Metallic Silhouette Shooting: Tips, Tricks, and Equipment?

CountryGent · Jan 7, 2019

A sport I'd like to get into is metallic shooting, both handgun and rifles. I read a book about it last year and started doing informal shooting of said on our home range. There is something strangely satisfying about watching the little chicken, turkey, pig, and ram figures get knocked over.

Alas, 2018, though a mixed bag, largely turned into a dumpster-fire of long hours and a parade of family matters, so any real progress was shelved. I did enjoy a blisteringly hot August afternoon shooting with my better half and knocking over the metal figures many times; she with a Walther in 9㎜ and yours-truly with a S&W in .44 Magnum.

Anyway, I thought I'd toss it out there: anyone active in this discipline? Any tips? What firearms are you using and care to share pictures of said?

Thanks!

sdlsaginaw · Jan 8, 2019

I used to do smallbore pistol silhouette in So Cal once a week after work. I miss it. When I moved to Oregon I looked around for some activity but nobody seemed to be into it. Those rams were tough to knock down with a .22 pistol!

bbbass · Jan 8, 2019

I shot .22 scoped pistol once, we shot lying on our backs with the pistol braced at the knees... it was surprisingly, er, uh, not too awful hard. Naw, it wasn't bad and I enjoyed it. Oh, it was 100yd range, .22 silhouette targets are smaller than centerfire rifle silhouette.

Haven't done so in awhile but my club LGRPC shoots .22cal rifle silhouette each winter on the 1st Sunday of the month... tramping out in the snow to reset metal sure gets the heart rate up, then if you are in the next scrum/batch of shooters you gotta get your heart rate back down. We shoot rifle offhand. Cost for us is $5 per scrum/batch of 100 silhouettes. Chicken, pigs, turkeys, and rams. We added bears at 125yds, what a hoot. Winner takes a portion of the pot.

For .22cal rifle, I initially sighted my scope in for zero at 50yds. So then I could aim at the feet of the chickies (25yds), the center of the pigs (50yds), the top of the back on the turkeys (75yds), and 4" - 6" over for the rams (depending on ammo selection) at 100yds.

Once we changed to add the bears at 125yds, I resighted for zero at 75yds. This cut down some of the holdover distance needed for the bears.

I found using Mini-Mag ammo to be a benefit but any higher velocity ammo choice should work. Of course the accuracy of the weapon and the shooter is tested, but a lot of people forget to use the most consistent ammo for their particular firearm. Just like big bore, what shoots well for one rifle may not be good in another. I stick to one brand at a time and try to use one batch of 325 or 500 until it is used up.

I like it because I get to shoot a lot, offhand, for a little bit of money, usually not more than 5 scrums. That's 100 shots (bad math). I couldn't do that centerfire rifle. But I could do 100 or more pistol shots if we had that.

Stomper · Jan 8, 2019

The best tip I can give you is.... hit the targets with every shot, your wife will want you even more than she does now.

bbbass · Jan 8, 2019

Stomper said:
The best tip I can give you is.... hit the targets with every shot, your wife will want you even more than she does now.

Not if he beats her!

turq · Jan 8, 2019

Are wind flags allowed off to the side, for all to use?

KKG · Jan 8, 2019

CountryGent said:
...hot August afternoon shooting with my better half and knocking over the metal figures many times; she with a Walter in 9㎜ and yours-truly with a S&W in .44 Magnum.QUOTE]

I used to shoot Small Bore Hunter Pistol Silhouette and I used a Smith and Wesson Model 41. That game really teaches you that shot placement is what it's ALL about. I also used a Smith and Wesson Model 16-4 in .32 H&R Magnum for the Hunter Pistol Silhouette. I used .32 S&W Longs with HBWC for the Chickens and Pigs. Then the .32 H&R Magnums for the Turkeys and Rams. I used a Leupold 2X and 4X Scopes on both guns.

Again, Shot Placement, Shot Placement, Shot Placement is the key.

I even used my Model 41 for the Hunter Pistol Silhouette and would have own a couple of matches if it had been a legal caliber.