Make it snappy: practice with innovative targets

Time Well Spent June 15, 2022

The editor gets some valuable practice with some innovative targets

Whether you’re getting some practice, plinking or shooting with your pals, reactive targets are always the most fun. Sure, putting groups on paper targets is very informative, but things that move are way more satisfying. I mostly use spinners because they move and don’t need to be reset, but I fancied a change.

At the British Shooting Show the good folks from Snappy Targets came to see us and dropped off some samples of their products. They’re made from birch plywood, laser cut to all sorts of shapes. The large wheel has 37 separate 15mm target discs that you can shoot, while smaller and more funky shapes are available too.

All the targets are drilled so that you can quickly and easily screw or nail them to a log or other chunk of wood. At your range, you could even devise a holder for your favourite shape.

Apart from the wheel, the target that appealed to me most was the Rocket. This is shaped like a Christmas tree with the target discs getting smaller towards the top. I like to practise at typical hunting distances on targets that represent the size of the kill zone of my quarry, i.e. the brain. Even our largest quarry, the rabbit, only has a small brain, so if I can regularly break off the 15mm discs I know my accuracy is on.

I like a challenge and the 9mm targets at the top really test my skill, but that’s the point, for me. It’s frustrating not to hit these consistently, and only the best rifle, scope and pellet combination will be able to do it at 30 yards, but the reward for success is great.

I also like the fact that they encourage hunters to limit their ideas about effective range. Too many people think that because they can hit a 3” disc, now and then, at 50 yards, it is their maximum hunting distance, but when you ask them to hit the 15mm discs at that distance they soon change their mind.

Prices are surprisingly low; for example, six of the Rocket targets is £6 and five wheel targets cost £7.50 plus £2 postage. That means that you get 185 targets for less than a tenner, which sounds like a bargain to me. Their final benefit is, anything that makes you practise more will improve your accuracy and consistency and that always has to be a good thing.

www.snappytargets.co.uk

Tel 01942 514421