Anyone Shoot Steel?

[JCooperfan1911]

I go out in the desert open public shooting areas to shoot. Nobody to bother me and loooong range. I’d like to find one of those steel targets to fire against with my carbine out to 200-300 yards range.

I need something portable and easy to set up and take down and of good quality.

if anyone shoots steel targets I usually only shoot paper which gets a bit dull and need help. Thank you bye,

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I own and shoot AR500 plates in a variety of sizes.

 

[MCMXI]

I have lots of steel targets too. I have a bunch for pistol and a bunch for rifle. Some of the easiest to set up and move around are those that sit on top of T-posts. T-posts are cheap and you could drive one or two into the ground and leave them there. Take a look at mgmtargets.com to get an idea of what's available.

 

[bearcreek]

I need something portable and easy to set up and take down and of good quality.

https://bluegrasstargetsky.com/collections/frontpage I met the owner of this company at a competition a couple years ago. Nice guy and he has excellent prices and several easily portable options.

 

[ericuda]

Shepherds hooks and wherever u want to get a gong at. I use shootingtargets7.com.

 

[DustyGmt]

I go out in the desert open public shooting areas to shoot. Nobody to bother me and loooong range. I’d like to find one of those steel targets to fire against with my carbine out to 200-300 yards range.

I need something portable and easy to set up and take down and of good quality.

if anyone shoots steel targets I usually only shoot paper which gets a bit dull and need help. Thank you bye,

Once you start shooting steel you'll probably never go back to paper except for sighting in and load development maybe. For general shooting steel is the most fun IMO.

There is all kinds of steel targets available these days, Caldwell and ShootSteel.com have some nice options. AR500 too. But if you want a really cheap way to get started just some square railroad tie plates are usually plentiful in every town. Not advocating stealing from the RR but lots of times they abandon them at different sites and are left to rot from my understanding. They aren't hard to find and you can typically find them down over the banks of the tracks, etc.... they are thick enough to take quite a few smacks....

 

[Demi-human]

Here’s one I made out of a saw blade arbor blank.
Rated for 450Bushmaster.

Many retailers of AR500 and AR550 steel targets.

The Shepard’s hooks are lighter and easier to setup for me than the A-frame pipe kits, and come in many heights. Through bolting a short pipe on the back let’s you hang one per hook and keep it pointed down and towards you.
I’ll have to get a picture of that next time I’m out.

 

[reloaded_in_pa]

Cheap fry pans from a thrift store or Salvation Army work great.

 

[Robert]

I have a couple of LV Steel poppers I take to the range when I go.
https://www.lvsteeltargets.com/

The two I have are the small 18"x5" poppers.

 

[FL-NC]

Range Systems 42" stab and shoot- $119. A great general purpose steel target that is easily portable and installed. If you have a place to purchase AR500 sheets and access to someone with a plasma cutter, you can make your own.

 

[Spats McGee]

Steel is fun. I like hearing the plink.

 

[jmorris]

Even if I am shooting paper at home, I’m shooting steel, my bullet trap is a couple tons of it but I also shoot steel targets too.

Automatically resetting ones save steps, the further out you hit them the more they save. These are all portable the large ones fold up the single is my version of a Larue.



Others add to the challenge.



Even have them, down at the farm because it’s fun to hear them ring.

 

[wiscoaster]

Shooting steel is fun because you get immediate audible feedback on your shot placement.

Some public outdoor shooting ranges forbid steel. Consideration needs to be given to ricochet. It's a more complicated matter for range layouts than just a berm beyond the target.

 

[Mauser lover]

Last year, I drove three hours each way to get to a Steel Challenge match every couple of months. Partly because there aren't any closer USPSA matches, but also because I had so much fun with every shot making that satisfying *ping!*. Okay, almost every shot. Good fun. Try it and you probably won't quit.

 

[stillquietvoice]

Once you start shooting steel you'll probably never go back to paper except for sighting in and load development maybe. For general shooting steel is the most fun IMO.

There is all kinds of steel targets available these days, Caldwell and ShootSteel.com have some nice options. AR500 too. But if you want a really cheap way to get started just some square railroad tie plates are usually plentiful in every town. Not advocating stealing from the RR but lots of times they abandon them at different sites and are left to rot from my understanding. They aren't hard to find and you can typically find them down over the banks of the tracks, etc.... they are thick enough to take quite a few smacks....

I have a small switch yard behind my house and have picked up quite a few track plates. The steel is sorted use at longer distances.

 

[Zaydok Allen]

Taylor Targets

 

[FL-NC]

The most important thing to remember is to insure that EVERYONE in the area is wearing eye protection. A good idea when engaging in any shooting activity, but absolutely mandatory of steel is involved.

 

[MySuomi]

One of my recurring shooting expenses is now white spray paint. After every shooting session I recoat the steel plates. This way I can see where my shots are hitting on the plates. Then when the can is empty I can perforate that for several more months. Finally I bury their shattered husks in my shooting berm.

 

[Chuck R.]

I shoot steel all the time and have about 60 pieces of AR500 and another 15 animal silhouettes for .22RF. We had a similar thread a little while back that may also have some ideas:

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/who-is-shooting-steel.877413/

I'd avoid anything that "knock's down" unless it auto resets. They "brief well", but are a PITA to drive (or walk) out to reset. It's bad enough repainting periodically. I'd get bigger tgts than you think you need, especially if your background won't allow you to spot misses. You can always paint smaller bulls on the larger steel.

For what the OPs looking for I'd take a hard look at two portable stands that I use. One is made by Arntzen and is a very portable folding tripod system (the Arntzen stands are holding up the 2/3rds IDPA steel).




Arntzen has now gone out of business, but the stands are still being made by a different company, that Arntzen recommends:

https://madetargets.com/stands/

Another portable system I use comes from Hang Fast Targets and utilizes "T" posts.



https://hangfasttargets.com/

These are very cost effective and pretty ingenious as the hanger also acts as a wrench for the carriage bolts. You simply mount a 3 link piece of chain on the tgt and hang it on the stand. You can also mount them straight with carriage bolts, but they don't ring as well, nor do the "flash" when hit by off center shots.

T posts are cheap, and allow for varying the heights. The hangers are protected by the steel plate. When I put together rifle shoots for my friends I put these 6 or 7 of these out at varying distances. In about 20 minutes I can put out some pretty interesting CoFs from 200-600 yards.

Practice using my M23A1 MSP (Mobile Shooting Platform) which is a necessity during chigger/tick season in KS. Really a 5x8 trailer pulled by my UTV, which really is a requirement to carry all the chit we use to shoot; scopes, tripods, mats, stools and guns, sometimes an additional shooter.

 

[Conelrad]

I use a 24" round of 1-1/4" plate @ 500m setup with a portable bridge support.

Very satisfying thunk.

7.62N AP gets stuck in it.

Conelrad

 

[MechAg94]

I used brackets like this (mine used 4x4 boards) to set up a frame to hang targets. Not so easy to take down and set up all the time if you can't leave it there.
https://www.amazon.com/Frame-Brackets-Complete-Mounting-Hardware/dp/B01M28VV0N/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=22ZZ2WURQHG9A&dchild=1&keywords=swing+set+brackets&qid=1609254911&sprefix=swing+set,aps,274&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzMzQyVUNaUlBMUzVVJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMzI4NTg0MUI0ODU3WkxYRFE0UCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNjE5OTg2MTJRNEs3VlRTUUVVWSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

Note: The 4x4 boards will get hit with a lot of bullet fragments. If you have to handle the boards much, you will need good gloves.

 

[MechAg94]

https://www.amazon.com/Hang-Hook-DI...eywords=target+hangers&qid=1609255427&sr=8-13

https://www.amazon.com/Highwild-Tar...keywords=target+hangers&qid=1609255427&sr=8-9

If I were starting over, I think I could use something like this. Just need some sections of pipe to go with it. Looks like it would be easy to set up and take down.

For closer shooting, I would recommend hanging the targets rather than fixed mounts. IMO, if the targets can move, they absorb more energy off the bullet and there is more chance of a straight bounce back.

Most of my targets are from AR500armor.com. They have sales frequently and you get get a discount over the normal price. The 1/2" thick targets hold up very well.

 

[MCMXI]

@JCooperfan1911, are you overwhelmed yet?! So many options and lots of recommendations. My targets are mostly static so I hang my rifle targets using chain, S hooks and T-posts so that I can raise them up when the snow gets deep. This is my 500 yard target.

 

[MySuomi]

One of the fascinating aspects of shooting steel for me is the constant reminder of the physics of driving a piece of metal at high rates of speed. The energy created has to transfer and when it goes into the steel it spreads to your fixtures. If you don't use quality hardware to hang your plates they will quickly get deformed and fail. Not to mention when (not if) you shoot the connecting hardware on the plate.

 

[Chuck R.]

Note: The 4x4 boards will get hit with a lot of bullet fragments. If you have to handle the boards much, you will need good gloves.

Try running the hooks for the chain on the backside of the 2x4, rather than straight down from the bottom. It cuts down on the shrapnel effect a little as it offsets the plates. I also put spacers between the chain and plate to give a little downward angle. It's worked pretty well on a couple of my fixed swingers:

Not the best picture: