At yesterdays Practical Rifle some members expressed concern about bringing steel targets to the group shoot. They say with so many unknown shooters showing up the chances of someone ruining the targets with “steel core” ammo is high. They say don’t risk it.
I have three steel rifle targets, one of which has already been damaged by “steel core” ammo. The damaged target is falling apart because the holes also cracked the plate so it is only a matter of time before it flies apart.
The rifle target support arms and legs are also made of light metal. They can bend and break with a single shot. One wild shot can bring the whole target down. Bumpfiring and auto fire in their general direction is a no-go because of this.
I also have a pistol caliber dueling tree. If there is a side area maybe we could set it up for pistol only. The weakest part is the center support that holds the plates. It can bend if it is hit with even weak pistol bullets. It is make of light metal, not heavy steel like the plates. It is not meant for wild shooters who can’t keep their shots on the plates. If a plate only swings halfway out of view you can't keep shooting at it and risking hitting the center support.
So what do you guys think? Should I bring them out to the shoot? Do you think we could watch them closely enough so newbie’s (or oldie's) with "steel core ammo" won’t destroy them? Can we keep ourselves from destroying the targets?
A partial list of bad ammo is:
5.56mm SS109
5.56mm (X)M855
Older steel core 7.62x39
.30-06 Armor piercing
Surplus steel core bolt action ammo like some 8mm Mauser, etc.