SmittyFL Posted November 30, 2004 Share Posted November 30, 2004 Anybody have any experience with steel targets for High Power rifles? I'm not overly familiar with steel but I know of "AR 400" or "T1". I'm looking to make a target that looks like a mini popper, is hinged in the middle, weighted at the bottom so when you hit it it will swing backwards then come back up from the weight. It's not for competition, it's for a hunt camp, just to set out and check zero and have fun with. So it won't be shot a bunch but will be shot with rounds up to 300 Wthby Mag at distances of 100-300 yards. Anybody know what kind of steel I need to use that will hold up. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GTOSHootr Posted November 30, 2004 Share Posted November 30, 2004 AR400 is the harder than T1. They have an AR500 that is used for rifles. At those distances and for that purpose you might be able to use something thicker but softer, cheaper, and more disposable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shred Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 The traditional Texas rifle-gong is made from a length of oil-well casing pipe and hung waaay out there. Seems to last pretty well. Any nearby well drillers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 Smitty, there are plate steels called Hardox 450 and 550 used to repair mining equipment. And they are harder than Chinese Arithmetic! I'd go with at least 1/2" thick. BTW, John Dunn's .300 Ultra drilled a hole straight through one of my 3/8" thick AR500 plates at 175 yards. Didn't even dent it. If you just want to salvage some very hard steel, find on old cutting edge from a dozer blade or back-hoe bucket at a used implement dealer. The edge will be about 4" wide and long enough for several pesky poppers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shred Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 There's this too.. The web page was last updated 5 years ago though. Editing: http://www.heflinsteel.com is where they get the plate. Editing again: Dang you people, making me go surf the web and find interesting sites like this one: http://www.closefocusresearch.com/html/bal..._standards.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmittyFL Posted December 1, 2004 Author Share Posted December 1, 2004 BTW, John Dunn's .300 Ultra drilled a hole straight through one of my 3/8" thick AR500 plates at 175 yards. Didn't even dent it. Wow, I wouldn't have expected that. Thanks for the replies, I have some AR 400 laying around, but I guess I'll have to do better than that. Don't know of any miners but I might be able to round something up. I think I'll contact those Beast guys and see if they are still in business. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warpspeed Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 One of the problems with hard steel is it doesn't weld very easily. Very prone to cracking unless the proper filler metal is used, the parts pre-heated and then stress relieved. Sometimes mechanical fastners work better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmittyFL Posted December 1, 2004 Author Share Posted December 1, 2004 Thanks Warp, I don't know sh!t about welding, but a few shooting buddies do. I'll be sure and let them know, if they don't already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDave Posted December 1, 2004 Share Posted December 1, 2004 Wasn't there a FS article where someone used a carbide dozer "tooth" hung by a chain for a rifle target? If it was big enough, that might work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BPiatt Posted December 4, 2004 Share Posted December 4, 2004 For rifle.. I use the disposable method. I took a walk along the railroad tracks and found some of the old plates they use between the track and the wooden tie. A piece of re-bar bent into a hook will hang the plate off the ground, or hang if from a chain, making it swing about when hit. They're very soft but I just turn them into swiss cheese, then replace them. cost $0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Posted December 4, 2004 Share Posted December 4, 2004 I saw a rig at the RM3G match on the long distance sidematch that would be real easy to make, cost just about nothing and require no welding or working with hardened steels. Get a cheap sawhorse with long legs, or bend a pair of V shaped rebar stands and tie a rebar crosspiece in with bailing wire to make a rebar sawhorse. Then take any square piece of any type of steel, any size you want and drill one hole in a corner of it and bolt it to a piece of tire tread that is about 3 inches wide and whatever length long that you want the steel to hang under the sawhorse. Then use some more bailing wire to hang it, or bolt a hook made from flat strap to the top and hang it on the crossbar. Make a couple of the steel and tire tread hangers and if one gets beat up or broke, just replace it. Make some different sizes and change them as you change distance. This is pretty much a throwaway rig except for the stand if you make it from scrap. The swinging targets like this at the RM3G LD sidematch were 4 to 12 inches in diameter and were from 200 on out to 500+ yards. You could always see the hit by the swinging even with the naked eye. They stood up to a lot of rounds of .308 and there were very few repair/replaces needed during the three days of the match. The guy who ran the sidematch made them and said they were the best and cheapest way he had found to shoot steel with rifles at distance without welding and dealing with hardened materials. Hope this helps. -- Regards, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cking Posted December 5, 2004 Share Posted December 5, 2004 Several companies make T520 steel mini poppers some are self resetting about $190.00 for them. T520 in 3/8 is good for 308 30-06, 7mm RemMag is not oK will slice right through them. Just go to google type in rifle targets and you'll find a few, MGM comes to mind. Do shoot any steel inside of 65 yards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Dunn Posted December 5, 2004 Share Posted December 5, 2004 In my experience the AR 500 plates suspended by a rubber strap or chain offer the most durable solution. My MGM pesky poppers show a little wear and tear from repeated .223, .308, and 6.5-284 hits at 200 yds. I've hammered the suspended plates with .300 RUM from 300 yds and back, and it barely scratches the paint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Posted December 5, 2004 Share Posted December 5, 2004 BTW, I asked the guy at RM3G (Dang I can’t remember his name, great guy, knew his rifle shootin’) if chain were as good as the tire tread strap and he said no, the tire strap was stiff enough to keep them pointed the same direction regardless of wind and the rubber would take a whole lot of hits before severing, unlike chain, or bar stock hangers. -- Regards, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted December 5, 2004 Share Posted December 5, 2004 The dozer teeth are fairly small. You'd better be good if you plan to hit them past 300 in anything but perfect conditions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slowsure Posted December 5, 2004 Share Posted December 5, 2004 Then take any square piece of any type of steel, any size you want and drill one hole in a corner of it and bolt it to a piece of tire tread that is about 3 inches wide and whatever length long that you want the steel to hang under the sawhorse. This sounds like an easy/cheap way to solve a complex & expensive problem. My question would be how do you cut the tire tread? Sawsall? Shear? My experiance with cutting tires is zero but i would give it a try if someone has some info. Thanx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmittyFL Posted December 6, 2004 Author Share Posted December 6, 2004 Thanks for all the replies, I'll try a few of them. A sawsall will cut tire. In fact it saws all things. Ha Ha Ha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slowsure Posted December 6, 2004 Share Posted December 6, 2004 Now I remember why I moved away from Florida Thanks, this is one idea I'll give a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M.E.Anglin Posted December 6, 2004 Share Posted December 6, 2004 AR500 is good up till about 2600 fps...but true AR500 is certified so alot of stuff out there is not right at AR500 specs (to expencive to certify all of it) but you also don't want a target that is to heavy, you want the target to react as fast as possible so the bullet doesn't have a lot of dwell time on the target. anytime you have a chain or strap holding a target for a match, you are asking for a delay in the match every time someone shoots it and the further out it is , the longer it will take to fix it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmfield Posted December 8, 2004 Share Posted December 8, 2004 FYI, the RM3G long range side match targets are AR500 (not just "any steel") and they are hung with straps made from conveyor belts. The "saw horses" are constructed from rebar with brackets at each end to ease disassembly. The conveyor belt can withstand hundreds of hits, but we've found that chain can often be broken with just one hit. The bolt holding the plate to the strap is the weak link, but it is easily and quickly replaced. The AR 500 seems to hold up pretty well as long as muzzle velocities are kept below 3,200 FPS and targets are set no closer than 200 yards. This is why the RM3G match has a 3,200 FPS muzzle velocity maximum for the LR side match. These targets are frequently used for a monthly "Hunter Rifle" match on the North side of the NRAWC where they have seen hundreds of hits from 300 Win Mags, 7 MM Mags, etc. Since it is a long range affair, the bullets are usually heavy (high BC) and the muzzle velocity max is not an issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Posted December 9, 2004 Share Posted December 9, 2004 FYI, the RM3G long range side match targets are AR500 (not just "any steel") I stand corrected on the steel and strap material Mike, but I still believe I am right about that setup being the bestest, cheapest rig I have ever seen, or shot at. -- Regards, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SmittyFL Posted December 9, 2004 Author Share Posted December 9, 2004 Cool, thanks guys. It will be next huntin' season before I get around to it, but I'll let you know how it works out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmfield Posted December 9, 2004 Share Posted December 9, 2004 George: I forgot to say that Dave Wheeler of Blue Steel Ranch deserves credit for the bulk of the design. He has been using a very similar system (less the fancy brackets) in his annual Steel Safari match down in Logan, NM for a number of years. mf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackdragon Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 you could try Robert Wright from RNR Racing. He makes a lot of targets for the 3 gun matches. I have some IPSC targets that I also shoot with my AR. They are pretty darn hard. Ivan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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