood as an ad hoc solution in obtaining a suitable shooting angle). I believe it is worth considering bringing a tripod to shoot off of if you plan on engaging targets at these distances at this range. 4) There appears to be no rapid fire rule. I witnessed some shooters firing off multiple rounds within a 1-second time frame, and observed no admonishments from any RSOs. We can chalk this up as a good thing as long as everyone is safe about it!

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    5 months ago

    Had a lesson with Tim today and it was great. He was patient and very informative. I will definitely be back.

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    10 months ago

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    4 months ago

    Efficient check in, and plenty of room to spread out across the facility. I've only been there once but will definitely go again.

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    1 year ago

    My favorite outdoor range! The staff is really friendly and the RSO are always willing to help out. Highly recommended!

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    6 months ago

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    11 months ago

    Awesome outdoor range! Shoot on the public range, rent a private bay or take a training class

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    1 year ago

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    1 year ago

    Had a great time with Tom! Great advice on how to properly handle and shoot as well as very informative. Great area recommend!

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    1 year ago

    This range is my favorite to go to. The staff is friendly and helpful. It is also well maintained.

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    Page 1 of 6

    Ask the Community - California Tactical Academy

    Is the uspsa match for tomorrow 5-19-19 still on?

    Expected to be going as planned, please call us tomorrow morning to verify.

    Absolutely love this range and everyone that works there however.... does anyone notice how wobbly the benches are? I've heard a lot of people talk about it and as a general contractor know it's an easy and cheap fix.

    Thank you for your feedback, we are renovating the public range and as a result you may have used a wobbly one, please visit us again and see that changes and the improvements we are putting to the range. New targets, new tables and new chairs are… 

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    Review Highlights - California Tactical Academy

    First time at this range, and out of all the ones I've been to, Tom the range master was an absolute stand out.

    Mentioned in 36 reviews

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    MB Tactical

    MB Tactical

    4.9
    (32 reviews)
    30.4 mi

    What a great experience at MB Tactical. Came for a day of shooting with the family and had a blast!…read moreMy dad was showing us the ropes of the guns when we started talking to Tom from MB Tactical - he was AMAZING! He went through all the basics with each one of us. He coached us through all the little things that improved our shot ten fold. He was so fun to chat with and learn from. We had a great time with Tom. He made our experience one for the books. We can't wait to go back to shoot and hopefully get more tips from Tom! Thank you MB Tactical!

    Been coming here for years but recently came for a visit under the new ownership of MB Tactical…read more Still all the great variety of size and distance targets for any level of experience. Arrived last week to gain some more knowledge from my fav range master Tom. His patience and skill level is impressive. He is constantly sharing tips to help me improve. With his help, my compression of firearms has completely broadened, from maintenance to new types of pistols I'd never heard of. I plan my range visits on days I know he will be there because his teachings are something I truly value. It's pretty amazing to know that it wasn't long ago this was just a "fun once in awhile activity," and now, because of this range master, I'm entwined into this whole new level of firearms and firearm safety. We bring all our friends and fam to this range because of him, especially first timers. Everyone leaves feeling positive. This is our go to spot and we will continue to come here to learn from the best!

    Photos
    Public range
    Public range
    MB Tactical
    1000 yard Public Rifle Range  Fixing up 100 yard paper targets for the weekend.

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    1000 yard Public Rifle Range Fixing up 100 yard paper targets for the weekend.
    VC Armory

    VC Armory

    4.6
    (28 reviews)
    31.3 mi

    I'm really happy I found this place. I recently needed a DROS done on a firearm being shipped in…read morefrom an online retailer. Had it sent to VC Armory. A lot of dealers these days arent keen on doing that these days. I called them, and they said no problem. They notified me less than an hour after I got the UPS notice that the package arrived at their location. I showed up just a short while later to start the process. Its a nice small shop in a quiet part of town. I really appreciated how chill the atmosphere was. I think it took all of 10 minutes to get the paperwork done, and off I went. 10 days wrapped, and I went for my pickup today. Again, the shop was super chill. Took less than 10 minutes to wrap everything up. Start to finish, the process was painless. Most gun shops are typically not places I'm super comfortable at. They tend to have semi aggressive staff, customers, or both. And they also tend to be very vocal about their political affiliations. VC Armory had none of those things. That alone is going to make them my go to LGS from here on out.

    I see a lot of good reviews. And I understand why. My issue was a technicality in their wrong…read moreinterpretation of the law. Here is the real problem I have with them. They do not understand all gun laws and there for make their customer jump through more legal hoops than need be. I don't expect every customer to know the laws so they are unaware VC is slightly incompetent. I even pointed out their error but they just raised their voices and yelled at me. In California , when buying a rifle, it is NOT necessary to show two forms of ID. If you have a California True ID (Golden Bear in corner with no restrictions) that is all you need. They insisted I needed more. Here's the law: Only if you have restrictions or are purchasing a hand gun or it's a PO box address etc... is a secondary ID proving address required). But they are so arrogant and elitist blow-hards they wouldn't even turn the page on the form that they used as their proof showing me. I said on the first page it states NO secondary ID required for rifles. But he refused to even look at the 1st page and read where it clearly states the secondary ID rule is ONLY for hand gun sales. So lazy. So every single rifle purchaser that had a California DL True ID with no restrictions and their address correct on the iD was and is made to show a secondary ID. Completely unnecessary so I asked them to send my "receiver(rifle) to their competitor down the street who is up on the law. And they're cheaper too (and very friendly with no attitude. VC waste their customer's time making them jump through hoops needlessly and are very argumentative when you show them the law. Shame. By the way...I had lost my registration for my car and was in the process of renewing my registration so I didn't have it as secondary proof handy and I wasn't going to stand in line at the DMV just to get a copy when they would send me my new one a couple weeks later. Nope. I rather deal with the competent FFL guys down the street. My history: Gun collector of 50 years with over 350 purchases over a lifetime. I was an FFL myself and I am very familiar with the laws. Most gun buyers will assume their FFL knows the laws. Fact: Not all ffl's understand things they read and need it explained to them. We're all human. But when they get arrogant, loud and insistent by refusing to acknowledge they misread their own DOJ documents in front of them....that's just a ignorance and incompetence. These are guys I would think should not be doing their own Taxes let alone filling out gun transfers.

    Photos
    Great apparel!
    Great apparel!
    Only the FINEST and highest of quality will do.
    Only the FINEST and highest of quality will do.
    We have Ammunition and Firearms!

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    We have Ammunition and Firearms!

    California Tactical Academy - gun_ranges - Updated August 2026

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