making my own silhouettes

[kevin.303]

i'd like to try to make my own silhouettes nd was wondering what is the best thickness of steel? my cousin's got a welder and some steel lying around but where not sure if it's thick enough. it has  to be able the withstand hits from a .303, 7.62X54R, .308 and .300RUM.

[shootingpaul]

I did not know that there are silhouette shooters in Manitoba, nice to see that,
did you think about going to SK prov or maybe our CDN nationals?
should not be too far?

[kevin.303]

i haven't ever shot them but saw something on tv along time ago and got interested. on my cousin's farm he's got a lot of old plow discs which we might weld a base on and paint white instead of making animals. what part of sask are you from? i got family in the oxbow-estevan area as well as in regina and saskatoon

[yankee]

Chickens and Pigs shot at 200 and 300 meters are 1/2 inch thick and turkeys and rams shot at 385 and 500 meters are  3/8 inch thick.  Most targets are made from a T-1 type steel and most 308 type bullets at 2500 fps will leave just a bb type dimple on them.  If you use mild steel you will pock the steel pretty good.  A lot depends on type and speed of bullet. Mild steel  less than 3/8 at 200 m will relult in holes.  For fun I would try what you have, circles , squares, rectangles or what ever.   You might want to hang your targets from some type of frame letting them swing, saving you from standing them up so often.  Have fun then come and try the real game.

[blamethewind]

You must use a steel with a Brunnel (sp?) Hardness of at least 400.  Look for AR400 as it is much cheaper than T1, and is quite adequte.  Chickens and pigs should be 1/2", but the turkeys and rams should be 3/8"- especially the rams.  If you use heavier guage, you won't be able to knock them down.  

Our first targets were made from AR250, and that was too soft.  Don't go much higher than 400, as it gets too brittle.  A 4x10 sheet of T1 goes for about $900, while a 4x8 sheet of AR400 goes for about $385 in these parts.  Have plenty of help on hand to load and unload- the sheets are extremely heavy.   Blamethewind.

[Troy G]

Once you go through the trouble of making silhouettes and have paid good money for metal you will not shoot them with big, fast guns.  I built my C, P, and T out of 1/2" T1 and used salvaged 3/4" plate for my rams.  On a full set I think you would need a .50 BMG to drop a ram.  Maybe this summer I will buy some 3/8" T1 and make some rams.  Any idea how much material (T1) I will need get 5 rams?

I was dumb and was using a .240 Weatherby with 95 gr Vlds at 3400 fps and they nearly go through my pigs.  I have huge dimples on the back.  I did fix the holes with the welder but it was a pain in the arse.

If you are using regular plate make sure the distances are increased with the big and fast guns.  If the plate gets too thick it is really hard to move.  If you are going through the troble of building silhouettes do it right the first time.  Make the C and Ps out of 1/2" and the Ts and Rs out of 3/8".

The important thing is to get out there and shoot!

Troy

[Jerry G]

On highpower animals the chicken takes the beating.  I would use 1/2" T1 for them.  1/2" AR would work for the pigs and 3/8" AR is fine for the turkys and the rams.  The part I had the most trouble with was the weld at the pads.  A small gusset plate there might cut down on your future repairs.

[Troy G]

How much material is needed to do five rams?

[blamethewind]

You will need 27"x32" for each ram.   Check out this website:

http://www.msa-ihmsa.com/ram.htm



Blamethwind.