Air rifle targets

[Sprout]

I know nothing about hunting, and am new to the hunting forum, but I have a question.

My brother works for a design firm and is leading a project to come up with new air gun targets geared for hunters. So, basically, my question is: what would y'all like to see in an air gun target?

Thanks for your help

 

[crawfish]

Steel silhouettes figures scaled to the 50 feet indoor target.

 

[MacPelto]

Big game targets (deer, hog, etc.) that you place at 10 yards, or some exact yardage, that duplicate the animals size at 100 yds. That way when you put them at the correct distance, they simulate a full sized critter at the greater distance. Preferably with the vitals marked, but not too obvious.

Does this make sense?

Mac

 

[Grayrock]

How about something that blows up? Blowing up is good.

 

[Sprout]

Thanks for the help everybody, and keep 'em coming. I'll email my brother the URL.

Sounds like some pretty good ideas so far.

 

[Selfdfenz]

I like shooting paint balls. Wish they were a tad bigger.
Cheap
Easy to locate at stores
And... you can sure tell when you hit the things with a pellet or 22

(caution-don't try this inside your home, please!)


Possibly little paint ball deer, ground hogs, ETs would sell well to the recreational shooting public
Make the skin weaker, after all, it's a target not a projectile anymore

S-

 

[JohnKSa]

Possibly little paint ball deer, ground hogs, ETs would sell well to the recreational shooting public

I LIKE it!

 

[Spinner]

Well, I actually find animal crackers to be pretty good air rifle targets. They're cheap, biodegradable, reactive and you can have your own backyard safari.

"He's comin' right for us!!"

Spinner

 

[Shalako]

How about a paintball that look like a brain. The target holder could look like some creepy little alien body on a metal plate so it stands up straight. The thing would have to have some creepy little arms held out like it was coming after you and some alien type eyes. Just set the brain paintball on the aliens crainial dish and blast away. Maybe have a nice backdrop to capture the splatter factor for posterity.

I'll buy 12 of those thankyou with about a 400 pack of the brain-paintballs to get me started.

 

[Zorro]

ACTUAL Airgun Targets!

#1 Ground Squirrel.

#2 Sparrow.

#3 Pidgeon.

#4 Rat.

#5 Mouse. <--- Hard to hit.

 

[Phattitude]

Targets are cool if they make noise or spin of move

 

[Shalako]

 

[Sprout]

Great ideas everybody! Sounds like scaled targets are popular. Any suggestions for animals, sizes, and ranges?

Also, what about movement? Scoring?

Thanks for the help, my brother and I really appreciate it.

 

[JohnKSa]

Air-rifle competition distance is 10 meters (33ft).

Some suggestions:

Make provision for pellet splatter to keep cleanup after shooting simple.

Remember that airgun power can vary considerably. Reusable reactive targets will have to be tested with both ends of the power spectrum to make sure that the powerful airguns don't damage the target and the low-power models will make the target react.

Be sure to carefully explain the power limitations of the target system to prevent misunderstandings--e.g. "6ft/lbs @ 10 meters" or "up to 20 ft/lbs @ 5 meters".

You might want to add a way to shoot boring paper targets some folks do postal matches, want to practice for various types of competition, etc.

You'll have several markets:

The "Wal-Mart airgun" crowd
The "airguns are only for practice" crowd
The "hardcore airgunners"

The first crowd might be willing to spend $20 to $30 for a product. Probably less.

The second crowd MIGHT spring for a $50 product if it's obviously very nifty.

The third crowd will pay almost anything for something that works well, lasts a long time and is really useful.

There aren't many in the third crowd... Most are in the first crowd.