Safety Concerns/New Shooter

I

Isa

Inactive
Hello guys I bought my first rifle (marlin 918t tube barrel bolt action .22) 2 days ago. I currently live in AZ so there's plenty of places to go shooting. Prior to doing so I want to make sure I'm following the rules and going about things the right way.

I do have a lifted 4x4 truck so I plan on driving a good 2 miles into the desert.
I have practiced making the 4 rules of gun safety into a habit.

I setup a 3x9 40mm scope. I plan to shoot targets (clays&bottles) from 50-100 yards.

The main safety concern I have is ricochet. I know it's very common with the .22 caliber.

I will be using the desert as a backstop in a very open range mostly only with 1 other friend. So the main concern is a 180 ricochet in my direction.

Is there a specific type of bullet that is less prone to this, I know odd type bullets like frangible bullets aren't on the market because of the supply and demand for the .22, but what about hollow points in contrast with FMJ?

Is a ricochet less inclined to a 180 degree angle if i shoot from an elevated point down towards a lower area, or vice-versa?

What kind of safety gear should i consider? I have read that Oakley glasses will not shatter even with an impact of up to 750fps.

And is there any other good habits I could get into to become a safer and better gun owner?

My gun is exactly like this, just without a pod which I plan on getting.
IMAG0080.jpg
 
Good eye and ear protection are a must in the shooting sports. The only other advise i would give is dont use glass bottles for targets. Even in the desert its not cool to leave that mess behind.

Tennis balls can be fun to bounce around. A metal swinging target is a pretty cheap investment and give good feedback upon being hit.
 
Oh I'm sorry for not being specific, I would use plastic bottles and definitely pick up after myself. I will be setting down a blanket and shooting in the prone position while scooping up my shells as well. I'm hesitant on steel targets because of ricochet.
 
Steel is fine to use as long ar the top is angled towards the shooter so the bullets are directed downwards

If possible , try to find a "hill" to shoot into

I realize the desert is pretty flat, so by "hill" I mean any rise at all that is higher than your target so rounds hit the side of it rather than glancing off a flat surface farther back

If nothing else you can dig a little area and pile dirt behind your targets, since it only takes a little sand to stop a bullet
 
Isa said:
I'm hesitant on steel targets because of ricochet.
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The reason that commercial steel targets are typically hung from chains is that the target is designed to swing back and deflect the ricochet into the ground. Additionally, almost all .22LR ammo is soft lead (more on this below), which tends to flatten when it hits steel, thus absorbing some of the impact energy. [EDIT: Angling the targets forwards is also an option, as Snyper wrote before I posted initially.]

In the typical desert, there IS a danger of ricochets from rocks around and beyond the intended target. I suggest building a backstop made of fine sand with the rocks sifted out. Sand will stop bullets within a couple of inches, even high-powered centerfire calibers, and it moves around enough that there's not a tremendous concern with bullets ricocheting off other bullets embedded in the backstop. (This eventually becomes a concern with ANY backstop, but sand is better, relatively speaking.)
Isa said:
Is there a specific type of bullet that is less prone to this, I know odd type bullets like frangible bullets aren't on the market because of the supply and demand for the .22, but what about hollow points in contrast with FMJ?
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Other than purpose-designed frangible bullets, most .22LR bullets will behave more or less the same in this regard.

Be aware that true FMJ .22 basically doesn't exist unless you're discussing obscure and collectible vintage military ammunition. What looks like "FMJ" ammo at your local sporting goods store actually has a very thin layer of copper plating, much thinner than a true jacket. The purpose of the extra metal is to protect the bullet from corrosion and to prevent lead smudges from discoloring the shooter's fingers and clothing; unlike centerfire FMJ bullets, the plating doesn't do much on firing. In short, there's not much difference between plated .22 and raw lead .22.
 
A properly made steel target can be a lot of fun but not good for sighting in a new rifle and scope. I prefer to use paper targets for that. Attached is a pdf of a target I use for that.

180 degree ricochet are usually not a concern. In the desert you can have ricochet off rocks but the energy is used up in deflecting the bullet and the aerodynamics of the bullet are destroyed. Not to say a ricochet can't be dangerous. Don't use a rock for a backstop.

Welcome to the forum and hope you enjoy you new rifle.
James
 

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Thanks for the advice, I will be taking soft sand route rather than a metal plate. I've just read way too many scenarios where they hit they top of the metal plate and it bounces back from 50 yards away etc. I don't want to experience it first hand. I will be adding a shovel to the equation, and looking for hills to shoot into. With no rocks of course.
 
See I was reading this thread here,
http://www.thehighroad.org/archive/index.php/t-424981.html

So to tack on to safety measures, using led bullets are more likely to disintegrate, shooting at obstacle that aim away from me such as slanted steel or slanted dirt hills is safer?

How about distance, if I'm shooting 50 yards out what are the chances of it hitting a vertical hill, flying upwards and returning in my general area with enough energy to do some damage?
 
Excessive worry.
A "180 ricochet" is something you read about on the internet because it is rare, if not fake or a coverup for unsafe behavior.

I would find or make a berm, hill, mound, etc. to shoot into so that there was not a shallow angle ricochet that would take a bullet over the next rise and risk a passing desert tortoise or tourist. All suburban ranges have a "Place targets at berm." rule so as to avoid bullets glancing off of hard ground into uncontrolled areas.
 
You can call it excessive worry, in any hobby there is a learning curve.

When dealing with a bullet i'd rather learn from others mistakes than personal experience. Thanks for the input.
 
I, too have been hit by bounceback.
But not by a .22 fired into dirt at 50 yards or more, which I thought was your application.
 
Your concerns about steel targets that shoot back are justified.
I danged near lost a eye to one.
But properly set up, the danger is greatly reduced.
For .22 rimfire, wood targets work as well without the worry.
As for as stopping misses, .22 rimfire actually have proven to penetrate about the same as centerfire.
For loosely packed sand it surprisingly can be as much as six inches.
 
Isa said:
I setup a 3x9 40mm scope. I plan to shoot targets (clays&bottles) from 50-100 yards.

The main safety concern I have is ricochet. I know it's very common with the .22 caliber.

I will be using the desert as a backstop in a very open range mostly only with 1 other friend. So the main concern is a 180 ricochet in my direction.
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Ricochets that might strike you are not your problem with the setup you describe. Your problem is that you have no backstop. Even a box of .22 Shorts says "Range 1 mile. Be careful.'

Do you own the desert? If not (and arguably even if so), you simple cannot [safely] assume that there are no people downrange of your firing position. Find a location with a hill or an arroyo you can use to serve as a natural backstop.
 
Welcome to TFL, Isa!

First of all, enjoy your rifle and shoot it in good health. Whether your concerns about ricochet (from a .22 at 50-100 yards) can be statistically justified . . . I'll just put it this way: I'd rather you worried about it and took steps to prevent it than overlook it and suffer for that, particularly in your "early days" of shooting. As you point out, there is a learning curve in every hobby. In this one, though, mistakes during that learning curve can be very costly. Best bet is to find a backstop or create one.
Isa said:
And is there any other good habits I could get into to become a safer and better gun owner?
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First, learn the Four Rules of Gun Safety. They're on the bottom sign of this picture that I've shamelessly ripped off from Frank Ettin.
IMG_0944-2.jpg
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To the fourth rule, I'd add ". . . . and what's beyond." IMHO, it's not enough to know your target, but you need to know what's behind it. There are very few (if any) cases in which an "accidental shooting" (aka Accidental Discharge, AD, Negligent Discharge, ND, etc.) can't be traced back to the violation of at least one of these rules. Learn them and practice them every time you handle a firearm. Every. Time.

Second, I saw earlier where you've posted that you won't be using glass bottles and that you'll be picking up after yourself. Please allow me to thank you in advance for that. Whether we like it or not, all gun owners are often painted with the same broad brush. We don't need the reputation for being a bunch of environmentally-unfriendly litterbugs.
 
You are tracking down the "man bites dog" occurrences.
Rifle shooting isn't totally risk free, but I daresay you are more likely to get wrecked on the way to the desert than you are to get hit by a 50 yard .22 comeback.

But do wear shooting or safety glasses.
I came up with pistol and shotgun shooting and would never think of shooting without glasses - even if I could see anything without them - but a lot of rifle shooters don't bother. Silly, a hot ejected shell in the eye would not be pleasant and might be permanently damaging.
 
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