New Target

e rex said:

I've always shot a 6X6 steel plate and it seemed to get smaller every passing year. I gave my Grandson a 10' stick of 3/8" rebar and a new steel plate and told him to go after it. Last night he handed me my new target with a 8X8 steel plate hanging from chains. Took it out today to try it out and by golly that extra inch all the way around made me look like a fairly good pistelaro....from a distance. I just turned 79 and figured that it was OK to fudge a little bit.
The loads were 3.5 grains Bullseye under a 357446 in a 38 special case and 7 grains Unique under a 358429 in a 357 mag case. Hey, if your shooting slips a little just get a bigger target. The distance is 25 yards.

Click to expand...

My loads exactly. Been using 357446 since the fifties. Even got a deer once using it(with 2400, however)

I just move closer in, that keeps the targets from shrinking.

Challenge me on this, but I understood from some study years ago that people shoot better --group wise --at a larger target \than smaller ones. (Within reasonable limits, of course.)

Terry, 230RN

???

230RN said:

Challenge me on this, but I understood from some study years ago that people shoot better --group wise --at a larger target \than smaller ones. (Within reasonable limits, of course.)

Terry, 230RN

???

Click to expand...

My guess is that is a mental thing; the shooter tends to relax and thus has greater confidence.

E Rex, I’m glad to read that you’re out there hitting your targets at 79, that’s motivation for many of us who are years (or decades) younger to not only go shoot but to stay with it.

My Dad was an amazing quail and chukar hunter, he chased those critters all across Nevada, Utah and Arizona for decades and always brought home the birds. He hasn’t hunted in at least 20 years, maybe more, in fact I don’t think he’s fired a shot from any firearm other than a Colibri-loaded Nylon 66 to kill garden-marauding rabbits since.

He’s in his mid 80’s now, I don’t think I could even get him out to a simple range to plink for a while with his Colt Huntsman. He has just lost the fire.

May you keep on going out there and hitting that steel for many more years to come, and may your son (and his children) follow your great example.

Stay safe.

Hope your are around and shooting long enough for your grandson to tell you, "just point the gun north grandpa.Point the gun north"

230RN said:

Challenge me on this, but I understood from some study years ago that people shoot better --group wise --at a larger target \than smaller ones. (Within reasonable limits, of course.)

Terry, 230RN

???

Click to expand...

Reinz said:

My guess is that is a mental thing; the shooter tends to relax and thus has greater confidence.

Click to expand...

I have serious doubts about such a study. The Mantra always directed at me growing up was "aim small, miss small!". Why is it folks have a harder time hitting a deer in the vitals(size of a dinner plate) than they do hitting a squirrel in the head(size of a quarter)? With bow hunting the mantra is "pick a spot!" because so many bow hunters, especially deer at close range, aim for the deer(large target) and not a particular spot. While they may still hit the deer, many times aiming at the whole deer makes for a poor hit.

Now with paper and steel, maybe things are different. On paper, most of us aim for the bull. With gongs, we aim for the center....or the whole target and not a spot(bullseye). Maybe that is why we tend to hit bigger gongs than small. Just more margin for error.

It's terrible that targets shrink as we get older.

Walkalong said:

The folks who steadily win at matches have learned to be calm under pressure, as well as being very good at that discipline.

Click to expand...

I have often said, the single most important lesson learned from winning, is that you can.

Lanny Bassham has a book on the subject of mental management that is worth reading, those guys who steadily win likely have…

Funny thing about those who say they can and those who say they can’t, how often they are both right.

e rex

Hey, if your shooting slips a little just get a bigger target. The distance is 25 yards.

Click to expand...

Makes perfect sense and is definitely the logical thing to do!

I like the way you think sir!

My experience is if I aim at the target. I’ll hit the target. If I concentrate on hitting the center of the target my scores improve by quite a bit. Total mind game on my part.

e rex said:

I've always shot a 6X6 steel plate and it seemed to get smaller every passing year. I gave my Grandson a 10' stick of 3/8" rebar and a new steel plate and told him to go after it. Last night he handed me my new target with a 8X8 steel plate hanging from chains. Took it out today to try it out and by golly that extra inch all the way around made me look like a fairly good pistelaro....from a distance. I just turned 79 and figured that it was OK to fudge a little bit.
The loads were 3.5 grains Bullseye under a 357446 in a 38 special case and 7 grains Unique under a 358429 in a 357 mag case. Hey, if your shooting slips a little just get a bigger target. The distance is 25 yards.

Click to expand...

Add on five more years and you are going to appreciate a 10" target. Voice of experience speaking. It isn't the seeing so much as the shaking.

I gave up chasing the blue quail about 20 years ago because I just couldn't chase them far and fast enough. Coyote hunting ceased about 7 years ago. They are hunted hard here and it requires long walks to have any luck at all and my running gear can't manage those distances anymore. Paper and steel are my targets now.