Steel Targets

[SteveS]

I'm shooting both .32 mag and .357 mag and I'm looking to get some 4" and 6" round, steel targets. My questions are ... is there a certain type of steel required and how thick should the steel be?

Thanks for any help offered.

[Artful]

AR (Abrasion Resistant) steels - you can get lesser quality with the calibers your using but take it from me someone sometime will shoot yours with something you were not planning for (223 usually ) so you are better off just buying AR500 to start with as they will last even with mistakes. 3/8" thick should be ok for most applications - you want the target to be able to move (swing or fall over) to dissipate some of the energy of the impact. Expect the support (stand) to be hit so I suggest something that won't make you cry when it gets a holed. 2x2 in a sawhorse fashion is one solution. You can get carried away - I know I have.



a link to one I noticed - but shipping may kill ya.
https://www.wideners.com/itemview.cfm?dir=1020|1023
check with local steel shops see what they got in the way of scrap material.

[BruceB]

AMEN to Artful's post.

A friend cut me a full-size IPSC silhouette from 3/8" AR500 plate.

It withstands jacketed full-power .223 and .308 (7.62 NATO) from 100 yards with no ill effect at all.... the bullets only manage to remove the paint from the impact areas.

AR500 will certainly cost more, but as mentioned above, you may as well have GOOD steel, or else you will be buying it again....

[TCFAN]

Artful is correct. AR500 steel is the way to go.3/8 inch is fine if you don't get to close with a 223.For target holders I like shepherd hooks.This is a target from Shootsteel.com on a cheap wal mart shepherd hook..

[Phat Man Mike]

http://doubledsteel.com/

Not sure if this will help. I talked with the owner last weekend at the O.F.A.S.T.S. event. From what he had at the show seamed to be made to take a hit and stand up.

[gray wolf]

I use 3/8 AR500 for the 44 and 357 mag, 158 grain WW bullets at 950 still move the plate enough to dissipate energy, if they swing a little that helps also, if the plate is tilted to the rear that's another bit of help.
The bullets actually fragment before the plate even moves. Properly done the frag should leave the Steel in about a 20* circular pattern.

The 44 with 265 grain bullets at 1300 is no problem at 25 and a cake walk at 100
The bad thing to do is use cheep mild steel that will dimple and crater, The uneven steel surface is what sends the lead back, or at least creates the potential for it.

[bobby65]

Where can you get the AR500 steel

[kungfustyle]

I ordered one from e-bay for about $26, and love the thing. Artful is correct, get something that will withstand everything. My Ar500 8" target has been shot from everything from cast boolits from 200 yards to 30 06 at 100. It smiles and bounces right back. +1 on the saw horse. Mount the thing with a bolt to a chain to save on the replacements. Build like your going to replace everything with ease, because you will.

[kens]

there is a Ebay store, name was GaSteel.
I got several from them. Best price.
And yes, go with the AR500 type steel, it will last about forever.

[SteveS]

OK, AR500 it will be. Thanks.

[RED333]

Yep, AR 500 is the way to go, we had a piece given to us, it is 1/2 inch thick.
Hanging from chain and a saw horse, .308, 7mm rem mag, 44 mag just knocks off the paint.
With our 44 we can get the timing right and make it swing!

[Screwbolts]

Ar500 is the best way to go, I have a 10" 1/2 plate hanging at 100 or 150 depending on what bench I use and in the last 2 years has been hit well over 15,000 times with everything from 22 hornet to 300 win mag. both boolitz and bullets. I also have 6" 3/8 plates at 200 yards.

I have replace the bolts and chains several times. I find that a good lock nut is needed on the bolts. Even making compression nuts by running them 1/3 the way on the bolts and then hitting them with a 2 pound hammer on an anvil before running them up tight will not keep the nuts on the fastening bolts.

Keep your touch up paint cans shielded from spatter, if you leave the cans by the targets for quick re touch of paint.

Ken

[gray wolf]

http://www.shootsteel.com/1-2-ar500-steel-targets/

You may want to check these folks out, I use the 6X8 rectangle and am very happy.

[RonT]

Here's a design that I borrowed from safety gates where I worked. Reactive and return to center via gravity. IIRC the center stem is an axel from a S-10 welded to a econo spare tire rim, the swing tube is a bias cut (45*) slip fit tube over that.
Cheers,
R

[Artful]

Nicely done RonT - best use of a space saver spare ever!

[fecmech]

If a fellow is just shooting up to and including magnum pistol all you really need is 1/4" AR500 targets. The 1/4" ar500 will handle anything I shoot up to 1600 fps with only paint removal, no dents at all. I have some that I take to my club range and the lighter weight makes it easier to take to the 100 or 200 yd target area. I hang them with chain off a piece of rebar suspended between two 5' 1/2" pipes pounded into the ground. I can set up and tear down in 5 minutes at the range.

Ps. this fellow will cut anything you want in any thickness and ships flat rate. I have no connection to him other than as a customer.
http://www.qualitytargets.com/servle...s/1/Categories

[Artful]

Must be nice to be able to pound stuff into the ground and have it support stuff - out her in the Desert you go down 1-4 inches and it's granite

[Petrol & Powder]

I can't improve upon Artful's comments but I will say that you should consider true costs. I know a guy that made dozens of steel targets, maybe hundreds and asked him about the process. He works with steel all the time and had plasma cutters, welders, etc. He warned me to get a grasp of the total cost before choosing fabrication over purchasing a complete target. Even though the shipping costs are high due to the weight of the finished targets, the break-even point is higher than you may think. I ended up buying & shipping a very high quality dueling tree that was made of AR500 steel that was less than I could have one made locally. When you start dealing with large plate racks and high numbers of targets, local fabrication wins - but run the numbers before you start buying steel.

[canyon-ghost]

Shooting hunter's pistol, it's better to use 1/2" up close. You can get away with 1/4" at 100 yards as long as you never hit them with a rifle round. That's all in #3 mild steel. The AR metal is the best for this. 3/8 would be just great.

[BruceB]

Must be nice to be able to pound stuff into the ground and have it support stuff - out her in the Desert you go down 1-4 inches and it's granite

Your desert is a little different from northern Nevada's desert.

At the annual Nevada Cast Bullet Shoot, it's routine to drive rebar posts into the ground for target supports.

For paper targets, just drive a pair of posts a suitable distance apart, then fold a big piece of cardboard (furniture-store trash) over the tops of the posts and tape it in place.... VOILA'! Backing and support for one's paper targets.... and windproof, which is a great boon in our "Nevada zephyrs". (It's not really "windy" until the bumper stickers start peeling off the trucks).

For steel targets, slip a plastic plumbing "tee" onto each post, and either add a third piece of rebar THROUGH the tees, or use chain to support the steel target, also through the tees.

Fast, simple, and CHEAP.