Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

[Maser]

So my oldest son is turning 6 in April and I feel he is ready for a Ruger 10/22 of his own. Lord knows he's had more than his fair share of experience with mine and I think he's clearly ready for an autoloader of his own now to go with his bolt action. Problem is we really enjoy our reactive targets and he has clearly gotten bored with the clays, suckers, paintballs, and water balloons we normally shoot. We need new ideas for fun reactive targets. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[LegioX]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Gophers, rabbits, stray cats and rabid squirrels for starters...

 

[JoeMartin]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Maybe check out Quality Targets and see if there's something there that is of interest.

http://www.qualitytargets.com/servlet/Categories

 

[GotCox]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Not that this is a rimfire specific target, but i think a bunch of these would be awesome. Set up 5 of them and have timed sniper matchs. Fastest one to take out the 5 bad guys without killing the hostage wins. Put them out at 200 and make it realy hard.

http://youtu.be/gI7AFZR0sU8

 

[Dylan in AZ]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Golf balls.....

grab a handful of them, toss them out there, shoot the snot out of them! It's a great way to practice accuracy, and range estimation.

 

[Wintermute]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Tennis balls filled with Tannerite with a small plastic bag filled with gelled gasoline in the middle.

--Wintermute

 

[isaaccarlson]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

If you can find a farmer with a bird problem, you can have a ball.

I have found that tennis balls only work on flat dirt where you can see them. I like to shoot at small pebbles and dirt clods in fields. They are plentiful and they stretch as far as the eye, or scope, can see.

 

[Maser]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

We have a couple of tennis balls that were cat toys, so I guess we could try those. I also like the golf ball idea too.

 

[anschutz64ms]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

I like the stray cat idea

 

[frankythefly]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

These are a ton of fun and move all over the place with the .22

http://www.rollingsteeltargets.com/Steel-Targets/Impact-22-Rolling-Steel-Target.html

<object width="425" height="350"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DEk_0KeMpPA&feature=player_embedded"></param> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param> <embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DEk_0KeMpPA&feature=player_embedded" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"> </embed></object>

 

[HPCR59]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

That looks well worth $30!

 

[polytech]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

animal crackers, and neco sugar wafers are fun to shoot. Take a scrap of 2x4 and run a saw down it to make a grove to rest the crackers in and get to your safari!

 

[The Mechanic]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

You couldn't make them for that.

 

[Wolvenhaven]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

I have one of the rolling targets and it's great fun, but it has to be on hard ground, if it's on any sort of loose soil, pinestraw, or wet ground, it won't roll properly. It's well worth the $30 or whatever I paid for it.

Another one of my favorite targets is cheap colorful golf balls, stick them at 100-200 and plink them all over the field, a hard hit will send them flying 10-20ft.

This is one I don't recommend because it's not very safe, so no one go out and do this, ever. This is purely an informational idea that no one should do. Take cheap ammo, I use 7.62x54R, stick it in the holes of the target board, and use a .22 to shoot out the primers. They explode, or if they don't explode they burn and make cool patterns.

 

[Maser]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

I've posted this thread at a few other gun forums and I'm amazed at the suggestions for them walking targets and yet I have never heard of them until now. Not only do they look fun, but will also give me a reason to get back into welding.

 

[gjantzer]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

the walking target would be really fun out in the flat desert. Keep shooting at it until it gets so far out that you cannot hit it any longer........than measure the distance. Sounds like a challenging game.

The Ground Bouncing Targets also look like good fun:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-j-15Oq3UU&feature=related

Here is another version of the walking target......apparently these are the "original walking targets"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ni6RIOLiNAg&feature=related

 

[ranger1183]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

As long as we're talking rimfires and being safe about things, pieces of charcoal give a pretty good puff of smoke when shot. For kids it provides instant visual feedback. Another reactive target are the small styrofoam coffee cups filled with water. The water causes the cup to come apart rather spectacularly when hit. if you spray paint either the charcoal or the styrofoam cups, you can play games, have teams, etc. Charcoal doesn't require the post shooting clean up that styrofoam does.

 

[Hookturnr]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

We usually line up an assortment of shotgun hulls standing and on end along with few ping pong balls in a homemade 2x4 trough. Just made a 3/4"wide 1/4" deep dado cut down the center of the flat side of a 6' 2x4. Throw a clamp onto the target frame at whatever the range of the day is and load 'er up!

 

[bunsen27]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Used to shoot these with my BB gun when I was a kid.

 

[smk175]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

also try getting some easter eggs and flour from the dollar store fill the easter eggs with flour and tape em shut, gives a nice totally safe easy to clean up "explosion."

 

[ranger1183]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: cool_story</div><div class="ubbcode-body">also try getting some easter eggs and flour from the dollar store fill the easter eggs with flour and tape em shut, gives a nice totally safe easy to clean up "explosion." </div></div>
Hey cool_story, make sure you check in with the Western Washington group from the Hide (a.k.a. - SHWW). Here's the SHWW group link.

 

[smk175]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

ranger1183 thanks for the link! ill be sure to check it out.

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Plastic toy soldiers, fired shotgun shells. Challenging and expendible.

Do a 'fly hunt', placing a tray with a small portion of raw hamburger just below and in front of a plain backer.

Greg

 

[GotCox]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Toy solders are awesome! lol

 

[SIG700]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: cool_story</div><div class="ubbcode-body">also try getting some easter eggs and flour from the dollar store fill the easter eggs with flour and tape em shut, gives a nice totally safe easy to clean up "explosion." </div></div>
I've done this with ping pong balls- take a smaller drill bit (1/8" works well) drill a small hole in it, funnel some flower in, than tape it shut. Saw someone post it here on the Hide a month or two ago and its my new favorite rimfire target. Also golf balls and shotgun shells. Start them off at 50 yards dance them down the range. We've made up tons of games with this (I.E. see who can get their targer furthest away in 5 shots, shot for shot until someone misses, etc)

 

[anschutz64ms]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

I remember our local gun club use to hold a indoor money shoot with .22s at 50' with army men. It was alot of fun.

 

[landtoy80]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

I am going to get this Do-All target. Comes in rimfire, pistol and rifle versions.
Used shotgun shells, clay ball/rocks.

 

[Greg Langelius *]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

If memory serves, some of the ubiquitous foam peanuts are made from a biodegradable starch base. Might be a desirable feature for expendible targets.

Greg

 

[762frmafr]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Maser</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> We need new ideas for fun reactive targets. Any help would be appreciated. </div></div>

 

[SigTauJohn]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

tag

 

[Bronco]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

You guys have covered about all the 22 targets I've ever used except sticks of chalk, like you write with on a blackboard. At 15 yards they are a good pistol target, at 100 yds good for rifle.

 

[VTSEAL]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Here are a couple of ideas that I use. These permeable targets are available at relatively low cost, and they last a long time, absorbing hundreds or thousands of rounds before they need to be replaced. My biggest problem is that I keep giving them away to friends, after they have tried them.

Anyway, these are great either for a quick reactive target at the range; or for a bunch of kids and the pellet gun in the back yard. Kids absolutely love the spinners... I also sprinkle them around the range and use them for practical pistol course training. They work with everything from airguns to rimifire to full caliber rifles, and don't have the frag hazard of steel.

For the little bouncer targets, I tie a 4' section of 550 cord to them, which works to attach them to to a normal target backer, a handy tree limb, or to tent stake them down on a little knoll. you can just throw them out in the range and shoot them if you're by yourself; but that gets annoying eventually when they bounce outside the free fire zone; so a tent stake is very handy.

Other than these ideas, we also use "ugly gifts" including everything from stuffed animals to yard flamingos to disco music CD's...

 

[john.suthers]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

prairie dogs are great reactive targets. If you don't get a solid kill shot on them the first hit, they react like hell flipping around and running. Aiming for their little heads makes the shooter understand the concept of aim small miss small. When you miss their little head and watch one do a triple back flip, it also makes great comic relief.

 

[nobbie333actual]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

billiard chalk

 

[lachoneus]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

We take a 2x2, cut it into 2x2x2" blocks, and then spray paint them different colors. The blocks fly fly when hit, and they are cheap and easily replaceable.

One challenge is to stack them 4 blocks high, and then try to knock them down one by one, without hitting or knocking the others over.

The blocks can also be placed a various unknown ranges for range estimation and offhand speed practice.

 

[KSchlick]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Well, this isn't nearly as exciting as some of the ideas above, but my kids loved it.
When they were that age, every Happy Meal or Kids Meal toy became a target. They just cracked up when they sent little arms and legs flying all over the range. They still have a sponge bob squarepants toy on the bookshelf that's all shot to hell - it's labeled "Spongboba Bin Laden". We dug a "cave" in the shooting berm, put him in it, and they just lit him up.

There is something about stepping up to the counter at McDonald's, right beside some Soccer Mom, and having your kid say "Dad, ask them to show us what targets are in the Happy Meals this week" that just makes you smile.

 

[Uncontrolled Copy]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Just took my 11 & 13 year olds out last weekend. We shot the steel swingers, empty 22 cartridge boxes, and empty rimfire brass at 35yds. We are going to back up to 50yds. this weekend. They were hitting the empty brass! My 11yr old glued clothespins to a 30" 5/4 board every 2 inches to hold stick matches(try and light them) playing cards, crackers, etc. Should be fun.

 

[john.suthers]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Slick308, you are a sick and twisted individual.....I like you.

 

[tomcat mv]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: cool_story</div><div class="ubbcode-body">also try getting some easter eggs and flour from the dollar store fill the easter eggs with flour and tape em shut, gives a nice totally safe easy to clean up "explosion." </div></div>
This also works great with spent 12 ga hulls. Fill them with flour, re-crimp, boom!

 

[sscoyote]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Shale rock at our local range--it really explodes great even at 200+yds.

 

[AK264]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

long time ago i was helping a friend clean out a warehouse. There was a huge box of little plastic cows. They were marked "rare" "medium" and "well" and were designed to mark steaks. They were getting tossed and i imediatly knew what they would be used for. i shot those for years and years with my mark 1 at the gravel pit.

Nowadays i cut 1 inch pvc 1/2" long and use them for egg holders.

i also will pick up white boxes getting thrown out and glue neco wafers on them with elmers

 

[wahoowad]

Re: Reactive Rimfire Target Ideas?

Another recommendation for the Permaseal blocks and paddles!