To be a handgun hunter, you must become proficient with your gun, knowing you can make the shot when the opportunity comes. For me, that means a lot of practice, shooting several times a week. Going a week or two without shooting I notice I start forgetting things like consistent grip, trigger pull, and follow through. You need good equipment to practice with to have good practice sessions and for them to be beneficial.
For practice, I have several steel gongs placed at different ranges with the most distant being 200 yards. My most used targets are gongs hung on a frame made with wood 4×4 posts that I can shoot from any distance up to 100 yards. I can also hang a paper target off the sides of the stand for making sight adjustments or load development. While all this works fine, I decided to try DA target’s color changing targets, hoping to fix a few issues with my current target setup.
DA Targets offers “Color Changing” targets, made from a self-healing polymer, and show shot impact by actually changing color. I ordered 2 different models of six inch round cool weather targets; designed to work in temperatures from 45 to 80 degrees. They offer cool and warm weather color changing targets to suit your climate, as well as several other target options. The cool weather targets are black when cold and the shot location turns red. In warmer temperatures, the target is red and turns yellow where shot. The color change lasts up to 2 minutes and gives you instant feedback on where you hit.
I shot these with several handguns in 22 Long Rifle up to 45 Colt and they all made it change color, but more noticeably as the bullets got bigger. Color lasts around 2 minutes as advertised but varies slightly depending on the size and speed of the bullet that is shot as well as the ambient air temperature. The polymer material heals back immediately, showing minimal damage. Round nose 9mm FMJ bullet holes were almost unnoticeable after the target healed. When the targets get dirty from powder residue on the bullets, a quick scrub with soap and water will brighten the targets right back up!
These targets are working great so far and I have found several advantages they have over steel. Rounds go straight through and into the back stop behind the target.
With steel gongs, the bullets splatter on impact and shred the wood hanger posts. The DA Targets also don’t require painting to cover up old shots. The way the targets display the changed color I can also use them for zeroing and sight adjustments. After an adjustment is made, wait two minutes or so and the shot color has faded away and you can shoot another group.
Handgun hunting rarely gives the perfect shot like is offered from a shooting bench, so moving targets and having to adapt makes great practice for being in the field. These targets are lightweight and portable. With simple wire hangers or posts, they can be moved and set up in just about any hunting scenario. With practice on the harder shots, you’ll gain confidence to make them when the opportunity arises.
I’ve fired several hundred rounds through them so far and they still look and function like new. I plan on adding a few more to the target stand and trying out some of their other target options to add variety to my practice. Overall, these color changing targets from DA Targets are a welcome addition to my range!