Bullet trap ideas for recycling lead

[markshere2]

those of you that live in snow country, just before that 4 letter word comes again, lay down a sheet of plastic (makes it easier to find lead) after it arrives build frosty (your target) over the sheet of plastic when the white stuff melts pick up your lead.

Landscaping cloth is mo betta than plastic for leaving minimal impact on your yard.
Plastic will heat up the ground under it too much and also starve that area for water.

[Jim_Fleming]

BF, do you have a photo or seven that you can post of this bucket/propane tank trap?

J.

Thats a pretty good idea. I tried firing into a dirt filled 5 gal, and learned an interesting thing. The dirt would drain out the holes in the target lid, and sort of form a ramp of dirt inside the bucket. It would catch 75% of the rounds, but it tore up the bucket pretty bad, and the rest of the rounds would ricochet off the dirt, and land who knows where.

I refined the idea a bit, by cutting the top 3 inches of a 5 gal, and then cutting off the top of an old propane tank so that the bucket would just slide into it. A couple screws to hold it in place, and I had the trap. I then welded a carriage to mount a pair of bicycle wheels, and a handle to make it portable. A bar across the top, hung from a short chain holds the targets, and I installed a plate to protect that bar from bullet impacts. (I kept knocking off the targets with high strikes). Trouble is, the dang thing is heavy. I refill the dirt on sight, so Im not hauling dirt around, but its a little unwieldy. Might be easier if I had a truck too, I drive a camaro in the summer, and it just wont fit in there.

I'll post pics when I get them developed. It works really really well.

[BulletFactory]

Very soon. I have to borrow my parents camera, and scan the photos once they are developed.

I do plan on posting them, Im quite proud of the thing. Its saved me a few thousand rounds worth of reclaimed bullet alloy.

Lids can be hard to come by though, the blue drywall lids and the gray paint lids work well, but the dollar ones you get at home depot tend to make quarter sized holes in them. especially in the winter.

[Cariboo]

Landscaping cloth is mo betta than plastic for leaving minimal impact on your yard.
Plastic will heat up the ground under it too much and also starve that area for water.

good point

[BulletFactory]

My (semi) portable bullet trap. The top 3" or so of a 5 gal bucket installed to a propane tank. Fill with dirt, and it will stop at least a .308. Highest Ive tried anyhow. The targets clip on to a bar that I hinged with a short length of chain. A steel plate keeps you from shooting that and knocking the targets down. The handle comes off, so you can flip the thing up on its pedestal.

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

Are those the new puncture proof tires?

[Czech_too]

After 'borrowing' some of the ideas here, I opted to use the shredded rubber as a filler. Less than two bags used, bought torn & thus discounted = cheap. Buckets can be usually be obtained, again cheap, at your grocery store if they have an in-store bakery. The stand can be glued together or just use a press fit on the two pieces between the front and rear legs so you can take it apart. Hasn't fallen apart on me yet while in use.

[BulletFactory]

Are those the new puncture proof tires?

no, I was blowing them out everytime I hit the plate that covers the target mount, until I added the strip of steel around the perimeter to catch the fragmentation from the rounds.

[41mag]

no, I was blowing them out everytime I hit the plate that covers the target mount,

I realize we all strive for accuracy and like to show off now and again, but your supposed to be shooting the target, not the holder

Throw some sand paper, or a buffing wheel on that thing and a coat of paint and you got yourself a decent workable target.



I had built up one of those CVA kits when I was around 14 or so, and I remember the first shot from it vividly. I set up my target on our 2'x4' board which was nailed to a 4" fence post. It sat up against a red clay bank and made the perfect shooting range. I aimed carefully at the target on the right hand side of the board, set the double set trigger, then tapped the rear one and BOOM, off she went.

It of course took that 320gr Maxi Ball a second to get down the hundred yards I was at, and then it hit with a resounding WHOP, and the post holding the target board slowly falls right straight over. I was in shock at first, then I busted out laughing. I guess I should have been a bit closer at first but what the hey, it sure was cool.

[kombayotch]

Some great ideas here!

I use a 5 gal pail filled with beach sand that has 3.5" thick plug made of closed cell foam that keeps it in. I use sill gasket for the plug. It comes in rolls and you can get it in pink and white.



I make rings, so that the center can get replaced when it gets shot up.

Been wanting to make a steel trap. It'll be some kind of design that captures the lead and collects it so that it can be easily retrieved for re-use.

[Jim_Fleming]

GOOD JOB, SIR!

Thanks for this pix, 1 picture is worth 1000 words as somebody said.

LOL!

My (semi) portable bullet trap. The top 3" or so of a 5 gal bucket installed to a propane tank. Fill with dirt, and it will stop at least a .308. Highest Ive tried anyhow. The targets clip on to a bar that I hinged with a short length of chain. A steel plate keeps you from shooting that and knocking the targets down. The handle comes off, so you can flip the thing up on its pedestal.

[Jim_Fleming]

41, you got me bustin' up!!! *********!

Maxi Ball got stopped by the bullet trap, but the post you had the trap on keeled over!

tears!

J.

I had built up one of those CVA kits when I was around 14 or so, and I remember the first shot from it vividly. I set up my target on our 2'x4' board which was nailed to a 4" fence post. It sat up against a red clay bank and made the perfect shooting range. I aimed carefully at the target on the right hand side of the board, set the double set trigger, then tapped the rear one and BOOM, off she went.

It of course took that 320gr Maxi Ball a second to get down the hundred yards I was at, and then it hit with a resounding WHOP, and the post holding the target board slowly falls right straight over. I was in shock at first, then I busted out laughing. I guess I should have been a bit closer at first but what the hey, it sure was cool.

[41mag]

Yea, that thing was somthin else for a kid that age I was then. It kicked like a mule, then it choked you on the smoke, and about the time it cleared you could hear those big chunks of lead hit. On a calm afternoon across our back pasture, if you listened real close, when a friend shot the thing, you could hear those big wadcutter thingys sailing out across the acreage.

That ol thing didn't last as long as it should have, it got a ball stuck in it's throat, and that was prety much it. Even hauled it over to a shop here in town which specialized in them and they couldn't get the plug out either. IT was fun, but I like smokeless much better.

[R.M.]

Well about a week ago I read this whole thread, and it intrigued me. Enough so, that I built a box and filled it with rubber. My wife's out there now shooting as I type this.
We shoot International pistol, and the 25 meter target is about 2 feet square, so I built the box 2X2X2. It took 10 bags of rubber, and weighs a ton.
Preliminary results show that it's doing it's job well for .22. I expect the same for the .32 and .38 target loads. I also shot a bit of bullseye, and am hoping it works for .45 gallery loads. Time will tell.

[Jim_Fleming]

But the major benefit is that you can now easily recycle your lead, and the trap itself is portable, if you empty it every time, etc...

You good folks have taught me a lot about bullet traps. I like the portable trap made from a 5 gallon bucket with a 1/4 steel plate behind the rubber crumbs best of all the portable traps.

Well about a week ago I read this whole thread, and it intrigued me. Enough so, that I built a box and filled it with rubber. My wife's out there now shooting as I type this.
We shoot International pistol, and the 25 meter target is about 2 feet square, so I built the box 2X2X2. It took 10 bags of rubber, and weighs a ton.
Preliminary results show that it's doing it's job well for .22. I expect the same for the .32 and .38 target loads. I also shot a bit of bullseye, and am hoping it works for .45 gallery loads. Time will tell.

[markshere2]

I took this thread as a design starting place.

I have a plywood box 3' tall and 4' wide and about 2' deep.
it's filled with dried wood chips (mulch)
I have it inside an open cage roof support with a tin roof over it.

It's a permanent installation in my back yard ( I live in the woods)

The front piece of plywood will need replaced a few times per year.

It's keeping the bullets inside for now, we'll see how it goes long-term.

My back stop is tires stacked, and filled with dirt.

So far, so good.

Two year update:

100% of bullets that hit the box were stopped. ( from 30 cal military loads down to 22 and shotgun pellets and slugs.)

I did not build the box sturdy enough- the sides began to bulge out at 18 months or so.

I screwed on a new piece of front plywood a couple of times.

The tin roof over the box became perforated with misses ( some new guns,some new loads, some new scopes and some new shooters.)

This led to wet wood chips and wood box deterioration on one side.

I recovered most of the boolits today with an ugly process of raking wood chips into a pile on a big tarp, leaving the heavy boolits behiond. I would then scoop the chips into buckets and back into the rebuilt ( much sturdier) box.

The wood chips got splintered and turned into dust in the middle of the box.

So I was left with a lot of wood splinters and dust and boolits.

Floating off the splinters & much of the dust with water worked well.

Then I used gold panning technique of swirling the leftover slurry and pouring off the lighter stuff from one bucket to another.

The boolits are mostly intact with some deformation. I did recover a lot of shotgun pellets as well as the boolts and bullets

Summary:

The wood box is an inexpensive, labor intensive solution for a "permanent" installation. Lead recovery is neither quick or easy.

Keep it dry and build it stout and it will last a long time.

[maglvr]

Ok, not real portable, but, never fails to suck up bullets like a sponge!
The trick is to turn it a few degrees before each shooting session
That will make it last a long, LONG time!
When it gets really chewed up / rotted, just get the axe out, knock it apart, and reclaim all your lead!
Works like a charm

[maglvr]

Hi Folks:
If you read my earlier post on bullet traps, you probably figured out I have a home "range", and use a good sz. chunk of log for a bullet trap.
However I am always tinkering with something(whether it is something I have need for or not!).
I just love improving things and trying new techniques.
Probably the LAST thing I have any use for is a truly portable bullet trap, but seeing how so many here have the need. I had to give it a "shot"
I'm sure you can stuff just about anything, tightly, into a 5 gal. bucket, and it will stop light target loads in most handgun calibers.
That is all well and good for folks who shoot such loads.
Personally I have no use for light "target" loads and never did, I don't shoot for score or trophys or speed, I only shoot to improve my hunting accuracy and feel it wise to use the loads on the range, that I will be carrying in the woods.
That being said, I "ASSumed" there might be others who did the same.
I had to see if I could build a "5gal. trap" that would meet the following specs......
It would NOT weigh a ton, would be easily portable, would not have filler that would "ski-slope" after a few shots(like sand, cat litter etc.).
But the next two two qualities, were the highest priority!.........
It would have to cost me(and others) nothing but time! And it had to stop non-expanding, hardcast bullets, fired with max loads of 2400 and Lil-Gun.
I am the type person that never throws out anything even remotely useful (and I am not above dragging home useful junk a neighbor might be throwing away, either ) so I usually have a good source of scrap from which to choose.
I tried a few different approaches, damp, compressed chainsaw chips, cardboard, folded denim, and combos of things, all resulted in a trap that would most likely contain target loads with ease but the hot loads zipped right on through!
I was at W/M and looked at the recycled tire mulch they had and the more I felt it, the more I doubted it would fare much better than the compressed chainsaw chips, BUT that did get me thinking "Tire", Now crumb rubber IMHO is messy as heck to deal with.
Then it hit me! BIG pieces of tire sidewalls, tightly packed! and no nasty wires in a sidewall like there is in the tread area.
Now where will I get old used tires??? Why scattered around my yard of course
Cutting enough sidewall rubber to overfill a 5gal. pail takes a while, but in the end it all paid off beautifully! I overfilled the pail so I had to stand on the lid to get it to catch.
Off to the range.........
Gun # 1....Ruger Blackhawk 357 magnum 6.5" barrel,

Load...... 357 mag case, 160gr. Cast Performance WFN over a MAX load of Lil-Gun, 1500+fps.

Range..... 25 yrds.

Results......
Tire scraps stopped them dead, not so much as a dimple anywhere on the bucket!
So far so good

Gun # 2...... Marlin 1894 17" .44 magnum

Load..... .44 magnum case, 255gr. hardcast, true Keith SWC over a MAX charge of 2400, 1600+ fps.

Range....... 15 FEET

Results........
Knocked bucket off the stump it was sitting on, like it had been whacked with a sledge hammer! Not so much as a dimple anywhere in it!!

And tire pieces pretty much heal themselves, as the holes close right back up after bullet passes through them.

Below is a pic of the bucket filled with tire pieces to give an idea on the sizes I used.

I was running late so did not check for depth of penetration, not that it matters as long as the lead stayed inside where it belongs.

As to the weight I would guess it to be 25lbs. +or- .

Cheers all!!!

UPDATE:
7/21/11

Rifle test #1
Gun....... Winchester 94 30-30


Load..... Rem. 170gr Core Lokt

Range.... 15 FEET

Results.... NO holes to be found!!


Rifle Test #2..........
Gun... Mosin-Nagant 18" Carbine

Load... Silver Bear 7.62X54R 203gr. Soft point

Range... 15 FEET

Results... Bucket slid back on stump about 6 inches, NO holes in bucket!!

In conclusion, i'm thinking it just might work with rifles too

Any further testing is up to YOU, so start rounding up those old tires boys and girls, and most importantly, BE SAFE and HAVE FUN!!!

[Jim_Fleming]

This, even I can do, although the stopping media would be 5/8" rubber belting, not tire sidewalls... Good job MagLvr!

Then it hit me! BIG pieces of tire sidewalls, tightly packed! and no nasty wires in a sidewall like there is in the tread area.
Now where will I get old used tires??? Why scattered around my yard of course
Cutting enough sidewall rubber to overfill a 5gal. pail takes a while, but in the end it all paid off beautifully! I overfilled the pail so I had to stand on the lid to get it to catch.
Off to the range.........
Gun # 1....Ruger Blackhawk 357 magnum 6.5" barrel,

Load...... 357 mag case, 160gr. Cast Performance WFN over a MAX load of Lil-Gun, 1500+fps.

Range..... 25 yrds.

Results......
Tire scraps stopped them dead, not so much as a dimple anywhere on the bucket!
So far so good

Gun # 2...... Marlin 1894 17" .44 magnum

Load..... .44 magnum case, 255gr. hardcast, true Keith SWC over a MAX charge of 2400, 1600+ fps.

Range....... 15 FEET

Results........
Knocked bucket off the stump it was sitting on, like it had been whacked with a sledge hammer! Not so much as a dimple anywhere in it!!

And tire pieces pretty much heal themselves, as the holes close right back up after bullet passes through them.

Below is a pic of the bucket filled with tire pieces to give an idea on the sizes I used.

I was running late so did not check for depth of penetration, not that it matters as long as the lead stayed inside where it belongs.

As to the weight I would guess it to be 25lbs. +or- .

Cheers all!!!

[maglvr]

"This, even I can do, although the stopping media would be 5/8" rubber belting, not tire sidewalls... Good job MagLvr!"

I'm sure you will find the belting to work perfectly also!
I hope others try it too, might as well get all the shooting from our lead as possible, the average target shooter could probably shoot a lifetime with 100lbs of WW's.
Keep us posted on the build!!

maglvr