Who took the Keg?! (Pawnee)

[jrdale84]

While I am generally an advocate of "pack in pack out" someone took the orange painted keg that was ~300 meters from the firing area and left the smaller propane tanks and assorted crap.

While orange painted metal kegs don't typically grow wild in Pawnee (which is the problem!) it was a perfect target out there because it was audible when you hit it and it didn't otherwise litter (like say glass or a paint can). Since most people generally are not going to shoot up something like a keg that holds valuable liquids it was rather rare and perfect.

Hopefully someone who took it sees this and I am just saying can we put it back? Since the other [truly] trash out there was left I doubt it was taken as part of a clean up and while 98% of the crap out there I am for bringing in, I think this was a good target to leave because it prompted people to not bring more crap out and it's not exactly a short walk to get to the hill it was on.

(I know Im going to get flak for this, and like I said leaving trash out there is bad, but the occasional object left behind until it's too mangled to really constitute a target should be left)

[blacklabel]

Why don't we just clean up all the shit that's out there and hump in (and out) your targets when you go shooting?

I don't get the concept of fighting for clean range areas unless it benefits you. The rangers at Pawnee have become very uptight about what your targets are and how you conduct your session while you're in the grasslands. Everything that we can do to build good will with them should be done.

[Byte Stryke]

Fucking damned if you do... damned if you don't.

[Graves]

I stuck some tannerite in it, packed all the big(ish) shit that remained. [Evil]JK

[jrdale84]

I knew this would swim upstream, but it seemed worth while anyhow to say it.

Here is my logic with the Keg. Imagine for a minute that you are some college student or casual 'few-times-a-year' shooter...

If a majority of the shooters in places like Pawnee don't own spotting scopes, gongs, or other expensive shooting paraphernalia like a nice range membership what are they going to shoot at? Sure, they can take that paper target and who knows what to keep it in the wind to Pawnee and work on their distance shooting but that means after every shot in theory they will have to walk 300+ meters out to their target, see if they hit, and adjust.

Now that sounds absurd and it is. Which is why no one does it. So instead they bring paint cans, computers, and other 'destructible' garbage out to the grassland because they can see it break with the impact. Problem is ... this litters in a way that is REALLY hard to clean up.

Enter the keg. It doesn't break but like the gong makes a nice ring when you slap it with a little lead. Now instead of nailing paint cans or some Lexmark printer (yea found both of those out there) they have a reactive target that doesn't litter and serves the purpose.

I've dealt with the same Rangers and Sheriff deputies out there, and I agree - there is no reason for a washing machine to be out there (pretty sure that's what that was a few weeks ago). If there was a way for no trash to be out there that would be awesome but reality is until someone puts a public range with reasonable prices and some distance where John Q Public can go its going to happen.

90% of the time I shoot the cardboard silhouettes, paper targets, plastic pop-up targets or the clays left out there but the Keg was a nice target to have. I do bring all my crap back, collect my brass (and like that others don't when its .223 or .308) but I don't see the harm in leaving one or two things out there that people can enjoy to shoot at - its not like if we took out the trash that little cut would be mistaken for just another part of the grassland ... bullets have literally eroded the terrain. (for the record the other 10% of the time I shoot safe targets like the keg)

All of that aside, the keg wasn't removed as part of a cleanup. I know this because there is a pile of other trash sitting in the same spot - half painted orange like the keg.

I guess the way I see it - if we leave one or two things for the bums to shoot at they will eventually stop bringing their own crap. This means less overall litter.

In essence - If you leave it, they will shoot it. If you take it, they will bring more of it.

[Irving]

I think if people went and set up sturdy steel target at measured distances, they'd stay, but who is going to spend their own money to do that? Although, I think it might cut down on trash. Maybe.

[newracer]

I bet someone took it and recycled it, lots of aluminum.

[jplove71]

I bet someone took it and recycled it, lots of aluminum.

This.

[rocktot]

Can't ye find some more kegs, and put 'Leave Here' on em? Im sure they got em on craigslist, but yea, with all the copper wire theivin, anything with lots of metal could now be fair game.

How about a car hood, painted orange, and stood up? Maybe you could improvise some other kind of junk. I only have a .22 with peep sight, so I need a larger target for 300 yards! [Flower]
A 2x4 frame with hanging (paint) buckets with sand would also be nice. When you are done, (walk) and push it down. The sand will show a 'pop' when you hit it. Camo the frame, so its not obvious what it is. Lie it down when you go.

[blacklabel]

Please don't leave crap out at Pawnee. We should be cleaning it up not leaving designated stuff out there to shoot. We need to protect our shooting areas.

[rfizzle]

Please don't leave crap out at Pawnee. We should be cleaning it up not leaving designated stuff out there to shoot. We need to protect our shooting areas.

This is my policy ^


I think if people went and set up sturdy steel target at measured distances, they'd stay, but who is going to spend their own money to do that? Although, I think it might cut down on trash. Maybe.

Maybe... Until someone abused them with steel core of armor piercing.

And people will still shoot TV's and trash.

[SideShow Bob]

Beer keg = aluminum = $$. Nuff said.

[jrdale84]

Yea, I get the whole "aluminum" thing.... got ya. I knew from the get go I would swim up hill but I suppose I'll just quit and stop stopping people from shooting shit they shouldnt because hey - why should anyone propose a change from a system that is already not working right?

[blacklabel]

Yea, I get the whole "aluminum" thing.... got ya. I knew from the get go I would swim up hill but I suppose I'll just quit and stop stopping people from shooting shit they shouldnt because hey - why should anyone propose a change from a system that is already not working right?

You really don't think that leaving the keg will be viewed as an invitation to leave more stuff out there?

[DFBrews]

Kegs are stainless not aluminum. and scrap yards will not take them because the keg that was the target is actually stolen property from the brewery that originally owned it.
The "deposit" you pay when you get a keg is about 1/6 of the actual cost of a new keg. So a craft beer place that is trying to make it and their kegs keep ending up as targets rat rod tanks etc. that is cutting hard into their chances to make it in the super competitive market that is brewing.

just my thoughts

[Great-Kazoo]

Kegs are stainless not aluminum. and scrap yards will not take them because the keg that was the target is actually stolen property from the brewery that originally owned it.
The "deposit" you pay when you get a keg is about 1/6 of the actual cost of a new keg. So a craft beer place that is trying to make it and their kegs keep ending up as targets rat rod tanks etc. that is cutting hard into their chances to make it in the super competitive market that is brewing.

just my thoughts

And scrap yards are not to accept vehicles with no or questionable paperwork, but it happens. Unfortunately it disappeared and more than likely some idiot will say Hey why no take or old washing machine out there. Everyone liked to shoot the keg, now thay can shoot this instead.
That's why i have been a member of the WCFW range for 15 years, safe (sometimes) and no one leaves shit anywhere.

[jrdale84]

It was a suggestion, but frankly I have more important things to worry about. It was a suggestion that if we left some crap out there less people would bring crap out making it easier to clean and less pollution would occur. However there is no middle ground on this, we must strive for an impossible standard and just put a pox on those who fail to meet it. Ironically those who champion "gun ownership to the masses" equally seem to champion the idea of shooting only for the elite.

[blacklabel]

I'd hardly call myself "elite". I've never been a member of a shooting range and have only actually gone to a formal range on a handful of occasions. I'm the definition of middle class but that doesn't prevent me from cleaning up after myself and doing what I can to clean up after others when I'm at my favorite shooting spots.

[CowboyTuff]

Please don't leave crap out at Pawnee. We should be cleaning it up not leaving designated stuff out there to shoot. We need to protect our shooting areas.

this

[blacklabel]

To add another point; we should be cleaning up our free shooting areas so that we don't have to end up paying for a range membership.

Sorry for not coming off my point but this is just frustrating to no end when guys like alxone are busting their asses to keep various shooting areas clean.

[TAR31]

Kegs are stainless not aluminum. and scrap yards will not take them because the keg that was the target is actually stolen property from the brewery that originally owned it.
The "deposit" you pay when you get a keg is about 1/6 of the actual cost of a new keg. So a craft beer place that is trying to make it and their kegs keep ending up as targets rat rod tanks etc. that is cutting hard into their chances to make it in the super competitive market that is brewing.

just my thoughts
Just checked the keg in my kegerator and it is definitely stainless, I thought they were aluminum. Made me curious so I decided to google it and it looks like a keg costs about $150 new. $25-30 deposit seems like bad business to me.

On that note, anybody want to buy a kegerator? Comes with a free target inside.

[relichunter]

I think if people went and set up sturdy steel target at measured distances, they'd stay, but who is going to spend their own money to do that? Although, I think it might cut down on trash. Maybe.

I'd spend my own money and time but...

My son wanted to build some heavy duty steel targets for an Eagle Scout project and put them out there.

We both thought about it for about 2 minutes and decided that if the forest service would even allow us to install them and we could avoid any liability someone would have to see if their gun was big enough to destroy them.

He is now onto helping landscape a local school.