Curious Relics #114: Cans ‘n Clays – Scientific Products Targ-A-Launch
Sam.S 07.16.25
Welcome, if you are a newcomer to this fun bi-weekly segment of AllOutdoor.com! Last time we covered all there is to know about the Remington 550-1 – the history, variations, dating, specs, and range time. Today we’re diving into something completely different from our usual rifles and pistols. This is a piece of 1970s American outdoor history that turned empty beverage cans into backyard clay pigeons long before anyone thought of can cannons or fancy clay throwers. This is the story of the Scientific Products Targ-A-Launch.
Curious Relics Coverage on AllOutdoor
- Curious Relics #110: The Remington 550-1 .22 Rimfire – Part I
- Curious Relics #111: The Remington 550-1 .22 Rimfire Part II
- Curious Relics #112: The Remington 550-1 .22 Rimfire Part III
- Curious Relics #113: The Remington 550-1 .22 Rimfire Part IV
Welcome to our recurring series of “Curious Relics.” Here, we want to share all of our experiences, knowledge, misadventures, and passion for older firearms that one might categorize as a Curio & Relic – any firearm that is at least 50 years old according to the ATF. Hopefully along the way you can garner a greater appreciation for older firearms like we do, and simultaneously you can teach us things as well through sharing your own expertise and thoughts in the Comments. Understanding the firearms of old, their importance, and their development which lead to many of the arms we now cherish today is incredibly fascinating and we hope you enjoy what we have to share, too!
A Literary Connection: Jaws
Topical note since it’s the 50th anniversary of the release of Jaws. I’d known about these devices without really knowing what they were called. Years back, I read Peter Benchley’s novel Jaws, which the movie was based on. In Chapter 12, Quint uses a device for aerial target practice:
“The device looked like a potato masher hand grenade, a metal cylinder with a handle at one end. Quint pushed the beer can down into the cylinder, turned it till there was a click, and took a .22 blank cartridge from his shirt pocket. He slipped the blank into a small hole at the base of the cylinder, then turned the handle until there was another click… there was a sharp high report, a mild kick, and the beer can was launched from his hand straight up into the air.”
Quint then shoots the launched can out of the air with an M1 Carbine. When I saw this Targ-A-Launch for sale, I knew exactly what it was and had to have it. That connection to a different era of American gun culture, when people were more creative about making their own fun, is what makes these devices fascinating.
History Abridged: Scientific Products Targ-A-Launch
Scientific Products Corporation introduced the Targ-A-Launch In the early 70s for shotgun practice. The ads promised it would “make empty beverage cans a moving target” and provide training that simulated live bird shooting. The only documentation I found on it is the stuff that was included with my launcher from 1971. Honestly I was almost more excited over the papers telling a story than the device.
This was marketed in mainstream publications including The Wall Street Journal and sold through upscale retailers like Abercrombie & Fitch. At $15 in 1971 (roughly $100 today), they were selling backyard entertainment to people with disposable income looking for novel ways to practice shooting.
The vintage documentation I have tells the whole story. There’s a typed letter from June 30, 1971, where someone saw an ad in The Wall Street Journal and mailed a personal check for $16.60 to buy one. The Abercrombie & Fitch advertisements marketed this thing alongside their outdoor gear, promising training that simulated live bird shooting.
A Whole Industry of Innovation
This wasn’t a unique idea. Several companies were making these devices, and the similarities suggest either licensing agreements or everyone copying the same successful design:
- Arthur M. Johnson’s Targeteer – Created by a retired Navy officer after getting tired of throwing cans by hand during turkey hunting in Pennsylvania. Nearly identical packaging to the Targ-A-Launch suggests licensing or shared manufacturing.
- Webley & Scott Target Launcher – Made in England around 1970-1980. Originally designed to fire soft drink cans using .22 blanks. Modern drink cans no longer fit, but “baked-bean size cans work as substitutes”.
- Scientific Products Retriev-R-Trainer – Dog training version that launched padded canvas dummies. Listed at $30, complete with launcher, dummy, and 50 assorted blanks. These items are still made today albeit by different companies.
These companies marketed similar devices across multiple applications. The ads suggest these were supposedly good for shotgun, rifle, pistol, and even bow and arrow practice. That last one caught my attention – the idea that someone was shooting launched cans out of the sky with a bow suggests a level of skill that borders on supernatural.
Note: The handle mentions “Hunt Wilde Corporation” – according to their website, “The Vinyl Grip Division was sold in 2006,” which may mean they just made the grips rather than the entire device.
Specifications: Scientific Products Targ-A-Launch
The Targ-A-Launch is simple but well-engineered for its purpose. Construction is an aluminum frame with a red plastic grip and a thick O-ring inside the muzzle opening. There’s an old yellowed label recommending “vaseline or light grease in firing chamber to aid cartridge ejection,” which turned out to be crucial information.
- Years Produced: Early 1970s
- MSRP in 1971: $15.00 (roughly $100 today)
- Weight: Approximately 1.5 lbs
- Length: 8 inches
- Propellant: .22 caliber blank cartridges
- Target Compatibility: Empty beverage cans (vintage steel cans with proper rims)
- Operation: Single-shot, pinball-style trigger mechanism
- Accessories: Shoulder stock available separately ($14.50)
The ads mention a shoulder stock available separately for $14.50. I havent been able to find an image of one which makes me wonder what that looked like. I guess some engineer really thought this thing needed more precision than handheld operation could provide. If anyone out there knows what that would be or has one let us know in the comments or send over an email. I have seen modern interpretations of it but I doubt the old one was that refined.
How It Works: Scientific Products Targ-A-Launch
Operation is straightforward: break it open like a single-shot shotgun, drop in a .22 blank, place an empty can over the muzzle opening (the can sits on that thick O-ring and grips just tight enough to hold firmly), close the action, and pull the trigger.
I sort of find it funny that the ads specifically mention this is “not a zip gun” because that would be illegal. To put it as proffessionally as I can: A zip gun is an improvised firearm – basically a spring-loaded firing pin mechanism plus a barrel. The Targ-A-Launch works similarly with that pinball-style pull-back-and-release “trigger” system instead of crude rubber band setups typical of zip guns.
The Can Problem: Scientific Products Targ-A-Launch
Back in 1971, beer and soda cans were steel with proper rims that fit this launcher and could take the beating. Modern aluminum cans are completely out of the question. I tried engineering a solution by 3D printing a barrel adapter out of PETG. The adapter had different internal diameters: one to fit the launcher’s “muzzle”, another to accommodate modern can dimensions.
I had low expectations for my print, but the tube adapter absolutely shattered from the concussion forces, and the modern aluminum can crumpled into itself mid-flight like it went through a can crusher. Modern cans just can’t handle the forces. Maybe a full one would work but I dont feel like detonating a soda can above my hand.
The solution is 10-ounce soup cans. Campbell’s soup cans, Rotel diced tomato cans, various fruit cans – most have the right rim diameter and enough steel thickness to survive multiple launches. The cans are loaded empty, open-end first onto the launcher. This is why I used soup cans – they’re the closest thing to the right dimensions and form that the device was originally made for.
Range Time: Scientific Products Targ-A-Launch
The launching part works exactly as advertised. I was consistently sending cans out to around 40 yards. The trajectory is as consistent as your aim – point, shoot, can flies straight where you aimed it. No misfires, no failures to launch. When you fire, there’s a loud bang – think firework echo. No recoil, but a definite concussion over your hand as the can leaves.
But extraction turns every shot into a 5-minute ordeal. The majority of .22 blanks from 1971 were different from modern ones – they were shorter because they weren’t crimped like modern blanks. They were more like old paper shotgun shells with paper ends/shotcard ends that were only slightly crimped over.
I started with the #4 box Ramset blanks. This worked fine, although it was the first and last to get horrendously stuck. Then I went out and bought the CCI blanks made for products like the Retriev-R-Trainer launcher (3 different power levels. I have only used the green so far).
Modern blanks get seriously stuck. Even after cleaning the chamber with solvents and Q-tips, then polishing it with Flitz and a cylindrical buffing bit, extraction is still a fight. The vaseline recommendation is real – I started by putting a small glob in the chamber, but what actually worked was dipping each blank in vaseline before loading.
Even then, extraction means opening the launcher aggressively hoping to knock the case loose, then using a small flathead screwdriver to pry up the rim and persuade things along. The extractor mechanism tries – it hangs down and actuates outward as you open the action – but it doesn’t have enough power for stuck cases.
Be Safe!!! Scientific Products Targ-A-Launch
The concussion blast over your hand is noticeable but not painful. It is very loud so wear ear protection. Wear safety glasses when using this thing and point it away from anything valuable. I noticed a small hole appeared in one of my test cans, meaning pieces of the blank or debris are flying out of the port. This device will ventilate anything you don’t want punctured.
Final Thoughts: Scientific Products Targ-A-Launch
This represents a time when American gun culture was more inventive about creating entertainment. Despite the extraction hassles, there’s something genuinely charming about the whole concept. In an era before YouTube and videogames, someone looked at beer cans and .22 blanks and created instant aerial targets.
The vintage documentation – that typed letter, the Abercrombie & Fitch connection, the Wall Street Journal ads – captures when American shooting culture was less regulated but more creative. The Targ-A-Launch works exactly as advertised. It just works in a world where beverage cans were steel, backyard shooting was normal, and safety meant “don’t point it at your face.”
Would I recommend hunting one down? If you like historical curiosities and don’t mind mechanical challenges, absolutely. Just understand you’re getting a 50-year-old novelty that requires patience and tool-assisted extraction. As a window into a different era of American gun culture, it’s fascinating.
In closing, I hope our Curious Relics segment informed as well as entertained. This all was written in hopes of continued firearm appreciation and preservation. We did not just realize how guns were supposed to look and function. It was a long and tedious process that has shaped the world we live in. So, I put it to you! Is there a firearm out there that you feel does not get much notoriety? What should our next Curious Relics topic cover? As always, let us know all of your thoughts in the Comments below! We always appreciate your feedback.
