DIY ultra portable/cheap steel target stand

[sinister]

Angle iron cut and welded:



2x4 and 4x4 post:

[taliv]

i've been using this design for many years and they have survived several matches. i still recommend it because it's easy to replace parts when they get shot and it breaks down to 5 piece of 48" rebar and the joints which are made of galvanized pipe from lowes.

the third pic is from joints made by a guy who used to shoot my matches who basically welded short pieces of aluminum pipe together to accomplish the same thing a little cheaper. http://www.acetargets.com/ (though i haven't heard from him in a while... not sure if he's still making them)

unless you have high berms, i'd try to keep the stands low to the ground.

there is an art to it. depends on the weight of the target and the length of the strap.

sinister, ryan's big dog steel is awesome. i won that "snipershide" target at a match last year, but i prefer the "headhunter" version which is identical minus the chest plate.

i bought 6 of his "econoline" 45% ipsc and shoot my AR at them. regarding the safe distance, i used to say 100 yards min for rifle. however, i have put about 2000 rounds on those econoline targets since december at distances from 20-40 yards and no ricochets or anything. the key is the T-post hangers and the steep angle that dumps the spall into the dirt at the base. i'm not recommending everyone go out and do that... just saying i think it can be done safely now.

[warner41]

There's some good ideas here, now that the snow is off the ground up here in the sticks I have a few new range projects.

[mastiffhound]

I built a stand out of PVC and Wideners 1/2 in AR500 steel. The best anywhere I can find! The price is awesome too, $64($73 right now, still a better than everyone else price) at the time for a 16"x10"x1/2" target! The PVC stand only lasted one season but I was amazed at how much damage the PVC pipe took before giving up the ghost. It was very light and easily assembled and disassembled. I set mine up with t fittings on the bottom with 4 feet of pipe on each side. The upright pipes were 5 feet tall and the center bar was 4 feet across. Target was attached with case hardened chain. At the end it was being held together with duct tape. It was my first attempt so standing up for a year was a plus!

I've shot the target itself with 5.56, 7.62x39 and 54R, 9mm, .45 acp and Colt, 10,000 .22LR or more, .308 win, 30-30, and 12 gauge slugs and shot. Any thing that is military surplus in the calibers I listed it has withstood, at hundreds for some and thousands with others. I really can't recommend Wideners targets enough, they have the best prices by far, were talking $100 less or more than other targets. A big plus is they aren't just 3/8 inch either! They sell 1/2 inch also, unlike most companies. When I get done with my new stand I will upload some pics!

[Devildawg2531]

I have a very low cost, very portable and very durable DIY design. I built mine using 2 x 4's in a sawhorse design. I have 4 1/2 inch AR 500 steel targets that I bought from Wideners hanging on mine. It has taken a few thousand rounds ranging from .22 to 300 Win Mag and is rock solid. The only challenge was finding a hanging mechanism / rope that could handle the splatter - found it. Get a used a firehose from the fire department - they throw those away and they are EXTREMELY durable. I cut my firehose to the desired section lengths and drill a whole to put a 1/2 bolt through. It works great - it gives the steel a little room to swing and deflects most bullet splatter down. Will take a picture tomorrow and post if anyone is interested.

[Scoby]

[QUOTE=TRIDENT82;1593150]

Longer term wood stand/saw horse....too damn heavy







Your sawhorse idea was the inspiration for mine.
They are heavy but mine don't get moved around.

[sinister]

http://i830.photobucket.com/albums/z...y/IMG_1310.jpg

Damn nice looking range, Mr. Scoby -- looks like a golf fairway. Beautiful.

[Wake27]

Yeah I'm just jealous of all of you guys that have land to shoot on.

[T2C]

I like the sawhorse idea. I may substitute light chain or nylon line for the wood stabilizing the bottom of the sawhorse legs to shave weight.

[taliv]

the saw horse is the right design. it's good to be able to change the angle too. i have some joints that are 45* and some that are 60*. The 60 lets me hang the target a little higher (helpful to get out of the higher grass in the Spring) and the 45* gives me more stability on hills. (the impact will swing the target back, and when it swings forward on a hill, it will often move the center of gravity past the forward legs and flip the stand over.)

if you're setting them up permanently wood's not bad, or if you're just setting up one stand. but i can put 20+ of the rebar target stands in the back of my honda, and spread 20+ pieces of steel out for a lot more looks.


edit: the other plus about the rebar is that you can push the legs deep into the dirt if you need more stability.