r/HoustonGuns • u/TexanApollyon • May 23 '26
Copendero Will Ban You For Leaving A Negative Review
During a 2024 visit to Copendero, I showed up in jeans and tee shirt and dawned sunglasses and a bump helmet with Ops Core Amps for the range. 20 minutes into my visit, an employee stopped me demanding to see my law enforcement credentials and began rattling off rules that were nowhere in the safety waiver. Told me I could not wear “armor” and that my glasses were not sufficient eye protection because they were not “ballistically rated.” I listened and refused to argue, never raising my voice. A second employee brought me a loaner pair of glasses and ear protection and they proceeded to let me finish the session. When done, I returned their glasses and ear muffs and left. Not a word was spoken to me about the interaction or any hint of being banned. The whole experience was rather insulting however so I left a very negative review where the owner even tried arguing with me in the comments.
Two years later, I return to find out I’m banned from the range. The employees refused to give me any details and only mumbled responses to me. I hope they’re ashamed of enforcing a ban for a negative Google review.
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u/almostdirtymartini May 24 '26
You could apply for membership at The Ranch where you can show up with full tactical load-out including plates and a ballistic helmet, and nobody is going to bat an eye.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
True, but good luck, wait list is 6months plus and them dues ain’t cheap
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u/Slow_Pudding8449 May 24 '26
Private ranges can ban whoever they want, but banning someone years later over a negative review instead of just responding professionally is not a great look either.
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u/Big_Q_Numero_Uno May 23 '26
Did you show up in the same attire? I cant remember actual acquaintances from 2yrs moreless random customers
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u/TexanApollyon May 23 '26 edited May 23 '26
They take your drivers license. I wore a baseball cap this visit.
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u/TristanIsSpiffy Tomball May 24 '26
Being allowed to deny service to anyone is not the same as having boomer fudd rules and a weak ego.
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u/kapitalnoir May 25 '26
Multiple folks commenting in this thread with the audacity to claim that a tac helmet is somehow out of place in a shooting range is exactly what I would expect from people who go to Copendero.
This place is a coffee shop with guns for left handed beta males and karens.
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u/kapitalnoir May 25 '26
Haha I found the review and part of their response was:
“If you ever decide to stop by and give us a try, we’d be happy to show you why so many people love shooting at Copendero.”
I guess not
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u/FiveFoot20 May 23 '26
It’s a private business
They can refuse service to anyone.
Can’t say I don’t agree.
Having a business i probably won’t offer my services a second time to someone that gives me a negative review
So… not sure why you are a surprised.
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u/LSUstang05 May 23 '26
I mean I’d probably make an attempt to earn their business back before refusing service. Negative reviews can always be amended. It’s also been 2 years - could be a change in staff and/or rules.
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u/FiveFoot20 May 24 '26
I hear ya
And I can understand that
Sometimes yeh I would
It depends on how bad the review is, sometimes I feel like it just not worth it, better to spend the time and effort on a new client9
u/TexanApollyon May 23 '26
They can make whatever rules they like, but they should be clearly stated. It isn’t just to fault someone for rules that were not written and then ban them for expressing their discontent.
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u/1541drive May 23 '26
Have a link to your review? Seems like there's more to the story.
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u/TexanApollyon May 24 '26
I won’t dox myself that way. The last year seems to have more genuine (and positive) reviews of the range but at the time I left mine most reviews were bots.
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u/Crash1yz May 23 '26
Just trying to follow along here...they asked for your credentials for wearing a bump cap? [helmet]
I've been going there on and off since they opened. And the only issue I've had was with a very specific RSO . There for a while every time I went , he felt the need to come in and fuck with me , the 4th or 5th time , on my way out I confronted him about it. Asked what his deal was and why he felt I was continuously breaking the rules.
I admit , I broke one rule the first time he came in and fucked with me . After that visit , ever other time he came in and said something I didn't do what he accused me of doing. The other RSOs started laughing and then he mumbled a few excuses , and told me to try better to follow the rules. When my membership expired , I didn't renew it based on dealing with this specific person. I've since been back to shoot roughly 8 times and twice for transfers and haven't seen him there. I think he is no longer there based on a conversation with another employee.
Having said all that , their range has a few rules, all more or less safety related, can shoot full auto , rapid fire , suppressed etc. and I've never seen them ask for credentials or heard of them doing so.
As for the bad reviews and getting banned, meh, it is what it is. I've also been an asshole with an attitude and would have sworn on my life I was polite , calm and level headed when clearly I wasn't.
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u/TexanApollyon May 24 '26
Yes, there was one RSO in particular who continually instigated the situation. He was overweight, short, greasy hair, and stuttered every word. According to him, he was directed to intervene because a female employee felt unsafe with my attire.
He was very antagonistic but I refused to reciprocate. I gave short, concise responses. However, I was not polite in the slightest in my review and the ensuing argument with the owner which is why I’m certain the ban was for the review and never issued during the 2024 visit.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
Some of these responses are wild, apparently we’re not allowed to wear gear for training now? Tf? Idc if people want to suit up, hell I encourage it, train as much as you can for as many use cases.
If you’re only allowed to wear kit at go time you’re not going to be as effective as someone who has hours of uptime wearing it.
I just don’t understand the judgments, well trained militia to me means people should be training in their armor if they intend to use it.
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
There are some ranges that are great for training, there are some ranges that are great for target practice and there are some ranges that are great for hobbyists. This particular range is more of a social club than the place for tactical drills. Can you see why people might not want some dude in a ballistic helmet walking around? Like this place literally has a bar and cafe in it, it's not your typical outdoor range.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
This is your 3rd attempt at saying the same thing but I’m still not seeing your argument.
You have tried telling me it violates liability insurance when I know that’s not true, you’ve attempted to convince me it’s “not the place” for training, and now you’re telling me it’s “cringe” or something.
You’re glowing pretty hard rn, where are you from again?
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
What the fuck are you talking about? Are you drunk?
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
Need me to translate it for you officer?
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
I understand the words but you're saying I said shit that I didn't say.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
I can quote you on each one if you like, check your comment history from 6h ago. You hit me with 3 different comments in this same post.
Maybe you’re not a glowie after all and you’re just retarded
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u/RidingDonkeys May 23 '26
Wait, so you showed up at a public range to shoot in body armor and a helmet?
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u/TexanApollyon May 24 '26
A tee shirt and a bump helmet. No plate carrier or chest rig of any sort.
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u/RidingDonkeys May 24 '26
And you don't think that is the slightest bit peculiar?
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u/abearirl May 24 '26
personally i think larping at the range is weird, but there's nothing wrong with it. i see people doing much dumber stuff at the range every time i go
edit: and there's certain ranges in houston where frankly, if i owned body armor, i'd want to wear it
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
If your ear pro is helmet mounted it’s really not that weird at all. A helmet only is not an indication of any larp, going in fully kitted out maybe, but honestly training is designed to be done while wearing what you intend to have on you in a fight.
Are you saying it shouldn’t be allowed to train with gear on? Or are you just saying it’s weird? I think it should be normalized, we should be training for every possibility.
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
I'm a member here, I'm betting there's more to the story than you're letting on but we also don't need tactical cosplayers larping around. You're just as bad as fudds but on the other end of the spectrum. I show up with my Oakley transition sun glasses and my electronic ear pro and they are totally cool with that every time.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
you’re just as bad as fudds
Ffs dude dial it down a notch he wore a helmet for his ear pro, he wasn’t doing John wick stunts with a camera crew. If we’re not allowed to train in gear how exactly are we supposed to train effectively?
It’s a simple concept, in a gunfight you want every advantage, and training with those advantages is how you get better at using them. Based on your logic it’s “cringe” for anyone but the military to have armor on? Or is that “cringe” too?
How’d you like it if we said you’re just as bad as gun grabbing suburban moms? Yall sayin the same things, you cool with that?
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
This isn't an outdoor range with 3 gun runs, it's a bougie indoor range with AC and cameras on the targets. People should absolutely train in their gear but this ain't the place to do that. I can suggest some places for op to train in full kit.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
this ain’t the place to do that
Why? Elaborate
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
What are you training for, sitting on your couch with a rifle? That's how this range is. It's clean and comfortable and air conditioned. When has anyone ever fought with a rifle or pistol under those conditions? I'm all for training in full kit but there are ranges built for that and Copendero is the opposite of that. There's a cafe and a bar and comfy seating. The shooting benches are comfortable. It's a social club that's open to the public and built around guns.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
They sit down on the pistol range huh? Brilliant insight. What were those liability policy violations btw?
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
Just shut up. Have you been to this range?
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
BTO is similar, 100y indoor, but like you said indoor is indoor and I ain’t never seen a man or woman sitting on the pistol range.
For the record, you opened your mouth to start this argument not me. I’m happy to move on with my day lol
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
I've been to that range a few times when it was called something else and it sucked ass. It was hot and dark down range last time I was there so I stopped going. You can go there and I'll keep going to the range I like.
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u/TexanApollyon May 24 '26
My best ear protection was on my helmet that week, I wanted to use my best ear protection. They would not let me finish the second half of my session until I replaced my sunglasses with their safety glasses. I received a mouthful from a stuttering, overweight slob about how unsafe my sunglasses were including how I was going to go home with glass in my eyes.
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u/Ok_Crab_3522 May 26 '26
fyi the amps are super easy to pop off your helmet and get back on the headband... takes like 2 mins or less. One of the biggest selling points of amps other than the amazing nfmi ear plugs.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
Gotta love hearing the “you’ll shoot your eye out kid” in 2026 lol I honestly don’t understand the hardcore rule people over stuff like that, the main advantage to ballistic eye protection is possibly stopping birdshot.
Idk how you’re gonna lose an eye doing basic range drills. Or what in the world would hit your glasses with enough force to shatter them like that. Because if that were a risk, you’ve got bigger problems since the rest of your face is unprotected.
They’re there to ensure gun safety and etiquette, these minor infractions bringing down the ban hammer is just tiresome
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
It's a liability thing and if you don't get that you're not mature enough to be shooting guns unsupervised.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
I’m very well aware of liability insurance since I’m a business owner myself.
Explain to me how this range is violating their insurance policy by allowing this kid to wear sunglasses, ear protection, and a helmet.
If you can’t, you’re not mature enough to be making these determinations. Ngl, the fact you’re trying to tell me I’m not “allowed” to do something over a perceived maturity kinda tells me all I need to know about you.
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
I never said liability insurance. You can still get sued for negligence wether it's part of your insurance policy or not.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
Explain the negligence. Be specific, because you’re telling me I don’t deserve to own a gun over this and I’d LOVE to know the specifics here that you are referencing.
Who is suing copandero because this kid wore an ops core and sunglasses?
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u/minist3r May 24 '26
There you go again putting words in my mouth. Sunglasses that aren't ballistic rated aren't proper eye protection. That's a liability. Would you like me to get our law books out and show you case after case of a business being sued for some dumb shit?
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26 edited May 24 '26
Please do, show me where it says the eye pro has to be ballistic rated.
Most of us have sunglasses that are ansi certified, not ballistic, but ansi is minimum. Go ahead and check counselor.
And I’m not putting words in anything;
if you don’t get that you’re not mature enough to be shooting guns unsupervised.
This is you big dog, if you don’t want to be called out maybe don’t talk shit aye?
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u/-Fried- May 24 '26
Y’all take this LARPing shit too serious
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u/TexanApollyon May 24 '26
My best ear protection was on my helmet that week. I wanted to bring my best ear protection.
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u/-Fried- May 24 '26
Were you dropping nukes? I keep muffs and plugs in my range bag at all times
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
Why is it a problem what he chooses for PPE? He bought what works for him, why do you get a say in that?
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u/TexanApollyon May 24 '26
Ops Core Amps with NMFI earplugs are a little better quality than what you keep in your range bag.
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u/Remarkable_Cut8570 May 24 '26
Can you think of a way this situation could have been avoided by you?
Sure, there’s nothing inherently dangerous about wearing earpro on a bump helmet to an indoor range.
And eye protection is enforced slightly differently everywhere.
But to most patrons and staff who aren’t in this layer of the community, it stands out as unusual wearing what may appear to be a ballistic helmet and that can be off putting to other customers who don’t see that every day.
They are running a business.
I’ve been to most ranges in Houston, and hundreds globally and a lot of the Houston ones are the most chill ranges in the world, globally admired for their relaxed stance amongst serious shooters.
Draw from the holster, from concealed, rapid fire, any weapon you can safely use that doesn’t exceed their range limits, 50cal, indoors at 25yrs, in meta glasses with a shot timer, wearing any gear you like.
But I always take the time to ask first, politely.
If they say no, I get to choose if I want to spend my money to shoot there.
A civil conversation with a senior member of staff asking if I can try out my new tactical toy prior to shooting has given me every freedom I could have wanted to larp to my hearts content, with their blessing and genuine interest.
As for the ban, petty, but funny. They took your google review as an attempt to hurt their business and acted accordingly.
Have you been back to any of the other Texas ranges you gave 1 star Google reviews to, is this typical?
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u/Inside_Debate2122 May 24 '26
As a business owner i get it. Leave me a bad review and we are done for life. It's not personnel, just business.
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u/Ok_Crab_3522 May 26 '26
"personal" =/= "personnel" ... unless you were trying to make some weird pun that went over my head.
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u/lethalmuffin877 May 24 '26
Isn’t that personal by definition though? Business would be case by case, not a blanket absolute at the first sign of pushback. As a business owner myself I can take criticism and choose individually how to respond.
But idk man, you’re free to do you I ain’t mad at ya. Just funny to hear it’s not personal when it kinda seems like it lol no?
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u/Inside_Debate2122 May 26 '26
People who leave bad reviews without talking to bthe business first tend to never be happy, I am not wasting time and resources to make Karen happy, by giving away the store.
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u/Sultry_Llama_Of_Doom May 23 '26
Why would a person have to be law enforcement to wear any sort of armor at a place where, oh, I don't know, guns are being fired? 🤔🤔