is steel target shooting or "plinking" safe?

[Hornet_RN]

i'm pretty new to action pistol and 3-gun shooting, so my experience with steel targets is relatively new. although i LOVE the sound of steel plinking, i can't help but wonder if a bullet will ricochet every time i compete in an action pistol or 3-gun match.

what happens to FMJ bullets when i hit a steel target with let's say a 9mm or .223 round? do they break up or is it possible that they can ricochet and kill me??? I know steel core ammunition can actually punch holes in steel targets, so i avoid doing that all together. have there been any horror stories i should know about?

also, what are safe distances to shoot at steel? because when i compete in a 3-gun match and shoot steel with a rifle, i'm not really as skeptical because i know i'm far enough away, like 25-50 yrds. but when i shooting steel in action pistol i shoot from 15-25 yrds, isn't that kind of cutting it close?

please, any info on steel targets would help!

thanks,
hornet_rn

[Untamed1972]

I know in USPSA there is a minimum distance required between shooter and steel targets. I forget the exact number......something like 7-10 yards.

Usually the bullet will fragment to some degree, but if you're too close you can get some back splatter of particles.

The fact that most steel targets move in some fashion when impacted held to deflect a ricochet and some of the particle splatter.


ETA: Go check the area around some of the steel targets after a match and you can usually find some fragmented projectiles to see what they look like.

[HCz]

Bullet will most likely fragment, and you will get splatters if you are too close. Generally, as long as you are 7-10 yards away(10 preferred) and the steel is not in bad shape it should be ok.

[bear308]

Almost everyone has been hit by little frags off of a plate. In ten years of action shooting I had not seen anyone take a serious hit from a ric. I would have said that holstering was probably more dangerous, realistically it probably still is. However, earlier in the year I took a full size ricochet from a guy I was timing.

9mm at a distance of about 3-5 yards. Went out to the plate, turned around and passed by the shooters head by about 3 inches. Hit me in the forehead, Blood everywhere, god it hurt. Bleeding stopped fairly easily, loaded up and shot the rest of the match. Still kicked that guys butt.

Big lessons, don't shoot junk steel, and don't shoot at matches that use junk steel.

[BSlacker]

I am using the 3/8" thick round targets from this company.

http://www.gttargets.com/targetsandbases.htm

You want AR400 or AR500 steel anything less is going to crater and cause ricochets. I have thousands of rounds of 40 and 45 caliber on these and they have bowed back but very little cratering. The mounts hold them at a downward angle and spit the splatter out at about 20 degrees. I use plated bullets at mid level loads. You can shoot this at point blank range.
It ain't safe to shoot steel. But it ain't safe to cross the street either. Just use good steel and lead or plated lead bullets and keep the speed up to splatter the bullet and you will be safe.

[cudakidd]

Cowboy shooting requires lead only with maximum velocity limits. I still get hit from time to time but it only stings...Plus most of the plates are angled to deflect downward.

Bianchi shooting is on Falling plates that absorb most of the recoil due to the plate reacting to the hit...

[KylaGWolf]

Well I know when they used the steel targets at Front Sight that little pieces of metal would come flying back but most were tiny. Although did see a couple of rounds bounce back pretty good but they were far enough away to not be an issue. But I would still be careful. If I remember right there was a thread here on CG or maybe it was OCDO about a guy that went shooting and shot at a metal object...old sink bullet ricocheted and hit him in the neck.

[Nodaedul]

Several weeks ago at a typical firing line I took a bullet fragment to the arm. There were steel plates at 50 yards and someone was shooting 357 magnum to the left of me at the steel targets. I don't know how it happened from that distance but that sucker hit hard enough to make a red mark and bring a tiny bit of blood to the surface. It definately would have taken an eye. WEAR YOUR EYE PROTECTION. I have newfound appreciation for bullet resistant eye protection.

[Hornet_RN]

thanks for all your advice.

so it sounds like plinking IS kind of dangerous still...heh heh.

but it's not going to make me stop plinking in competition, i'll just make sure to be far enough away (at least greater than 3-10 yds), wear eye and ear protections, wear long pants and sleeves.

great input from everyone,
hornet_rn

[Mickey D]

It does happen from time to time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPZyBLv0ijc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhysoS2DC8M

[nn3453]

A commonly held belief is that FMJ will cause more splashback than lead or plated when shooting non reactive steel targets. Some club/match directors will make sure that you are not using FMJ/ball in falling plates style events.

I have seen lead splatter too at an angle that is usually wide enough to miss people who are shooting so I don't know how effective that restriction actually is.

[Rob454]

Most of the steel targets i see move back at impact. Yeah anything is possible. You could also get run over by a crackhead in a stolen car. Does that mean you're gonna stop walking down the street?
A ricochet can hurt you and yes possibly kill you but you have safety glasses on clothes etc. your chances of getting killed by your own ricochet are not that great but its not impossible if youre close enough.

[IrishPirate]

I've seen a guy shoot .223 at 1/4" steel plate from 30' away and leave a hole right through it. I've seen steel take the same round from 20' away and have a dent. the answer is......sh*t happens. it just doesn't happen that often. There's a youtube video of a guy shooting a Desert Eagle 50 cal at a refrigerator or something and the bullet ricochets back and hits his GF in the head. she was fine, just in alot of pain. you can't say with any kind of certainty what a piece of metal is going to do when it's traveling that fast and contacting another object. Objects in motion will stay in motion until acted upon by an outside force, and for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. cant change the facts, you just gotta hope things react in your favor.

[RideIcon]

[Ken Brown]

I was searching for a discussion on this topic due to an incident that happened to me yesterday. I was plinking with a woodsman 22lr pistol yesterday, shooting at a steel pop-up target with Federal hp's at a distance of 30'. After around 60 rounds I was suddenly struck in the forehead with a bullet fragment. No harm done, a little pop-knot, a spec of blood, but it hit 2" from my left eye. A great reason to wear safety glasses religiously when shooting. That did not stop me from shooting but did affect my accuracy for a few rounds . **it really does happen.