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View Full Version : Shooting through cover, a light bulb moment



vmi-mo
05-29-2011, 04:10 PM
This may seem insignificant to some but I had an epiphany yesterday at a comp.

There was a texas star located behind a 50 gallon drum. My last plate to shoot off it came to a rest behind the drum (fuck me right...). I paused figured where the plate would rest and I just shot through the drum and hit the target and knocked it off.

I always "knew" I could shoot through cover (cover dependent) to hit a bg on the other side. But I had never done it in a way where I comprehended and actually saw the effects of rds on a tgt going through shit.

This was kinda an eye opening and homer simpson "dowww" moment for me.

I just wanted to share my light bulb moment with others.


PJ

Odin Bravo One
05-29-2011, 05:42 PM
Good to hear that learning occured young warrior.

However, let us remember that the definition of "cover" is that it STOPS incoming rounds. In your future occupation, proper use of terminology will be important as your progress up the corporate ladder. Often times we will not know if a target is obscured by concealment, or protected by cover until we send a few rounds in that direction. When it doubt, send rounds out.

SLG
05-29-2011, 06:03 PM
I'm more than a little curious about what the range staff thought about that. I think it is great...I can't imagine they did though.

vmi-mo
05-29-2011, 07:21 PM
Good to hear that learning occured young warrior.

However, let us remember that the definition of "cover" is that it STOPS incoming rounds. In your future occupation, proper use of terminology will be important as your progress up the corporate ladder. Often times we will not know if a target is obscured by concealment, or protected by cover until we send a few rounds in that direction. When it doubt, send rounds out.


Words have meanings. My bust on bad verbage.


PJ

vmi-mo
05-29-2011, 07:22 PM
I'm more than a little curious about what the range staff thought about that. I think it is great...I can't imagine they did though.

They thought it was great. Chill dudes overall, no complaining about stupid stuff.


PJ

Rverdi
05-29-2011, 07:47 PM
Sean is, typically, right on target. It's amazing how many things that we think of and refer to as cover actually do a pretty horrendous job of stopping bullets. For example, I've shot up a bunch of cars with a bunch of different rounds and, for the most part, they are just piss poor cover.
Just to stay on topic though, pretty cool way to handle the stage :)

SLG
05-29-2011, 07:57 PM
They thought it was great. Chill dudes overall, no complaining about stupid stuff.


PJ


Wow, pretty cool. Where was the match?

vmi-mo
05-29-2011, 08:44 PM
Wow, pretty cool. Where was the match?

Just a local 3 gun match outside of Richmond VA. Nothing high speed or uber cool. Just dudes who enjoyed shooting.


PJ

Kyle Reese
05-29-2011, 08:50 PM
Just a local 3 gun match outside of Richmond VA. Nothing high speed or uber cool. Just dudes who enjoyed shooting.


PJ

Were you shooting this stage with a carbine or handgun?

ToddG
05-29-2011, 09:13 PM
I know the look I see in my puppy's eye when she figures something out. I imagine vmi-mo looked exactly the same way. :cool:

Years ago at the IDPA Nationals, there was a side match that involved a house clearing exercise. As soon as you opened the front door there was a target immediately in the doorway that needed to be engaged. One of the competitors kicked the door open, saw the target, and as the door closed he shot the target repeatedly... through the door.

The range staff wasn't nearly as amused as the other competitors.

Having said that, keep in mind that cardboard (and steel) targets don't move on their own. If you know exactly where it is, you can engage it with little worry even if it's obscured by something that won't stop a bullet. If that had been a real person, you might have been shooting into empty space or worse into a space recently occupied by a third (innocent) person.

cdunn
05-29-2011, 09:32 PM
Just a local 3 gun match outside of Richmond VA. Nothing high speed or uber cool. Just dudes who enjoyed shooting.


PJ
were you at cavalier?

vmi-mo
05-30-2011, 06:40 AM
I know the look I see in my puppy's eye when she figures something out. I imagine vmi-mo looked exactly the same way. :cool:

Having said that, keep in mind that cardboard (and steel) targets don't move on their own. If you know exactly where it is, you can engage it with little worry even if it's obscured by something that won't stop a bullet. If that had been a real person, you might have been shooting into empty space or worse into a space recently occupied by a third (innocent) person.

This would not be the first time I was compared to a puppy.

The actual practice of shooting through a barrier to kill someone is a grillion times more complicated than what I did. For me it was just like a proof of concept and the "ohh" factor that struck me.

Hopefully muj seeks shelter behind large blue 50 gallon drums in the open........


PJ

vmi-mo
05-30-2011, 06:41 AM
were you at cavalier?

Black Creek in Mechanicsville. Looking forward to cavalier though.



Were you shooting this stage with a carbine or handgun?

Rifle, shooting 55grn PMC or PPU stuff at 80m


PJ

cdunn
05-30-2011, 07:32 AM
I use to live in Richmond and go to Black Creek, now I just make it to cavalier when I can talk Tim or Sam into bringing me.Hopefully I'll be moving back down there so I can try the monday night match also.

DonovanM
05-30-2011, 10:53 AM
Thread reminded me of this scene... (R-rated graphic)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4vyuNY8v1c

Odin Bravo One
05-30-2011, 11:28 AM
Hopefully muj seeks shelter behind large blue 50 gallon drums in the open........


PJ

Muj will amaze you with their ingenuity, and stupidity. They have their own version of the "good idea fairy", and just like the American GIF, rarely does it produce good ideas.

David Armstrong
05-30-2011, 11:44 AM
I will suggest first of all that cover is defined as much or more by the incoming round than the covering object. But having said that this is something I noticed long ago when working with shooters. A trick I used to do at academy was give a student a training gun, then tell him to shoot me with it. The trick was I would hold up a sheet of typing paper in front of the gun. And 9 times out of 10, as long as I kept the paper in front of the gun they would not pull the trigger. I've seen it happen on the streets also. Investigated a shootout where the BG was hiding behind a cardboard box a refrigerator had come in. When I asked the officer why he didn't just shoot the guy through the box he said it had never occurred to him. Out of sight, out of mind!