Welcome to my Smallbore Rifle Silhouette web site!
With Thanks to the Hassayampa Rod & Gun Club in Arizona
Silhuetas Metallicas or Rifle Silhouette is a challenging sport and very different than a lot of other shooting competitions. You sight your rifle in before the match, then during the match you shoot 4 different ranges on-the-fly with no sighting shots allowed. With Silhouette shooting it is not a matter of looking at a hole on a paper target and seeing how close you were to the center, its a matter of "IF" you hit the target. Most types of Rifle Silhouette shooting is done from a free-standing position without the use of a sling. The way the scoring goes, You either knocked it down or you missed. The physical aspect of it is interesting too, If you hit where you wanted, you see the target bounce off the stand and you know instantly how it counts. There are the disappointing moments seeing your misses just off the edge or between the legs of the pig and the moments where you feel fortunate because you nicked it just enough to make it count. That can also get you in touch with the pressure to hit that 5th in a row or 10th in a row. You already know you have the 4th or 9th consecutive and you know you will need the next one to complete it. That can be a nice feeling to in seeing the last one fall completing 5 or 10 in a row, getting a little bit of a boost in the personal challenge the sport has to offer. Because it is a tough sport to start in, do not be discouraged by your initial results. I started in "A" Class with the Standard Rifle, "B" Class with the Hunter rifle. Through practice and dedication, I have worked my way up to "Master" Class in both. There is no telling how any given individual will progress but, everyone improves their shooting ability as time goes on.
I continually shoot the Smallbore Rifle Silhouette matches at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility because it is a bit more affordable than the High Power Rifle Silhouette It takes less time dedicated to reloading ammunition and it offers the same challenge in the competition, just on a smaller scale. Not to take anything away from the High Powered Rifle Silhouette competition at all. There is something to be said of someone manufacturing their own ammunition with enough precision to shoot accurately out to 500 meters. It is a bit more personal than picking some ammo off the shelf. The targets for Smallbore Rifle Silhouette are one fifth scale and one fifth distance to the traditional High Powered Rifle Silhouette targets and distances.
"On every question of construction (of the constitution) let us carry ourselves back to the time when the Constitution was adopted, recollect the spirit manifested in the debates, and instead of trying what meaning may be squeezed out of the text, or invented against it, conform to the probable one in which it was passed." -- Thomas Jefferson, letter to William Johnson, June 12, 1823
WHERE TO SHOOT IN THE PHOENIX AREA
Hassayampa Rod and Gun Club 2008 Schedule at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility
Contact: Jim Hebenstreit (623) 878-4640
High Power Rifle Silhouette: 1/13, 2/10, 3/02, 5/04, 6/08, 6/29, 7/13, 8/10, 9/14, 10/12, 11/09, 12/14
The Arizona State High-Power Championship is held on April 12-13 at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility
Smallbore Rifle Silhouette: 1/27, 3/1, 4/27, 5/4, 5/25, 6/22, 7/27, 8/24, 8/31, 9/28, 11/23, 11/30, 12/28
The Arizona State Smallbore Championship is held on October 4-5 at Tucson Rifle Club
If you are in the East Valley area there is Silhouette Shooting at the Usery Mountain Shooting Range with the Rio Salado Sportsmans Club
The 2008 NRA Rifle Silhouette National Championships @ Ridgeway Pa.
Smallbore & Smallbore Hunter Rifle, July 6-8
Highpower & Highpower Hunter Rifle, July 10-12
For an entry form mail to:
NRA Competitive
Shooting Division
Silhouette Dept.
11250 Waples Mill Rd.
Fairfax, VA 22030
You may send your request by E-Mail to: silhouette@nrahq.org. (include your complete mailing address)
MY WIFE AND I, A good picture my wife got of me shooting showing the range too.
Silhouette TARGETS1 shows a series of pictures of the actual Smallbore Rifle Silhouette targets close and how they are set at the range. Also is listed a difficulty factor for each target.
Silhouette TARGETS2 shows some pictures of the High-Power Rifle Silhouette targets plus a great aerial photograph of the Rifle Silhouette range at the Ben Avery Shooting Facility.
CLASSIFICATIONS, SCORING & AWARDS describes how you get classified and what the different classifications are. It also describes the individual awards and the match awards that can be earned.
Here is some information about Smallbore Rifle Silhouette
RANGE RULES : This explains the method of shooting and the formats for the competitions.
RIFLE RULES : This explains the rifles that are used and the equipment allowed or not allowed.
MY TECHNIQUES of shooting Rifle Silhouette.
SOME OTHER TECHNIQUES of shooting Rifle Silhouette.
CLEANING rimfire rifles. Some recommendations on keeping your rifle accurate.
July 2005 - Added information from three Master Class shooters.
SCOPE ADJUSTMENTS AND BALLISTICS shows how the scopes needed to be adjusted during a match and ballistics for the 22 Long rifle from most manufacturers
TESTING & MOUNTS has some target groups from a variety of places and some pictures of the scope mounts I am using
MY SHOOTING HISTORY has a record of my scores in competition since my first match in March 2002 And a bit of personal information here and there.
Some of THE HISTORY of Metallic Silhouette or "Silhuetas Metallicas" as originated.
Here is a ZIP FILE that contains all the detailed rules for all disciplines of Metallic Silhouette Shooting. It includes target sizes and distances, firearm specifications for Rifle, Pistol, Air Rifle and Slingshot, everything!
If you want any more information here is a link to the International Metallic Silhouette Union Website it is the world representative of Metallic Silhouette Shooting
CUSTOM ENGRAVING by Mark Hoechst - An Engraving on a brass plate for my Anschutz, Worth looking at!
VIDEOS: Some great videos trimmed to about 1mb showing Rifle Silhouette shooting at Rams.
VIDEO Here is a rerun of a High Power Rifle Silhouette match shooting a Ram if you didn't catch it before.
VIDEO Here is a rerun of a High Power Rifle Silhouette One foot on One foot off if you didn't catch it before.
VIDEO Here is a video of a Smallbore Rifle Silhouette match shooting a ram (3rd Ram bottom row)
VIDEO Here is another video of a Smallbore Rifle Silhouette match shooting a ram (4th Ram top row)
Here are links to PDF Files from the NRA showing the Smallbore target sizes. The Smallbore Rifle Silhouette Targets are easily printed at actual size onto two 8 1/2" x 11" sheets of paper to get a good idea what they look like.
High Powered Rifle Silhouette Targets:
Smallbore Rifle Silhouette Targets:
I Will Tell You Where To Go! Or If you check the two locations below, you might find a place near you. I do not believe all ranges are represented in these two links so if you do not see one close, contact a club listed in your state and I am sure they will help you locate your closest range.
NRA Listing of State Associations
Texas State Rifle Association Listing of Matches in the USA and the locations
This is a strange bullet I found in Congress Arizona with a metal detector. It was an old mining town from the late 1800's into the early 1900's. It is marked on the base with W.R.A.Co. 44 B.D. for, Winchester Repeating Arms Company, 44 Bulldog.
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HOME ........... RANGE RULES ........... RIFLE RULES
CLASSIFICATIONS, SCORING & AWARDS .......... TECHNIQUES 1
TECHNIQUES 2 .......... TARGETS1 ..... TARGETS2
TESTING & MOUNTS .......... MY WIFE AND I ...... MY SHOOTING HISTORY
SILHOUETTE HISTORY .........SCOPE ADJUSTMENTS AND BALLISTICS
CLEANING ........ CUSTOM ENGRAVING