My new Silhouette Target Stand

[rabbit03]

Yeha! :grin:

Well my birthday is coming up but unlike Mule Brain I aint rich like him. So I had to settle for something homemade instead.

I can tell you one thing, give me a little time and a welder and I can stick some stuff together. Actually Mud Dobbers could do a better job.

The Texas State Silhouette Shoot is coming up soon so I thought I would make a swinging silhouette target, one that I don't have to do down range and set up all the time. I think it came out pretty well considering the surplus material and a no-count welder immitator.

Enjoy the pics and make one for yourself, it's going to be a blast ringing the steel with Big 58! :thumbsup:

rabbit03

 

[hepburn4590]

That's cheatin' 'Sillywets' are supposed to be black. :wink:

 

[Zonie]

Looks good.
Unlike that "shooting bench" you made that takes four yoke of oxen to move this one looks like something a person could manage all by himself.

(Actually, that shooting bench is pretty neat even if it does weigh more than a draft horse.)

 

[rabbit03]

Ifn' that were the case, then I would have to paint my sights orange :blah:

rabbit03

 

[rabbit03]

Well Zonie, I made this one a bit lighter than the bench cause it stays here at home with me. The bench on the other hand goes around the country and I didn't want anyone to get off with it, not without a hernia anyway :blah:

Even though this was put together with stuff from around here, it didn't come out all that heavy. You can tilt it over and grab hold of the top bar and drag it behind you as you go.

It will give me a chance to get some serious practice in before the big shoot coming up. And as long as the welds hold up :shocked2 it just might work out ok!

rabbit03

 

[rabjr]

Looks like that'll work Rabbit. :thumbsup:

 

[Little Wattsy]

SWEET! :applause: :applause:

 

[rabbit03]

Thinking about putting an Elk or a Buffalo or maybe even a Bear in the middle of it soon!

rabbit03

 

[Mulebrain]

Now Now Wabbit! I can hear old Elmer Fudd :grin:

I aint rich by no means :grin: , and as a matter of fact I made two separate payments after selling off some other guns!

I remember when I sold 13,000 dollars in M1's, M1a's, and carbines to buy my 67 Vette!

I got no problem rotating stock!

I like those silhouettes! You buy them, or make them up? I have a welder, so I could make a similar setup.

 

[rabbit03]

yeah I have rotated some stock myself over the years! :cursing:

Well I have made some in the past but these particular ones were made already and I welded them into what you see here. As long as the welds hold up I should be in good shape. I hope that Big 58 is not too hard on them.

All of the material I had on hand around here. The two bases were a couple of target bases turned upside down and the rod through the 1" steel pipe was 3/4" sucker rod. The whole thing could be made up a million different ways but any way you can get r done will be good.

If anyone has not shot silhouettes before, they are in for a great time, especially if they can make a frame like this and shoot it out behind the house like I do. I have alot of fun at the silhouette shoot and thought this was a great way to practice up for the event and thought I would like to share the pics in case anyone else would like to make one similar. Standing up and shooting these things on your hind legs at 100 yds is pretty rewarding and because it is steel there is instant gratification also when one is hit.

rabbit03

 

[renovato]

That stand came out great. Now ya got me thinkin' of makin' one fer myself.

 

[rabbit03]

Hell, if I can do it I know anyone else can too! :thumbsup:

rabbit03 (get r done)

 

[Maynerd62411]

Put a cople of small wheels on the back side , up just enough not to touch and you can roll it behind you when you go to move it. :2
Nice little set-up you made. I made a small one for shooting the .22 at for the kid, several years ago. I made them out of 1/4" steel. I figured I'd just sandwich another piece of 1/4" to the first one and weled it all together for the muzzleloader. WRONG First shot ripped it right off the rod and back about 6'. The rod spun around and around and around. :cursing:
Well it was an idea. :rotf:

 

[Bubba45]

Ya done good you "wascaly wabbit" :hatsoff: I'll have to make one up like it !

 

[rabbit03]

My biggest problem has always been that I make things too big or stout might be a better way to put it. But in this instance I think stout is probably better and if only the welds will hold :shake:

The wheel idea sounds good I know and might install a couple in the back side as you suggest. First though I need to see if there are any kinks in the design.

I will be forwarding an update on wheather or not it is holding up or not so stay tuned.

rabbit03

 

[rabbit03]

Thanks Bubba, I am going out in the AM to give it a try.

rabbit03

 

[paulvallandigham]

Rabbit: The only thing I can recommend to you from the pictures is to tilt future targets at a 15 degree downward angle, to deflect balls and bullets downward on impact. You will still get splatter, but if the plate is angled downward just this little amount, it will direct most of the lead down to the ground in front of the plates, where it can land safely and not pose a danger to anyone. Also the 15 degree angle give the weight of the plate time to begin moving before the lead can head back towards the shooter.

Any welding seams need to be behind the plates, and not at the top edges, where they can be struck by bullets. Most welded joints are more brittle and subject to cracking and breakage than the stell plates are. If the welds are on the back side of the plate, rather than on the top or side edges, the welds are protected from direct blows from bullets, and large caliber Lead Balls.

Oh, you might want to remember to oil those pipe s to make them rotate easier every time you go out to use the targets again. Either oil, or pack the pipes with a good water pump grease that won't wash away or dry out.

And, if you are going to shoot those particular targets when anything larger than a .22 rimfire, you might want to attach a length of chain to the bottom of each target to stop the amount of travel the target can move after its hit. YOu can either use a hanging weight at the other end of the chain, or use a bit longer chain attached to the frame some place protected from incoming bullets.

This is another reason to tilt the target plates at 15 degrees forward towards the shooter. It won't make the target appear any smaller, or even tilted except at close range, to the shooter, but it goes a long way to both saving the targets from being beaten to a short life, and collects the lead for easy recovery.

 

[rabbit03]

Sounds like good advice Paul.

I especially like the 15 degree tilt idea and maybe I should load up ol Big 58 with about 140 grns for the first shot and get my 15 degrees right off the bat!

I am not sure how the welds will hold up but I am going to check it this morning to see. I had thought about running the sucker rod they are attatched to down behind the steel target as you suggest but opted for this way first to see how well it would do.

Appreciate the advice on the safety and also the construction, pics to follow.

rabbit03

 

[50cal.cliff]

Waiting to see the after shooting pics and see how it holds up! Like you said if the welds hold should do fine. Great idea!

 

[paulvallandigham]

I have personal experience with welds cracking and breaking off bang plate targets, with my club's home made targets. We solved the problem using the method I described. Its hard to find volunteers to go out in April when its both cold and wet, usually, to pull the broken bangplates into camp, put them into a car, or truck, and drive them back to town to make repairs. We don't like to do it more than once.

We tried several different ways to hold bangplates up so they could swing. Steel cable works the best. Heavy chains were just about as good, and we could cut a link in half, and weld on half to the back of the bang plate for each side of the chain. We found those T-joints will eventually crack and break on those pipe fittings, from the vibrations wearing out the castings. If you use two cables spaced wider than the width of the bangplate, they keep the plate from turning sideways as well as the pipe on pipe arrangement you are using, without the use of that weak T-joint.

Now, for .22 rifle and pistol practice, the life of the set-up you have is virtually indefinite. We had guys shooting our Hunter's Walk with full hunting loads to hit targets that were often 25 yards or shorter distances from their guns. The gun were .54 and larger in caliber, and they really punished the steel targets. Every spring, the Range officers go out, and take a sledge hammer to hammer the back side of the targets to flatten out the " dish " that forms in the middle of the plates from those large balls hitting the target. Most of our targets are now made of 3/8 or 1/2" thick steel plate, although we have not spent the money to buy the expensive " armour plate". The 1/4" plates proved too light, and were bent up to the point of being useless within a few matches.