I shot a steel plate with a 22-250 and had a a frag come back and hit me in the cheek, bled like a stuck hog. I started paying a little more attention after that because it was close to my eye.
It probably sounds like BS, but this really happened when I was in college. A friend and I went to a new area to scout turkeys. I brought along my Colt woodsman, not really expecting to use it. Miles into the woods we spotted a highway mile marker sign that someone had dragged into an old clear cut where we had decided to stop and listen. I mentioned that I wanted to shoot at the marker, and he said "Don't do it--it will ricochet," and I just laughed. I believed the sheet metal was much too thin to stop a high velocity long rifle slug and told him so. At this he decided to stand directly behind me and just peer over my shoulder. At the very first shot he hollered and held his hand up to his forehead. I thought he was full of beans until I pulled his hand away and saw the welt almost directly between his eyes. It turns out that the slug had struck just at the point reinforced by the post behind it and barely dented the sheet metal before flying straight back over my shoulder.
I cringe at all the stupid things my friends and I did when young. Of course, we had all heard the admonitions, but without context had no real understanding of the risks. No doubt that is still true in many ways, so I guess it is good to share experiences.
