Pitted AR500 Steel Targets

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glennv

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Quick question. I set up five AR500 steel targets on my friends range and someone must have shot them with a rifle closer than the recommended 100 yards. Each target now has 5 or so pits, not even close to punching through but none then less pitted. The steel is 5/8ths.

Flip them over or trash them?
 
I feel your pain. I set up 3 AR-500 targets for a pistol shoot at our private range and while I was standing there a rifle shooter put 3 shots into one of them without asking permission! :fire:

Luckily that it was an M-1 Carbine, but the fmj bullets did dimple the target. The guy apologized and offered to pay for the plate, but I figured in time it was going to get some dimples anyway… no REAL harm, so no real foul.

So, just how deep are the pits/craters? A photo would be helpful.
 
Yeah I guess it was foolish without a pic. Let me shoot some tomorrow. I don't think it was deliberate since it looks like they ran down the line of targets and probably stopped after they saw the damage.
 
You need to get the bowl shape out of them to avoid a dangerous ricochet. Never shoot dimpled steel if there's any chance a round could spin around and come back.

Got a sideshaft grinder? Could probably flatten it out enough to make it safe again.
 
As said in post #4. The pock marks can send debries back towards the firing line. I never heard of it being a problem if steel is 50 yards or more from the firing line. May be possible to start a fire shooting steel.
 
Slight skew on the question. What about thick mild steel. It is going to crater badly but each new impact should create a new crater and not follow an existing contour to aim debris back at the firing line.

edit : 200yd+
 
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As the others said, they could be an issue at handgun distances with splash and bounce back. I'd either flip them, or make them rifle targets.

A friend of mine once shot one of my plates too close and dimpled it, it's now a static 300 meter target.

I buy only AR500 targets for versatility, I have about 30 pieces of steel for my home range. I have 1 "soft" target and that's a knockdown for handgun/shotgun, and I'd wished I'd bought the AR500 version. Even the stuff I plan on only shooting at with handguns, sooner or later gets popped by a rifle.

Chuck
 
Slight skew on the question. What about thick mild steel. It is going to crater badly but each new impact should create a new crater and not follow an existing contour to aim debris back at the firing line.

I've beat the living heck out of 1"+ thick mild steel targets in the past. Don't shoot them close to you, and try to angle them facing down at about 10-15 degrees. Don't shoot any slow rounds at it.

When rifle rounds hit steel at usual rifle round velocity they pretty well detonate in to a fine powder.

Pistol rounds and slower / bigger rifle projectiles don't, they can and will remain intact after striking the surface. If they hit a "bowl" at worst, they'll spin around and come back towards you, or at best, ricochet off at high velocity in any given direction. (That's also not good as you have rounds leaving the ballpark at potentially lethal velocity)

So, to answer your question need more info.

If you're shooting 223 or 308 at 100+ yards, no biggie. The rounds will generally vaporize on contact, mild steel or no mild steel, craters or no craters.

You DO still need to make sure your steel is well backstopped as rifle rounds glancing off the edges can remain intact and deflect out of the ballpark at potentially lethal velocity. The size of berm and angle from target to top of berm matters, as does coverage to the sides. (Narrow, or short backstops are not good for shooting steel)
 
Ok here is a picture of the worst one. I flipped them around and put up a sign (which will probably get shot to hell) warning not to shoot rifle or magnums. I know at 100+ rifle is ok but I'd rather just avoid the possibility of any more damage.

If it happens again what will I need to grind them flat since it's hard steel?

Pit_zpsyru8ar0d.jpg
 
My question was related to rifle & 200yd+. Before I got some AR500 plates I was using free 1" mild steel, eventually got tired of carrying the extra weight. Thank you for the detailed response, that was about my take on it as well.
 
Hell after seeing the pics, I wouldn't worry about those little dimples. You need a bowl shape to get rounds to kick back at you.

As far as grinding it flat, sideshaft grinder and disks. You'll make lots of sparks and wear out the disk fast but it should flatten.

I don't see a need to do any repair at all. What little edge there is will flatten out on subsequent strikes on it's own.
 
Glenn,

IMHO, it depends on your use. I shoot my steel anywhere from 3 yards (well under manufacturer recommended distance) to 700+.

For rifle practice and handguns at distance I wouldn't worry about it, for the close up stuff I want steel that's perfectly smooth. Once/IF my plates get dimpled/cratered, they're moved back to a static stand and used for rifle practice only.

This is one of my AR500 plates that I've used for about 8 years and it's still in great condition:

WP_20160215_002_zpsuuinxd0h.jpg


It sits 200 meters from my bench. Here's my PIG in "AR500" it was cratered/dimpled at 200 meters, I suspect the steel isn't quite AR500 or it had a couple softy spots. There are small dimples on it. It's strictly a rifle target, but often gets shot by handguns at about 25 yards or so (it sits on the back of my pistol range). So far zero issues:

DSC00950_zps5bf256bd.jpg


A big thing with steel besides hardness (and shooting with the right distance for caliber/velocity) is how you mount it. Generally a downward angle and the ability to move when hit makes your steel last longer.

So I mount my stuff on chains, with springs, or on target stands that allow them to move. Here's a spring set up:

DSC01006_zpsjblghkh9.jpg


Having shot on several ranges with imperfect steel targets and gotten hit by "shrapnel" I now keep my close in targets as smooth as possible, and mounted at a downward angle.

It seems to work.

Chuck
 
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