most fun targets?

[Angus Lincoln]

Can any one recommend what they might consider to be the most fun types of targets to shoot at? Any and all suggestions will be appreciated.(not all suggestions need be 100% ethical or economical,just morally consciable and for the most part safe.)Thanks

 

[countertop]

Golf balls
bowling pins
wet phone books
wateremelon
apples
warm cans of coke (eeer, Sams Choice Cola, its cheaper)
AOL Cds
Squirrels
Bars of Soap
Cans
Bottles
Eggs
Nutria
Paper Targets
old junked cars
old junked TVs
light bulbs
cantalopes
honeydews
Ice (Frozen Bottles of Water)
GI Joes
Stuffed Animals
Explosive targets (propane tanks)

 

[Angus Lincoln]

Wow! thats a great list Countertop, thanks,btw,very nice website too!

 

[kudu]

Something we used to do occasionaly at the skeet club was to make a clay target full of chalk line dust, blue, green, red,... Fill the top of the target flush with chalk powder and tape it off with some masking tape. Slip it in the machine and whoever brakes it gets a prize. Makes a huge cloud of dust. There is no chance of not knowing who broke it.

 

[sm]

Moonpies thrown from a trap - startles the shooter .

Mini Frisbees sailed from behind shooter - some will fit a hand trap.

Swing Targets ( speed controlled ) to practice hitting moving targets with slugs.

Tueller Drill - with a shotgun from low ready.

Rubber "Clay" targets - either tossed from a trap ,or stationary hanging on a stage .

"...huh- I hit it I know I hit it - it moved - why didn't it break?"

 

[motorep]

oops, not shotgun targets-sorry

 

[joab]

For .22s
Hot and shaken soda cans
Empty or mostly empty aerosol; cans , from a safe distance
Old dinner plates are fun but a pain to clean up

 

[Angus Lincoln]

ALL these ideas are great! I'm currently teaching my 13 yr old son to shoot and develop the responsibilities associated with gun ownership. So far he loves it , but I want to be sure to keep his interest up as punching holes in paper may not hold his attention forever.I have a well rounded collection so that will help.I'm sure that when we start clay shooting he'll love it as much as I did when I was a kid and did it with my Dad.At 13 yrs old ,I'm not sure he's ready for a 12 ga. experience.Can some one tell me if a20 ga. or even a .410 would be an effective gun for shooting clays for a beginner shooter? No doubt it would be more challenging

 

[kudu]

A good cheap target that I started my wife on was balloons with about a cup of water in them blown up to different sizes. The water holds them down and they make a good reactive target for kids.

 

[ACP230]

I used to fill coffee cans with water and stand them on the plastic lid.
Then I'd shoot them in the middle with a slug.

The can would go up in the air with water flying everywhere. I'd pump the shotgun and try to hit the can in the air with a shot load. I was usually too slow, but it was fun trying. I should have used a OU, SXS, or an autoloader!

Note: we had a high dirt bank to use as a backstop so none of the shot got out of the immediate area. Safety first, last and always.

 

[TrapperReady]

Pheasants
Grouse
Chukar
Quail
Dove
Ducks
Geese
Rabbits
Squirrel
Deer

Clays of any size (although I dearly hate rabbits)

Angus Lincoln - A 12ga is fine, as long as the kid is strong enough to operate it. The recoil can be mitigated by using the lightest loads you can find. Winchester makes some Low-Noise, Low-Recoil target loads that are great. They're under an ounce of shot and loaded to relatively low velocities. If you reload, you can do the same thing for far less money. The only problem can be that they may not have enough "oomph" to cycle some autoloaders.

If you are using a single-shot 12ga, you can use "Li'l Skeeters" sub-gauge inserts, allowing you to shoot 20ga (or even better, 28ga) shells in a 12ga barrel. The recoil is quite manageable.

FWIW, a 20ga will often recoil just as much as a 12ga, since the 20ga will typically be of smaller scale and therefore weigh less. If you dig through the archives here, you'll find a lot of info and recommendations for younger shooters.