Building a >>> LEAD MISER BACKSTOP <<< for Practice / Load Workups

[second chance]

I feel pretty confident it would work for airgun energies, even shooting "bullets". I am going to try it, I just need to decide the proper weight chain. I'll probable start with three rows(sheets of chain) and see if it stops airgun velocities and energies. To check ricochet and splash back potential, I'm guessing if I get lead thrown back through the face cover I'll have my answer. I normally use foam poster board to cover the front of my trap, that should show any lead trying to come back out the front.

[OS OK]

I feel pretty confident it would work for airgun energies, even shooting "bullets". I am going to try it, I just need to decide the proper weight chain. I'll probable start with three rows(sheets of chain) and see if it stops airgun velocities and energies. To check ricochet and splash back potential, I'm guessing if I get lead thrown back through the face cover I'll have my answer. I normally use foam poster board to cover the front of my trap, that should show any lead trying to come back out the front.

Show us what your doing with pictures and a post as this progresses...you can't imagine how many good ideas are floating around in the heads of us old farts here...you'll get plenty-O-help.

I don't see you getting anything thrown back at you because the chains will flex backwards...well, if the bottoms of the chains hang free they'll flex back.

[JBinMN]

Pieces of carpet in front of & between the chain sheets?

[MaryB]

Great idea! Please start a thread on this with lots of pictures when you get to it!

I feel pretty confident it would work for airgun energies, even shooting "bullets". I am going to try it, I just need to decide the proper weight chain. I'll probable start with three rows(sheets of chain) and see if it stops airgun velocities and energies. To check ricochet and splash back potential, I'm guessing if I get lead thrown back through the face cover I'll have my answer. I normally use foam poster board to cover the front of my trap, that should show any lead trying to come back out the front.

[MaryB]

Maybe buy some kevlar cloth to hang behind the chains and along the sides to stop fragments... you can get it now from Amazon, eBay, or online retailers. Have a 55 gallon drum under it to catch the lead...

If this works I might be able to talk the city into letting me setup a pistol range in the backyard. I have farm field behind where I would want to shoot...

Pieces of carpet in front of & between the chain sheets?

[jmorris]

I would beware of ricochet with hanging chain.

I always liked one at Jerry Miculek's range. Shoot, open up the side door and collect your lead. Only thing that would make it better would be a propane burner under the tube and a tray on the side to collect the molten lead as it comes out.

[OS OK]

^^^ This is what I envision for the rifle range to scrounge the lead...I'm thinking 3/8's steel plate?
Use a schedule 80 heavy wall pipe to collect?

[jmorris]

I never opened that one up to see how thick the pipe was but I do remember one of the fenders had a bullet hole in it.

[OS OK]

"Pesky rifles!"

[ulav8r]

^^^ This is what I envision for the rifle range to scrounge the lead...I'm thinking 3/8's steel plate?
Use a schedule 80 heavy wall pipe to collect?

Because of the angles, the top plate would probably need to be thicker. I would guess 1/2 inch Jalloy 360 or AR500 for the side and bottom plates and 3/4 inch for the top plate. Pipe wall thickness of at least 1/2 inch.

As said, a guess that would be sufficient for anything up to a 30/06. For pistol only I would go lighter.

If you could configure it so there was no way a bullet could go into the pipe without first being deflected, then the pipe could be lighter weight.

[jmorris]

That 3/8" AR500 plate I posted in #15 will stop a 300 win mag with a direct hit no problem. Any angle and things just get easier for the plate.

One thing worth noting though is how the projectiles enter the "drum" portion. The way that one is setup a low shot could make a direct impact on the rear of the drum, would be better if they were all deflected by an angle before entering.

[ulav8r]

That 3/8" AR500 plate I posted in #15 will stop a 300 win mag with a direct hit no problem. Any angle and things just get easier for the plate.

One thing worth noting though is how the projectiles enter the "drum" portion. They way that one is setup a low shot could make a direct impact on the rear of the drum, would be better if they were all deflected by an angle before entering.

Good information, I have not done any research for information on traps and plates. My dad's neighbor told us about his .220 Swift shooting through a grader blade replacement edge which is about 3/8" thick. Angles well under 90 degrees will definitely help. Definitely watch the path leading into the catch drum. If I get to build one, I will make the drum vertical and let the bullets drop out the bottom into a bucket.

[jmorris]

This is a pretty good design. The bullet (yellow line) can't impact the drum perpendicularly and once it slows enough, it falls out the bottom.

[OS OK]

Exactly what I'm thinking...we won't even have jackets to split when we go to ingotize the fragments...whooa! Ingotize...is that a word?

[Duckdog]

I use a wood box, or even a plastic tote, filled with rubber mulch, with a rubber paver in the front for the target, and 2 in the back of the box. The box is 24" x 24" by 24" deep, or there abouts. The bullets come out completely whole, and never shoot out the back. I have shot up a 30-06 @ 2100 FPS and a 45/70 @ 1600' into it and nothing has ever went all the way through.

The problem with a plastic tote, is that when it gets cold, it tends to crack, so a wood box is the best.

[bob208]

I saw one like in post 34 in use. for in door use a spray of coolant to keep the dust down is all that is needed.

[OldBearHair]

Mine has 2 x 12 x 4' board sides, a 2 x 12 bottom and top. The top already had three 4" holes to pour in the sand. The back was .050 galvanized steel. The front is 3/4 plywood with innertube rubber. Tacked the rubber to the front then screwed the front onto the sides. The rubber tube stops the sand from coming out. The plan is to lean the whole thing back against a big tree, take the front off, recover boolits, reinstall the front, set it back up and pour the sand back in. Shot at with 44 magnum 300 grain sledge hammers, 30-06 150 grain and it stops them. Right in the center is weakened with sawdust from the 3/4 inch plywood but there is no sand coming out. I screwed another smaller square of wood over that part. I don't shoot as much as some talk about, so the front would have to be replaced more often.

[Mr_Sheesh]

I saw something like this a guy made from old scrap angle iron (bedframe pieces); Let me see if I can figure out what he did. He got the material free when a local place (motel?) closed, for hauling it off. I think it was something like a "forest" of the angle iron, front side view like \\\\\\\\\\ front view ^^^^^^^^ in 2 rows - if that makes sense. Angle iron was about 30 degrees or 20 from angle bullets would hit it. Overlapped somewhat so edge hits would not get away. Dang... if my box of photos was findable LOL

[Cosmic_Charlie]

If I could shoot in the backyard I would be all over a boolit trap in a NY minute. Pretty ingenious guys!