Innovative Targets

[Tequila Shooter]

What's the most innovative target you've seen? Maybe it's the target, or where you have to shoot from, or something else.  I've heard about (but haven't seen...yet) ore cars that roll and targets that move away from the shooter. 

[evil dogooder]

I like weird targets and have made several.   The one im working on now is a plate rack that goes from small to large with the last target setting off a flyer when it falls.  Plate rack to be shot with revolvers or rifle, flyer with shotgun. 

 

  Should be a good test for transitions

[Turkey Flats Jack]

The Shenango River Rats have 2 that I always enjoy. They have a running elk target. It's on something like a garage door carriage and motor powered by a car batter to make it go from one side of the stage to the other. It starts behind a blind so you dont see it until it begins to move. The other is the Rat Hotel. 10 shotgun targets. 2 targets from each position. It's a hallway with 2 doorways on the left, 2 doorways on the right, and an open window at the end. 

 

[Totes Magoats]

This one is a fun one!  The Cabs here in Texas have a Mine Cart, I'll try to find a video.

 

Totes

[Totes Magoats]

The Mine Cart from the Cabs range.

 

Totes

[Imis Twohofon,SASS # 46646]

I like shooting "snakes". 18 inch lengths of hard green garden hose. With shotgun,targets start at one line move snake across second line 18-24 inches away. Not as sophisticated but fun and simple to set up and reset.   Wartrace had a moving mine cart target many years ago powered by a cordless drill. I never shot it.

 

Imis

[Tucker T Fudpucker]

 Rifle target from our Christmas Match at the Palmetto Posse. Shotgun target below.

[Billy Boots, # 20282 LTG-Regulator]

Winter Range once had a bowling ball released by shotgun target then it rolled down drought then dropped off to hit pedal that launched small pop can. 

Mountain Valley Vigilantes at Hot Springs have similar setup for side match that launches clay bird.  As with the WR set-up, strategy is key in time and what target to shoot to ready for aerial target (being aware of bowling ball travel time).  Example for MVV as I remember is a given  knockdown launches ball, then there is  four other knockdowns, then the launch of aerial by falling ball.  So if ball travels for 4-5 seconds after launch, can you, after launch of ball, engage second  knockdown (first launched ball), then two more knockdowns, then a fifth knockdown as you wait on aerial with sixth shot.  Or you could launch bowling ball with second, third, or fourth shot but you might be waiting longer on aerial.  Strategy.

I admit this as great side match but I personally am not fond of it in competition due to variables.  For MVV, it is a side that awards special pen if down correctly.  Missing the bird is a common "let down", especially when you launch ball with first shot and speed thru other four and still ready for bird.

[Mud Marine,SASS#54686 Life]

Montana's Big Foot Buscaderos offers intriguing and unusual targets. My favourite had a buzzard seize a baby in its beak and fly off with it. You had to shoot the buzzard to get it to drop the baby. OOOOPS!!!! I shot the baby! 

[Ace_of_Hearts]

At Eldorado this year we are considering a target where a big rock is released and drops onto a see-saw type of trigger...... This launches a cowboy/cowgirl of your choice standing on the other end up into the air and you get to shoot a cigarette out of their mouth for a bonus but only if they aren't screaming!

 

[Equanimous Phil]

3 hours ago, Billy Boots, # 20282 LTG-Regulator said:

Winter Range once had a bowling ball released by shotgun target then it rolled down drought then dropped off to hit pedal that launched small pop can. 

Sounds interesting and like a lot of fun, but also like quite a disadvantage for the first shooter of the posse..  Or did they do a test run to watch the bowling ball roll? 

[Dutch Wheeler]

No better challenge than "The Whirling Dervish"!

 

 

[Billy Boots, # 20282 LTG-Regulator]

10 hours ago, Equanimous Phil said:

Sounds interesting and like a lot of fun, but also like quite a disadvantage for the first shooter of the posse..  Or did they do a test run to watch the bowling ball roll? 

Yes, and to anyone who had shot that type of target involvement previously.  Plus, time in set-up after each shooter caused a tad of hold up per posse.  But, yes a demo in posse briefing was done, which also took more than normal time per stage.  A good briefing/illustration/directions were given in the Posse Marshall walk thru as well.  That WR stage was a hoot in ways as that set-up suggested shaking of small pop can when placing on launcher thus it might not take but one BB for can to spew and spin in the air.  Hit was very noticeable, and seemed that big percentage of shooters got it IF timing in their strategy fell as planned .  Negatives was wind in wrong directions could get you sprinkled with pop and/or cause one posse to have different angle from another, but mostly for big match, the time consumption posed rotation jam.

[Billy Boots, # 20282 LTG-Regulator]

I think another big match stage worth mentioned is one from  EOT where picking up rifle released a target (buzzard, buffalo, etc) to come right at ya.  A fun target that was fairly easy thus enjoyable.

The opposite to my personal like was the running coal car (or buffalo) which proved a little difficult for some, took time to set-up, and often broke (no longer used) slowing down rotation.  Idea was cool though.  Hand release of target (rifle) that came "sailing" out of mine shaft with variable speeds along a length of track.  Target would rebound backwards at slower speed after hitting end of track bumper, but if you had not finished your rifle string by then you had tacked on some real plus time for your stage.

[Grizzly Dave]

Briggsdale County Shootists here in Colorado has Medusa.  Only video I could find is ten years old, but I think it's grown more heads and gotten nastier over the years.

 

 

[Nasty Newt # 7365]

At the height of the big and close era, anything other than a 24 inch square was considered by many to be immoral and un-American.  I'm glad to see the pendulum swing back a little bit.

[Phantom, SASS #54973]

Innovative...or Torturous?

 

And a Mine Cart ain't a target...unless you shoot at it...now that I'd pay to do!

 

Phantom

[Marauder SASS #13056]

Quote

That WR stage was a hoot in ways as that set-up suggested shaking of small pop can when placing on launcher thus it might not take but one BB for can to spew and spin in the air.  Hit was very noticeable, and seemed that big percentage of shooters got it IF timing in their strategy fell as planned . 

 

Shot at a match in Illinois many years ago and the pop cans were great - until the bees started going after the sugar - and the shooters.  

 

That really slowed down the match!!!

[Major BS Walker Regulator]

The Mattaponi Sundowners shoot launched soda cans a couple of times a year. Love to watch then spew.

[Tequila Shooter]

8 hours ago, Major BS Walker Regulator said:

The Mattaponi Sundowners shoot launched soda cans a couple of times a year. Love to watch then spew.

 

I guess it's being in the South, we've been launching sweet tea in plastic bottles.  It doesn't spray like a shaken up can of soda though . 

[Phantom, SASS #54973]

4 hours ago, Tequila Shooter said:

 

I guess it's being in the South, we've been launching sweet tea in plastic bottles.  It doesn't spray like a shaken up can of soda though . 

Sweet tea needs to be shot...

[Captain Bill Burt]

I went to a SC match years ago where they had a Texas Star mounted on a railcar.  You shot an actuator plate which released the Star, and the railcar.   The railcar rolls downhill toward you while the Star spins.  To make it more fun there was a dip and rise in the rails so the car would slow down then speed up.  Lots of fun.  Proud to say I cleaned it, though I got the last plate with my last shot.