Shooting Bowling Pins

[repair]

Since I want to start shooting bowling pins I thought that i would stop at a bowling alley and try to buy a few pins but when I asked about it the owner told me that he "doesn't sell old pins anymore because a cop was hurt by bullet fragments while shooting at pins from 50' ".

He said that modern pins are made of a very hard composite material

Anyone know what kind of pins people are using in the matchs?

 

[notasccrmom]

Bowling pins are still the same as they have been for years. They're regulated by bowling organizations, so they are made to certain specs. They're made from a wood core that has about a 1/4" thick polymer coating. Pretty sure standard bowling pins are used.

 

[Ahab]

More than likely, that cop was injured by splashback from the table the pins were sitting on, and from a ricochet off the pin itself. While the plastic material on the pin is hard, even a standard velocity jacketed 9mm will penetrate the plastic into the wood core of the pin. It won't knock the pin off the table usually, but it usually doesn't cause jacket or lead splash.

You do see some danger when the pins start to "fill up" full of bullets though. As the pin gets full of lead, you increase the odds of your round striking something with more density than the pin, additionally you start to see more splintering in the pins themselves. I've seen people hit with jacket fragments at pin matches, but I've also seen that happen at steel matches and IDPA matches. Eye protection at all times is common sense whenever you're shooting anything.

 

[El Cazador]

There is a ferrous piece in the top of the pin for magnetic pin pickers in the re-setter machine. Maybe someone hit that just right. I know the pins soak up a lot of abuse and keep their shape for quite a while.

 

[jimbo-indy]

It is possible to get hit by bullet fragments. I've been hit several times over the last few years. That's why you should always wear eye and ear protection. I did see a fragment hit a spectators ear muffs hard enough to break a hole in the plastic shell. I noramlly wear a light jacket or vest in the summer and my shooting glasses meet the latest safety standards, even mil-spec. I've been hit by fragments when shooting steel too.

 

[ntrngr]

Since I want to start shooting bowling pins I thought that i would stop at a bowling alley and try to buy a few pins but when I asked about it the owner told me that he "doesn't sell old pins anymore because a cop was hurt by bullet fragments while shooting at pins from 50' ".

He said that modern pins are made of a very hard composite material

Anyone know what kind of pins people are using in the matchs?

The attitude of this alley owner is the perfect example of what is wrong with how many Americans think. This is the same type of thinking that calls for a ban on handguns because some nutbag goes berzerk at the place that laid him off. In effect, the guy was blaming the bowling pins. He was also affraid of people like the 52 million dollar pants lawyer. Thankfully, intelligent people don't think like this. If he was really worried about it, he could have had you sign a liability release form. That way if you shoved one up your butt you couldn't sue him for rectal discomfort.

Some people just don't have a clue. Its an irritating fact of life.

 

[IndyGunworks]

check ebay..... i bought 12 of them for around 25 dollars shipped a few years back.

 

[oldfb]

check ebay..... i bought 12 of them for around 25 dollars shipped a few years back.

SHTF alert! They burn very well in woodstoves also. Way hotter than those pressed fire logs. Then you get to reclaim all the lead after it cools for making new bullets for those that have the tools.

 

[Jack Ryan]

Just take extra care to cut your fire wood square and then split it to near bowling pin size. It's not a fraction of a millimeter type sport any way. I've used these a couple times now and it's just as much fun as shooting the pins and work great for playing around on the range informally with the guys.

I got tired of looking for pins and they were always way over priced.

 

[johnh]

Just a little fyi, tell the bowling ally u want to use them as tent stake pounders for the boyscouts. How dad and I used to get them at least..

 

[jason conley]

brownsburgs bowling alley sold me some once and I even said I was going to shoot them

 

[Indycar]

Knob Creek had them for $2 each two weeks ago

 

[jclark]

Shoot them all the time. Hell, they always keep afew around at the gun range. Our club even holds bowling pin shoots.

 

[LuckyBrush]

Wow. I had not heard of shooting bowling pins till I read it here. This forum is great! What is so good about shooting pins? Is it that the lead stays inside? Or just something else to shoot other than traditional targets or beer cans?

 

[HICKMAN]

They are durable targets people play games with. Makes for fun shooting.

YouTube - Pin shooting - S&W 1911 part 2

 

[Beau]

http://www.facebook.com/v/1113883401547

Couldn't get video to display but here is the link. This is first time I shot pins when I first started competitive shooting

 

[IndyBeerman]

There is a ferrous piece in the top of the pin for magnetic pin pickers in the re-setter machine. Maybe someone hit that just right. I know the pins soak up a lot of abuse and keep their shape for quite a while.

Unless there's some new technology, there's no such thing as a magnetic pin picker. Pins fall into a rotating drum in the back that also picks up the ball.
It then kicks the pins out to fall into a cage that drops the pins into the pinsetter.

 

[lovemywoods]

What is so good about shooting pins?

I have bowling pins set on a long table at our pistol range. I put 4 on each side. At a signal, two shooters fire at their pins until they have knocked them off the table. First person to do that wins. Helps improve your shooting because the targets will move around a bit and fall over. You have to make the on-going choice of the trade-off between speed and accuracy.

I've had some difficulty keeping a supply of pins. Many large bowling alleys send their pins in for refirbishing. Some lanes want to charge inflated prices. $1-2/pin is a good price.

I just set out some all plastic pins from an alley. I don't know how they will behave when shot.

The wood core pins will take a tremendous amount of abuse. They eventually splinter apart. I've got a dozen pins I'm throwning away this week. Never considered how much lead may be in them!

 

[HICKMAN]

http://www.facebook.com/v/1113883401547

Couldn't get video to display but here is the link. This is first time I shot pins when I first started competitive shooting

Join the INGO facebook group

INGunOwners.com | Facebook

 

[opus1776]

Lovemywoods,

You can still use those shot up pins. IF the top of the pins are in good shape, cut the tops off just below the red bands. Set the pin heads up on the tables and use .22's to knock the pin heads off. It's great fun and will help to improve accuracy even more. At the pin shoots at Martinsville, we now use pin heads for the .22 matches. Pin heads == FTW!