gongs and spinners

Plink. Plink. Plink.

Pew, pew, pew........... shooting. Plink, plink plink............shooting. Bang, bang bang.......... That could mean a couple things.

I have set up two 12 x20 and one 8” at 25 yards in a sink hole below my house. I’m shooting more now because I’m not fooling with paper targets.

Catman42 said:

I'm sorry I don't know what that means?

Click to expand...

It’s the sound of happiness.

When we go up into the mountains to shoot, we have 4 'plates' One on a really good tripod type stand and 3 on 'shepard hooks'..REALLY great, just need to repaint them for tomorrow BUT, since I and other 2 sons got 223/556 rifle, iron sights, we have severed the shepard hooks about 4 times..Yup, can rebend each time(they are getting short tho)....

Scooter22 said:

Pew, pew, pew........... shooting. Plink, plink plink............shooting. Bang, bang bang.......... That could mean a couple things.

Click to expand...

Phew,phew,phew, imaginary gun sounds made by me and a foster brother chasing each other in cowboy and Indians games on the farm in the 40’s.

I get the arbor slugs from a local saw blade mill. They are only mild steel, but this one is an inch thick.
Big saw blades, huh?

Amazon Shepard’s Hooks come by the dozen.
I have a few portables now, and they’re easy to hike out to the berm or distance. I build them heavy so a Bushmaster or Thirty Aught Six doesn’t rip them straight off.

whughett said:

Phew,phew,phew, imaginary gun sounds made by me and a foster brother chasing each other in cowboy and Indians games on the farm in the 40’s.

Click to expand...

Yeah but could you make the ricochet sound? Not sure how to spell that one. Maybe Beeeeeuuuuuuuushhh. But in the pitch of a kids voice.

Scooter22 said:

Yeah but could you make the ricochet sound? Not sure how to spell that one. Maybe Beeeeeuuuuuuuushhh. But in the pitch of a kids voice.

Click to expand...

Yep something like, about ever 4th phew or so.
Phew phew phew beeeeuuuushhh.
Sorry OP. Enough digressing.

Catman42 said:

this week i put out two new gongs and 2 spinners. one gong at 50 yards and the other at 20 yards. the two spinners at 20 yards. in the other direction is a man target and 2 spinners at 20 yards. lots to shoot at and have fun with. all off the north east corner of my deck where i built a gunrest. summer and winter shooting from now on.

Click to expand...

Sounds like a plan. I have gongs at 40, 70, 100 and 200 yards. Used to use bowling pins for reactive targets(still do occasionally) but they had to be replaced often when shot with the bigger bore handguns or rifles. The gongs have been going good for several years and still show no signs of needed replacement. One of the best investments I ever made on the private range other than the covered bench. Only thing I use paper for anymore is sighting in or for patterning shotguns. Even with handguns and .22s, I've found that 20 yards and closer means a good chance of getting splattered at some point by bounce back, especially when shooting rapidly and the target may be swinging. So I stick with 40 yards being the closest. For the grandkids and others newer to shooting, I just use a bigger gong so they can hit it easier. I tried having the local metal shop make me some targets to save monies, but found the softer steel would dimple and give more bounce back. Broke down and bought good AR500 targets and haven't looked back. Even then, I don't shoot at even the 1/2"(all my targets are this) closer than 100 yards with the ought-six to prevent dimpling.

Here's some good rules of thumb for shooting steel.....

Steel Target Safety Rules
1. ALWAYS wear hearing protection and wrap-around shatter resistant eye protection.

2. ALWAYS inspect the target for damage, functionality, stability, etc., before using.

3. ALWAYS place the target on a soft surface free of large rocks or other secondary ricochet hazards.

4. ALWAYS stand at least 10 yards from the target when using handgun and .22 rimfire calibers.

5. ALWAYS stand at least 10 yards from the target when using shotgun bird or buck shot (lead only).

6. ALWAYS stand at least 100 yards (50 yards for specified targets) from the target when using centerfire rifle calibers.

7. ALWAYS stand at least 100 yards from the target when using shotgun slugs.

8. NEVER use centerfire rifle calibers on .22 rimfire or handgun rated targets (1/4" AR500 or 3/8" AR500).

9. NEVER shoot BB's, steel shot, or air gun pellets at steel targets.

10. NEVER use armor piercing, steel core, green tip, or other types of penetrator ammunition with steel targets.

11. NEVER shoot on steel that is cratered, pitted, or damaged in any way.

12. NEVER exceed a 20-degree angle of engagement.

Click to expand...

....pay close attention to #9. Had a neighbor come over one day to pattern his turkey gun and afterwards, he thought he'd shoot the 12 incher at 40 yards. He didn't tell me he was using steel shot.......

A fun dueling tree, made with rib from bow of a dismantled liberty ship. Paddles are 5" square. Shooting pal and I use (45ACP, lead bullets only) @ minimum 25 yards. The pitting is rust due to the 75 year old steel, not bullet impact. No splashback experienced but always wear shooting glasses!


Regards,
hps

18" steel plate....1/2" thick- 400yrds
338 Lapua- PING

Incorporated some swinging gongs with target frames (50-100-200 yds). Only problem is they are so heavy .22's won't move them, work pretty good for larger calibers and shotgun slugs.

Finally gave into the Facebook and Instagram ads and bought a Hang n' Hook system (through Amazon Smile, not Facebook} to replace my "chains hanging from a PVC pipe" setup. Really easy setup and portability....even though mine are now hanging on a semi-permanent set of stands. At least I don't have to bother with the chains and bolts and nuts.

I hang mine in a tire using fence post and twine to hold them vertical, ours are set at 100, 200 and 300yrds, none for pistols, next time we go I'm going to try some springs from a trampoline to use instead of chains. So far we haven't had a ricochet but we mount the chains on a bolt with a nut spacer to force a downward angle

I am going to shoot SASS. I now how have 3 hanging targets that I can put in a line and practice shooting them in quick succession. They are much smaller than the cowboy action targets but that is Ok it will give me practice in the movement, coordination, and firing.

Gongs and silhouettes are great for practicing to shoot at multiple targets and changing your aim point in real time. You don't realize how slow you are setting up on a target until you try to put two rounds into each target. Then you notice it again when you try to move a few steps between each one.

This thread is making me want to go out and shoot.

Frulk said:

This thread is making me want to go out and shoot.

Click to expand...

Just one more evening. I can make it. Four more hours and I can go to bed. I can hold on.
Wake up, drop the kids off and go to tHE RANGE! SHH!
I mean, shh. I can make it. It’s been forever. I can make it.
I’m going nuts. NO! I’m not going nuts, I’m going shooting. In eleven hours fifty three minutes...
I can wait.
Just till morning.
Four hours till bed.
Drop the kids off.
Then bliss.
In eleven hours and fifty minutes...
Tomorrow.
Packed for days.
Going tomorrow.
I can make it...

Catman42 said:

oregon trail, that is a very nice set up.

Click to expand...

Catman42 said:

oregon trail, that is a very nice set up.

Click to expand...

Thank you Catman42
It works well,
Right now mostly shoot 22.lr with open sights at 50 to 90 yards.
It’s rewarding to hit the 4” plate offhand at 50 consistently.