How far would you feel safe shooting up to a .30 cal slug without a backstop? I want to shoot in a pasture that is 900 yards long with trees at the back and no houses beyond. I don't want to put in dirt piles as berms because I have a farmer who cuts the hay and it would make his job more difficult.
For those with home ranges
- Thread starter cmatera
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A ballistics calculator will tell you how quickly that round will fall to earth. Without a velocity, there's no way to really answer, but 900 yards should be plenty.
GsT
GsT
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Assuming you're just shooting flat, the chance of a slug ricocheting off a rock and going anywhere near 900yds seems highly unlikely. That being said if a 45gr slug (assuming 1000fps and a BC of 0.11) did manage to make it 900yds unhindered you'd be carrying about 5fpe of energy at that range still. I dont know that a ricochet that lost energy and stability would even make it that far.
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Pffft. I shoot .30 slugs out to 135 yards here. There's another 100 yards of field after that.
Then roughly 1/4 mile of woods till there are houses. I don't worry a bit about going into the woods.
I doubt the slug would go 20 foot in there before hitting a tree.
Then roughly 1/4 mile of woods till there are houses. I don't worry a bit about going into the woods.
I doubt the slug would go 20 foot in there before hitting a tree.
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Think I'd feel better with some sort of backstop, maybe simple braced section of 3/4 plywood. If a person, pet or livestock was injured, at least you'd know an effort towards safety had been taken. WM
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I read the title and thought, "Sure, I have a home range" and then opened the thread to find home range equivocated to 900 yards. So on second thought, I don't actually have a home range 
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That was my first thought tooI read the title and thought, "Sure, I have a home range" and then opened the thread to find home range equivocated to 900 yards. So on second thought, I don't actually have a home range
My second thought was does he need help playing on that home rangeUpvote 0
imo theres really nothing to worry about with most pellet guns if you got a couple of hundred yards, unless you are angling way up to shoot far on purpose .. if it hits the ground its dissappated enough it wont do any damage even with larger calibers beyond a couple hundred .. that said i wouldnt shoot towards dwellings or vehicals or people if its a straight line of sight, tends to make people get nervous lol if they happen to see you ..could cause an incident even if nothing physically happened..
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You could take a 4x4 and a 2X4 and cut them up and nail them together to make a square shaped back stop that would not be too heavy to move as needed. That is what I use but I also have tupperware totes filled with dirt behind them which is overkill. Then I have a mile of woods.
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Your's may not be 900 yards but it IS a fun range! I've visited it twice and can say that!I read the title and thought, "Sure, I have a home range" and then opened the thread to find home range equivocated to 900 yards. So on second thought, I don't actually have a home range
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Just build a simple, portable backstop and shoot where ever you like.
I have a 1/8"x 32"x32" sheet of tempered steel sheet. I welded 1" angle to the bottom just for simple legs. Air rifles don't even dent it and it's light enough I can pick it up by hand and move it where I want it. It will never wear-out or need repair. Pellets flatten out and just fall to the ground at the base of the steel plate. No ricochet.
I built a simple wooden target stand to hold paper targets and I sit that about 3' in front of the steel backstop so I don't get splatter bouncing back through the paper targets. Works about as well as an airgun shooter could hope for.
I have a 1/8"x 32"x32" sheet of tempered steel sheet. I welded 1" angle to the bottom just for simple legs. Air rifles don't even dent it and it's light enough I can pick it up by hand and move it where I want it. It will never wear-out or need repair. Pellets flatten out and just fall to the ground at the base of the steel plate. No ricochet.
I built a simple wooden target stand to hold paper targets and I sit that about 3' in front of the steel backstop so I don't get splatter bouncing back through the paper targets. Works about as well as an airgun shooter could hope for.
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I would spend a few minutes with a ballistics program to see how much drop your projectiles will have at 900 yards. I suspect it will be plenty. Chairgun says my P35-25 can launch a Nielsen 26.8 grain slug 1200 yards but it would have to be aimed at an upward 30 degree angle. So it is possible you could carry further than 900 yards but only if you are pointed fairly steeply up. If shooting a target within 6 feet of the ground I don't think there is a problem.
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I'm guessing a standing level shot will hit the ground at 150 yards, the chances of that slug or pellet going another 750 yards not going to happen, your completely safe.
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I use 3/4" plywood sheets x 2 just to be safe. Works well and doesn't cost a fortune. Worth it for the peace of mind for sure!
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I use a piece of softwood log (white pine, cedar or spruce) mounted of three legs as a backstop.
They're good for thousands of shots and it's pretty easy to reclaim the lead. With all the materials handy it takes about 15 minutes to make one.
They're good for thousands of shots and it's pretty easy to reclaim the lead. With all the materials handy it takes about 15 minutes to make one.
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Do something to elevate yourself so you're shooting into the ground as your backstop. Shoot from the bed of a pickup, flatbed, wagon or something similar. Build yourself a large treeshelf/deck, so you aren't relying on a vehicle or contraption that has to be moved constantly. High enough to be out of the way of farming, but not necessarily high up.
It all depends on whether you want a static shooting space that's ready when you are, or something that has to be moved in and out of position. Any barns nearby? Set up or build someplace to shoot inside or out of the barn. Keep it fun. You'll figure it out.
Good luck!
Bubba
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