ammo for shooting steel

T

takem23

New member
Never shot steel before but I'm planning on buying some to practice with our small concealed carry guns. What type of ammunition do you guys use and at what distance is the closest while being safe? These little 9's and 380's aren't really 25 yard guns. Do you use fmj's?
thanks
 
Cast Lead

Cast lead is my first choice. Lots cheaper than jacketed bullets and a little cheaper than plated bullets.

Make sure you are shooting at a correctly constructed target that obsorbs the energy and deflects the bullets down.

Have a great day!
James
 
We shoot steel with handguns in USPSA and we fire every type of ammo at it. What matters most is having a properly constructed target, one that won't dent (think AR500) and is set up so that it won't deflect bullets toward the firer. Also, USPSA rules require (IIRC) a 23 foot minimum, but it's often more than that.

I have seen bullets shot at soft steel turn around and come back toward the shooter as much as 25 yards. While I'm a big fan of shooting steel, it pays to have good targets, carefully constructed and set up, and maintain a minimum distance from them. I've bought targets from Quality Targets, and I'm very happy with them.
 
Having been injured by the shrapnel from jacketed bullets, I only use lead bullets on steel.
They normally flatten out and fall to the ground, more so than any other.
But, as been suggested, make sure the ricochet angle prevents the targets from shooting back.
Here's the ones I have; they are inexpensive and hold up very well to handgun rounds:
https://www.birchwoodcasey.com/Targets/World-of-Targets.aspx

There's also non steel reactive targets that allow the bullets to pass through, eliminating the risk of ricochets all together.
Many target companies make them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHoniuDgB50&feature=youtu.be
 
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I shoot plated and jacketed bullets for steel. Anyone who’s been shooting steel for very long has been hit with tiny bullet fragments. It’s common and no big deal, as long as you wear good eye protection. It’s rare for someone to actually lose blood due to a hit, but it happens. Again, no big deal. Just part of the game.

I don’t shoot lead because I don’t want to deal with the cleanup. I don’t want lube and lead shavings in my dies. Plated bullets are almost as cheap as lead and don’t create any more of a hazard, IMHO, at 7 – 10 yds than lead.

YMMV
 
Bullet type is not as important as proper steel and a proper setup. If the steel setup doesn't have either some give to it, or isn't angled the right way, even not jacketed bullets will pose a problem. I hang my steel plates from chain, and with thousands of FMJ rounds shot at them I have never had a problem. Of course one should always wear eye protection when shooting steel.
 
I shoot fmj at 10 yards as my primary practice and have never had any problems. Just be sure to wear glasses.
I shot what turned out to be steel (not lead like I'd thought) bird shot at them once, and got some welts, but even that idiocy didn't result in any blood.
Wear glasses and don't worry about it.
 
about 22 LR rounds

many .22LR are copper covered, but I have been told they are safe to shoot at steel because they are "platted" or "washed" with copper (to reduce lead crud)and are not the same hardness (hence bounce-back potential) as FMJ-type ammo. Do we agree with this? (Note: I exclude any specialty HP hunting rounds -- I'm talking about target/plinking ammo only). thanks.
 
I use cast bullets. Range lead, no that hard.

The trick is hitting the steel. Plates fall when I hit them with my cast bullets.

I don't think the type of bullet really matters. But steel matches normally require a lot of ammo, especially if you throw in a Texas Star or Pendulum targets.

You can cut the cost of ammo down by casting and using bullets.
 
I do a lot of shooting at steel targets here, and shoot FMJ from several calibers. Wear safety glasses (you should always were them anyway) and during the summer wear long pants instead of shorts (I usually follow this rule). Any steel target hard enough to be labeled "for center fire pistol and rifle" will be harder than any pistol bullet you can easily buy. Softer projectiles shatter upon impact with harder objects.
 
7 yards or more for distance from steel. If you shoot steel that does not have to fall like the steel challenge guys are using 105 grain bullets for their reloading. No power factor in steel challenge. Lead bullets are mostly used and the least expensive when reloading.
 
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