Canadian Airgun Forum

I was at Dick's sporting goods store in the U.S. the other day and notice about 50 different types of bow and arrow targets, most of them were fairly big and bulky but at the same time not too heavy and I was wondering if anyone has used any of these for air guns? Some of them seemed like they would be great for pellets and bb's while also being quiet to shoot at. There where many different materials used in these targets also so some would be better than others.

Here's a secret recipe that came from the archery world.

Fill a box with plastic grocery store bags, not tightly, but with sufficient mass that you have to push the bags down snuggly in order to seal up the box. You now have a target box that cannot be penetrated by either arrow or pellet. Depth (thickness) of the box may vary with distance and power, but I'll give you an example: I shoot <500 handguns and rifles (many of them right on the 490 mark) from 6 yards to ten yards away, and not once has a pellet penetrated a box <8" deep.

Don't ask "how?" No one has yet offered a totally scientific and satisfactory answer in the archery world: it just works. The plastic material, with sufficient mass and yet ample moving room deflects energy in unsuspected ways.

This is probably the third time I have posted this tip, and it's obvious by zero feedback in either of the previous cases that the proposition is "incredulous" enough to ignore.

Try it and report back.

I will definitely give this a try. I certainly have no reason to doubt a long standing member such as yourself but it seems like it shouldn't work. My wife keeps every plastic bag that enters the house so supply isn't an issue. Thanks for the economical idea.

_________________
CP 99 Compact

@ Edmonton<500: I DO use that tip, with a small variation. I use a big metallic coffee can, which is about 8'' deep, packed with grocery bags. 6'' self-sticking target are a perfect fit on the lid, which is easily replaced when needed. Ideal for 5 to 10 yards shooting, easily stored, a perfect ''small scale'' pellets and BBs catcher! And thanks for sharing, I found that so obvious, I never thought to mention it!

_________________
If everything's so lovely yeah, then why don't I, why don't I, why don't I, why don't I feel lovely?

The archery club I used to attend, used plastic grocery bags pressed into cardboard boxes for their target butts. All indoors at 20yards and the size of a 20 yard archery target. The boxed sat on their side, with the bottom's facing the shooter, a square of cardboard for the target backer and target were taped (roll packing tape dispenser) over the cardboad. After every match 30 arrows, we'd replace the cardboard backer and fluff the bags inside if they became compressed. Even the 80 pound cam'd compounds did not shoot through them with 600gr. arrows with field points.

_________________
Best Wishes
Daryl

Great idea. Thanks.

_________________
CP 99 Compact

Thanks everyone for the reply's, I will definitely try the plastic bags and I do like the large tin can thing too. At the moment I have a large work boot box full of newspaper and a thick pair of denim shorts taped to the back of the box only at the top so the shorts can move a little and no pellets have penetrated through the shorts yet. The thing is when I saw these large light plastic/foam type targets and several other materials for the bow and arrows I thought they would be excellent long lasting air gun targets and wondered if anyone has ever used them for this purpose? Thanks again for the reply's and will probably have a new plastic bag trap by the weekend haha