ihmsa forums

About a year ago, Diana & I stopped at the CMP Marksmanship Park at Talledega. Fantastic facility. They had electronic scoring targets at 200, 300, & 600 yards. Just shoot and look at your phone, kindle, or laptop to see where your shot went. I thought....wouldn't that be great if we could convert that to silo.

15 months later, today, I went to a long range rifle class where they talked extensively about F-class. The speaker said the targets were paper but they were in the sensor area as an aiming point, and the sensors scoring rings could be adjusted to show a scoring zone that was actually lower than where your bullets were impacting, so shooters could aim (and score) at the target center but bullets would actually impact perhaps 10 inches above center so the target center would not get shot out and disappear as the match progressed.

And so now my little pea brain is thinking.....can a silo target be superimposed on the computer to show hits on a target? How fast could we run a match if we didn't need target setters, paint, atv's? How many ranges could host a championship if they only needed 3 electronic targets instead of 15 steel rams? I understand, there is a big cost to purchase, and there would have to be an knockdown energy test (similar to USPSA determination of major & minor power factor) but the question remains....

for clubs that could absorb the cost and possibly have multi-use of the targets (based on computer programming) is this possible? particularly for rimfire or FP? The technology is there, the speaker today said he bought an electronic target to practice on for $800.00

Richard, I have been doing some experimentation with electronic targets after hearing of another club doing the same. The system is based on actual steel targets and an impact detection sensor is attached to the back of the target. I am working with piezo sensors. The impact detection is sent to a control module which registers the hit and activates a red LED light that can be seen from the shooter's position. The light stays on for 5 seconds and then the system resets, ready for the next shot. It runs on a single 9 volt battery. One complete unit is required for each target. I have been working with the module and LED light mounted on a stand which is behind and to the side of the target. I'm still working bugs out of the system and there are many factors to consider. Using a steel target means that each bullet impact produces many bullets fragments that can have a detrimental effect on electronics. Cables, modules, sensors, and lights need to be shielded. And like any electronic system, hiccups do occur. Using a system like this does introduce concerns when compared to traditional silhouette target systems. We all like to see the targets fall when hit. It's part of the attraction of our sport. These systems don't provide that, but neither do matches shot on swingers or those times when targets have to be clamped. But an electronic system does have many positive points. A complete target system for a startup club would cost much less than buying a new set of traditional targets. Setting up for a match and target setting during the match is also much less labor intensive. As many match directors grow older and match day help gets harder and harder to find, systems like this do have a lot of allure. I have my electronic system approaching a level of acceptable reliability.

I like the way you're thinking!! Innovation like this may not get many new ranges, but it may have saved some ranges from shutting down. And the cool factor for the individual or small club that can adapt your target to other distances can be a factor too. Stay on it!!

Now if you can just figure out a way to include a sound system that will duplicate the clang of hitting a steel target I could go for this. Love to hear that sound. After all, that is a big part of shooting at steel targets.

260 Striker wrote:Now if you can just figure out a way to include a sound system that will duplicate the clang of hitting a steel target I could go for this. Love to hear that sound. After all, that is a big part of shooting at steel targets.

I do use a steel target.


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