Old tires as a backstop for 1377? Seems like a bad idea to me.

[Smaug]

I just saw this video at The Sportsman's Guide's site:

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/site/videos/69172/69172-Crosman_1377c_Target_Pistol.wmv

[mav72]

Yep, bad idea... Once when I was a kid, I tried shooting at a tire and had pellets bounce back at me...

[Rescue35]

It depends. If they are held rigid then no. If they only have one end supported (top) it would be as safe as many other media used to decelerate projectiles.

[dkwflight]

Hi
I have to agree shooting at anything that can bounce a pellet back at the shooter or others is very bad.
The commercial steel traps are angled so the pellets bounce into the trap.
Years ago I shot at a piece of oak with a spring pistol. The pellet bounced back at from 20-25' and if it hit my eye I would have blinded my self. As it was the pellet left a mark on my cheek.

Use care, these guns are not toys.

[Pete]

I use 12mm thick conveyor belt...
hanging from the top..So it can
move when the pellet hits...

but tyres don't seem like a good idea

[randomgunner]

Oh no, its ok. Then pew, and suddenly look down and see blood.
No, its not a good idea.

[Nathan]

Very bad idea.

 IMO

Nathan

[1377x]

dont gunranges use old tires in/on the backstop
the ones in my area do

[bodybag0]

Rubber? Not the best choice.

[fla45fan]

not solid tires - you will get pellets bouncing back at you;

ground up tires can be used for pistol and rifle ranges as the chunks move as the bullets hit and disapate the energy

[CharlieDaTuna]

Whether held rigid or not, it is a very bad idea. Depending on the power and the pellet, pellets would have no problem bouncing off many bicycle tires let alone a standard size automobile tire. I can't believe anybody in their right mind would even consider using tires as a back stop.

CDT

[dkwflight]

Hi

One exception I can think of.
Here in Fla, ground up tires are available. The pieces are roughly 1/2 by 3/4" dyed brownish red.
A box of the rubber mulch might be acceptable as a trap. WHen a hole is shot in the box it will need to be repaired so the mulch won't fall out.
I haven't tried this as I built a different type trap.

The putty traps others have described need to have the pellets removed and the dum dum re spread out to trap pellets properly. If you shoot a lot the pellets pile up and pellets start bouncing out.

[wrecktangle]

I work at a (government) site that has a state of the art multi-million dollar range, that was completed only a couple years ago. The back stops are a steel sloping arrangement topped off with several feet of ground up tires. Every now and then, when picking up the brass you find a few lead pieces. For the high power firearms, frangible ammo is used.

A certified HazMat company comes in every couple months to sift the rubber and collect the lead.

We shoot mostly .40's with some .223 and NATO rounds and of course, 00 Buck.

[Ol'DeadEye]

What ever happened to plain old sandbags?

A 50 lb. bag of sand is only $3 @ Lowes. Three bags should be enough.

Spread a piece of landscaping fabric on the ground to catch the sand as it trickles out of the shot-up bags.   Filter and reuse in new bags as needed.  I use the reusable grocery bags sold for $1.00 at most grocery stores.  My contribution to the holy "green" movement.

I have my target trap contained in a re-purposed compost bin with one side cut out.

From my neighbors yards it looks like a plain old compost bin.

[Smaug]

Yeah, we're not talking about ground-up tires here. If you watch the video, you'll see the background is ful tires stacked up.

I don't think real bullets would bounce off of them, but I sure bet pellets do.

[wrecktangle]

Back in the old days when .38's were issued to police officers, we were taught not to try to shoot out tires because of the ricochet. Even using +P rounds wouldn't guarantee a puncture. This was well demonstrated by our range officers.

[MustangMike]

Ya I wouldn't use intact tires.. currently I use a card board box pack with old blue jeans and other clothes either worn down to bad to wear or don't fit.. so far I have shot 1750 rds from a co2 pistol, 500 from a 177 rifle and a few hunred .22 cphp from a bigcat into the box and not a single blow through out the back. All shot inside or in the garage

[RedFeather]

One of these days that guy is gonna shoot a light, squib or gallery-type load and get a Hindu tattoo right between the eyes.  That's about the stupidest backstop I've ever seen, bar vertical steel plates.  No, I take that back.  Steel plates can deform a projectile.