Propane tank 45/70 boolit trap

[Conditor22]

Propane tank 45/70 boolit trap

I've been working on a boolit trap for a 45/70.

1st attempt was a 5-gallon bucket full of compacted rubber mulch -- not surprising the boolits blew out the bottom


2nd attempt a bucket packed with rubber mulch with a wood disk and saw blades in the bottom, the boolit would hit the blades and shrapnel cut the bucket sides


So I upped my game and got an old 8-gallon propane tank, prepared it for cutting then cut it where the radius started, wielded on some brackets and a handle then drilled about a dozen holes in the top and sides.

stood it up and filled the bottom to where the radius ended with compacted rubber mulch and put in two 12 inch saw blades. Then I finished filling it with the rubber mulch compacting the mulch as I went along. when I got to the end I screwed in a plywood disk I made.

I took it out yesterday and placed it on the stand I made.

I shot 3 different 45/70 loads into it at 50 yards, the stand wiggled a little but didn't fall and the propane tank was unscathed. No damage to the tank is seen.



my only problem now is lead recovery, the boolits hit the sawblades and shattered denting the saw blade but there is no damage to the propane tank. But most of the 18 405 grain boolits ended up in fragments from hitting the saw blades


this is what I recovered, the rest is still mixed in the mulch and around the sawblades.


All the lead was captured, now finding an easy way to extract it.

Lead is heavier than rubber, I could always sluice it out.

another option is to get another tank with both ends cut off filled with compacted rubber mulch and plugged with wood disks to hook on the front of this tank to see if the extra compacted rubber mulch will slow the boolits down enough so they don't shater.

[Went2kck]

See if the rubber floats. You know the lead will sink.

[jlm223]

Looks like you are on the right track, I have been wanting to do something like this, awesome post!

[Wots]

Have you tried using sand....lot easy'er to separate.

[redhawk0]

Maybe pea gravel might work too.

redhawk

[OS OK]

Hey...there's another fella over on another forum has the exact same trap! Best design I've seen yet for a portable.

Easy way to clean the lead is to dump it on a tarp.
Push it up in piles by hand, the lead falls to the tarp instantly.
Scoop all the mulch back up and put it back in as you go...the last little bit of mulch separates quickly as you scoot the mulch around a bit.
All that is left is lotz of boolits for the remelt.

Here my brother and I are starting to claim lead from the drum. Way too much work to do it very often.

[C. Latch]

When I lived in east TN I had a trap made from a 50-gallon barrel and sand. Before we left, I cleaned it out. The sand got wet - I left the top off the barrel and it rained - and reclaiming that lead was much more headache than just buying a 5-gallon bucket of wheelweights (which I could still get when we lived up there).

Your mulch idea looks much better.

[country gent]

There is also the scroll type trap. uses no mulch bullets go in and spin inside when energy is expended they drop out the bottom to a container.

[RP]

I heard a good brim mix lots of salt will float the rubber. If you have a big tarp dumping it out on one end and using a leaf blower will move the lighter material away leaving the lead that will work with sand as well. One fellow used scrap lumber nailing it together until it was big enough and thick enough to stop the bullets after it was shot up he add a layer on the front and keep shooting it. When it was at the end of its life he would burn it the lead will puddle and he would just pick it up. The draw back was nails stuck in the lead.
I think it depends on whats on hand and the area you live.

[JimB..]

Have you considered a piece of steel plate, angled down at 45degrees with plates welded to the side to stop any significant lead splatter and a kiddie pool full of water under it?

Have also seen a design that looks like a hood from over the stove turned on it’s side, the bullets get funneled toward a hole that then turns 90 degrees down so they fall into a bucket.

[Conditor22]

This is a portable boolit trap that can handle cast large rifle boolits.

I have this portable trap for handgun calibers.
It looks well used now LOL



Losing 400 - 500 grains of lead per shot really went against the grain.

[kevin c]

OS OK,

Does the trap stay on the wagon, or is that just for moving it around or cleaning it out?

[Conditor22]

kevin c the trap lives on the wagon, too heavy to take on and off. since this picture, OSOK built a large boolit trap, cut a hole in the backstop and installed the metal trap. Now he just sources the lead out of a container that holds the lead that's gone through the trap. A like a larger version of the one I posted in #11

[arlon]

This is a portable boolit trap that can handle cast large rifle boolits.

I have this portable trap for handgun calibers.
It looks well used now LOL



Losing 400 - 500 grains of lead per shot really went against the grain.

I have one just like it just without the stand and added handle. I really like mine. Sure is easy for getting the lead out of.

[pastera]

This is a portable boolit trap that can handle cast large rifle boolits.

I have this portable trap for handgun calibers.
It looks well used now LOL



Losing 400 - 500 grains of lead per shot really went against the grain.

Dimensions?

[redhawk0]

This is a portable boolit trap that can handle cast large rifle boolits.

I have this portable trap for handgun calibers.
It looks well used now LOL



Losing 400 - 500 grains of lead per shot really went against the grain.

Not a single bullet hole in the truck... I'm impressed.

redhawk

[OS OK]

OS OK,

Does the trap stay on the wagon, or is that just for moving it around or cleaning it out?

It stays with the wagon...a 55 gallon barrel is a good idea for having a larger target area and a bad idea for weight and volume of mulch. It was a pain in the butt doing the clean-out so I neglected that part about 3 months at a time...when I did do it I usually got 50 to 60 pounds of lead each time.





The barrel is not completely full of mulch, I made a plug for the bottom inside to take up 1/3 of the space, it still took 8 bags to fill the dang thing...looking back I wouldn't do it again except for the fact it'll stop any rifle so far.



I wanted my lead back easier & more often for pistol practice and I grew tired of repairing the face of the barrel...if I changed lead, I wanted to keep that separate too so I just built another trap.

Instead of this...



It is this...much more user friendly...



Retrieving the lead is as simple as getting this bucket from behind the backstop now...

[Green Frog]

You’re just asking for the bullets to shatter if they are going to stop suddenly against a flat surface (the saw blade.) As others have stated, you will get better results by redirecting the bullets and their energy with a sloped surface or some device to spin the bullet and redirect it’s energy. There used to be a bullet trap made for rim fire that looked like a snail shell on the back of a funnel. It was made of surprisingly light steel because it never took the hits directly.

Froggie

[OS OK]

That's the idea with mine too...once they have ricocheted into the back they get a little spin before dropping into the bucket.

[Misery-Whip]

I started using a round of straight grain firewood, one I would select for making kindling. When I need lead, I make kindling. Makes kindling funner too.

Havent given the wife a straight reason why there are rainbow paint stripes on the kindling....im sure she knows...


Conditor22: those heavy 45-70 slugs need more time to slow down. I think if you got another tank, removed the top and bottom, and extend your trap, you might recieve intact slugs.