Ricochets....:oops:

[Dunwaters]

I’m speechless.

K

That’s a first

 

[Koenig]

Bullets do the strangest things. Two highlights that stick in my mind are being hit in the shin by the jacket of a 7.62mm whilst a young squaddie in the butts at Bulford. Luckily it slammed into the front of my boot which took the sting out of it. I can only compare it to being hit with a baseball bat! The sand in the bullet catcher had literally just peeled it back like a banana skin. Thank God the core of the bullet didn’t come back with it. Secondly, shooting a Muntjac in the engine room. The round went in perfectly, hit the far shoulder blade and exited through the beast’s backside! A turn of about 90 degrees! You can never 100% predict what any round will do once fired.

 

[NP435]

This video shows mass .22 tracer fire at night. Note how many ricochets are visible. Bit worrying.

Glad you posted this video, all other considerations in why it was made don't much matter the visual of what a ricochet can and does do are priceless.

 

[Ttocs]

If you own a 22LR, you‘ll get lots of ricochets; if you have an HMR or a centre fire, you get less and less again with HV frangible bullets. They all ricochet, end of. I’ve a 22LR and it’s 99% range rifle; it’s no ‘toy gun’ ‘baby rifle’ it’s a really dangerous bit of kit. That’s the end of my rant.
Now a little story.
Last year, when out after a fox, I spotted a poacher with my thermal, he was lamping away and heading in my direction. I could hear him shooting round after round, it was a moderated 22LR semi auto. I took off in the opposite direction with my 204 strapped to my back. To my dismay, he came to the end of the field he was in, turned and headed my way firing shot after shot at rabbits (that he didn’t pick up or perhaps he missed). I managed to stay 300yards + ahead of him but with several ricochets flying past, it had me cowering behind the drystone walls as I fled. Clearly he hadn’t seen me and I had no intention of revealing myself or risk of a confrontation (what do you do if someone starts shooting at you, you fear for your life and you're armed?) The police were called and the helicopter came out but he managed to slip away. Actually not knowing where he was was worse!
Now he was shooting on hilly open ground with good hilly backstops; ground where I’ve shot many foxes with my 204. Even on hilly open ground, just in case, I never shoot where I know there are houses or livestock in the distance even though non are visible form the open ground at the fell top. Either he didn’t care or he couldn’t hear his ricochets. But I could hear them, and they didnt just go a few yards and stop; I was 300 yards away and they went wizzing past me and off into the distance. Scary!
There are a few morals to this tale - but I‘ve had my rant!
N

 

[glasshalffull]

Plenty of splatter comes off these that's why it's angled towards the ground and positioned far away from harms way when in use