Fun, cheap, biodegradable, reactive targets. I'll take your ideas.
Posted by RoSearch1776@reddit | Firearms | View on Reddit | 32 comments
Cheap, reactive, biodegradable. Can be two of the three. Shooting on my buddies land. Generally 50 meters. Less with pistols.
My ideas so far.
Tostadas. Cheap, reactive, biodegradable.
Large russet potatoes. Ultra cheap from Costco. Totally biodegradable. Zero clean up and maybe a fun reaction. Need to test it. Might need a quick burst of spray paint so they stand out.
Empty wide mouth bottles filled with flour so they poof or make a smoke cloud. Using wide mouth plastic bottles like vitamin bottles I'd throw away anyway.
Water bottles, milk jugs, and other plastic containers I'd throw away anyway. Filled with the hose.
We will have steel plates too of course. We have built homemade target stands to put these things on.
Honorable mentions. Pumpkins are super fun but a bit pricey and out of season. Watermelons are great but explode pretty easy and the cost adds up. Walmart pop was a go to for years but it's more expensive and kinda sucks picking up all the sticky aluminum.
I'll take any other ideas here.
Puzzleheaded_Gas_750@reddit
Im late but apples actually work great and, depending on the season, are decently cheap. Last time we went out they were far and away the most fun/reactive. Gave a really satisfying ‘explosion’ with 5.56
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
Worth a shot. Thanks! I'm gambling on potatoes. Hopefully them and apples have the same density and water content. I'll grab both if prices are good and see which is better.
_NotmyShadow_@reddit
Is mayonnaise biodegradable?
Helopilot1776@reddit
Rotisserie chicken plus jar of tanner night equals lols
Kevthebassman@reddit
Bowling pins. I buy them local for $20 a case, gets you ten pins. They last a shockingly long time just shooting pistols at them. Rifles chew them up pretty quick though. Makes for fun games, set them up on sawhorses or something, ten in a row with something smaller like a clay bird or your target of choice in the middle, you and a buddy shoot from each end and see who can knock down all their pins and hit the clay bird first.
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
Good idea. Where do you buy them?
Kevthebassman@reddit
Mid-America Arms in STL always has some. You gotta buy em local, shipping kills the whole deal.
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
I actually found a local guy on market place selling them for a buck a pin. Thanks for the idea!
Kevthebassman@reddit
No problem brother! Bowling pins are a family favorite.
Don’t ever shoot them with birdshot though, it will bounce back.
AR-Trvlr@reddit
Tums.
Ornery_Secretary_850@reddit
There are these caps you can buy that allow you to pressurize empty water bottles.
Put some chalk powder in them, pump them up, shoot them. The caps are reusable.
firearmresearch00@reddit
Pumpkins are alright if you find them cheap in the fall, but I recommend punching a small hole in the top and filling them with water. Otherwise I like getting the cheapest shittiest spray paint around, beat up cans from the clearance rack at the local economy store for example
bplipschitz@reddit
Water filled milk jugs don't go "blooey" IME, unless you're shooting a round that'll make it go "blooey" (like glazer safety slugs).
Filling them with Jell-O might be interesting, tho. . .
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
I thought about putting some dish soap in and maybe Alka Seltzer tablets right before setting them up to shoot. Pressure and lather for a better reaction was my thought but I have no idea if it would work
benmarvin@reddit
Saltine crackers. Then when the birds show up, you have moving targets.
soiledmeNickers@reddit
Funny joke, or illegal advice?
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
Probably illegal. Depending on state laws certain birds can be taken as nuisance animals when certain criteria are met. Some can be unprotected and taken at any time. If you do this you probably shouldn't share your stories with the Game Warden.
soiledmeNickers@reddit
Yes probably not 😂
NoNameJustASymbol@reddit
Just like I leave pigs for the coyotes.
vs120slover@reddit
Saltine crackers.
SmoothSlavperator@reddit
Railroad tie plates.
Ask someone that works for the railroad if you can "borrow" some. Whenever they do railwork they discard the plates that go between the rails and the plates along the bed. They'll remain there for decades until someone comes by with the magnet crane and scoops them up for recycling.
Once you get permission, snag some, shoot them, and when they get all shot up, return them to where you found them.
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
Interesting idea. Thank you! Definitely would want permission.
SmoothSlavperator@reddit
If you get a cheap ~$100 stick welder off of Amazon, you can connect 5 into an Iron Maiden-esque silhouette.
iBoofWholeZipsNoLube@reddit
Do you have any old ammo for calibers you don't run anymore? You could take a piece of cardboard and poke holes in it and fill the holes with live .22 shells so you have something a little more reactive. Just be mindful of shrapnel if closer than 10 yards.
Shadow_Law@reddit
Cheap, reactive, biodegradable - you have described clay pigeons. Downsides are that the reactivity is simple rather than pronounced and the degredation takes several years, but it's not clear whether that's an issue.
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
We've tried them before and they were great. However this is shared family land and there were some complaints about the clay pigeons not degrading fast enough.
Practical-Square8893@reddit
Melons, Coconut, pineapple, go to the dollar store or Walmart and get some of those cheap 2 liter sodas. I've also done a lot of cabbage.
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
Cabbage? Fun reaction? I'll try that. Bonus points if it's any food that deer like. This is my buddys families hunting land so increased deer traffic is good.
We didn't think coconuts were that good last fall. At least not in comparison to pumpkins, melons, and gourds.
Going to be filling my used bottles with the hose. Used to use pop but it's sticky to clean and might save money using trash bottles.
Practical-Square8893@reddit
With the right 12 gauge loading you can make some coleslaw outta a head of cabbage. I've made it rain Coconut before with these expanding shotgun shell slugs before. Melons are my favorite though, they explode nice and are easy to see where you hit
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
Makes sense. We definitely favor 5.56, .308, and 9MM. I could see how those would be a blast with 12 gauge.
RAD_Sr@reddit
Dollar Store sidewalk chalk sticks.
RoSearch1776@reddit (OP)
I'll add that to the list. Do they make a fun smoke cloud?