I used to shoot soda cans at 15-75-ish yards in the desert. Gotten hard to find a place to plink, though. At the range, I tend to shoot at 10-15 yards so I can see the holes. Shooting at paper is no better than 1/10th the fun, for me, but civilization....
What distance do you shoot .22LR at the range?
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susieqz
Absent Comrade
my bulls eye range is set up for 25 n 50 yards, one hand.
this is the best training you can do for bunnies.
point shooting is at 7 to 15 yards.
this is the best training you can do for bunnies.
point shooting is at 7 to 15 yards.
slickracer
Member
Out to 100 yards on a 12" steel gong with various revolvers.
I thought this just happened to me! I have seen many targets posted on this forum where the poster claimed they were shot with a pistol freehand and I could not shoot the group with a scoped rifle on a bench rest!
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22 handgun (S&W 41) indoor range with paper targets: 7 - 25 yards but mostly 7 to 10.
Shooting a 1 inch group at 8 yards is just as challenging as shooting a 3 inch group at 24 yards. By shooting close I can see the holes without moving the target closer and do not have to replace the target as often. You can get a lot more distinct groups on the same target by shooting close.
22 handgun (S&W 41) outdoor range with swinging steel targets: 12, 20 or 25 yards, the furthest I can go depending on which range I am shooting at.
When I make the hour plus drive to the gun club I belong to I can stretch things out. With steel I can hear when I get a hit and I can shoot as long as I want without replacing the targets.
22 rifle (CZ452 with scope or Ruger 10/22 with iron sights) outdoors: 7 to 100 yards.
I never shoot the rifles at the indoor range. With the 10/22 I often shoot at the same swinging steel targets at the same distance I use with my 41 and just get more hits. With the CZ the range is usually 50 to 100 yards. Trying to correct for the wind adds an extra challenge. But small targets up close can be fun too. I like to shoot at empty shell cases at 12 yards. I find the aluminum Blazer 9mm or 45 cases work best but when I want an extra challenge there are always plenty of 22 cases lying around. Brass cases work too but if you put a hole in a 45 Colt case all the guys that reload for cowboy shooting act like you committed a crime.
Shooting a 1 inch group at 8 yards is just as challenging as shooting a 3 inch group at 24 yards. By shooting close I can see the holes without moving the target closer and do not have to replace the target as often. You can get a lot more distinct groups on the same target by shooting close.
22 handgun (S&W 41) outdoor range with swinging steel targets: 12, 20 or 25 yards, the furthest I can go depending on which range I am shooting at.
When I make the hour plus drive to the gun club I belong to I can stretch things out. With steel I can hear when I get a hit and I can shoot as long as I want without replacing the targets.
22 rifle (CZ452 with scope or Ruger 10/22 with iron sights) outdoors: 7 to 100 yards.
I never shoot the rifles at the indoor range. With the 10/22 I often shoot at the same swinging steel targets at the same distance I use with my 41 and just get more hits. With the CZ the range is usually 50 to 100 yards. Trying to correct for the wind adds an extra challenge. But small targets up close can be fun too. I like to shoot at empty shell cases at 12 yards. I find the aluminum Blazer 9mm or 45 cases work best but when I want an extra challenge there are always plenty of 22 cases lying around. Brass cases work too but if you put a hole in a 45 Colt case all the guys that reload for cowboy shooting act like you committed a crime.
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AJ
US Veteran
I remember reading that when Elmer Keith was young and herding cattle that they would get bored(imagine that). He and his friends would shoot at an outhouse. Finally they measured the distance at 700 yards. The shooting was done with Colt SAA's in .45 LC, He did the math and figured out they were aiming 34 feet high to be able to hit it and the did hit it.
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AJ
US Veteran
I do not particularly get over excited at shooting at paper , but for the most part it is the only game in town. We can shoot some steel if we bring our own to the range. We do have a .22 steel shoot once a month eight months out of the year(gets to hot during the summer for folks to stand around waiting to shoot). But what I really miss is going to my cousins farm and shooting tin cans and bouncing them around like in "RED RIVER". Or going to the dump and shooting "targets of opportunity. The farm and dump were done at all different ranges.
Green Frog
Member
OK, at 67 years of age and having been a NRA and BSA instructor off and on for about 30 years or so, I can say from experience that the 22 has inherent accuracy for pistols and revolvers to 50 yards (Bullseye competitions were and are held to that distance) and rifles are used in regular competitions on paper out to 200 yards, but more often limited to 100. With new shooters on rifle ranges, 50 feet was a long held standard and in many places still is, and a lot of indoor pistol ranges are limited by space to 50 feet as well. Longer shots for fun are certainly available outdoors, FOR FUN, but they wouldn't be practical for hunting or organized target shooting... more for winning bets, etc. I agree that for teaching pistol shooting, 22s at short distances (5-7 yards or so) is a good starting point, but once the the new shooter is successful it's time to move out to at least the 15 yard/50 foot distance to promote concentration on aiming at a target.
I don't understand the writers who are chiming in here defending Billy Bob and his ilk who come to the range with a bulk box of ammo and see how much damage and destruction they can wreak on the target frames, walls, sound baffles, lights, etc, etc. As one who has to help build and repair the facilities at my local club, I regard these folks as a lower form of humanity. If they bring target material at all, it is junk and trash, and once they have finished mutilating it with the relatively few hits they are capable of making as they randomly blast more-or-less down range, they leave the remnants right where they lie for someone else to pick up. As for target frames, they put their intended targets on the edges of the frame so that if they DO accidentally hit what they "aim" at, it is sure the frame will be damaged. They have even been shooting through the 4x4" steel pipes we use for target stands at 100-300 yards! If you attempt to suggest they might want to hit a regular target somewhere near the center of the frame and properly located on the range, they take the attitude of "what fun is that?" I find all of this pretty strange at my local club as the shotgun sports are big there, and no one would dream of intentionally shooting the low house on a skeet field just to see the pattern. I just don't understand the destructive mentality when a pistol is in their hand. Rant over!
Froggie
I don't understand the writers who are chiming in here defending Billy Bob and his ilk who come to the range with a bulk box of ammo and see how much damage and destruction they can wreak on the target frames, walls, sound baffles, lights, etc, etc. As one who has to help build and repair the facilities at my local club, I regard these folks as a lower form of humanity. If they bring target material at all, it is junk and trash, and once they have finished mutilating it with the relatively few hits they are capable of making as they randomly blast more-or-less down range, they leave the remnants right where they lie for someone else to pick up. As for target frames, they put their intended targets on the edges of the frame so that if they DO accidentally hit what they "aim" at, it is sure the frame will be damaged. They have even been shooting through the 4x4" steel pipes we use for target stands at 100-300 yards! If you attempt to suggest they might want to hit a regular target somewhere near the center of the frame and properly located on the range, they take the attitude of "what fun is that?" I find all of this pretty strange at my local club as the shotgun sports are big there, and no one would dream of intentionally shooting the low house on a skeet field just to see the pattern. I just don't understand the destructive mentality when a pistol is in their hand. Rant over!
Froggie
I understand that people who purposely destroy your property needs to leave and you have every right to ask them to leave.
What I was saying is that unless they are reckless with their weapon, they have just as much right to shoot as you do whether they are a good shot or not.
I have also been in situations where I just left a public range because of the shooters next to me and their antics but don't look down on shooters because they may not be as accurate as me.
Okay enough of this. Sorry to side track the thread. I have seen some ****ty attitude from so called ROs in the past.
If you're talking a .22 handgun then 25 yards is standard for me. I taught my wife to shoot that distance. She had never shot a handgun before. I had her shooting 3"-4" groups at 25 yards in 30 minutes. Shooting is not rocket science. You do the right things you can hit what you're aiming at.
But if you think people are bad shooters for shooting at 7 yards with a .22 let me tell you about the day I went to the range with my Sig P220. A group of guys were shooting 9mm and .45 caliber handguns at 7 yards. They were shooting 8" steel targets at that distance. I can't imagine why they didn't get a bounce back in the face. I looked and there were countless holes in the building around them including over head in the roof. They didn't even realize bullets were bouncing back their way.
Then I asked if they would mind if I moved a target back to shoot farther. They sorta chuckled and said, "Go ahead." I moved the target back to 25 yards and they were laughing every time I turned my head away from them. I thought they were gonna pee their pants they were laughing so hard.
Then I started shooting. Ping. Ping. Ping. They started going on about how "lucky" I was. After about 30 rounds with at least 27 hits they weren't laughing so much. In fact they went to get their friends to come and watch me shoot. Before long there were 30 people standing there watching me shoot. Then they went to get the range master who was apparently the local shooting hero. He came out with a 629 and he was matching my shooting almost shot for shot. We had a big crowd watching this. I couldn't believe they were so easily entertained.
Then I ran out of .45 ammo. I asked the guy to wait while I got another gun out of the truck. I came back with my own 629 and suddenly the guy decides it's "too late" and they need to close the range because there had been complaints about running the lights on the range at night. Yeah right. That club is bulging with cash. They are constantly buying more property and developing it for all sorts of uses from ATV trails to fishing ponds. The local hero didn't want to go up against my 629. He should have because I had just bought that gun and wasn't real familiar with it yet. I had the Sig a long time before that and that thing is a real shooter.
After we were done shooting and I was gathering up my gear one of the laughing guys looked at me and mumbled something about most shootings happening within 7 yards. I about started laughing myself but I wasn't going to be a jerk just because he was.
I don't know what the deal was. I grew up with a gun in my hand I guess but I know lots of people that shoot as well as I do. I guess none of them go to that gun range. Well there was the range master. Shooting straight is not that hard to do. If you learn a few basic things anybody can shoot. But I've seen some that couldn't hit a 4 foot square at 7 yards. I guess no one ever showed them how. Some people I took my CCW class with had to try 3 or 4 times to get shots on the target well enough to get their CCW and it was a man size target at 7 yards. They liked to never got enough hits on target to qualify and the people teaching the class were practically shooting for them. Go figure.
But if you think people are bad shooters for shooting at 7 yards with a .22 let me tell you about the day I went to the range with my Sig P220. A group of guys were shooting 9mm and .45 caliber handguns at 7 yards. They were shooting 8" steel targets at that distance. I can't imagine why they didn't get a bounce back in the face. I looked and there were countless holes in the building around them including over head in the roof. They didn't even realize bullets were bouncing back their way.
Then I asked if they would mind if I moved a target back to shoot farther. They sorta chuckled and said, "Go ahead." I moved the target back to 25 yards and they were laughing every time I turned my head away from them. I thought they were gonna pee their pants they were laughing so hard.
Then I started shooting. Ping. Ping. Ping. They started going on about how "lucky" I was. After about 30 rounds with at least 27 hits they weren't laughing so much. In fact they went to get their friends to come and watch me shoot. Before long there were 30 people standing there watching me shoot. Then they went to get the range master who was apparently the local shooting hero. He came out with a 629 and he was matching my shooting almost shot for shot. We had a big crowd watching this. I couldn't believe they were so easily entertained.
Then I ran out of .45 ammo. I asked the guy to wait while I got another gun out of the truck. I came back with my own 629 and suddenly the guy decides it's "too late" and they need to close the range because there had been complaints about running the lights on the range at night. Yeah right. That club is bulging with cash. They are constantly buying more property and developing it for all sorts of uses from ATV trails to fishing ponds. The local hero didn't want to go up against my 629. He should have because I had just bought that gun and wasn't real familiar with it yet. I had the Sig a long time before that and that thing is a real shooter.
After we were done shooting and I was gathering up my gear one of the laughing guys looked at me and mumbled something about most shootings happening within 7 yards. I about started laughing myself but I wasn't going to be a jerk just because he was.
I don't know what the deal was. I grew up with a gun in my hand I guess but I know lots of people that shoot as well as I do. I guess none of them go to that gun range. Well there was the range master. Shooting straight is not that hard to do. If you learn a few basic things anybody can shoot. But I've seen some that couldn't hit a 4 foot square at 7 yards. I guess no one ever showed them how. Some people I took my CCW class with had to try 3 or 4 times to get shots on the target well enough to get their CCW and it was a man size target at 7 yards. They liked to never got enough hits on target to qualify and the people teaching the class were practically shooting for them. Go figure.
It does take some time and training to shoot bullseye with one hand, but shooting at 25 yards comes pretty quickly. The 50 yard target, really is the tough one. After mastering that, two-handed shooting is a breeze.
RV4driver
US Veteran
"Strip them of their rights"? Whoa! Way to escalate!
OP
AJ
US Veteran
His words not mine or anyone's else's words here. Quick to go into the hover mode.
susieqz
Absent Comrade
25 yards comes quickly?
took me 8,000 practice rounds to get nice groups.
i can't look down my nose at people who have to shoot close up.
if i had to get my stuff together, get in my car n drive to a range i'd never practice.
i'm very good with my guns, but only because my bulls eye range is 6 steps from my back door n my point shooting range is 10 steps from my front door.
there's no substitute for lots of practice.
took me 8,000 practice rounds to get nice groups.
i can't look down my nose at people who have to shoot close up.
if i had to get my stuff together, get in my car n drive to a range i'd never practice.
i'm very good with my guns, but only because my bulls eye range is 6 steps from my back door n my point shooting range is 10 steps from my front door.
there's no substitute for lots of practice.
riversalmon
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My wife and I have a shooting game round our neck o' the woods . We shoot BUGS. That's right. BUGS. We stroll through the hills with our .22 revolvers assisting local pest control agencies. Distances vary from lady bugs at say 15 ft, to the occasional distant 10 yd grasshopper. That being said, necessity requires an occasional follow up shot on more aggressive species. " Don't Forget to Pay the Insurance"
Joe Hohmann
Member
If you are referring to the wood further out, this is caused by near targets being placed too high. A good hit on a very close, but too high, target can hit wood down range.
Our gun club's pistol range has target placement at 7, 25, and 50 yds. You must pass a shooting test at 25 yds to be allowed to shoot at 50. I shoot at 25.
I've got my own range, so I shoot out to 100 yards.
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AJ
US Veteran
Our range understands about where to place the targets and we only have a single carriage per firing point. We have holes in the benches, the overhead, uprights for the baffles and any where else you can think of....... I mean in the front portion of the bench right in front of where their muzzles are. This is a county range with over 100,000 folks with cards to use it.
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