Question about steel targets

yes, you could shoot them with a pistol. that would be no problem. i have thought about those exact ones for a while, on and off. but i do not think they would hold up to my 300 win mag, or 45/70. if i downloaded a bunch, and shot only lead bullets through them, it would probably be ok. but i dont want to do that. so i am just cursed, for now, to shoot paper. or clay "birds". i just bought a box of those. i am going to make a holder for them and shoot those. at least i will get immediate feedback without a spotting scope.now, i just have to find a place to shoot 300 yards with a backstop (for the 300 mag).

Safety

Use of any metal target can lead to a ricochet. Make sure there's nothing
to the sides which can be harmed --even as far back as to the sides along
where you're standing. A ricochet that hit me years ago was angled back
and very sharply out from some guy shooting 45 fmj while I was at least 50
yds further down on the rifle line. It was a direct line of sight hit from the
plate itself which he didn't even have as far out as 25 yds. Another one
then hit the metal roof that covered the shooting line above me.

Despite being told what happened, the guy shrugged his shoulders and
continued shooting. I left rather than one of us get injured and at that point
I would not have been the one most severely injured at the end of the day.

I saw someone else shoot steel targets with handgun and one bounced
straight back from from 25 yds and bonked him in the middle of the forehead.
Unfortunately, it wasn't the same guy as above.

They're fun, but safety is still a big consideration with steel targets.

Generally speaking, if the steel is rated for rifle, it will be fine to shoot with handguns.

Make sure that you shoot your rifle from a long, safe distance. I think 100 yards is good, but you can shoot closer if you angle the steel downward so that all the impacts are deflected into the ground.

If you've got an industry near you that does heavy steel fabrication, you might be able to pick up whatever scrap you like for the going scrap rate per pound. Drill it for chain hangers, paint it however you like.

The scrap metal probably won't be hard enough for rifle. It might not even be hard enough for pistol, so be careful and ask lots of questions when buying the scrap steel.

For shooting with a rifle, you want targets that are made of 500 brinnell steel. This is basically armor plate, and will stand up to being shot by rifles and pistols, though shooting them with steel core will damage them considerably.

Even with the armor plate targets, I've been told that if you intend to shoot them with a rifle that it should be at distances of 175 yards or more to minimize the amount of wear on the target face.

MGM Targets has a pretty good FAQ about steel targets. I can't speak to the ones that are linked to on Gunbroker, but I've had MGM's stuff recommended to me by match directors and shot at plenty of their products at various matches. For Christmas I received my first MGM Auto Popper (thanks Mom and Dad!) Really looking forward to taking it out and putting some rounds on it.