Covered Targets

[et45]

It seems every sanctioned match you shoot and a lot of local clubs require you to wear a cover garment,Yet hardly anywhere covers the target with an old shirt. I design all my scenario stages this way,Anyone else do this?,And would you like to see more of it?.

Edited September 19, 2006 by et45

[tightloop]

I have been to lots of shoots where the shoot target was wearing some form of clothing..just makes it harder and longer to score....

[freeidaho]

Yes, we do at our club and at our state match. I believe it changes the game quite a bit. The shooter can no longer see his/her holes in the target. Additionally, I find that many shooter's groups are not centered on the down zero area when the target is covered. In general, I think it causes people to work harder at getting good hits. I suspect that is why some shooters do not like it.

As for taking longer to score, there is a way around that. Put the t-shirt in front of the target, not on the target. We cut a t-shirt in half, and seperate the front from the back. This gives us two t-shirts if you will. Then we staple a half in front of the target, by stapling it to the lath sticks at the shoulders. That way we just lift the t-shrit and see the holes, and tape the holes. Very quick that way.

Hope this helps....

Ken Reed

[iainmcphersn]

Our local club uses clothespins to do secure 1/2 a shirt to the front of a target. One on each shoulder and one at the bottom of the target.

I like to think of them as Mardi Gras targets, lift up the shirt and show your hits.

[freeidaho]

I like to think of them as Mardi Gras targets, lift up the shirt and show your hits.

Now that is good, I'm stealing it....

Ken Reed

[et45]

The point I was trying to make was IDPA should encourage the use of covered targets as much as concealing your gear.You can usually pick up old t shirts at thrift stores by the bagfull and cut them in half.I like the clothes pin suggestion,I staple mine at the shoulders but the pins would be handier.If you have a bad match or just want to try a tight shot you could always shoot the cloths pins

[Mayonaise]

Old T-shirts work great. Cut them in half (ie down the sides) and use clothes pins to hold them to the target. That way you get twice the life out of each shirt since only half is used on each target. Hits through two layers will often distort the holes on the cardboard enough to affect scoring.

[Grump]

Anyone use the shirts for "shooter blind" stages where the no-shoot is designated by clothing instead of a silly X in an obvious white field?

Think el Presidente. I shot one once where "tactical sequence" was determined by which target had the shotgun and which had the knife. Re-arrange the setup while the shooter is faced uprange, and THEN load and make ready. Turn at the buzzer and let the fun begin!!!

[bruce282]

The problem with that is that the COF is not the same for each shooter. I may have to shoot it middle, left, right while you get to shoot it right, middle, left.

Bruce

[Grump]

The problem with that is that the COF is not the same for each shooter. I may have to shoot it middle, left, right while you get to shoot it right, middle, left.

Bruce

All targets are at the same distance, so, Big fat hairy deal. So what. One shooter turns to the left, the other turns to the right, so that's "not the same CoF" either.

I've never heard of an el Presidente requiring that all shooters turn one way or the other, or dictate that right-handed shooters turn counter-clockwise and left-handed go clockwise...

[bruce282]

All targets are at the same distance, so, Big fat hairy deal. So what. One shooter turns to the left, the other turns to the right, so that's "not the same CoF" either.

I've never heard of an el Presidente requiring that all shooters turn one way or the other, or dictate that right-handed shooters turn counter-clockwise and left-handed go clockwise...

Yup I sure can turn either way, the rules allow that. And in a non-basterized el Prez I can shoot the targets anyway I want. And I'll bet if you watched the top 500 shooters in the world shoot an el Prez, not one would shoot it starting with the center target. There's a reason for that, it's call shooting it the fastest way possible. And the further apart the targets are, the bigger the deal.

Bruce

Edited September 26, 2006 by bruce282

[Steve Koski]

The easiest way to do this is to staple the shoulders of a t-shirt to the sticks. The T-shirt doesn't need to have a back. If it does, slit down both sides. To score the target, just flip the t-shirt up on to the head and score away. If you have decent tapers, it's quite fast.

[Steve Koski]

The problem with that is that the COF is not the same for each shooter. I may have to shoot it middle, left, right while you get to shoot it right, middle, left.

Bruce

At some point you have to get beyond minor differences if you want to enjoy yourself and not get bent out of shape. I've heard shooters complain about strips of tape on the target sticks being distracting. Oh brother. The sun is in a different position in the sky too, and wind may have increased or decreased.

[Mojave]

I shot a match recently where EVERY target was covered by a t-shirt. I honestly like the idea as it adds some challenge and realism, however I do think it has it's flaws.

The advantage clearly goes to later shooters of a stage. The first shooters essentially "mark" the concealed targets with their groups (right or wrong). Later shooters need only aim for the largest concentration of holes in the shirts, while it's more guesswork for earlier shooters.

I would imagine that the ideal situation would be that the courses are identical for all shooters. Given that, pasters do a much better job. So unless t-shirts can be changed out every 10 or so shooters, I think pasters win the fairness factor.

[solaritx]

Rightly noted, later shooters can get an advantage with bullet holes in the shirts that can be seen.

That is the reason that we use black t-shirts. It significantly cuts down on this problem. We also cut the shirts in half and use the c-pins on the shoulders.

Garry N

[Mojave]

Black shirts - great idea! I can see how that would be a marked improvement over white or gray shirts which plainly show the holes.

[dmshozer1]

We paint hands on the same color shirts in an array to make people actually look at what they are shooting at!!

[jmorris]

I have been to lots of shoots where the shoot target was wearing some form of clothing..just makes it harder and longer to score....

Also someone will miss a hit at the neck line or not tape it and the targets don't last as long. "perfect doubles" are no longer perfect so shooters get credit for hits they didn't get.

Black shirts - great idea! I can see how that would be a marked improvement over white or gray shirts which plainly show the holes.

At that point why not just paint the target black and use black tape?

[kaiserb]

We have used t shirts in the past, but if you want to throw a real loop into a match put a hat on the target. Especially if the hat covers the head area and part of the neck. We had a stage with hats on targets requiring a Mozambique, there were several that shot the head two or three times to make sure they had a hit.

[Strick]

Also someone will miss a hit at the neck line or not tape it and the targets don't last as long. "perfect doubles" are no longer perfect so shooters get credit for hits they didn't get.

At that point why not just paint the target black and use black tape?

Not taping is not a function of the shirts just a function of people...........well not taping.

Painting a target black would indicate hard cover.

Edited April 16, 2010 by Strick