PistolPete Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Well last night I was shooting with some buddies. I forgot my holster so I was feeling a bit left out. LOL Between shooting the stage we set up I decided to shoot the plate rack the next range over. I'm over there and on the 3rd plate WHAM... I got hit in the face and under my arm. I thought someone came up behind me and hit me. I looked around and noone was there. I put the gun down and first felt my face. There was a little blood but nothing too serious. I felt under my armpit and that was bleeding as well. I went over to the other range to ask how bad I was cut. One person said the one under my armpit was pretty bad. I came home checked it out and found a 15.3 grain piece of shrapnal stuck in my shirt. I've been hit a million time before but NEVER like this. Well anyways here are the pics... Small cut on my face: My armpit is where I got it the worst. Notice the bruising around the cut. That shows the amount of impact I got hit with: I was standing about 30 feet away from the rack shooting a 180 grain JHP at a 168 PF which is my standard IPSC load. The good news is that plate went down so I got the hit... LOL Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlin Orr Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 So did you clear the rack? What was your time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tightloop Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Too close.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musky Hunter Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 OUCH...this is the reason eyes are a must! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flatland Shooter Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 (edited) "I've been hit a million time before but NEVER like this. " Were the other 999,999 hits at this same plate rack? Sounds like a problem just waiting to do some serious harm. Properly set plates at 10 yards should not be spraying the shooter (or more importantly the RO). I've shot many thousands of rounds at many different plate racks and have never been hit by shrapnel. Maybe I'm just lucky? Edited June 15, 2006 by Flatland Shooter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyreb Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Was the plate damaged...... Pock marked or anything? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PistolPete Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 The last few times shooting this plate rack I've gotten hit by TINY pieces. Seems the plate rack needs to be fixed. The pins that hold the plates on are getting worn out and I believe the plate is starting to fall but not fast enough causing the ricochet to fly back towards the shooter. I'm guessing the angle at which the plate is at is causing th is as well? Thinking back at when this happened I was actually further than 30 feet away from the rack. There is a table at the left which is set at 30 feet and I was actually shooting about 10 feet behind that. When I got hit I had to walk forward to unload the gun and put it on the table. Luckily I wasn't closer or it would have been worse. It's scary when it happens though because after all we are playing with guns and getting hit with bullets is never a good thing. I may avoid this platerack for a while though... Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flatland Shooter Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Avoid this plate rack or maybe start another new division of USPSA. This one allows any gun but the targets get to shoot back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ima45dv8 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 (edited) Since the plate went down, my gripe doesn't *exactly* fit this situation, but.... My main complaint with most plateracks I've seen is the flat plate across the front being perpendicular to the ground. A low hit into that plate will turn the rounds around and send them back uprange more often than not. I've seen a very few that have the plate welding on at a 45 degree angle (top edge toward the shooter) and these seem to do a good job of deflecting the rounds down instead of back to the shooter and RO. Retrofitting one with such an angled plate looks to be pretty easy. Some steel and some welding rod and they should be good to go. I wish more places would take the cure. Edited June 15, 2006 by ima45dv8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spook Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 OUCH! I feel your pain. I got a 150 grain "leftover" from a 180 grain .40 right in the sternum once. It hurts and makes you a bit jumpy for a while. Definately check out the plate rack! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shred Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 I just got done pulling a 1/8" x 1/16" piece of copper & lead out of my cheek from where it's been for more than a month. 115 FMJ at 1100 on a plate rack with a perpendicular foot.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PistolPete Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 I just got done pulling a 1/8" x 1/16" piece of copper & lead out of my cheek from where it's been for more than a month. 115 FMJ at 1100 on a plate rack with a perpendicular foot.. Why did you leave it in your cheek for over a month? Was it for cosmetic reasons? LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shred Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Took that long to work its way out.. the original cut bled a lot and I thought it was just a cut until I noticed it wasn't healing fast, so I poked at it with some tweezers and fished a chunk of lead out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tightloop Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Have had to go to the doc's to get some OO dug out of my thigh....popper at 7yds.....Not fun... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin J Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 I had that happen last year during a pratice session. Here's the funny part though... there were some hornet's hanging around the range and one decided to sting me. So my brain was concentrating on the Hornet sting when I got hit by a lead fragment that bounced off the bottom of a plate rack. I didn'even realize I was bleeding until my wife noticed my leg covered in blood while we were watching TV later that night! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmd Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Pete, Bummer... I did't get a good look at your damage last night - I was too busy reloading. Hope you heal quickly. Which plate rack were you shooting at (left or right)? One of the rack plates has a ton of pock marks and the other rack has new plates that were replaced a couple weeks ago. Sounds like it's time to change the other plates or check to be sure the plates were made correctly. Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocket35 Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Ouch! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Round_Gun_Shooter Posted June 15, 2006 Share Posted June 15, 2006 Perfect reason for Frang bullets on steel. A shooter in NH lost partial use of his bicep due to jacketed bullet coming back off of steel in a smoke and hope stage. You are a lucky guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PistolPete Posted June 15, 2006 Author Share Posted June 15, 2006 Paul, It was the rack on the right hand side as you are facing the racks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chad allred Posted June 18, 2006 Share Posted June 18, 2006 Ouch! I got one right in the forehead about 10 years ago at an indoor range in Northridge shooting a falling plate match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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