Favorite Targets and Distances

[MissPistol]

As I go to the range to try out some guns I'll also be trying out other things. Targets are one. The range has a variety, some pictures of ghouls, human outline (looks like their backs - that's a little creepy to me), and a few more basic target-y ones. I kind of like the basic ones because they have a nice bullseye, but what do you all like to use? does it matter what you are shooting at as long as you "know" what you are aiming at? or what? I am new to handguns, having only had two sessions to date.

[Jammer Six]

I use any piece of paper, and train at forty feet.

[allaroundhunter]

I like steel.... Plate racks and Texas Stars in particular, but any steel is preferable to paper. After that I like cardboard, like used in USPSA/IPSC and IDPA. To be honest, I have gotten fairly tired of just paper targets when shooting handguns, unless I am teaching a new shooter or just shooting some practice with a .22 lr.

[WeedWacker]

Right now I'm focusing on mastering the fundamentals, more bulls-eye shooting than dynamic since ammo is an issue. I use a regular 10-ring bullseye target at 15 yards and move out to 25. If I decide to do double or triple tap shooting I move the target in to about 7-9 yards and use a torso and aim for A hits below the head/neck but above the A in the A-zone. (Bottom top of the sternum)

[FM12]

Standard disposable paper plates. Stapel them to a backing put an aiming dot in the center. Aim shoot repeat. Replace as needed About a nickle each if that.

[ThatBeardedGuy]

I like steel when it's available, because it gives you audible feedback that you scored a hit and removes your need to figure out which of the several dozen holes you've put in your target are actually from your current course of fire.

When it's not, I prefer silhouettes. I've gotten a few of the zombie targets before just because they paint up when you shoot them, and they're legitimately a fun break from the norm.

[garryc]

For combat style shooting I use paper plates. I don't bother going outside the 12 yard mark for that because in 99% of the self defense shootings the action is well within that mark, and often at contact range.

Inside 12 feet I set one at a low position that represents belt buckle level and all the structure and major arteries there. Then one is at center chest level and a third representing the head. One drill is to roll from the holster and fire two rounds at the bottom plate from low point at 5 feet, then while backing away at an angle go to high point and fire two center plate followed by two to the head. I don't believe going to high point so close to the target is such a good idea as you risk a take away. One variation is starting at contact distance with a back hand fist strike to the top plate while drawing.

Ok, that being said, at longer ranges with the hunting revolvers and the semi auto combat guns it's a simple NRA 25 yard pistol target center.

[dayman]

For most of my center-fire pistol shooting I use steel silhouettes at 10 yards. A $1 can of spray paint covers hundreds of hits, and with electronic ear muffs I can hear my hits.
For .22 pistol I usually use paper targets that I make on the copier at work at 25 yards, but I recently bought a self-resetting target that's a lot of fun.
For rifles I pretty much always use paper targets at 50 or 100 yards. Rifle steels are more expensive, and I'm generally going for a much higher degree of precision than COM with a rifle.
I do occasionally buy exploding targets, but generally just when I have people over to shoot, or special occasions.

[kraigwy]

I like a variety of targets depending on what I'm shooting.

I like steel, Texas Star, dueling tree, etc. For 22 rifle I like the ISU Small Bore targets for precision shooting, for plinking I like ice cubes made with cool aide for color.

I like high power targets for my Center Fire rifles. Also like to chase that little orange forever shoot target or what ever they're called.

What I hate, is bottles and cans. I refuse to allow them on my range.

I like bowling pins, I drilled holes in the tops of the pins, put in an eye bolt and suspend them from an old swing set frame. Been cheating, I've been practicing for our up coming Bowling Pin Shoots.

A little hint on bowling pins, don't shoot them with a 204 Ruger, it doesn't move the pins that much but it takes a big chunk out of the back of the pins.

[Nanuk]

I practice with my handguns out to 100 yards. From 50 to 100 yards its just a steel gong these days. I use paper or cardboard for anything closer. For trying out a new gun or learning to shoot there is nothing wrong with plain targets. If you can make hits at distance it means you have all the fundamentals down.

A little hint on bowling pins, don't shoot them with a 204 Ruger, it doesn't move the pins that much but it takes a big chunk out of the back of the pins.

You should see a 50 Beowulf clear a pin.

[Blue Duck]

Depends on what gun I am shooting or how much trouble I want to go to. Sometimes it's just a tin can, other times I like to set up an IPSC of IDPA cardboard Man cutout.

If it's handguns for self defense I will practice anywhere from 3ft to 7 or 10yds.

Other types of shooting of course I will shoot at much longer ranges at times.

[Ben Dover]

My neighbor supplies my with FBI "Q" targets that he buys in bulk through the academy from which he retired. I generally buy 500 when he puts in an order for 1000. A very nice practical target. I've also used IPSC targets but they're a bit expensice.

I have not used round bullseye targets since I discontinued competitive shooting 30 years ago.

For long range rifle practice, I have several steel targets and frames that are good for rifles up to the .300 magnums.

Unfortuneatly, these are very expensive. But they're wonderful for 200 to 600++ yard shooting.


Balloons on a string are great fun on a windy day. (as long as you have some kind of compressor to inflate them:D!)

But one of my favorites is walking along mountain game trails and engaging "attacking pine cones" with an AR-15.:)

[campbed]

Steel plates (plate rack or dueling tree) for both 22LR and 9mm. Only use paper if the shotgun boys have the plate area closed.

[BuckRub]

steel and paper targets. I got tons of both on my range and like to hit a variety

[csmsss]

My favorite is bowling pins. Problem is all the ranges local to me frown on that and I don't own property where I can set up my own range.

[MissPistol]

I never would have thought of these things. Ben Dover obviously has a sense of humor included in his training ritual. Ben, is your wife named Eileen?

[ClydeFrog]

When selecting paper targets, Id buy a few of the FBI type with the "bowling pin" shape and/or a few of the regular NRA match type targets.
Newer targets have special paper that burst allowing you to clearly see that you hit the target.
A few human photo type targets are good too. I think Speedwell is the firm that markets those. Get the bad guy in a car & the bad guy with a female hostage if you can. Those are difficult situations and will condition you to draw/fire or use your skill training even though as a license holder/armed citizen you'd rarely be in a event the same way as a sworn LE officer.
The Speedwells used to be in b/w but there are new color formats.
Learn to shoot well under duress & be able to safely fire from CQB(close up or close quarters) up to 30' or so. If you can hit a standard 3"x5" card at 30 feet, you'll be doing good with a carry sidearm.
Learn how to fire safely with your other hand(called your weak hand) & learn reloading spare rounds(speed strips or pistol magazines). You may need these skills in a real critical incident.

You may want to get a red ASP gun, a blue gun or a safety orange training model gun from Blackhawk; www.blackhawk.com to practice these methods.

ClydeFrog

[DonR]

Link to free targets you print in your computer.

http://www.targetz.com/


Lot of good and interesting answers here.

For a shooter with only a couple of range trips, I would recommend you shoot at a simple paper target in a range at about eight or ten feet for a few trips.

When you can shoot consistently at that distance move target back slightly as more skill is gained. Recommend you have a skilled person help you out. good luck.

If you can learn with a .22 pistol, that is nice for new shooters. That is how my wife did, then ultimately after skill levels improved she chose a Smith and Wesson 642 with .38 special to carry, because she has trouble racking slides and revolvers are very simple. If you are hard core, you can go with more powerful pistols of course... Good luck. PS A training class like needed for CCCW permits would be advisable. The NRA classes are best.

[Ben Dover]

I never would have thought of these things. Ben Dover obviously has a sense of humor included in his training ritual. Ben, is your wife named Eileen?

No, her name is Rebekah!:)

[serf 'rett]

Mostly just print my own pistol targets on 8.5x11 cardstock. Has a 1" smiley face in center and blank target information box at bottom. A packet of cardstock paper is much less costly than “store bought” targets. Standard pistol distance for me is from 15 to 25 yards, but some occasional 10 yard targets.

[Ben Dover]

Another really "fun" pistol target that I used in years past was ice cubes. You know imediately if a hit was scored. And thew price in unbeatable!

[BuckRub]

In my range container I have a bag of water balloons. At the dollar store they are like one dollar for like 50 of them. Blow them up and hang next to targets. Tie them on a piece of one foot piece of thread and let hang. The breeze if there is one will move targets. Eggs are also fun, a dollar at dollar general for a dozen. I also like to get a BG target and hang another next to it like a hostage. Try shooting BG without touching hostage, really fun when you can only see about 4-5 inces of BG.

[myusername]

I have 3 steel plates for distance. A bit leary using them inside about 75 feet. I just lean them up don't have a hanger yet. Also we shoot whatever trash the jerks who shoot in our area leave on the public lands. And we take it with us when we leave. Those irresponsible people will ruin it for everyone.

Oh and I've got 3 broken POS "smart phones" - watch for my upcoming video - "iphone vs 44mag," trying to decide if we should give them blindfolds or not. I'd do "iphone vs 20 lbs of tannerite, but they have already cost me a grand down the drain.

[MissPistol]

..... out of these superb target ideas! I guarantee the range will NOT let me use most of them. But..... MUST.......TRY.......SOMEHOW. :)

[Tactical Jackalope]

Limited in Miami gun ranges. Just paper and cardboard.

When I branch out...old stereos, steel, wood, etc. Aren't far from shooting.


I'd love to shoot me some steel on the regular. Only time I can is every Thursday.


I envy all of you people with land and freedom to shoot whenever and whatever you want. Envy.

[Spats McGee]

Unless I'm hunting, which isn't nearly often enough, I don't get much opportunity to shoot anything but paper targets. With that said, I've always enjoyed chasing a target across a pasture with a .22LR.

[Buzzcook]

For the indoor range I print out 25yd pistol targets and shoot them at 25yds.

Plinking It's whatever is out there.

For the rifle range it's various sizes of cardboard.

[breakingcontact]

My favorite target for training? Realistic human size torso at realistic self defense distances.

For fun, clay pigeons with the pistol (on the ground).

[Bluestarlizzard]

Mobile targets, if the range allows, are fun.

Tennis balls, golf balls, hell, dad and I played "russian soccer" (soccer ball and a Siaga 12 gauge) a couple weeks ago.

Make 'em bounce. :D

[Old Grump]

For fun plastic bottles from gallon milk jugs to small pill bottles filled with water or sand. Shotgun and handgun mostly. For serious 50' small bore targets at 100 and 200 yards. With long guns I expect all black and with handguns I count anything within 4" a hit.

[mhmiller62]

I usually use paper plates with a dot sticker in the center or if I'm shooting my Ruger 22/45 I'll use playing cards. You can get two decks of playing cards at the dollar store for a buck. For longer range rifle shooting I'll use what ever the range sells.

[Dwight55]

I like to shoot a 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 foot course that shoots up 50 rounds.

You fire 10 shots at a specified circle of a certain diameter (I'm still using 6 inches).

You score 1 point for each hit at 5 ft, 2 points for each hit at 10 ft, 3 points for each hit at 15 ft, 4 points for each hit at 20 ft, . . . and 5 points for each hit at 25 ft.

You cannot move to the next stage until you have shot a full string of 10 with no misses. For example: first string, 10 shots, 10 hits = 10 points / second string 10 shots, 8 hits = 16 points, and you have to shoot stage 2 over at 10 feet. Obviously in this scenario, you will not shoot stage 5, because you shot stage 2 twice.

I save this exercise for last, . . . and go inside with this score in my head, . . . comparing it to the one prior to.

It's fun.

May God bless,
Dwight

[MissPistol]

I love the Russian soccer and tennis ball ideas! Guaranteed the range wouldn't allow such a thing even if I was ready to try it! I'll have to seek out an appropriate place when the time comes.

I will give the cards a try when I think I can hit the things. Maybe a set at close range, like 10 yards?

But Dwight's "game" is a perfect exercise for personal bests that I can do at each range visit. Thanks for that one! Now the range will be more fun!

I also discovered a GSSF shoot just south of town that I'll check out this weekend. Maybe that'll be something I can learn to do when my 19 comes in.

[AZAK]

A couple of my favorites:

aspirin tablets

dandelion heads/the white puffy stage

Both are a "aim small miss small" type of target; not much doubt if you hit an aspirin tablet, and the dandelion head will only completely be gone with a direct hit to center otherwise you can see by the missing section where you hit. (Free target with feedback; however, depending on personal location can be very seasonal.)

At this point, for me, still too early for the dandies; the plants have not even started growing yet.

[MissPistol]

too tiny for me! Aspirins? geez!

[darkgael]

Targets....
Pretty simple for me....generally paper targets, bullseye type. Pretty much all of my pistol shooting is at paper targets at 25 and 50 yards.
Occasionally, I will plink at a clay pigeon at 100 yards.
Rifles.....paper bulls at 100 and 200 yards.
A couple of my hunting rifles, I will shoot off hand standing at 50 and 75.

[Bluestarlizzard]

A little bigger then asprin tablets, we used lollipops (the cheap flat round kind) for a goofy compitition at shooting camp. They shatter nicely. Plus, you can have candy while shooting.

I'm sure the sight of a fireing line full of 3P shooters popping away with lollipop sticks poking out of each mouth was hystarical.

[Evan Thomas]

:eek:
I'm sure the sight of a fireing line full of 3P shooters popping away with lollipop sticks poking out of each mouth was hystarical.
There must be some reason why that would be really dangerous, but I'm darned if I can think of one. :p

It is quite an image. :D

[Bluestarlizzard]

I'm sure some stodgy buzzkill would berate us for the potential lead consumption.

But, hey, we had to do something with the leftover lollipops. ;)

[SgtLumpy]

I'm sure the sight of a fireing line full of 3P shooters popping away with lollipop sticks poking out of each mouth was hystarical.

Who loves ya' baby.


I sometimes put just the 3/4" center dot target paster on the big, blank cardboard at the range. I can still see the dot at shooting distances, but the lack of the rest of the bullseye or other contrasting target area causes my "wobble zone" to get smaller. ie when the 8" rings are there, I wobble through 8". When the 1" dot is there, I wobble much smaller.


Another favorite is the leftover sticky borders from a shoot n see target. Once you use the target part of the thing, you're left with a plate sized opening in a square, adhesive backed frame. Peel that thing off and stick it on the cardboard. I like to set up several on the same cardboard and practice rapid fire moving from one to the other. Like shooting plates.


Another is "hostages". Stick two targets on the cardboard, one overlapping the other, as if a bad guy had a hostage in front of him. Obviously, the goal is to shoot the bad guys "crescent" part of the target, not the hostage. I kill a lot of paper hostage eyes and ears that way.


Sgt Lumpy

[Al Thompson]

3x5 cards combined with paper plates make excellent surrogates for the high chest and ocular cavity target areas.

For sheer plinking fun, charcoal briquets are fun. :)

Clay pigeons are excellent reactive targets, but .223/5.56 tends to drill through the center and make you think you've missed.

[The Great Mahoo]

I recently got some steel plates that I'm really enjoying.

When I go to the range (as opposed to plinking around the back yard some), I usually just take some old printer paper and make some mark on te back as a target. Been trying to get around to making a stamp or something to save me some sharpy time.

[Bluestarlizzard]

The sharpie mentioned above reminds me of another trick I do.

When I'm using paper and really monitering my shots (usually cardboard, especially pizza boxes) I will often mark my previous shots with a sharpie after every magazine. After awhile the target looks pretty goofy, but it helps me keep track.

[RBid]

At my gun club (indoor range): training silhouettes at 50 feet. We have to run the carriers all the way to the backstop, so 50 feet is the only distance.

At a local outdoor range: NRA 25yd targets from 5-10 yards. We try to stack rounds in the black in rapid fire. Good times.

Rifle: I like shooting bolt guns at small (equivalent to 2" at 100yds) targets. So far, I've only been able to shoot from 50yds and 100yds, due to range limitations.

[357 Python]

I usually use man size silhouette targets similar to the ones my agency uses for qualification. The distances are 1.5 yards, 3 yards, 7 yards, 15 yards and 25 yards. I usually do fairly well 279 average out of 300.

[SHE3PDOG]

Balloons on a string are great fun on a windy day. (as long as you have some kind of compressor to inflate them!)

But one of my favorites is walking along mountain game trails and engaging "attacking pine cones" with an AR-15.

That sounds like a lot of fun and a nice break from the norm. I usually shoot at silhouette targets from what I would consider normal self defense ranges. 7-10 yards.

[AL45]

Today I cut some 3 1/2 " yellow pine landscape timbers into 16" long pieces and nailed them together side by side. Basically I was shooting at a 10" by 16" target 7" thick. I shot at ranges from 25 yards to 75 yards. After a few shots, the wood starts flying off and reminds me of the old westerns. The .45 Colt 250 grain RNFP would travel through the first timber and about halfway through the second. I am pretty certain that my 300 grain sp jacketed load with H110 will travel through both.

[Dragline45]

Ever since I bought some steel plate targets a couple years ago I very rarely shoot at paper now unless sighting in a pistol or rifle, punching holes in paper loses it's appeal pretty fast. I built a wooden frame and screwed in i-hooks that I can hang different size steel plates from with some chain that I bring to the range and set up at various distances. When shooting paper out to 50 or 100 yards with iron sights it's almost impossible to know what you are hitting without using a spotter, with steel you actually know you are hitting the target. Another favorite of mine is bringing a big block of ice to the range in the winter and chipping away at it with a .22.