500 Yard Rifle Range
- Thread starter Sid K
- Start date
I have wondered the same thing. There are those shoot and see targets that you can buy that when you hit them, the black turns a bright orange. I am not sure how big those things come in and I would think they would be expensive. The largest target I see in the Midway catalog is a 12"x16", but at least there are target pasters you could use to use them over again. They might be out there bigger, who knows. Good luck and I think this is a great question.
I always wondered why one of those cheapo black & white tv camera setups, transmitting via a wire alongside the power cord from the firing line, couldn't be used to give the shooter a view of his target. The cameras are small, and could be easily protected from debris or missed shots. You would have to run 500 yards of 115 volt power cord, though...
[This message has been edited by Gewehr98 (edited September 16, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by Gewehr98 (edited September 16, 2000).]
Sid, I don't know if they even sell these any more, or how much they are, but I bought, years ago, one of those 400 and some odd power telescopes from Sears for about a hundred bucks. It was bought for looking at the skies, but at some of the medium power settings It CAN pick up holes in the target at 500 yards. Mine has that polar mount and all that, and even if the wind is blowing hard it shakes the tripod enough to make the picture in it wobbly, but it may be a thought. Hope this helps. If nothing else you can sure see the rings of Saturn and the moons of Jupiter 
. (biggest problem is there is no swimming pool or beach nearby to use it to check out the bikinis!) 
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Carlyle Hebert
[This message has been edited by Southla1 (edited September 16, 2000).]
. (biggest problem is there is no swimming pool or beach nearby to use it to check out the bikinis!) ------------------
Carlyle Hebert
[This message has been edited by Southla1 (edited September 16, 2000).]
Sid,
Sounds like a job for your grandson! Just have Curt out there running back and forth.
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TaxPhd
"Those who live by the sword are probably pretty f***ing good at it."
"Instructions for a successful gunfight: Front Sight, Press Trigger, repeat
as necessary." - B. Braxton
Sounds like a job for your grandson! Just have Curt out there running back and forth.
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TaxPhd
"Those who live by the sword are probably pretty f***ing good at it."
"Instructions for a successful gunfight: Front Sight, Press Trigger, repeat
as necessary." - B. Braxton
Robert Foote
New member
I regularly shoot at 500 yds, hope to extend that eventually, perhaps to 1000. Usually make the run in a Jeep but have taken to walking of late.
Don't know of any short cuts.
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Don't know of any short cuts.
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Sid,
If your trying for the tightest group on paper this won't help. If you are zeroed in and want to have fun try shooting balloons. You can inflate different sizes 5,7,9, 11 or 16" and stapple the ring to the target board.
Pop goes the weasel when you hit it. This morning I was shooting at balloons with my Colt Govt. Model better than just punching holes in paper.
Southla1 idea also works. At Perry you'll see coaches viewing through star gazing telescopes from the 1000 yd. line during long range matches.
Turk
[This message has been edited by Turk (edited September 16, 2000).]
If your trying for the tightest group on paper this won't help. If you are zeroed in and want to have fun try shooting balloons. You can inflate different sizes 5,7,9, 11 or 16" and stapple the ring to the target board.
Pop goes the weasel when you hit it. This morning I was shooting at balloons with my Colt Govt. Model better than just punching holes in paper.
Southla1 idea also works. At Perry you'll see coaches viewing through star gazing telescopes from the 1000 yd. line during long range matches.
Turk
[This message has been edited by Turk (edited September 16, 2000).]
MatthewVanitas
New member
You know, spotting scopes are pretty cheap actually. On both Ebay and gun auctions like www.gunbroker.com, they tend to have spotting scopes for about $75 or less.
Gongs and metal silhouettes and the like are pretty good. Not having land to set up a permanent land, I like to go shooting on Bureau of Land Mgmt. territory where they allow hunting and shooting. I don't like punching holes in paper, so I bring potatos, watermelon, whatever produce is cheap. Fun stuff.
-LCpl Matthew Boris
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--Capitalism isn't a program or a system like "socialism," but a description of reality like "the Pythagorean theorem." Deal with it.
Gongs and metal silhouettes and the like are pretty good. Not having land to set up a permanent land, I like to go shooting on Bureau of Land Mgmt. territory where they allow hunting and shooting. I don't like punching holes in paper, so I bring potatos, watermelon, whatever produce is cheap. Fun stuff.
-LCpl Matthew Boris
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--Capitalism isn't a program or a system like "socialism," but a description of reality like "the Pythagorean theorem." Deal with it.
You know what is better than fruit? That real cheap soda you can buy in 24 can flats. Presidents Choice cola works really well and it is only about $2.50 for 24 cans! That sounds like it might be fun for long range shooting now that I think about it. I had used them before for shooting the ole sks and handguns at.
Art Eatman
Staff in Memoriam
I cut out the ends of old 55-gallon drums and paint them white. Easy to hit at 500 yards, since they're about 22" in diameter. I have three targets, so driving over to patch with masking tape isn't all that frequent...
The bullet holes are quite obvious through the 9X scope.
FWIW, Art
The bullet holes are quite obvious through the 9X scope.
FWIW, Art
Thanks for the ideas everyone. We've been using the gongs and balloons at the club range and they work ok if you have someone with a 25 power spotting scope to get you on target. But the metal needs to be 2 inches thick and I want something about four feet in diameter so I can shoot without a spotter. That's a lot of metal. I like Art's idea of the painted drum lids. I have some large sheets of old rusted sheet metal that should work just fine and the only cost will be for some cheap paint. Thanks everyone. I'll let you knoe how it turns out.
1/2" thick mild steel is no match for .308 or .223 at closer ranges after you hit it a few times.
If you want a thinner plate that will withstand high-power rifle fire, have a machine shop cut you a plate of 4140 steel, hardened to 40 Rockwell C. I believe my dad's are only 3/8" thick, yet withstand .30-06, .308, .257, .270, and 7mm at 100 yards. The hotter rounds will cause perhaps a 1-2mm dent, but that is all. It *will* cost you, however. I think a 12" diameter plate is around $100 - but it will last forever.
-z
If you want a thinner plate that will withstand high-power rifle fire, have a machine shop cut you a plate of 4140 steel, hardened to 40 Rockwell C. I believe my dad's are only 3/8" thick, yet withstand .30-06, .308, .257, .270, and 7mm at 100 yards. The hotter rounds will cause perhaps a 1-2mm dent, but that is all. It *will* cost you, however. I think a 12" diameter plate is around $100 - but it will last forever.
-z