Low-power pellet safety?
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Low-power pellet safety?
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Topic: Low-power pellet safety? (Read 6426 times))
1911plinker
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Low-power pellet safety?
«
on:
February 22, 2012, 01:32:44 PM »
First off, I apologize if this has already been covered. I tried the search function, but apparently wasn't using the right key words. Please feel free to just post a link if there are existing posts on this topic.
I'm used to powder-burners, but new to air guns. But I've always been a little paranoid about gun safety (paranoia being a good thing in this case
) and I'm trying to figure the safety limits of pellet guns.
I've just gotten a 400 fps target pistol, and am considering getting a 500~600 fps rifle. Both in 177, and both to be used for a combination of indoor target practice and quiet outdoor plinking (maybe moving up to hunting grasshoppers and pest control later on).
Indoors
For logistical reasons, I would really like to use a cardboard box as a pellet trap. Is filling one with an old blanket enough? Do I need to pack it with 6 inches of newspaper? In the event of an AD (accidental discharge), will a low power pellet penetrate drywall?
Outdoors
I don't have a fenced yard, but there are some woods a few hundred yards from the houses on my street (but with other structures beyond the woods). I would consider that
way
too close for a 22LR bullet. Aside from the noise factor, there is always chance that a bullet might hit an unseen rock and bounce off in an unexpected direction. But I'm thinking that a low velocity 177 pellet isn't going to have a whole lot of energy to start with, and even less if it's already bounced off of something. What are the rules for outdoor shooting distances?
btw – all this assumes that all of the normal gun safety rules are being followed, I have selected a safe backstop, etc. But outdoors there's always a possibility of shooting into a "safe" pile of leaves and dirt and finding out that something hard was covered up by the leaves. Or having an AD (not that
any
of us have ever had a gun go off by accident, of course
). But you figure safe shooting rules based on the worst case possibilities.
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Tpatner412
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Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #1 on:
February 22, 2012, 01:40:52 PM »
As far as the pellet trap idea goes you can use blankets or old clothing without much issue. I have an 8 inch deep box packed with old shirts and most of the pellets get stopped by the first shirt.
As for your outdoor question, if you don't have anyone around for a hundred yards or more you will probably be more than fine with the lower powered guns. As long as proper safety is made priority then you will be fine
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Cleveland, OH
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1911plinker
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Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #2 on:
February 22, 2012, 01:46:52 PM »
Thanks, that's just what I was needing to know.
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Kailua
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Real Name: Paul
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #3 on:
February 22, 2012, 01:51:27 PM »
Old blanket or rags like Tpartner412 uses would work. I have old towels in mine. You may put a 3/4'' backing just in case the cloth get over shredded or shifts.
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Kailua (Oahu) Hawaii
GungaDin
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Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #4 on:
February 22, 2012, 02:21:57 PM »
The pellet trap I used to have was a cardboard box with around 4 - 6 inches thickness of old magazines as the backstop, with crumpled up newspapers in front of that filling up the empty space inside the box. Stopped EVERYTHING, pellets AND BB's.
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Nathan
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Real Name: Nathan
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #5 on:
February 22, 2012, 03:39:04 PM »
Indoors using the stuffed box should work fine. Just periodically inspect it and repack/replace as necessary to avoid shooting through the box.
A pellet (even lower powered)under certain circumstances can ricochet and travel a considerable distance. I don't know how your yard/shooting area is laid out, but here's a few things I've done before.
Hay bales: Make good back stops. Their large enough to provide a back stop, biodegradable, quiet, relatively cheap and can stop even powerfull pellets.
Old carpet: You can find it for free, and hang it over a old saw horse or similar item. That will work well to slow/stop errant shots.
Plywood, old boards: They can be used as backstops. They are louder if you hit them (if noise is a concern) and you can shoot through them with repeated hits in the same areas.
Just depends on what you want to do. With some creativity, you can set a safe shooting real easy.
Nathan
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Evans, Colorado
ac12
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Posts: 2333
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #6 on:
February 22, 2012, 04:52:31 PM »
YES a low velocity pellet "could" go thru drywall.
It does depend on a bunch of variables; specific velocity of YOUR gun, how close to the dry wall when you hit it, what pellet, what angle, etc.
The 400fps target pistol will likely not go thru. But I don't have a scrap of drywall to test it on.
I used a box of newspaper and magazines, cuz its essentially free material. BUT you must put 2-3 inches of wadded up newspaper as the first layer. I've had pellets bounce out because they hit DENSE paper they they could not penetrate. Don't use glossy newspaper or magazines, except for the last 2 inches. The glossy paper is the dense stuff. The wadded up newspaper will catch the bouncers.
Check the trap often. Shoot too much in the same spot and the wadded newspaper will be shredded thru and won't do its job. Also have something like sheet of cardboard a couple inches from the back that you can easily pull out to check for penetration. If/when the pellet hits that cardboard, you need to replace the stuff in front.
As for pellet bounce back, I have had a pellet hit the side of a metal trap and a pellet fragment bounced back 5 meters and hit me in the face. So yes you do need to be careful of what the pellet hits, even with a low powered AP.
«
Last Edit: February 22, 2012, 05:06:33 PM by ac12
»
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JohnHenry
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Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #7 on:
February 22, 2012, 07:04:21 PM »
A note of caution with boards and plywood backstops. Ive had pellets hit the backstop flatten and spring back to my bench in the basement. (35') I like the suggestion of an old carpet with the wood behind it.
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Eats Lyme, CT
RedFeather
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Posts: 4741
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #8 on:
February 22, 2012, 07:29:40 PM »
You can stuff your box with plastic grocery bags. I knot them up and wedge them in. There is a steel plate at the back of the box and I have yet to hear a plink. This is from a 54 in .177 and an RX .20, both high powered springers, at twenty feet. The bags will tear a bit but eventually they will compress and then start "sucking up" the pellets. Lead is very cohesive and will form a ball after a while. Before this I had a Crosman 2260 and shot into a box with some carpet scraps, hardboard and a piece of particle board as a backer. I stopped after one or two shots when I heard something hit the concrete wall. Punched clean through, especially since I was shooting Crosman domed pellets. The best carpet trap that I have seen is one where a guy cut the carpet into squares and then stacked them in a press, shooting into the edges. I doubt a centerfire would make it through.
Before you go shooting outdoors, be sure to check you local regulations. You might be surprised (and disappointed) to find that some areas lump pellet guns in with firearms, applying the same restrictions and punishments. Better safe than cited.
A 600 fps .177 will easily penetrate wallboard. Not sure how far, depending up the thickness, but it will definitely make a hole in one side. Every air gun purchased for indoor use should come with a can of spackling compound. You will need it, sooner or later.
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MustangMike
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Posts: 6655
Real Name: Mike
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #9 on:
February 22, 2012, 09:26:57 PM »
i use a card board box that was used to ship wheels and tires in ( one wheel and tire per box ) stuffed with a old dog bed and then backed with a layer of old blue jeans followed by old pillows.. after 2000 or so shots i finally had one pellet blow through it when i cranked the power adjuster on my disco to full power.. other then that it stopped every other pellet and the loudest sound was the pellet hitting the card board. but after about 100 shots or so the card falls apart and leaves a nice circleish shape where the targets hang so it becase silent
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bobster
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Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #10 on:
February 23, 2012, 10:50:44 AM »
Re noise of gun, if it's a co2 gun such as crosman 22xx carbine, using a tko muzzle brake will reduce it by over 50%.
Re pellet energy/penetration, use chair gun to show you how fast energy decreases with range for your specific pellet and fps. You'll find that with flat head wadcutter pellets the energy drop off is extremely fast. There are lots of poeople on here that say they are deadly extremely dangerous etc but I doubt they have actually tested it much. I've shot a piece of window glass from 3 feet away with .177 wadcutters and it does absolutely nothing. Pellet head shape is very important in terms of retained energy as is the mass of the pellet. Use lighter weight wadcutters for maximum safety.
Re pellet trap, just buy the cheap crosman ($19) or do-all ($13) pellet trap then put four sticks of duct seal on the back. It will be totally silent and trap all pellets that hit the duct seal. Total cost $18-$25.
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crowpopper
Pistol Man
Expert
Posts: 1104
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #11 on:
February 23, 2012, 11:45:20 AM »
Quick tip i do for indoor traps for low powered guns take platic milk jug and fill 3/4 full of great stuff foam insulation it will expand and fill jug. Will take hundreds of low powered shots thenjust turn jug there are 4 sides to shoot at befor you have to toss it and make a new one
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1911plinker
Guest
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #12 on:
February 23, 2012, 12:12:00 PM »
Thanks for the input, everyone. Several excellent ideas and good information.
Any more suggestions?
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Crosshairs
Expert
Posts: 1478
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #13 on:
February 23, 2012, 12:25:46 PM »
I like to use old news papers in the box and put a thick piece of plywood behind it incase i miss the trap. It will last a long time and it's very safe.
Mike
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Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #14 on:
February 23, 2012, 12:40:32 PM »
Lot of good ideas for pellet traps. I have a old electric box filled with about 5 lbs of duct seal. works like a charm for most guns. I've shot guns with 850 fps into it and never has it hit the back of the box, which is about 5" thick. I also have a couple of other 10"x12"x6" metal boxes filled with carpet. the carpet absorbs the pellets really good even the 850fps guns. The duct seal needs to be cleaned out every once in awhile, its reuseable, just needs a little added to make up for loss when cleaning up the trap. the carpet , well I have yet to shoot to the back of the box. once I can put my finger/fist in about an inch or two, its time to add new carpet. I add to the back , bring the back forward.. Thicker carpet works best, less carpet needed.
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Tpatner412
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Real Name: Tyler
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #15 on:
February 23, 2012, 02:49:33 PM »
I should have added something to my original post. My trap packed with shirts and clothing will stop 40 fpe no problem from point blank range. And the shirts weigh enough to keep the trap heavy so it doesn't rock or move at all
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Cleveland, OH
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SAADE
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Posts: 2136
Re: Low-power pellet safety?
«
Reply #16 on:
February 23, 2012, 03:24:25 PM »
Quote from: 1911plinker on February 23, 2012, 12:12:00 PM
Thanks for the input, everyone. Several excellent ideas and good information.
Any more suggestions?
Regardless of what you make or use, most of a lower power projectiles energy is absorbed by loose but dense materials. The Kevlar blankets hung in a .22 PB trap take nearly all the eneregy out of the bullet before it hits the hard backstop. Squeeze those same Kevlar blankets down and soak them in resin to make them stiff, and the .22 will poke holes in e'm. Same principle as the loose netting used in hardball backstops for pitching practice.
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Brian in Idaho
Airguns Owned: More Than I Need and Less Than I Want!
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Low-power pellet safety?