Round balls ricocheting?

[Pierre du Plessis]

I have always wondered... when hunting in sub-zero temperatures, is there a chance for round balls to ricochet off of the frozen, rock-hard ground? It seems like they would be more likely to do this than conicals...

Thanks!

 

[zimmerstutzen]

all balls/bullets can and often do

 

[Dphar]

Conicals will also skip out and they will travel much, much farther. A RB that strikes much of anything will land within 200 yards. Given that the maximum range at best elevation is only 1000 yards or a little more for a 54 rb I don't worry about ricocheting RBs much.
As we enlongate the projectile the range increases dramatically. A 3 caliber long bullet like the 45-70-500 infantry loading has a maximum range of about 3500 yards and is still very lethal at that distance (over 3" penetration in pine would have to look it up to get the exact figure). This from Gov't tests back in the day. Modern testing has shown this is ball park. The mordern testing shows that the larger Sharps cartridges with similar BC bullets make 3500-3700 yards. The bullets used in ML LR rifles are identical in all respects to the BPCR bullets and with travel the same distance. A 2 caliber long bullet, like a maxi, will still have FAR greater range than a RB, I would guess 2500 yards or so since its much heavier and will be lethal at any distance until it comes to rest. It is also more likely to ricochet based on being at matches were people were using the things.

Dan

 

[bpd303]

The ground doesn't have to be frozen... always be aware of whats beyond the target.

 

[nit wit]

Had a piece of a ball hit me high in the ass :redface: bounced of a clay bird holder on a split the ball target. A small piece and the cloth from my shirt and breeches had to be dug out along with the piece of lead.I t was all dug out on-site with a sharp knife and tweezers. We got some great pictures :rotf: and I finished the shoot before I went to round two of the surgery! :youcrazy: Two others were hit, one in the coconuts and one in the neck.
Nit Wit

 

[Col. Batguano]

Sounds like one of those "hold my beer and watch this" stories! I'm glad it worked out ok. Bet you were careful after that one!

frozen ground is like a really soft rock. Bullets ricochet off of rocks better than they do off of softer materials. But they won't splatter off of frozen ground the way they do when they hit rocks, or even ice for that matter.

In my younger days I used to go out in the winter time and shoot icicles off of a frozen waterfall in the woods with a .22. Yeah, dumb. But we go quite a few ricochets and bullets that splattered off of the ice.

 

[necchi]

frozen ground is like a really soft rock. Bullets ricochet off of rocks better than they do off of softer materials.

That's it, ricochet is a real thing, frozen ground isn't a whole lot different. It really depends on the soil, sandy vrs clay and in the case of frozen,,the amount of water in it when it froze. I've seen ball ricochet across a dry harvested corn field in October.

We bury water an sewer lines 6-8 feet deep up here to avoid the "frost line" and freezing.

 

[nchawkeye]

That's why I make sure my freezer is full before it gets cold.... :grin:

 

[ohio ramrod]

Both will ricocheting off frozen ground or ice on a pond. :idunno:

 

[BrownBear]

I do a lot of winter hunting for snowshoe hare, often on frozen ground.

Maybe it's the fact that hares like cover and I seldom take shots on bare ground, but I don't recall any ricochets from the ground, even though I'm shooting at a shallow angle.

I DO get ricochets, lots of them, if I clip intervening branches- especially horizontal ones. Man, do they make a sound on their way out. It's bad enough that when hunting with a pardner, we usually head out in opposite directions if using rifles. I simply can't justify the risk of using a rifle when hunting with dogs.

When terrain, or number of hunting pardners or use of dogs are factors, I switch to a shotgun with shot.

Here's the interesting thing- The same rules apply when using centerfire calibers. Those pointy bullets, whether 22, 25-20 or 32-20 all take off cross country when encountering limbs, but not so with ground contact.

 

[coloradoclyde]

Yes :slap: and I have the scars to prove it. :cursing:
under the right circumstances a projectile can riccochet off anything.

Don't they teach hunter safety in virginia?

 

[Pierre du Plessis]

Ha-ha, they most certainly do :wink: . I have taken two hunter safety courses - I like taking them every three years or so just to brush up.

I know that bullets/balls can ricochet off of most anything, but was just wondering if frozen ground has a bigger potential for doing it than normally... if you get what I mean.

 

[coloradoclyde]

:applause: My answer is still a resounding”¦YES!....Although I would not nit pick out the type of projectile.

 

[Jumpshot]

We had one the other day. Maybe not a ricochet, but more like a 'bounce'. My kids and I were shooting .600 patched round balls out of our Howdah pistols. My son fired a shot and the ball hit an old tire down range and bounced back, went rolling right past his feet. We picked it up and shot it again. :grin:

 

[Stumpkiller]

The ground doesn't have to be frozen... always be aware of whats beyond the target.

what he said. It's not limited to certain temperatures.

 

[pargent]

live action :haha: :thumbsup:

 

[Rifleman1776]

In case you didn't pick it up from previous responses: YES! It can happen and dangerously. :shocked2:
DAMHIK :redface:

 

[Dean2]

In case you didn't pick it up from previous responses: YES! It can happen and dangerously. :shocked2:
DAMHIK :redface:

Well, I know full body armour isn't HC but you have now scared the stuffing out of me and I see no alternative than to go shooting in full body armour to protect myself. :blah:

 

[Wes/Tex]

Well, I know full body armour isn't HC but you have now scared the stuffing out of me and I see no alternative than to go shooting in full body armour to protect myself. :blah:

Here you go! http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/236x/39/e4/8e/39e48e92da848e60e29537eed1fc9d67.jpg

 

[crockett]

As far as whether a round ball will ricochet more readily than a conical- could be. I don't know. I recall something about the old time navy cannons would aim for the water in front of an enemy ship and the cannon ball would skip on the water and hit the side of the ship.
The old adage about looking beyond your target ought to always be followed.