Gun range enthusiasts turned a portion of the Coos County Forest into an acoustics lab two weekends ago, testing sound levels for a possible shooting park nine miles north of Bandon.

But, some nearby residents contend the racket was obnoxious, and more akin to battlefield excercises, leaving them fuming and worried about the pastoral setting in which they choose to live.

Marjorie Lorange, 80, lives a couple hundred yards from the intersection of Whisky Run and Seven Devils Road, near where the range is to be constructed.

“I think it's far to close to people to have a 200-acre gun park,” Lorange said. “It just isn't a thoughtful thing to put in an area where people are living. It's frightening to me.”

Bob Main, the Coos County assessor and president of the Tioga Sports Park Association backing the proposed park wouldn't talk about the sound tests.

“I have no comment,” Main said on Friday.

But TSPA's attorney, Andrew Stamp did. He said on Sept. 22 - 23, about eight to 10 shooters - an average sample, he said, of how many people would be shooting at the park on any given day - surrounded by multiple sound sensors fired guns into the woods to determine the extent of mitigation techniques that may need to be imposed to appease neighbors.

Stamp said the findings would not be known for at least a month, and urged neighbors to keep in mind the noise came from unmuffled gunfire and would not be near the level of sound emanating from the gun range.

“The noise they heard is not representative of what they would hear,” Stamp said. “My guess is that when we are out there and all is set up, they won't be able to hear it.”

TSPA has indicated it would establish berms and baffles to reduce the noise.

But Larry Millican, 58, who estimates he lives within a mile of the range, isn't convinced those techniques will do much to soften the gunfire.

“It doesn't comfort me at all,” Millican, a Vietnam veteran with post traumatic stress disorder said. “I've been around those before. You can still hear it.”

The proposed shooting range is to be situated on 220 acres of land in the county forest and could include 20 rifle shooting corridors, pistol ranges, an archery field, a black powder course, a trap shooting range, paintball course and RV park. Stamp said the scope of the shooting park likely was going to be scaled back, saying the shooting lanes could be shortened from the originally proposed 1,000-yard corridors to around 600 yards.

“We can expect it to be somewhat cut back - which isn't to say that it would not grow. We could do it in stages,” Stamp said.

The Coos County Planning Commission approved the park more than a year ago, but TSPA ran into stiff opposition. Neighbors said they were caught unaware of the proposed range. As a result, TSPA withdrew the conditional use permit application, canceling a much-anticipated public hearing, however a written land agreement between the county and TSPA remains in effect.

On Friday, Stamp wouldn't rule out looking for a different location altogether, but said engineers will find ways to lessen the impact.

“If the data comes back and says you are going to be driving the neighbors crazy, then we'll think about going to plan B,” he said.

Along with the more typical weapons used by local hunters such as 308s, 300 Winchester magnums and shotguns, the weekend's sound testing included .50-caliber Browning machine guns, the turret-style weapons affixed to military vehicles, and used for “hunting al-Qaida,” Stamp said.

“We're still debating the 50 BMG,” Stamp said, noting that if the data proves that style of weapon is too loud, Tioga would consider a ban. However, the group is contemplating baffles made up 55 gallon fuel drums for the massive gun.

The model gun range TSPA is trying to emulate is Tri-County Gun Club in Sherwood, about 15 minutes outside Portland, Stamp said.

“They have done a lot over the years to make it safe and to make noise impacts to where the neighbors don't complain,” Stamp said.

Many of the neighbors outside Bandon are concerned about how the gun range will affect their once peaceful lives, not to mention property values. Many of them believe that a gun range located nearby will devalue their homes, and increase the time it will take to sell homes. Nita Batson, who lives on Whisky Run lane said she believes if the range goes forward, the value of her property will drop.

“If our property values go down someone is going to make up the difference,” Batson said. “If all these people's property values drop it's going to have to be reassessed.”

She isn't happy about the prospect of a nearby gun range.

“I am going to fight for my home,” Batson said.

Gun range opponents, say they are also frustrated that TSPA did not ask them to participate in the testing, or give them a warning.

Stamp contends at one time, TSPA wanted the two sides to work together, choosing the acoustical engineers and other protocols. However, that all went out the window, he said, when those opposed to the gun range made it plain and clear they planned to “sue us in state court, federal court and every court known to mankind.” A local landowner spearheaded a lawsuit against TSPA earlier this year. It's scheduled for oral arguments before the state's Land Use Board of Appeals on Oct. 26.

The bad blood has continued. Sharon Comden, who lives on Seven Devil's Road contends someone trespassed on her property the weekend of the test to videotape how her horses would react to the shots. Comden said she complained to the Coos County Sheriff's Office, but without an identity, the prospect of charges is unlikely.

When asked if there was still a window for the groups to work together, Stamp first said “probably not,” but later said it would be possible if opponents would agree to let the science - not attitudes - determine the outcome.

“If the science says we are OK, then we're OK - and leave us alone,” Stamp said.

He declined to name the companies the engineers worked for, only saying one was based out of Oregon.

“I'm not going to disclose that,” he said. “There are reasons. We have people that know what they are doing. They do it all the time. They are professional acoustical engineers. That is what they do. We didn't hire them because they like guns.”