# How many shots?



## ash (Apr 23, 2013)

*How many shots?*​
*How many times does each round of your ammo get shot?*

One time only35.17%Two to five shots1118.97%Six to ten shots23.45%Eleven to fifty shots1220.69%Dunno... heaps?3051.72%


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## ash (Apr 23, 2013)

Here's a thing I have been pondering - how many times does each round of ammo get fired before it's lost, broken or recycled?

I notice that a lot of guys buy loads and loads of cheap ammo, fire it once into the woods or wherever and never see it again. I'm on the other end of the scale, where I almost always fire into a catch box, collect and re-use each round dozens of times and more.

What about yours?


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## Cjw (Nov 1, 2012)

I always shoot into a catch box very seldom lose any ammo. My catch box is lined with 8in. Long rod magnets so all the steel shot is collected.


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## e~shot (Jun 3, 2010)

Even I shoot into catch box I lose very little amount of ammo.. don't know where it goes LOL. voted eleven to fifty shots


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## Aussie Allan In Thailand (Jan 28, 2013)

To answer, I have two options.

1. I prefer and use mostly self molded 15 to 30 gram lead ammo (going up in 5 gram increments), which I practice with on my 8.5 meter home range. This generally hits flattened steel cans deforms, but can be reused several times before re-molding.
I separate my practice ammo from my carry ammo, for obvious reasons.

Option 2 is glass marbles, or 12 mm steel ball bearings, at 5.85 and 7.60 grams respectively; which being round I spend a totally disproportionate time finding, rather than shooting, after they hit my back stop.

My back stop is an extremely heavy double sized beach towel folded in half length ways hanging from a wire horizontally 1.6 meters off the ground.
The towel hangs to approx. 3 inches above the ground. Hanging from this is very thick flattened cardboard boxes, then rows of flattened steel food cans, above a ground sheet.

The towel and ground sheet at least, and spare wire, along with pliers. Is easily packed into a small back pack. For when I wish to practice at greater range than my home max. of 8.5 meters, and I ride my motorbike over the river Kwaii, to find an area with trees, and more range.

So like yourself, I seldom loose ammunition.

Cheers Allan


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## Danny0663 (Mar 15, 2011)

Dunno ...heaps?


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## Viper010 (Apr 21, 2012)

Depends, if I'm shooting in my friends back yard (contrary to me he lives outside city limits and his yard is big enough) I can use a catch box and recycle almost indefinitely.

When I'm shooting closer to home it's usually over the river. For obvious reasons ammo can only be used once there, which is a shame really given how hard to get decent size ball bearings are here.


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## Btoon84 (Nov 22, 2011)

I shoot and fling marbles, 1/4in steel and BB's all over the place. I rarely shoot into a catch box long before I'm just bored. Zinging ammo everywhere, wasting many.... Obviously is not the most economical way but I'm just a baller like that. Once the shooting is done, I really enjoy walking through the woods finding random ammo. I probably recover .384 percent of what I shoot. Being that as of recently, I can't find marbles at any of the local walmarts.... And have been shooting more of my steel... This habit of wasting ammo should probably be squelched.


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## GrayWolf (May 14, 2012)

Almost all of my shooting right now is done at a catchbox, so I recover all but an occasional runaway. Once a year I take some slingshots and ammo to a benefit and let a bunch of volunteers shoot away, but I take paintballs as ammo, so there is no recovery. I did just buy 5000 marbles with the intent of doing some aerial shooting....not much chance of recovery there.

Todd


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## Mr.Teh (Feb 28, 2012)

The last month, on my daily plinking-spot i shoot rarely into a ball catch, the ground is too hard for my portable catch,

when i hit the leather target the ammo is lying in front of the target and i collect it after the shooting,

i enjoy it too Btoon84, walking through the place on the search for my ammo, the rest ammo is gone :wave:

sometimes i collect 8 of 10 hits and sometimes only 2 of 10 hits :blush: so i voted two to five shots.


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## Jaximus (Jun 1, 2013)

The majority of my steel ammo I have been reusing infinitely. I have lost a few one way or another, but most I'm able to recover. My lead ammo isn't so lucky. I've probably lost 90% of the lead I've fired, but that's because I use it mainly for plugging starlings. Sometimes I'll find the ball resting peacefully next to the dead bird. Sometimes it's nowhere to be found. Sometimes (I know this will be hard to believe) I miss the starling and the ammo sails off into the sunset, probably winding up taking part in a series of zany adventures.


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## Tube_Shooter (Dec 8, 2012)

I shoot mainly into a catch box indoors I lose a few and have no idea where....wait what are those steel looking dimples in my walls anic:

Anyway I voted Dunno heaps


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## dannytsg (Jun 16, 2013)

I have a massive bow of M10 hex nuts that I acquired through work and I use them for target and dynamic shooting at home and also for hunting. I can say that each of the nuts will most likely have been shot in target practice 50 times minimum before I end up using it for hunting when it may get lost.


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## Imperial (Feb 9, 2011)

i just shoot away and dont care


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## GHT (Jan 22, 2013)

I have a catch box in garden for using 9.5 mm steel, but find myself using it less and less, I'm getting more enjoyment from filling my pocket with stones , 5 or 6 of the most perfect shape and weight will be put aside in case of a hunting opportunity, the rest will get blasted at the stems of lush seasonal undergrowth, will shoot in one spot until pocket is empty of stones normally about 20-30 shots, then wander along and repeat at regular intervals until I'm summoned home for my dinner lol.


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## flipgun (Nov 14, 2012)

With the catch box in my shop I get some bounce out, but when I clean up I get it all back. With my outdoor 10 meter catcher I some times misplace a few rounds. But some times I will find one piece and as I pick it up I'll find a bunch in the same vicinity.

Just remembered something, if I go out to my range at night with a flash light all of the marbles lost in the grass glow brightly.. So most my ammo has been shot so many times that it all became free months ago!


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## Quercusuber (Nov 10, 2011)

Being almost exclusively a marble shooter, I loose a lot of ammo for the following reasons:

I seldom shoot into a catchbox, because it's not too practical for me to walk around with one in a random hike. Marbles are very cheap and popular here, so I don't have too much difficulty in getting great amounts of them in local stores. It's not a polluting ammo nor a environmental unfriendly one, so I don't spend much time in searching lost ones.

But, every now and then, when I get back to the same shooting spots, it's kinda rewarding to find marbles hidden there, under the leafs and bushes 

So I voted the "two to five shots" option!!

Cheers ...Q


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## reset (Apr 13, 2013)

I get bored shooting into my catchbox and rarely use it unless im trying out something new to me.

I love being out in the woods. So i usually just shoot at whatever looks challenging. And all at different distances to make it more interesting. That way i do two of my favourite things at the same time. Walking and shooting using marbles, rocks and recently bb's.

I vote just once.


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## ceedub (Apr 22, 2013)

I cast my own ammo, but i also shoot into a catchbox often. So what I do is I have around 100-200 rounds of pure lead balls that ill use for my target practice. The pure lead is soft and easy to re-cast but for my field and hunting ammo I cast a harder lead with old wheel weights that makes for a round that is smoother and cleaner. I can buy lead from the local salvage yard for $0.80 a pound so im not really concerned about loosing it anyhow. Casting lead is the only way to do it.


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## mr. green (Nov 3, 2012)

I seldom loose my (paid) ammos except for BB's. I loose almost all my free ammos (rocks).


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## ash (Apr 23, 2013)

It's amazing how you can lose so much ammo, even with a catch box. When i started i was shooting hex nuts into a makeshift catchbox sitting in an isolated room at work. Somewhere in that relatively empty room is a few dozen hex nuts that have become somehow invisible!


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## Jaximus (Jun 1, 2013)

Gremlins, ash. Gremlins......


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## flipgun (Nov 14, 2012)

ash said:


> It's amazing how you can lose so much ammo, even with a catch box. When i started i was shooting hex nuts into a makeshift catchbox sitting in an isolated room at work. Somewhere in that relatively empty room is a few dozen hex nuts that have become somehow invisible!


They are with all of your missing socks.


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## SonoftheRepublic (Jul 3, 2011)

I shoot about 50% into a catch box and 50% in the field.

Recently I have been shooting alot of rocks. Partly because I shoot alot during my walks, and also because I'm learning how to become more accurate with them . . . finding what shapes, sizes and weights are more likely to hit the mark, making them more satisfying as potential hunting ammo.

When not shooting rocks, I'll most often switch to 5/8" marbles, as they are accurate and fun to shoot, and I have found a good cheap source for them.

When shooting steel and lead I most always use the catch box to ensure recovery.


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## leon13 (Oct 4, 2012)

ash said:


> It's amazing how you can lose so much ammo, even with a catch box. When i started i was shooting hex nuts into a makeshift catchbox sitting in an isolated room at work. Somewhere in that relatively empty room is a few dozen hex nuts that have become somehow invisible!


same over Hear they are lost in the ammo twilight zone must be a parallel universe wher they meat my socks witch disappear the same

never the less catch box........Dunno... heaps ?

cheers


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## leon13 (Oct 4, 2012)

flipgun said:


> ash said:
> 
> 
> > It's amazing how you can lose so much ammo, even with a catch box. When i started i was shooting hex nuts into a makeshift catchbox sitting in an isolated room at work. Somewhere in that relatively empty room is a few dozen hex nuts that have become somehow invisible!
> ...


hahaha we share the same washer parallel Univers

cheers


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## quarterinmynose (Jan 21, 2012)

Shooting into a catchbox gets pretty boring, but recently have tried to keep with it. I like shooting steel and steel gets very expensive. But, I also like having fun, and flinging ammo in all sorts of directions at loose targets is a lot of fun. I think that is probably the best thing about shooting small ammo like 1/4" or 5/16". It's still not cheap but when buying by the pound you get lots o shots for the same per pound price. If you averaged out all the ammo I have gone through in the last 1.5 years I would say each round gets shot 1.25 times.


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## flippinout (Jul 16, 2010)

Compared to firearms, slingshot ammo is very inexpensive. What other shooting sport can you engage in for so much fun, for so little money? Life is short, slingshot ammo is cheap, shoot often...


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## NaturalFork (Jan 21, 2010)

I bought 25 pounds of ammo from royal steel years ago. I have not even put a dent in it yet. I usually can recover most of my ammo. But sometimes I just walk in the woods and shoot at various things ... that is when I lose most ammo.


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## ash (Apr 23, 2013)

Does anyone use a magnet sweeper to collect steel ammo from their back yard or wherever? Like a broom, but with magnets and little wheels instead of bristles. You can buy the magnets they attach to the front of fork-lift trucks to snatch up nails and other steel debris before they wreck the tyres.

You could even attach one to your lawn mower to collect stray ammo before the blades fire it through your windows.


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## Cjw (Nov 1, 2012)

My catch box is lined with 8in. Rod magnets so everything stays in the box. When I'm done shooting I pull the magnets scrape off the steel shot and put the magnets back in.


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## Tube_Shooter (Dec 8, 2012)

I have magnets in my catch box too and I blame those for my bad shooting I'm sure they draw my steels away from the target :rofl:


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## Rathunter (Feb 14, 2014)

well, I don't really know what to put.

Some of the time, I retrieve almost 100% of my ammo. e.g I'll shoot 5 ball bearings for several hours at 10 meters in my basement...

but when I'm outside, I'll shoot a lead ball once, sometimes not even that- I drop some.... long grass...


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## TSM (Oct 8, 2013)

When at the catchbox, I usually only carry 10-20 in the pocket and recover all but one or two bounce outs. When camping or on the trail, I shoot all willy-nilly and usually don't find a thing.


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## Greavous (Sep 29, 2013)

I use an electric etching process to number each and every 3/8" ball I buy. This etching process places an unique UPC code on each ball. When I shoot at my catch box the box then scans each ball at several angles and inventories said ball and notes its current location in my shooting gallery. Once a week the entire active ammo collection is then rescanned and the ball inventory updated to indicate exactly which balls were lost and when last scanned. I then use a modified push lawn mower with both optic scanners and metal detection sensors. As the deck of the mower passes over a lost ball an electromagnet triggers at just the correct time and elevates the ball out of the grass, scans the code and updates the inventory and location of the newly recovered projectile. Once the losses exceed a predefined limit a script on my server goes online an orders 10 more balls.

Pretty much like everyone else does it Id guess.


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## erniepc1 (Jun 7, 2014)

Even with a catch box, I seem to lose a few steel shot at a time. Varmints get the lead 44. cal. treatment so I lose all of them. Glass marbles seem to shatter or disappear a few at a time. My catch box is 3' cube on the ground and my back isn't as good as it once was, so a magnet on a stick works great for gathering the steel shot. Now to figure how to pick up marbles without bending over. Maybe a vacuum cleaner???? :what: hmmmmm


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## Byudzai (Aug 31, 2013)

I was shooting grapes and rocks on my trip this weekend and would always watch those projectiles veer off on a not-at-all straight path. I can get 500 3/8" steel balls from amazon for $20 shipped, so I think I'm steel all the way now.


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## shew97 (Feb 13, 2014)

I also shoot into a catch box and very few ammo is lost


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## OTT Kinetic Rock (Jun 29, 2014)

58 years old, third post and have not ever shot anything through the forks of a slingshot.

Whatever I have to say is probably worthless, but I throw this out there and if you disagree, you can do the same without hurting my feelings.

Here is my suggestion for those that shoot steel ammo and would like to move away from their catchbox.

Acquire an old lawnmower, remove the engine and replace it with a car battery and an electromagnet.

Place the electomagnet bar across the front of the mower and sweep your lawn for your steel ammo after a fun day/shooting fest.

This way you can recycle your ammo,

When you are through sweeping the yard, park the mower near the end of the driveway and turn off the electromagnet.

The balls will drop and roll allowing easy retrieval.

Just a thought... Probably more hassle than just buying a bag of marbles



quarterinmynose said:


> Shooting into a catchbox gets pretty boring, but recently have tried to keep with it. I like shooting steel and steel gets very expensive. But, I also like having fun, and flinging ammo in all sorts of directions at loose targets is a lot of fun. I think that is probably the best thing about shooting small ammo like 1/4" or 5/16". It's still not cheap but when buying by the pound you get lots o shots for the same per pound price. If you averaged out all the ammo I have gone through in the last 1.5 years I would say each round gets shot 1.25 times.


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## Dwight (Sep 22, 2014)

For target practice, on paper, I use a catch box.

But, like several of you country boys, my favorite shooting is in the fields and woods at random targets.

My favorite woods targets are holes in the trunks of trees. They may be quarter size to can size. They may be just off the ground or 30 ft high.

The neat thing about these holes is that frequently you can just reach in and pick-up your ammo. Natural catch boxes provided by Mother.

I use 3/8 steel, from SimpleShot, as Nathan said, it's very inexpensive, and very satisfying shooting.

Later,

Dwight


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## WindLvr (Jul 16, 2014)

I have two kinds of ammo. I have 6mm stainless steel balls that get flung wherever and whenever, and I don't care if I get them back. Then on the other hand I have about 300 1/2" glass marbles and 500 rounds of 3/8" stainless steel balls that get recycled through the use of a catch box. I rarely lose one when shooting at the catch box, but it happens on occasion. I couldn't count how many times each of the latter rounds have been shot so far, but their use is no where near it's end.


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