Dumb Newbie Question

[Jimmilk]

I am an avid deer hunter and intermediate level reloader who has never shot silhouettes. My son made me a 10" diameter x 3/8" thick steel gong to to practice on for Christmas, hung with chain from pipe. I set it out at 50 yards to try it out with a .308 Win. using Winchester Supreme ammunition with 165 grain ballistic tip bullets. It punched three perfect holes in the plate! I couldn't imagine it would go through. I thought it would barely dent it, if at all.

Obviously I need to use better steel. Where can I go to get specs on what plate to use for a gong that can be shot at from 50 to 200 yards with rifles up to 30-06 energies? Do I need different plates for different ranges?

[yankee]

Sounds like you have some mice mild steel. The holes probably looked they were drilled. The steel we use for silhouette is or was T-1 or in other words armor plate. 1/2 inch thick is a good start for 200 yards or meters. Our targets start at 200 meters. Even at that some hunting bullets will dimple the targets and there is a rule about using bullets that damage targets. Most shooters use match type bullets that do not damage targets. Also they are usually more accurate

[Jim Beckley]

This is just my two cents, I am not steel genius of any sort, but a couple of years back when I had some animals made for our club, I was told to buy either AR-500 or 500 Brinnel (sp), that anything less would be to soft, another thing you might want to think about with steel that hard you might want to do your shooting at 150 at a minimum.

[Another Dang 9]

This is just my two cents, I am not steel genius of any sort, but a couple of years back when I had some animals made for our club, I was told to buy either AR-500 or 500 Brinnel (sp), that anything less would be to soft, another thing you might want to think about with steel that hard you might want to do your shooting at 150 at a minimum.

I would agree with this statement as well. splash back from targets can be very dangerous. thats why NRA sets the targets at the distance that they are set at. safty is #1. AR-500 is hard to find the military is getting most of it right now for good reason. there is a guy who sells them in Texas but just for a set of CPTR one each animal is $750 + shipping. if mild steel is all you have use it. Start going to the local scrap yard and find what ever you can lay your hands on. depending on the scrap dealer you may luck out and get it real cheap.

[Jerry G]

T-1 works well. I use 1/2 inch steel on anything closer than 300 meters and 3/8 on all the others. We have about 10 targets set out at our range. None of them have any dents in them yet.

I drive in 2 steel posts and weld a small channel to 2 short pieces of pipe to slipover the posts. I use chains to hang the target from.

[Jimmilk]

Thanks. I've got my hands on some 1/2" AR400 that I will try out. The first plate was just mild steel. I have open field out to about 250 yards, so if at 50-100 yards I still damage the plate I will stay out at longer distances. I'd like to end up with a set up that the folks around the farm can come, sight in their deer rifles, and have some fun shooting at something other than paper. I can load my own stuff down or, as one reply said, use match bullets, but most folks will be using the same ammo they will want to hunt with. This is in upstate New York, so there are not allot of hunters thinking about 500 yard shots.

By the way, I think a plate with holes like I made should be part of every hunter's safety class. When bringing in a new hunter we have always had them shoot a 5 gallon can full of water to show them what a rifle can do. The explosion always leaves an impression. Showing them a 3/8" plate would be even more impactful. I've been hunting for 40 years and I still can't get over it