Minimum safe distance to shoot a gong

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Shooting steel from jc steel for about two years now and I've never felt or heard anything come back. The targets are free to swing and angle top toward me so spatter goes down. I follow manufacturer recommendations and don't shoot them with pistol closer than 25 yards and bottleneck rifle no closer than 100. Straight wall rifle I'll shoot at 50. I have 3/8" ar500 targets.
 
My local outdoor range separates rimfire from centerfire (handgun) steel ranges. Nearest target does appear farther out than 10 yards.
 
I have been using the same 10" diameter targets made of Heflin Steel Armor Gard for 25+ years. Mine were constructed so as as to lean slightly forward. I do not shoot them closer than 10 yds., but most often shoot them at 25. Before I retired I did sometimes shoot steel closer during training. I have occasionally been hit with bullet fragments or jacket material but never suffered more than a small cut.
 
I guess I could put a carriage bolt through the hanging holes and offset the chain to the back. This would cause them to pitch down if necessary and would make them less prone to send splatter back to the shooter.

I would think it would be very important that they are shot straight on and not at an angle left and right of the shooter more than just a few degrees.
 
Rock185 said:
I have been using the same 10" diameter targets made of Heflin Steel Armor Gard for 25+ years. Mine were constructed so as as to lean slightly forward. I do not shoot them closer than 10 yds., but most often shoot them at 25. Before I retired I did sometimes shoot steel closer during training. I have occasionally been hit with bullet fragments or jacket material but never suffered more than a small cut.
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Are these free swinging from a chain?
 
I have gotten splattered at the shooting point from backstop backsplash 50 feet away.

Happens now and then. I wear safety glasses so not a lot of chance of serious damage.

The range where I shoot did have a guy get whacked with a chunk of a bullet that came off the backstop a couple years ago.

All kinds of strange things can happen. It is a risk of the shooting sports that you take when you engage in the activity. Not unlike the risk of broken bones from skiing.
 
Without eye protection there is no minimum safe distance in my opinion.

1. I've been hit with high angle ricochets off steel twice in a couple years of sub machine gun competitions. I saw a man get a superficial (but bloody) cut on his hand--probably from a jagged jacket fragment. I've heard a "buzzer" or two go by.

2. At Rio Salado, steel is not allowed in the pistol bay closest to the public range. After a SMG shot in which I used my trusty 72rd drums, I did 4 mag dumps of 4 1930s antique 50rd "coffin" drums to test functionality (I verified that 3 run flawlessly and one double feeds often--confirming a previous observation). I put all 200 rounds into a tight area at the base of the far berm. As I was packing up, the RSOs came over in golf cart to report a woman on the public range was hit (uninjured but rattled). After interviewing me and several of the 10 or so witnesses, they determined that no safety rules had been violated.

3. I no longer shoot birdshot at bowling pins at any distance. Ouch!

Mike
 
Yeah, bullets will ricochet off bullets imbedded in a backstop.

I miss bowling pin shoots. I don't miss the bounce backs from softball loads hitting the bowling pins.

Why would you shoot pins with birdshot?
 
eye pro

Several posts in this thread mention eye protection. However, all the product descriptions I've ever seen for safety glasses say they will not stop a bullet.

???
 
However, all the product descriptions I've ever seen for safety glasses say they will not stop a bullet.
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They certainly won't but virtually all of the splashback is merely bullet fragments.
 
I usually shoot my steel targets at 50 feet for handgun and 100 yards for rifle but I have shot handgun steel as close as 15 feet using frangible bullets. I also use steel with 12 ga. frange at 30 feet. Frange works great by disintegrating so you never have any flyers if you hit the target. If you hit the edge of the steel, frang will fly at an angle into the backstop someplace.
 
I miss bowling pin shoots. I don't miss the bounce backs from softball loads hitting the bowling pins.
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I had a round from a 4" .357 come back off a bowling pin at 10 yards, it stuck me square on the ankle. I sat down rubbing it while saying shucks and fudge for a while. Nice purple knot on it for nearly a week.
 
Several posts in this thread mention eye protection. However, all the product descriptions I've ever seen for safety glasses say they will not stop a bullet.
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They won't stop a direct shot, but they will stop the kind of fragments that come off steel most of the time. And when bullets, especially pistol bullets, do come ricocheting off steel whole or in large chunks, you can often see them going. Meaning, they really aren't going that fast. They lose a tremendous amount of energy in the impact with the steel. I've been hit by whole bullets coming back uprange and they often aren't moving fast enough to break skin. Glasses would save an eye, though.
 
my range only lets you set up steel targets at 25 yrds minimmum. since I'm shooting it from a higher position the bullet will get deflected to the ground about 3 to 4 feet in front and right below it. for the first shot and most but rarely when shot as its swinging back and forth the angle of reflection changes and fragments have rarely come back all the way to the firing line. for the particular target that did it, i made it angle downwards more. see the pic. i do have it free swinging. i suspects its a bullet hitting. the edge of the center bullseyes that caused it.

sorry pics came out sideways

btw the caldwell gong is a good value as it comes with a stand and the steel is ar 550 not 500 which is what most gongs sold onlone are. shot with 5.56 steel tip even at 100 yrds will cause a small dimple but no problems with regular fmjs. also none with 308 at 100 yrds and of course none at 200 yrd.

.
 

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Sam1911 said:
They won't stop a direct shot, but they will stop the kind of fragments that come off steel most of the time. And when bullets, especially pistol bullets, do come ricocheting off steel whole or in large chunks, you can often see them going. Meaning, they really aren't going that fast. They lose a tremendous amount of energy in the impact with the steel. I've been hit by whole bullets coming back uprange and they often aren't moving fast enough to break skin. Glasses would save an eye, though.
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OK, thanks.

I think it would be fun to shoot steel but I first have to get good enough to hit something at that distance, I think the closest steel targets at the range near me are 35 yds.
 
Steel is fun, but 35 yards is a pretty long shot for most pistol shooters. Good practice, though! Concentrate on that front sight and a smooth even trigger press and you'll hit it!
 
Steel is fun, but 35 yards is a pretty long shot for most pistol shooters. Good practice, though! Concentrate on that front sight and a smooth even trigger press and you'll hit it!
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Thanks for the encouragement. :)

Next time I go to the indoor range I'm gonna try 25 yds (the max there) just to see what happens. If it's halfway acceptable maybe then I'll try the outdoor range with the steel targets.
 
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You can always buy a big plate to shoot at 35 yards. That way those close misses will be hits and give you feedback you can use to tighten things up. I usually use a 10" round plate, but I also have a 12" square one, and a 1/3 Silhouette. I have friends who can't hit the 1/3 silhouette at 35 yards. We have a long pistol pit where that is about how far we shoot. A bigger plate makes hits easier for the novice or occasional shooter. Misses frustrate folks. Hits are better, even if way off center. More smiles that way.

18" for $102.22 shipped.

I shoot handguns at a 16" round plate at 100 yards a lot, but I have a lot of close misses, and a bigger plate would be nice. I have a 12" square plate set at about 40 yards on my property. It's too easy for me and too tough for many friends/visitors. I want to set up a larger one a little closer, but because of the lay of the land I am going to have to make a take down/fold down holder. Something on hinges/hinge pin I think. Like sock poles for helicopter pads.
 
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Steel is fun, but 35 yards is a pretty long shot for most pistol shooters. Good practice, though! Concentrate on that front sight and a smooth even trigger press and you'll hit it!
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Depends on the size of the plate and pistol your using.

I have several pistols I can clear all of these at twice that distance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIOcNNcLxnU

But also have some where I can't hit the small plates 100% at 10 yards...
 
Says 50 BMG, no telling what bullet lots of stuff for them contain more than lead. Closest I have ever fired mine at steel was 120 yards and it was not AR 500, rather 1" mild steel and it just went through.

1insteel.jpg

Notice the nice radius the impact area leaves, fire something that fragments upon impact after that and it is perfect for sending "stuff" back at you.

This is why it's a good idea to only shoot steel than can remain flat on the surface.
 
Walkalong said:
You can always buy a big plate to shoot at 35 yards. That way those close misses will be hits and give you feedback you can use to tighten things up. I usually use a 10" round plate, but I also have a 12" square one, and a 1/3 Silhouette. I have friends who can't hit the 1/3 silhouette at 35 yards. We have a long pistol pit where that is about how far we shoot. A bigger plate makes hits easier for the novice or occasional shooter. Misses frustrate folks. Hits are better, even if way off center. More smiles that way.

18" for $102.22 shipped.

I shoot handguns at a 16" round plate at 100 yards a lot, but I have a lot of close misses, and a bigger plate would be nice. I have a 12" square plate set at about 40 yards on my property. It's too easy for me and too tough for many friends/visitors. I want to set up a larger one a little closer, but because of the lay of the land I am going to have to make a take down/fold down holder. Something on hinges/hinge pin I think. Like sock poles for helicopter pads.
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That's very interesting. You folks in more rural areas have a whole different environment! I'm pretty sure the steel targets at the local outdoor range are permanently pre-positioned by the range, and that's what visitors get to shoot at.
 
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