Metal Targets-Good or Bad

[mike cardinal]

I haven't decided whether I like our new range yet. We have a new 780 yrd range with all metal targets past the 100 yrd mark. At first I was psyched about it. Thought it was the greatest thing ever. The gongs very. square, round, grizzly, duck, truck, rectangle and even a FULL sized moose at the 780 mark. Most are between 18 inches and 30 inches.
I loved the fact that you could hear the bullet impact. This is awsome. Instantly rewarding. Down side is that it gives you between 18 inches and a full sized moose of wiggle room. I mean - you can miss by many inches and still ring the gong.
To solve this I bought a can of paint yesterday. Great idea right? Wrong. Too many shooters at the range shooting gong after gong means I have to tell everyone that I AM SHOOTING the 300. LEAVE IT ALONE.  Yeah, don't think that will go over well.
At least the 100 is still an old fashioned wood wall that we can post our individual target on and claim ownership to.
I think the fact that it is mid January in northern Canada and above freezing brought more people out than usual. The perfect range would include gongs and target boards at all ranges. What's your opinion?

[badsection]

If I shoot at targets over 200yds. , I WILL need a way better spotting scope! My ears work better than my old eyes. I do believe I get too focused on target accuracy than is really needed for most hunting situations.

[mike cardinal]

I do believe I get too focused on target accuracy than is really needed for most hunting situations.

This is very true for me but since I took up shooting at the range I have expanded my shooting goals past putting meat on the table. I love shooting for the love of shooting. My goal being to ever increase my accuracy and improve my ability. Even before buying my first magnum I had a need for tight grouping. Shooting moose with a 25-06 required a very good control over my shots. Now I own several guns and spend a lot of time shooting, testing, and self analysing. It's become a hobby. A very very expensive hobby.

[badsection]

I spend most of my shooting at paper targets, too!  I`ve gotten rid of rifles that didn't "measure " up.  The  targets build my confidence in a gun and the loads. I was a hunter long before I got into target shooting. I have a rifle specifically for targets, now!  I would just like to hear hits as well as see them.   

[Chip]

The range I shoot at has both a place for paper and some gongs at 100 200 and 300 Pretty sure they all 3 to 4 inches.  Once a month in the summer we shoot steel with both rimfire and centerfire.  The rimfire at 50 100 and 150.  The center at 100 200 and 300.
Everything is small enough to keep it interesting five targets at each distance.   My kids shoot the course too it's a lot of fun.  Most of my target fun is with a 223 or my old 222 Rem Mag.  I like being able to put up paper and make sure that the load that shot good at 100 is still holding up at 300.  Fun to smack the steel too but I wouldn't want to give up the ability to slap up a paper target in exchange for dinging the gongs.   

[ccc23454]

I love gongs past 200, cool watching target rock then hear gong a split second later.  I also think its easy to learn what your rifle is doing by looking at the impact marks.  the more times you paint it the better it works, yellow works best for my eyes, with a black dot. I shot solo/1other usually so I don't have competition like you speak but you can pick up ar500 steel on ebay pretty cheap for as long as it will last. maybe they will let you hang a personal target hell write your name across it...lol  remember we enjoy shooting don't let the fun get taken away by the little details. do something different if everyone is banging away, shot the moose in the antlers or forehead...

chris

[buffybr]

I use paper for load development, sighting in, and checking accuracy at distances.

Steel is fun to shoot.

Our range has 10 bays that are divided by dirt mounds.  8 of the bays are 50 to 100 yards deep, each with 4'x8' target boards at their terminal distance, and some with 25 and 50 yards.  The main range has 4'x8' target boards at 100, 200, 300, and 430 yards.  We also keep steel gongs next to each of the target boards.

I am primarily a shotgun shooter, however before I go to the Skeet range every week, I stop at one of the pistol bays then put up one or two of my own 6" or 9" steel gongs at 25 yards and shoot at least 2 cylinders of .38 specials and 2 or 3 magazines of .45 acp at the steel.

Then I go to the main range with my .300 Weatherby and shoot at least 5 shots, offhand with my cast bullet loads at the 100 yard gong, then I shoot 4 full power shots, prone at the 430 yard gong. I love to hear the BOOM, pause, then ring of the 430 yard gong shot with my .300 Bee.