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Resources What color are your targets

Huh ... NEVER shot an FT match or a single FT target with Reticle Illumination turned on ... or had the need too.
Then your MDs aren’t making you work lol. Black targets in shaded brush with destroyed KZ at distance get very tough to range and line up a fine reticle. I’ve had to a number of times but not super often. It’s an in case thing. Especially when it’s overcast in the woods and targets are hidden. The bonuses of getting to shoot in the north woods. I enjoy the challenge though. I think the IR is personal preference. I know other shooters on same course and day who say they used it a ton and I never turned mine on.
 
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In the summer I paint the face plates white, w/ orange, green, yellow targets, depends on what color I'm using on the job site. In the winter I paint the face plates black w/ green/yellow/orange targets. This year I painted four of the faceplates a medium tan color w/ lite gray target. it made the faceplate more realistic, and the targets more challenging to see. I had a target 6' up in a tree between two limbs, 40-yard lane, and it was dusky and cloudy, missed it! the lower one on the ground same color same distance I was able to hit it. The difference was the shadowed/darker background up in the bow of the tree. I had gotten used to the brighter colors on the targets! In keeping with the idea of real-world conditions and making it more challenging, I may paint them all like that.
 
White is very difficult to range at 16x. You need contrast to range and white or black or any other solid color dont do it lol 50x is a different story. I have to use other parts of the target to range, even with the detail, my eyes just cannot do it. I use brush, the clamps, the bolts etc...With dull faces like gray you cannot see misses so its a guessing game.
What you mentioned might explain why a couple of used targets I bought had what I refer to as a ranging feature… like a Shiny glass eyeball or some thing rough glued to part of the faceplate but out of the way
 
We use mostly yellow face plates or light blue with light red kill zones, it definitely evens the playing field as far as seeing your cross hairs, my falcon has real fine cross hairs compared to my Sightron,2 courses we shoot are open fields and their usually no problem either scope, the other courses 100 ft plus pines well shaded lanes, hardwood semi open on overcast days can be tough without a light color kill zone . I think red should be the standard color for kill zones.
 
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We use mostly yellow face plates or light blue with light red kill zones, it definitely evens the playing field as far as seeing your cross hairs, my falcon has real fine cross hairs compared to my Sightron,2 courses we shoot are open fields and their usually no problem either scope, the other courses 100 ft plus pines well shaded lanes, hardwood semi open on overcast days can be tough without a light color kill zone . I think red should be the standard color for kill zones.
Some folks are color blind... see earlier discussion in this thread... So. a Red KZ may adversely affect them, but IMO, lighter face plates and a good contrasting KZ are the ultimate course equalizer esp when considering a 16X scope limitation / choice in HFT.
 
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Some of my field targets, Some just jump right out and others blend in with the desert and hard to pick out.

field targets 1.jpg