getting bored
- Thread starter moooose102
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g.willikers
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Ditto with Funderb.
Wood targets are good. They act like steel, at least for awhile, without the drawbacks.
Cheap and easily replaced.
Screw together whatever thickness of plank or lumber required for the caliber, cut to shape, hang from something and enjoy.
Wood targets are good. They act like steel, at least for awhile, without the drawbacks.
Cheap and easily replaced.
Screw together whatever thickness of plank or lumber required for the caliber, cut to shape, hang from something and enjoy.
scrat
Member
man the imagination you guys have is something else
Justin
Moderator Emeritus
Shooting at appliances isn't that great of an idea. They're a pain to clean up.
Shooting at anything glass is about the worst possible thing you could do. The stuff doesn't biodegrade, and the last thing any responsible gun owner should do is leave shards of glass everywhere.
Shooting at anything glass is about the worst possible thing you could do. The stuff doesn't biodegrade, and the last thing any responsible gun owner should do is leave shards of glass everywhere.
LSU Fan
Member
take up hog hunting
Black Majik
Member
Look into USPSA, IDPA and 3-gun
printcraft
Member
old paint can - Sealed
Red water based paint was in it but... you could use water with a bunch
of food color in it instead.
Hit in the the bottom with a 12ga slug. Pressurized the can a split
second before it burst, must have shot the liquid 30' in every direction.
Cool
Red water based paint was in it but... you could use water with a bunch
of food color in it instead.
Hit in the the bottom with a 12ga slug. Pressurized the can a split
second before it burst, must have shot the liquid 30' in every direction.
Cool
Buy yourself a timer. Set it to "random start beeper" or "par time" and you won't need another person to operate it. You'll improve your skills and it will breath new life into your plinking sessions.
Learn to point shoot with both your handgun and rifle. Starting with a rifle loaded but with an empty chamber, held at port arm, I'm now popping a 10" balloon at 25 yards consistently in around 1.3 sec. with a .357 lever action. Using the sights it takes me twice as long. I can do about as well with the AR but I start with a round chambered.
Use the timer and your EDC starting from the holster but reduce the range to 15 ft. Start with single then go to multiple targets. I'm now getting three balloons in around 2 sec. from the leather. That time isn't great but I'm getting old.
For most blowing up balloons would be a hassle, but I have a compressor in the garage and my range is near the garage. I could use paper targets and I also have steel plates, but it is more satisfying to pop the balloons.
For balloon hangers I too use a straightened coat hanger. I cut six 6"x6" sections from an old warped 2x6 plank and drill a snug centered hole in each piece and insert the hanger. At the top of the hanger I twist a bend tight enough to insert the knotted end of the balloon into. This way I can move the stands to different positions without effort and regardless of the terrain.
If a friend drops by to shoot with me (which happens often) the shooter can turn his back while the other moves the targets around. And at the buzzer the friend shouts the color or colors to shoot. There is no end to the scenarios you can come up with. All you need is a timer and a place to shoot.
Learn to point shoot with both your handgun and rifle. Starting with a rifle loaded but with an empty chamber, held at port arm, I'm now popping a 10" balloon at 25 yards consistently in around 1.3 sec. with a .357 lever action. Using the sights it takes me twice as long. I can do about as well with the AR but I start with a round chambered.
Use the timer and your EDC starting from the holster but reduce the range to 15 ft. Start with single then go to multiple targets. I'm now getting three balloons in around 2 sec. from the leather. That time isn't great but I'm getting old.
For most blowing up balloons would be a hassle, but I have a compressor in the garage and my range is near the garage. I could use paper targets and I also have steel plates, but it is more satisfying to pop the balloons.
For balloon hangers I too use a straightened coat hanger. I cut six 6"x6" sections from an old warped 2x6 plank and drill a snug centered hole in each piece and insert the hanger. At the top of the hanger I twist a bend tight enough to insert the knotted end of the balloon into. This way I can move the stands to different positions without effort and regardless of the terrain.
If a friend drops by to shoot with me (which happens often) the shooter can turn his back while the other moves the targets around. And at the buzzer the friend shouts the color or colors to shoot. There is no end to the scenarios you can come up with. All you need is a timer and a place to shoot.
GlowinPontiac
Member
Some friends and I used to take a few 2" wide 2' long pieces of 1/4" thick plate steel and stick them about an inch into the ground. You then aim for the top and try to make the piece of steel cartwheel end over end along the ground. whoever makes their piece of steel "walk" the farthest wins.
This works best with handguns but rifles can be used as long as you dont mind replacing the steel much sooner than you would with the handguns.
One of my shooting spots also has several old burned out cars sitting out there. its always kept me amused just experimenting to see what parts of the car can be penetrated by what calibers. Suprisingly to me a .22lr out of a rifle can punch right into the car and will sometimes even come out the other side. Really reminded me how little protection a car offers in a gunfight. Oh and at 25 yards a 12ga slug will do horrific damage to an aluminum block engine!
(I know it sounds like we trash this shooting spot but those cars were already there and burned so there is no plastic/glass to
be blown all over and unless you have a 4X4 seriously lifted tow truck there is no way to get the cars out of there as the road leading in is no longer maintained and is nothing but ruts from all the 4X4's that go out there)
This works best with handguns but rifles can be used as long as you dont mind replacing the steel much sooner than you would with the handguns.
One of my shooting spots also has several old burned out cars sitting out there. its always kept me amused just experimenting to see what parts of the car can be penetrated by what calibers. Suprisingly to me a .22lr out of a rifle can punch right into the car and will sometimes even come out the other side. Really reminded me how little protection a car offers in a gunfight. Oh and at 25 yards a 12ga slug will do horrific damage to an aluminum block engine!
(I know it sounds like we trash this shooting spot but those cars were already there and burned so there is no plastic/glass to
be blown all over and unless you have a 4X4 seriously lifted tow truck there is no way to get the cars out of there as the road leading in is no longer maintained and is nothing but ruts from all the 4X4's that go out there)
KC0QGL
Member
Computer moniters, TVs, Super Beta Max VCRs.
Scoupe
Member
I"ll echo the suggestions I like:
Get training.
Take up a shooting discipline like IDPA.
Take up hunting.
Plinking is fun, but giving my shooting "purpose" through hunting and competition was what kept me shooting and getting better over the years.
Get training.
Take up a shooting discipline like IDPA.
Take up hunting.
Plinking is fun, but giving my shooting "purpose" through hunting and competition was what kept me shooting and getting better over the years.
moooose102
Member
well, i hunt, just the season hasnt started yet. i do not want to shoot anything like tv's bottles, anything that will make a mess i will have to clean up afterwards. the fruit idea might work out. biodefradable and all. i wish there were some old cars, or somehing like that to shoot at. that would be fun! i kind of like penetration tests, i have shot my fair share of stumps. but that is getting old. i dont know about cometition shooting, never did it, i dont know if i can afford it. besides the ammo, is it expensive?
frankcostanza
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- Jul 27, 2007
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- 268
I like shooting .22LR at clay pigeons that I set on the berms. Its fun to try to break em into smaller and smaller pieces until there is nothing left.
Red Tornado
Member
I still enjoy shooting paper, but when it gets boring do an online match. It really adds to the enjoyment because I have a purpose. There are usually a few running on THR. If you shoot rimfires, there are always some matches going on RFC. Surplusrifle used to have matches for various milsurp rifles, if you have any.
I know, it's still shooting paper, but it really does add a lot to the experiece.
If you normally shoot with a friend, get a dueling tree. I don't know if they make them for .300 Winmag, though.
RT
I know, it's still shooting paper, but it really does add a lot to the experiece.
If you normally shoot with a friend, get a dueling tree. I don't know if they make them for .300 Winmag, though.
RT
crebralfix
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- Joined
- Mar 7, 2004
- Messages
- 1,356
Reactive targets that move when hit and present another target.
Learn to move, draw, and shoot at a stationary target.
Build a cart that holds a 3D target like a Tactical Ted or just holds a regular target. Attach really long ropes (50'+) to the base and run the ropes through pulleys staked into the ground. One friend pulls the cart one way, the other friend pulls it the other way.
Shoot at the moving target while stationary.
Shoot at the moving target while moving.
This should keep you busy for awhile.
Learn to move, draw, and shoot at a stationary target.
Build a cart that holds a 3D target like a Tactical Ted or just holds a regular target. Attach really long ropes (50'+) to the base and run the ropes through pulleys staked into the ground. One friend pulls the cart one way, the other friend pulls it the other way.
Shoot at the moving target while stationary.
Shoot at the moving target while moving.
This should keep you busy for awhile.
Smaug
Member
Shooting at non-bio degradable targets is irresponsible, unless you're going to pick up every piece.
I really like the fruit idea. But all this is still just target shooting. IPSC and so forth are good, real-world type shooting, but I'm worried that doing that emphasizes shooting speed & accuracy and kind of leaves out target ID'ing and so forth.
Take up reloading first, then hunting.
Reloading will improve all aspects of your shooting. Hunting gives a real purpose to it.
I've only been hunting once, squirrel hunting with a 22. I got one, cleaned him, fried him up, ate him, and just about starved that night. Still, it was the most gratifying meal I've ever had.
Great thread. I'm subscribing to it for future reference, when I get bored.
I really like the fruit idea. But all this is still just target shooting. IPSC and so forth are good, real-world type shooting, but I'm worried that doing that emphasizes shooting speed & accuracy and kind of leaves out target ID'ing and so forth.
Take up reloading first, then hunting.
Reloading will improve all aspects of your shooting. Hunting gives a real purpose to it.
I've only been hunting once, squirrel hunting with a 22. I got one, cleaned him, fried him up, ate him, and just about starved that night. Still, it was the most gratifying meal I've ever had.
Great thread. I'm subscribing to it for future reference, when I get bored.
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Start taking people that are new to shooting.
I'm pretty sure there are some companies that make steel targets that would handle your rifles. They are pretty spendy though, in the $300 range.
http://www.metaltargets.com/NewTargets.htm#MagReset
Maybe try longer distance shooting.
I also like the previously mentioned ideas of:
Defensive Pistol/Carbine training
IDPA style competitions and fun shoots. These introduce adrenaline, and do teach target identification.
3-gun competitions
Skeet
Using a timer
Milk jugs, 2-liter pop bottles filled with water make a nice explosion, but are easy to pick up after.
Spinner targets for .22
Hunting.
I'm pretty sure there are some companies that make steel targets that would handle your rifles. They are pretty spendy though, in the $300 range.
http://www.metaltargets.com/NewTargets.htm#MagReset
Maybe try longer distance shooting.
I also like the previously mentioned ideas of:
Defensive Pistol/Carbine training
IDPA style competitions and fun shoots. These introduce adrenaline, and do teach target identification.
3-gun competitions
Skeet
Using a timer
Milk jugs, 2-liter pop bottles filled with water make a nice explosion, but are easy to pick up after.
Spinner targets for .22
Hunting.
kd7nqb
Member
Here is a link to the orange cubes that were earlier mentioned
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=521332&t=11082005
bowling pins are lots of fun
I also find clay targets to be a lot of fun
Fruit is cool too as mentioned above
One of my favorites is to take old shotgun shells and see if I can hit them with a .22lr
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=521332&t=11082005
bowling pins are lots of fun
I also find clay targets to be a lot of fun
Fruit is cool too as mentioned above
One of my favorites is to take old shotgun shells and see if I can hit them with a .22lr
BADUNAME37
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- Aug 10, 2008
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- 4,434
Thick wooden beams and blocks are fun as they typically stop the bullet, if stacked.
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