Bowling pin plinking ricochet

[Brickmandan]

Anybody ever have ricochet issues shooting at bowling pins? I shoot pins with 9mm and .45 fmj target rounds and haven't had any issues yet but I have heard of people hit while doing this. Seems like a round that doesn't have enough energy to quickly knock the pin off the shelf would have the most chance of a ricochet, like a .22lr.

 

[red_zr24x4]

I've had 9's and 38's bounce off. both were light target loads

 

[Fishersjohn48]

If you shoot bowling pin matches very often you'll find out how often they ricochet back. I've had 45 caliber projectiles smack me in the shins hard enough to draw blood but the bullet didn't hardly look deformed.

 

[oldpink]

There are bullets available with a nose profile designed to minimize ricochets and apply the most energy possible into the pins.
There was even one (dunno if it still exists) dubbed "Pin-Grabber."
The only advice I'd give would be to load fairly stout with an expanding bullet and be sure to always have eyepro on, and it wouldn't hurt to have decently thick jeans and a flannel or other thick shirt with long sleeves to give you some measure of padding against the odd ricochet.

 

[DRob]

Bullets do funny things. Apparently they have not learned how they are supposed to perform when striking a variety of targets. I have twice picked up bullets at Greenwood Point Blank which have bounced back to the firing line only slightly deformed. I gave them to the range officer and each time they said "huh" or something equally informative. I don't know if they were mine or not but I give all my ammo clear instructions before shooting!

 

[shootersix]

I shoot a weekly pin match, and I get splashed all the time, (its a rimfire match) one time my dad and I were plinking, we had hung a pin from a metal frame, and were making it 'dance", he grabbed his 44 lever action, and popped off a round at it, and I hear zing tic tic tic tic, it bounced off the pin and ran through the woods behind it! (over the backstop) the tic sound was the bullet hitting tree limbs!

I was shooting at a paper target, decided to turn and shoot at the falling plates, that were off at a least a 45 degree angle from where I was standing, and one bounced back, hit me in the chest, and left a red mark for a few days!

 

[throttletony]

I was shooting some light & medium 38s against a railroad tie background and had 2 in a row bounce back at me. It was not the first shots, but about 50 rds into my shooting session, I found a "sweet spot" that was just sending them back. Needless to say, I adjusted the target and my position
THey were quite slow, and probably would have felt like a friend throwing a pebble at you - not pleasant, but not lethal either.

 

[boman]

If you shoot bowling pin matches very often you'll find out how often they ricochet back. I've had 45 caliber projectiles smack me in the shins hard enough to draw blood but the bullet didn't hardly look deformed.

This

 

[Twangbanger]

Bowling pins absolutely shoot back. Pins aren't like steel plates that flatten out bullets. They have lots of oblique angles on them, and pins laying on tables create even more interesting angles which are impossible to predict. Sometimes, a bullet glances off multiple pins laying on the table, before coming back.

And: if you shoot somewhere that has someone else shooting a table next to you, simultaneously...guess what? You just doubled your pleasure. (You signed a release form for a reason).

A few years ago, I saw a range officer at one of Marion County's Saturday morning shoots get tagged in the lip with a 45 slug. Be advised.

 

[Sniper 79]

Yes they are not suitable for pistol targets. I only shoot them at long range now with high powered rifles?

 

[m_deaner]

I got hit in the leg with a 45 slug at a pin match once. It didn't draw blood, but it hit hard! Another time, a shooter got his safety glasses broken and had a minor injury to his face. Another guy had a bullet hit his new Honda.