I think that this is part of the draw in varmint shooting. When a high velocity small-bore projectile hits a varmint, the target is pretty 'reactive', more often than not.
Here we shoot watermelons for fun.
Once we tried a side-by-side watermelon shoot comparison between an H&R Handi-Rifle in .22 Hornet and a Marlin 1895CB in 45-70.
The Hornet literally exploded the watermelon, chunks went everywhere but some of the meat was intact.
The 45-70 just split it the melon in half, lengthways - but when we looked inside, all of the meat inside of the watermelon shell had been reduced to a slurry.
On another occasion, I saw something that is hard to see. After shooting a watermelon with the .243, I saw a pink cloud hovering about a foot above the exploded watermelon - that instantly precipitated into watermelon-juice rain that fell down to the ground in large drops. - All of this happened within the span of a second or less. - I actually saw the "rain" precipitate from a cloud of mist and fall to dry ground in big round drops.
You have to look quick to see things like that.
When I go to the shooting club, I will often find unbroken shotgun clays on the way out to the 100yd. target butts. - I pick them up and line them up on the target stand, and plink at them with a .22 while my high-powered rifle cools down between shots. - I use my Ruger Mk III Hunter model with the 2X scope most often for that and am gratified every time at how well this .22 pistol does at 100 yds on those clays.
I have the pistol precisely sighted in for thirty feet - but strangely enough, no hold-over is required at 100 yards. - It just worked out that way, and I'm not complaining. - Something about the height of the scope above the bore, and the ammo that I am using.
After I bust a clay, then I go after the remaining chunks. It's amazing how much amusement I can get out of a discarded ( missed ) shooting clay.
Now that I have a tack-driver load for my .243, I'm planning on replacing the inexpensive 3-9x40 scope I have on it and buy something with more magnification - Maybe a Nikon Buckmaster 4-12x40. - I've had one of those before and liked it OK.
With the new scope, the plan is to set up and shoot plastic "army men" toys at 100 yds.
I used to do that with a BB gun at more modest ranges, as a child. - I guess that I never really grew up, eh?
I figure that a 99 cent bag full of plastic army men ought to keep me amused with that .243 for as long as my ammo holds out. ( I only load 50 rounds at a time. )
It will be good practice and if it gets to be old-hat, I can always move them out to the 200 yard target butts. - If I can see them to shoot at them.
Another good, cheap reactive target for smallbore and air rifles are the NEKKO candy wafers. - Coin-sized candies that are brittle and blow up when struck.
Returning to my original theme, I have discovered that my .17HMR rifle has no kick to speak of, and that I can watch the bullet strike through the scope with that rifle.
The 17HMR has got to be the ultimate cartridge for observing the hit on a reactive target - or on a varmint for that matter.
As a kid, I took the opposite approach and developed reactive ammunition for my .22 caliber pellet rifle. - I hollowed out the pellets, filled them with powder from a firecracker, then affixed the very center of a cap gun cap onto the flat nose of the pellet. ( Crossman )
The trick is to make the hole through the nose of the pellet ( for ignition ) large enough to pass the primer flame - but not large enough for the powder and primer to be shot out through the nose of the pellet by the pressure from the air-gun.
If I hit a flat, hard surface with one of these, they would pop just about every time.
