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Thread: Nonpermanent bullet catcher?

  1. #21
    Boolit Grand Master Harter66's Avatar
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    I talked to a fabrication shop and got some 22" hrs steel cutouts . Nice 3/4 " circle . Then I stuck them in a worn 20" tire from a tire shop junk pile and bolted it through the sidewall just above the bead shoulder . I added a plywood facer and backer and legs to support a vertical deflection the ideal would of course be down . With so many 20-22" LT tires available a nice 8 ply would be better than the HS rated 4 ply I used . The tire selected was about 10-12 " wide .

    On reflection filled with rubber would be wise .
    As a note on capture rounds approaching 950ftlb and above will punch through 1/4" hot rolled with a 1/2 plywood in front . The Facer stopped all of the splash . Mulch will be added to the new ones after my move to add more deceleration and lower deflection risks . The life span wasn't good on the 1/4 but the 3/4 held up well .
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  2. #22
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    1/4 inch boiler plate I got from work back in the day. Steel pipe out the back and a large steel pipe with a plate welded on the bottom to catch the lead. Ive shot a lot of rifle into it. Only thing ive had trouble with are bullets like the barns x our of mag rifles. 223 ball barely scratch it. Where the big mags gave me problems is at the weld seams where it transitioned from straight to angled. hit right on one and after a while the welds started cracking and I had to reweld it once. Probably didn't really have to but it bothered me. I don't know how many bullets ive shot into it but that containment pipe is 18 inches across and 30 inches high and ive emptied it at least 6 times. Only problem is the lead about turns to crumbs and packs in that pipe so tight that if I let it get full it have to use the buddys tractor to lift it and bring it home and it can be a bugger to get the lead out. What I ended up finding as the easiest way is to put it upside down on a tarp and beat the boot with a big sledge hammer. probably end up between 200 or 300 lbs of clean lead out of it when its full. .
    Quote Originally Posted by rosewood View Post
    Lloyd, that is more what I was thinking. Is that armor plate you made it out of? Or just heavy gauge steel? The pipe out the back, is that a steel pipe? Do you shoot rifles at this or just pistol? Jacketed or only cast?

    Thanks,

    Rosewood

  3. #23
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lloyd Smale View Post
    1/4 inch boiler plate I got from work back in the day. Steel pipe out the back and a large steel pipe with a plate welded on the bottom to catch the lead. Ive shot a lot of rifle into it. Only thing ive had trouble with are bullets like the barns x our of mag rifles. 223 ball barely scratch it. Where the big mags gave me problems is at the weld seams where it transitioned from straight to angled. hit right on one and after a while the welds started cracking and I had to reweld it once. Probably didn't really have to but it bothered me. I don't know how many bullets ive shot into it but that containment pipe is 18 inches across and 30 inches high and ive emptied it at least 6 times. Only problem is the lead about turns to crumbs and packs in that pipe so tight that if I let it get full it have to use the buddys tractor to lift it and bring it home and it can be a bugger to get the lead out. What I ended up finding as the easiest way is to put it upside down on a tarp and beat the boot with a big sledge hammer. probably end up between 200 or 300 lbs of clean lead out of it when its full. .
    Your kind it what I'd like to eventually build for myself, but it's unfortunately not feasible right now. Hopefully it will be in the near future when I have a permanent dedicated range.
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  4. #24
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    Wish you were closer. I lost the range I was set up at. It had a locked gate. the new place I'm shooting can be accessed by anyone and I hate to put it out there and have it stolen. So its sitting behind the barn right now. I also have enough lead and enough bullets that I could probably shoot for 40 years and at 62 I doubt that's happening.

  5. #25
    Boolit Master
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    Got it done, and it's friggin HEAVY. Well over 200 pounds. I'm going to have to get a yard cart to attach it to. I finished it too late to test tonight, so I'll try a few loads and post the results tomorrow.



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  6. #26
    Boolit Buddy
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    Looks good. I built mine many moons ago and it will work good. I have a rubber paver in the front and back and nothing ever reaches the back rubber paver. I have a lid off a plastic tote screwed on as a top. Without it, this stuff will fly all over. I also use 5 gal pails and empty some of it out when I am done shooting. Like I said in earlier posts, you found out they get very heavy, real fast. Emptying it out into pails has to be done anyway to recover the bullets, so ding it when your done shooting just ends up saving your back!

    The mulch you have looks different than the stuff I get here. The stuff we get has bigger chunks of rubber, but it should all work.

    Keep up posted!

  7. #27
    Boolit Master
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    Looks good!


    Heavy? Yep, looks like it. That is why I downsized to 18" cubed.... So I can lift it without help.


    Looks to me like you could lift the sand "box" out & that might help a bit with the rest when moving though.

    Glad to see you are on the right track though.


    Like said, ya may want to put some sort of a cover on the top before ya start shooting into it. I used foam board then some strips of wood/cardboard across to hold it down when I transport it & when I shoot into it. but even some cardboard will help instead of foam to cover & keep from adding much weight..

    G'Luck!
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  8. #28
    Boolit Master
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    I don't have the lumber for a lid yet, but will pick up some and another bag of mulch. Testing went well. Nothing exited the box, and I learned a few things.

    The first round I tested was a 200gr LFN 44 mag out of a 20" barrel (10 of them). These were getting around 2000 FPS, and is not the sort of thing I will usually shoot at the box. All the rounds were grouped relatively tightly, and as a result created a channel in the mulch. I think this was mostly due to the airspace in the top of the box. I'm going to add another bag of mulch and pack it in tightly. This should stop that from happening again. Most of the rounds did stop in the mulch. Usually around 15-16" in. The channel ended up creating a direct path through the box, so some of the rounds never touched the mulch. The sand did it's job though. Some of the rounds did make it to the back of the sand box, but none touched the back board. It's nice to know that 6" of sand will stop something as hard hitting as this round.

    The second round I tested was some 158gr LFN 38 Special (6 rounds). These made it about 7-8" into the mulch and that was it.

    Overall, I'm happy.

    Last edited by am44mag; 01-20-2018 at 12:57 PM.
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  9. #29
    Boolit Master
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    That's crazy that the 38's only made it 7-8 inches in. If you limited yourself to the common handgun rounds it sounds like 1 foot of mulch and 4 inches of sand would be sufficient and much easier to move.

  10. #30
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by reddog81 View Post
    That's crazy that the 38's only made it 7-8 inches in. If you limited yourself to the common handgun rounds it sounds like 1 foot of mulch and 4 inches of sand would be sufficient and much easier to move.
    I found a good garden wagon for about $50. It's rated for 1000 pounds, so a 250 pound box should be no problem. The 44 mag out of a rifle is definitely overkill. That was a hot load with a light weight bullet. I don't shoot that load a lot because it's not a lot of fun after a few rounds. The rifle is light weight, and the buttplate is crescent shaped and made of steel. My plinking load is about half as fast. The fact that the box stopped it tells me I did it right. I'm not sure how well 12" of mulch and 4" of sand would hold up to heavy magnum rounds, but it would definitely be sufficient for stuff like 9mm, 45 acp, and possibly even 357 mag that's loaded to factory levels.
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  11. #31
    Boolit Master Handloader109's Avatar
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    Guys thanks for all the information... I've a good backstop, but I really want to be able to easily recover most of my lead. So I'm building one of these. Got a bunch of throwaway ply and a few 2xs got to decide on mulch or sand.... I can set up and leave in place, so sand is no issue, would just have to make a sieve... Hmm

  12. #32
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by Handloader109 View Post
    Guys thanks for all the information... I've a good backstop, but I really want to be able to easily recover most of my lead. So I'm building one of these. Got a bunch of throwaway ply and a few 2xs got to decide on mulch or sand.... I can set up and leave in place, so sand is no issue, would just have to make a sieve... Hmm
    Rubber mulch is easier to dig through, but sand is definitely more efficient and is cheaper. a 12" cube of sand would probably stop anything you shot at it.

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  13. #33
    Boolit Master
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    I am just happy to see that others are having the satisfaction of doing something themselves... Not spending a whole lot of time... Or, $$..... & getting what they are looking for..


    That is worth more than you might think! Just from over here & looking... LOL


    Have fun! & G'Luck!
    2nd Amend./U.S. Const. - "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

    ~~ WWG1WGA ~~

    Restore the Republic!!!

    For the Fudds > "Those who appease a tiger, do so in the hope that the tiger will eat them last." -Winston Churchill.

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  14. #34
    Boolit Buddy
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    24" x 20" round piece of cottonwood will stop almost any bullet, shoot it until you almost can't lift it, then burn it on a slab of concrete and pick up the melted lead. simple

  15. #35
    Boolit Master
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    Here are a couple pics of the 6x6 stacked one that I use & described in the post back earlier in this topic. It is the most portable of all. I use it for 45ACP or less at 7-10, 15 & 25 yds. I just made this one yesterday.
    The other one I was using before is now shredded enough it is time to splinter out the lead inside it & burn out the rest.

    Cheap & easy to make. Particularly if ya know fellas that build decks & have scrap to give away.

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    2nd Amend./U.S. Const. - "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

    ~~ WWG1WGA ~~

    Restore the Republic!!!

    For the Fudds > "Those who appease a tiger, do so in the hope that the tiger will eat them last." -Winston Churchill.

    President Reagan tells it like it is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6MwPgPK7WQ

    Phil Robertson explains the Wall: https://youtu.be/f9d1Wof7S4o

  16. #36
    Boolit Master MyFlatline's Avatar
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    Here's mine. It is 2x2x3 , I had a torso target I put in the back for added safety. Used a 3/4 rubber mat for the front, as it somewhat self seals. So far at 75 yards it has not failed to stop a 444, 375 win., 41 mag or 35 Rem.

    Thanks for all the input that helped me make this happen.

    Click image for larger version. 

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  17. #37
    Boolit Buddy McFred's Avatar
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    I'm wondering if anyone's got any long-term feedback on these rubberized lead catchers. Does the rubber get chewed up by VMAX, or other high velocity varmint rounds? What about 'modern' high velocity cartridges like 7mm Rem Mag, or maybe something like 700gr at 1400fps running 3000ft/lbs ME?

    I dug these formerly 700gr projectiles out of the back side of a 2' x 2' x 2' box of loose damp sand after 120 yards:



    Given that the 700gr are 1/10th a pound of lead apiece it makes sense to collect the material. I shoot enough that I might as well collect all the other stuff while I'm at it. I just don't know how well these designs hold up to frequent, heavy use.

    Sand catcher:

    6 on top starting with a cold clean bore, and 5 more on the bottom. The cardboard just won't hold up to the elements or to a 1/2" hole-punch though.


  18. #38
    Boolit Master MyFlatline's Avatar
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    Try and find conveyor belt for your front. It will last a long time, I am searching now myself. As for the rubber breaking down, I can't really say, work reared it's ugly head and I haven't had a lot of time to see. I have found the the mulch settles, so it needs to be topped off. So far , the 45 colt 255 gr. has penetrated the deepest. Odd in a way because it is the slowest.

  19. #39
    Boolit Master Oklahoma Rebel's Avatar
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    what caliber and cartridge is the 700 grainer?!?! ik have a feeling its 45/70, but the boolit makes it look more like a pistol round! definitely cool!
    nope, not 45/70, I just noticed the recessed rim, is it a 460 or 458 bushmaster?
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  20. #40
    Boolit Buddy McFred's Avatar
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    .510 wsm.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check