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The Caldwell Magnum Rifle Gong – a 10” metal target that reacts well, is easily transported, designed for a long life, and easily maintained.

Author: Shane Cossar, June 2011

Introduction
My home handy man skills aren’t much more than Form II woodwork, so cutting targets and building frames just isn’t an option.  And freight for heavy targets from the USA is prohibitive.  Fortunately, there’s now a reliable metal reactive target available to New Zealand shooters at a reasonable cost - the Magnum Rifle Gong from Caldwell Shooting Supplies (part of Battenfield Technologies).

As Match Director for the Gunslinger events I’ve learned a thing or two about metal reactive targets.  Ideally they need to be; transportable and erectable by one person, able to withstand hits from multiple calibres, react well at long distances, and be able to take hits on the frame (because frames do get shot up).  The Magnum Rifle Gong ticks all those boxes, plus it’s easily maintained.

For information about the Caldwell Magnum Rifle Gong visit:
www.battenfeldtechnologies.com/caldwell/catalog.asp?product=magnum-rifle-gong

Frame and Gong
The Magnum Rifle Gong comes in a flat box, so it easily fits in the boot of a car, behind the front car seats or on the back of a ute.  The frame is in five pieces; two bases, two uprights and a cross support.  They simply slot into each other to provide a rigid frame.  There are two rods to push into the ground to stop the frame moving backwards on impact.  The gong has two bolt holes, and is bolted to the frame by two chains and S hooks.  It took about three minutes to unpack, and assemble.  Once it’s together (35" wide, 33" high, and 35" deep) it can easily be repositioned as a single item  by one person.

The gong is 3/8” thick AR 550 steel, which means it is abrasion resistant to a Brinell hardness of 550 – and that’s the gold standard for high velocity rifle targets.  In practical terms that means you can generally shoot it (without damaging it) with a rifle bullet with a muzzle velocity less than 3250fps at as close as 100 yards.  A test shot with a .338 at 100m produced no hole, no bulge, and no damage.  Being 3/8” thick means it has a very audible “ding” when hit.  So unless it is very, very windy you’ll be hearing hits at a 1000m (just another reason to get electronic hearing protectors).

The gong is a 10” round target.  That represents an approximately ten MOA target at 100yards and a one MOA target at 1000 yards (914m).  So it’s a very handy size, and suitable for gas gun operators and bolt action precision rifle shooting at long ranges.

Because the gong hangs by chains it visibly moves when it’s hit, absorbing the energy of the shot, and thereby reducing damage and extending the life of the gong.  The other advantage of the chains and S link is that if it is shot through it can easily be fixed in the field – just use a D ring or some wire.

The Caldwell Magnum Rifle Gong is available from most gun shops in New Zealand including:

Dead Eye Dicks Shooting Supplies:
www.deadeyedicks.co.nz/cms/

Gun City:
www.guncity.co.nz

Protect Your Investment
The frame came painted black, and the gong was painted white.  As there are no moving parts it can be left out in the field for extended periods.  A simple touch up with a can of spray paint will keep it looking great making hits on the gong very visible.

Caldwell state the maximum impact velocity of the bullet should be below 3000fps, and the maximum impact energy of the bullet should be below 3500 lb-ft, and that the target is not rated for .50BMG.  Various ballistic calculators can identify the impact energy of a bullet at different distances.

While there is no universal formula for identifying when damage will occur, the general agreement is that damage is caused primarily by velocity, and to a lesser degree by mass.  So as a simple rule, if you want to maximise the life of the target never shoot steel targets with armour piercing bullets (they’ll obviously make a hole), or bullets with a MV greater than 3250 fps.  If you shoot with higher MVs put the targets a lot further back.
 
For your own safety never shoot steel targets with steel core bullets (they’ll come back at you), or shoot them with rifle bullets less than 100 yards away.  And be aware that hits will cut a swath on the ground.  For safety down-range the targets should have a backstop – and that will also help with getting visible impacts for misses which will aid identifying corrective actions.

Ideas For Fun Shoots
The Caldwell Magnum Rifle Gong is simply fun to shoot.  Use it for precision shooting at long ranges.  As your confidence and ability improves, just move them out to longer distances.  Try some rapid fire drills at 500m, and use alternative shooting positions.  Or get a few and set-up some shooting stages with your mates. 

This is a classic metal target, and I like it so much we’ll be using them for some of the high round count practice and training stages for Gunslinger events. 

Disclaimer:  Shooting is potentially dangerous and damaged equipment can be expensive to fix.  You should confirm all changes to be made to your rifle system and shooting practices with your local gunsmith or gunshop owner.