A quick look at Double Action Reactive Targets, self-sealing polymer targets that change color at the point of impact.
Steel targets are all the rage these days, and it’s not hard to see why. They’re durable and long-lasting, but more importantly, every impact rewards you with a very satisfying “ding!” of success. As wonderful as that sound may be, steel targets have plenty of downsides, too—you can’t shoot them too close without potentially eating some spall, you need to remain mindful of the risk of ricochets and you need to repaint them. Besides that, they’re a costly initial investment and, depending on where you shoot, you may need to haul one or several of them between your setup and your truck. Steel is heavy, and that gets old real fast.
Know what’s not heavy? Polymer, and that’s what Double Action Reactive Targets uses to make its products. Not just any polymer, however, but a self-sealing, color-changing reactive polymer.
The company offers a 4-inch swinging gong, a 6-inch swinging gong, a 6-inch knockdown target kit and even a full-size silhouette. All of these behave like steel targets when shot, minus the ding and the risk of anything coming back at you. The gongs and knockdown targets are also available without the color-changing feature for a few dollars less, but both styles are self-sealing.
As for caliber ratings, the company says it’s tested them with pistol calibers up to .45 ACP and rifle calibers up to .308 Winchester without any issues, but only full metal jacket ammo should be used. Hollow points, wadcutters, flat nose bullets and any other projectile style that won’t make a clean hole should be avoided to prevent damaging the targets.
Double Action Reactive Target’s literature describes the targets as being capable of lasting “hundreds of rounds,” which isn’t very specific, but it likely varies a great deal depending on what you’re shooting them with and other factors.
That said, even if you shoot enough to need to replace one, it won’t hurt your wallet too bad as prices start at just $16 per target.
Steel targets still have their place, but just like what happened with pistol frames, it may be time to recognize the advantages of polymer targets too.
For more information, visit da-targets.com.
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