50bmg steel

[timelinex]

I have 3/4" ar500 that I've used for 300-600 yards successfully when toying with my 50bmg. It takes the hits without a mark except for the edge shots obviously.

My friend wants to try his 50bmg out at longer ranges and that target is too small. We will be using ball ammo (So that means even though it is not AP, they usually have a mild steel core). All targets are swinging.

What distance do I have to put my 3/8" ar500 to not bow it or leave marks on it? (We aren't talking about hundreds of rounds, and I accept that if there is an edge shot it will deform it there).

What about for my 3/8" ar400 plate? I have one that I use for 1000+ yards for my 338lm and it has worked great. But not sure if it will hold up at even a mile for 50bmg.

 

[stefan73]

That's a tough one. I shot some of my 750grn Lapua Hybrid at my Hardox plates and broke the hanger and sheared the chain. It made a pretty cool copper mark on the plate. DEC I shot some small AR500 plates at 100m with ball. It did some pitting and broke the target hanger but it wasn't anything crazy.

 

[Ruslow]

I would look more at .5 plate after 600yards. and maybe 3/8 at 8-900 yards

 

[timelinex]

I would look more at .5 plate after 600yards. and maybe 3/8 at 8-900 yards

do you have experience with shooting 50bmg ball at 3/8 ar500 past 1000 yards or is this a guess? I'm guessing past 1200 yards or so it won't damage, but I wanted to see if others had actual experience seeing it not put any marks in the steel.

 

[Ruslow]

I make targets for gun ranges.I do have some ballistic plate that has been shot at from 25yards with a 416 cheytac. not myself but a guy testing what I said and left no mark on it other than then normal bullet splash. But TRUE AR500 will work at that distance for years unless it is a FA weapon then all bets are off. Big thing is no sharp corners for a crack to start. Stan

 

[timelinex]

I make targets for gun ranges.I do have some ballistic plate that has been shot at from 25yards with a 416 cheytac. not myself but a guy testing what I said and left no mark on it other than then normal bullet splash. But TRUE AR500 will work at that distance for years unless it is a FA weapon then all bets are off. Big thing is no sharp corners for a crack to start. Stan

Awesome, I appreciate the input.

Based on Energy estimates in my calculator it does look like 3/8" should withstand at the least 1000+ as that is when energy is equivalent to some of the ranges I've shot 3/8" with my 338lm... I was just worried that mild steel core would add an extra umph factor and still leave marks.

 

[stefan73]

Remember that there is a nasty ricochet hazard with .50 BMG ball out to about 200 meters if I remember correctly. That steel core can be pretty spicy.

 

[MadDuner]

Even at 1000 yds the .50 BMG ball ammo will make a divot in 1/2” AR 500 plate.

 

[timelinex]

I went long range shooting today. By the time we got around to using the 50, we were short on time and tired so we went straight to 1760 with it. So unfortunately I don't have a good range report on the steel.

At a mile I had ar500 plates set up next to a swinging 3/8" rolled steel target that I use for 338lm and lower at a mile. The crazy part is that at a mile, the 3/8" stopped my friends 50 that accidently floated that way. At that distance, 338 usually makes a small dent. This was a deep dent, but not a perforation. The only nuance is he was using 625gr ppu and not ball ammo. From my understanding, it is lead core and not steel core like ball ammo. I'm guessing if it was just ball ammo like I was using, it would perforate.

Hope that helps someone that finds this thread looking for the same answers I was!

 

[secondofangle2]

Here’s a 3/8 inch AR 500 plate hanging from an MKM T-post hanger shot three times with a 50 BMG at 100 yards. You can see the small dents on the rear of it. That is all. the key is the plate has to give - to swing freely with the impact.

I shoot everything from 223 all the way up to 50 BMG passing through 338LM and 375CT at 3/8 inch AR500 plates placed anywhere from 100 yards to over a mile. Other than these little divot or the occasional similar distortion of the edge of a plate from an edge impact, I don’t have any trouble. But we don’t shoot steel core.

A buddy of mine did shoot his 30-06 at one of these plates at about 30 yards and it punched a hole clean through it like a paper punch

I don’t think you need anything bigger than 3/8 inch as long as it can swing freely on impact and as long as you’re not punching it with ball ammo or steel core

 

[1911hombre]

Remember that there is a nasty ricochet hazard with .50 BMG ball out to about 200 meters if I remember correctly. That steel core can be pretty spicy.

"We're not doin' THAT anymore...." LOL

 

[secondofangle2]

I didn't mention that we were shooting 750 AMAX

 

[KYAggie]

Remember that there is a nasty ricochet hazard with .50 BMG ball out to about 200 meters if I remember correctly. That steel core can be pretty spicy.

My understanding is that they were not shooting at AR500 steel targets. You can hear one of them say “No more iron” in the video; probably Mr. Blue Pantsuits guy . Shooting at steel other than AR500 is known to be unpredictable.

@secondofangle2 is spot on when he mentions twice in his post to make sure the target can swing! I had a friend shoot my 1/2” AR500 10” round target at 100 yards with my 50bmg with ball ammo after telling him not to. It was fortunately able to swing and swung so hard and fast it collapsed the the whole hangar system it was swinging from. Left no scratch or mark on the plate, I was sure it would have a hole, but it didn’t.

Keep it swinging and you’ll be fine, especially at that range.

 

[secondofangle2]

I know a guy who runs a range, a big one with a shoot house, in NE Ohio. He says if you shoot a swinger at the wrong time with a second or follow-up shot, it can "bat" the second projectile back at you, if it's swinging forward at the time of impact. Like a baseball and a bat.

I'm not a physicist, but I'm skeptical. Regardless, I don't shoot at a swinger till it has come to rest.

 

[timelinex]

I didn't mention that we were shooting 750 AMAX

That makes it a little less applicable as the mild steel core in ball ammo is partially what worries me. It's also whether the ar400 at 1500 yards is strong enough or not. The 50cal is still carrying ALOT of energy at 1500 yards and I'm not sure if ar400 is up to the task, especially with the mild steel core. I'm pretty confident it won't go through as it is swinging.

 

[secondofangle2]

I am out shooting my 50 right now. Past 1000 yards I don’t even worry about 3/8 inch AR 500. You are good to go with that and past 1500 you’re probably even good with 1/4 inch AR 500. But whatever I look at the cost, it’s not different enough for targets that weigh less than 100 pounds for me to go with 1/4.

Here are two targets shot today at 300 yards with a 750 grain Amax going 2800 ft./s. The round one got dimpled a little bit on that low hit, and the square one separated at the little scoring marks that Tyler Kemp at MKM put on his target, which I have strongly advised him against. It weakens the steel dramatically, and nobody is going and measuring their targets using the little grid. There is another hit where my right finger is low on the target, but it only caught half of the bottom edge of the target target so it didn’t separate the little squares. he doesn’t even make steel anymore so it’s your relevant, but it just goes to show you how a minor scoring of the target weakens it significantly

Then there is the issue of how it is cut because water jet cutting does not weaken the heat treating around the edges like laser and plasma cutting do.

The point is, I will shoot 3/8 inch AR 500 steel all day long at any range past 1000 yards with a 50 BMG and not even worry about it

If you put it out there, you’re not gonna hit very many times anyway lol