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PUCKER wrote:I guess you could somewhat compare it to a "corkage" fee that some restaurants charge (ie - in states where you can do this) customers that choose to bring their own bottle of wine versus paying for a bottle of wine that the restaurant sells.

The range and the restaurant are not quite analogous. The restaurant doesn't rent table space; it is included free with the purchase of their products. Therefore, bringing your own wine cuts out the revenue that pays for the table.
A better analogy is that of an auto dealership. A dealership has two revenue streams - sales and service. DFW Gun's approach is like charging more for service if you bought your car somewhere else. A smart dealership recognizes that they missed out on the sale but can still win your service business. And if the service is good, they may win your next sale.
A range should recognize that they missed out on the instruction but can still earn your range business (especially since most instructors do not own their own ranges). And if the range is good to you, they might win some instruction business from you as well.
I have had many students who had no idea the range we used existed. But I have later seen many of them shooting there. A smart range sees those students as potential customers, and instructors will bring those customers to their doors without spending a cent of the range's marketing budget. A dumb range sees them as a one-time revenue source to milk as much as possible.

MasterOfNone wrote:

PUCKER wrote:I guess you could somewhat compare it to a "corkage" fee that some restaurants charge (ie - in states where you can do this) customers that choose to bring their own bottle of wine versus paying for a bottle of wine that the restaurant sells.

The range and the restaurant are not quite analogous. The restaurant doesn't rent table space; it is included free with the purchase of their products. Therefore, bringing your own wine cuts out the revenue that pays for the table.
A better analogy is that of an auto dealership. A dealership has two revenue streams - sales and service. DFW Gun's approach is like charging more for service if you bought your car somewhere else. A smart dealership recognizes that they missed out on the sale but can still win your service business. And if the service is good, they may win your next sale.
A range should recognize that they missed out on the instruction but can still earn your range business (especially since most instructors do not own their own ranges). And if the range is good to you, they might win some instruction business from you as well.
I have had many students who had no idea the range we used existed. But I have later seen many of them shooting there. A smart range sees those students as potential customers, and instructors will bring those customers to their doors without spending a cent of the range's marketing budget. A dumb range sees them as a one-time revenue source to milk as much as possible.

Well said

MasterOfNone - good view from the 3rd "side" (that I left out, sorry!), that of the instructor. Points well taken.

I shot there once and for the most part the experience was pleasant. I was slightly annoyed though because my whole reason for going there was to rent a CZ97 that they supposedly had in their rental stock according the their web sight. When I arrived they didn't have it. On a positive note they did back off of their own rule of using their ammo when renting one of their guns. I had a box of .38 rounds left over from a gun I had sold a long time ago and no .38 of my own to shoot it from.

Dfw gun range is awful, service and staff are sickening indeed, elm fork or bullet trap from now on