video camera for target shooting?

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happyhuntr

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hello,
do any of you use a video camera for target shooting rather than using a spotting scope?

any idea what distance they can be used at?

i have seen wireless portable video cameras for home security monitering. just wondering if i can put the camera on my target and put the small monitor on the shooting bench.

here is a link to what i am thinking.

http://www.amazon.com/SVAT-GX5203-W...?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1217134305&sr=8-10

thanks
happy
 
I've considered it. However, given the number of bubbas who shoot things like target frames, flagpoles, and the occasional bird who is in the wrong place at the wrong time, I suspect it could get expensive.
 
The key issue I think may be the question you asked regarding the distance . You may not be able to get it to work at the distances you need it. If the unit has enough distance however, there should be no reason why this wouldn't work just fine.

Perhaps contact the sales source to get that info ? I suspect it is likely to be in the 100 feet area rather than the 100 yard .
 
I like that wireless cam idea.

Might not take long before a range clown shoots it though.

I was watching one of those shopping shows on TV. They had a camcorder with a 80x digital zoom. I thought it was the dumbest thing in the world if used without a tripod.

Now I'm wondering if this may be just the thing for long range shooting? With this 80x cam on the bench, how far would it be useful for seeing 30 cal holes? There must be a optical formula for this.
 
Never put anything in front of the firing line you are not willing to have destroyed.
 
there is a range i frequent, Duncans outdoor world in bay city that has 100 and 200 yard indoor ranges.
you basically shoot from the basement down 3 foot diameter sewer pipe....they have cameras mounted and tvs which show the target on the bench right next to you. you can use dry erase markers on the screen to mark where your shots hit... gives instant feedback.
i think its a brilliant idea, haven't thought about having a portable setup to take anywhere.
good idea. if you pick something up, give us a range report.
 
Wireless Does not = cordless. Most of those camera units require a 110/120vac power supply.
 
I've seen camera and monitor setups specifically marketed for this purpose, but I can't recall where.
 
My camcorder has a 600x digital zoom that works great on a tripod. Slightly pixelated when maxed out, but you should still be able to see bullet holes even at max zoom. I'll take it to the range if I remember the next time I go and see how it works as a spotting scope. I usually have a scope with a high enough power to see the bullet holes if dialed up to the max zoom, so it's not usually an issue.
 
We use to do it to see where the rounds were impacting, sure beats walking out to 1000 yards all the time. We used an IR link, as long as you can see to the target it will transmit (line of site). What we did was hook the camera up to a VCR using a car battery with a converter.

We set the stuff up in an area that we were sure that if someone was off nothing would get ruined. The unit that we had back where we were sitting was hooked up to a flat screen monitor and gave a great picture. We used the shoot-n-see targets to get the best results for seeing where the rounds hit.
 
I had started using one late last year. Bought a Panasonic H18 with 32X optical/1000X digital but did not get the resolution I was looking for at 50 yds for .22 lr. The holes were barely visible at the max optical range and the digital zoom was just too pixelated. Bought a Sony SR45 with 40X opt/2000X dig and it has performed better. (Both hard disk drive, just one less thing to worry about.) Bought the waterproof housing for the camcorder for bad weather. The optical magnification of cameras and camcorders as seen on their LCD screens are not quite the same visually as that of scopes. The images appear smaller.

As I thought about it more, I'm heading to getting a spotting scope and using a large LCD screened digital camera as a display. A few manufacturers make adaptors for the scopes to attach cameras with their lens positioned right behind the ocular of the scope. The reason I'm going with this set-up is that I think I will eventually get into longer distance shooting (200+ yards) and I don't think the current camcorder lens are able to provide to ecessary resolution to see holes on the target. The higher magnification quality spotting scopes should be able to do this.

Only issues with electronic devices is their need for a power supply when in use and posible damage from moisture/water. If you are using it for a shoot that lasts hours at a time, additional batteries will be required.
 
Sorry, but you can't get something for nothing. First an 80x DIGITAL zoom is just expanding the pixels, at 80 times it would be a blob. Most small cameras don't have a lens capable of much zooming. Zooming in requires a large lens to gather enough light or the picture just gets darker. I work in the TV industry and that cameraman at the sports event that can zoom into your belly button from a hundred yards is using a lens that is 10" in diameter and cost $100,000. (And there is no such thing as digital zoom in the professional industry.)

I have seen a small camera designed for astronomers to fit a telescope eyepiece. (1 1/4") So you might be able to get a small telescope mounted very steady (very) and attach a video eyepiece. I have tried it on the moon at a neighbors and it was okay, planets, not so good.
 
thanks for all the info guys.
i like the target tranmitter, but way more than i would like to pay.

i am not worried about the camera getting shot as i shoot in my backyard, not that i couldn't accidentaly hit it myself, i can put a steel plate behind it for protection.

happy
 
I thought this thread was about shooting traffic light cameras. i hate those things:D
 
A good spotting scope will resolve many bullet splashes on white-painted steel at 600 yards. We paint a 6" black center on an 18" white gong. A "Ding!" with no splash mark is a bullseye in the black, a hit in the white is visible with most calibers, and of course no ding is a miss. Takes pretty good conditions to show up every .223, but a .308 will be visible if the mirage isn't too bad, and a .38, .40, or .45 BPCR shows up very well.

My ambition is a camera set a few yards from the target frame, with transmitter back to the line so we can shoot paper targets and really tell what is going on.
 
When you do that Jim, let us know what sort of electronics you use that will allow for transmission of a signal for several hundred yards. I looked into this a few years ago and could not find anything reasonable that would broadcast over 100 yards.
 
There are commodity 2.4 GHz short range video links available.
Longer distance gets into a power limit problem.
At very low power the FCC does not require licensing, higher power does.
 
The camera setup in the original thread (SVAT GX5203 Wireless Portable Video Security Sys.) only transmits to 100 yards. At that range, any cheap spotting scope will work. Even a $100 Tasco or BSA of 10x or more will see holes at 100 yds.
Unless the camera could transmit to whatever your maximum range of shooting is, it really isn't worth investing in. I'd need one that transmits to 1000 yards and if I could find one, I'd buy it!
 
You could use a better antenna than the base one supplied.
Antenna gain is not an issue with the FCC, just transmitted power.
 
The other option, I was told, was to set up a series of short range repeaters. So every 75-100 yards, you have another repeater. So for MinnMooney, he would only need 8 repeaters for the 1000 yards, assuming reception and transmission of each worked to its fullest extent.
 
The other option, I was told, was to set up a series of short range repeaters. So every 75-100 yards, you have another repeater. So for MinnMooney, he would only need 8 repeaters for the 1000 yards, assuming reception and transmission of each worked to its fullest extent.
Click to expand...

You would need multiple transmit and receive frequency pairs to operate repeaters this close to each other.
 
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