Ideas for backstop

[kd5exp]

I am going to build a back stop for shooting here at my place. I have shot here for 22 years with no problems till now. I have gotten some railroad ties and started stacking them but need a lot more. I have been told to get bunch of old tires or round bales to put behind these. I have heard of bullets going through a round bale. I would prefer a dirt berm but until I can get some equipment that's going to have to wait. I am going to angle it to where there is nothing for over a mile behind it. Any suggestions.

 

[tops]

One of my backstops is 3 stacks of tires in a triangle. 6 tires high and filled with dirt. Larry

 

[S&W ucla]

Can you get dump truck in there? Get a price for some fill dirt delivered and dumped. One load might be enough if range is short. Bigger the better. Good luck!

 

[gman51]

Take those rxr ties and make a \_/ shape and then fill it with a yard or two of bank sand. I got the sand for mine at a local dirt company and it only cost $18 a yard. That was my using a single axle 5x10 single axle trailer and my pickup to haul each yard. I hand shoveled the sand from the trailer and p/up bed in no time at all. And in my 60's I ain't no spring chicken for sure.Sand weighs around 2700 lbs per yard so watch out you can break springs and axles. If you don't mind the added expense the dirt yard will surely deliver it.
No handgun that I know of can go through even 6" of sand. With 2 yards you will be more like 2 feet deep of sand behind your target. Rifles will not hardly go through that even. Think about it, in the wars soldiers sand bagged their bunkers and it worked for them.
I have about 1.5 yard of sand with 4x6 oak planks framing it in. I have yet to see a bullet get through to the planks let alone go through them. I dig out the sand every so often and reclaim the lead.
There is a youtube video showing a guy shooting at 6" deep drywall sand partitions and that was enough to stop most any caliber bullets handgun and I think even rifle.
IMO You can't build a bullet stop any cheaper and be this efficient.

 

[shouldazagged]

Whatever structure you erect, I'd reinforce it with stacks of paperback Gothic romance novels of the kind known colloquially as bodice-rippers. No bullet can get through that stuff.

Be sure it's well enclosed, though. The fallout from those things is terribly toxic to the male of the species. Any species.

 

[DWalt]

On a budget, an earth berm is the best and easiest to build (if you don't already have some hill or rise on your property). NRA used to have a booklet on building ranges and various types of home-made backstops. Don't know if they still do. Stacked tires filled with sand would also be good. Shoot houses often use them as walls.

There are some pretty good commercial bullet traps on the market, small and large, but good ones are not cheap. Take a look at the Action Target website and see what they might have. Makes a difference, those for handguns are much cheaper than those rated for CF rifle.

 

[kd5exp]

Thanks Guys, you gave me some good ideas. I have a bad back and unable to shovel so I will need some kind of front loader. I have had my back operated on twice now and they want to do another one but I think not. I have about an acre out back I was wanting to disk up and then scoop it up into a berm. I have almost 13 acres to use but that's the only spot with not much behind it but a tree line down a creek. Got the disk but no front end loader. Think I will check on renting one if not too much.

 

[NYlakesider]

I have a safe almost 100 yard range on my rural lake property.

We are covered in NYS by the no shooting within 500' of a occupied building unless you have permission. Basically that means many summer weekends and the occasional weekday I do not shoot. Not a big deal! I have one summer camp just inside the edge of the 500' zone and we do not get along well at all (long story involving a ROW that he uses to cross my land and get to his property.) When I shoot I'm facing a 180 degrees away from his camp.

So my backstop is made ultra safe if any LEOs or Encon come up investigate shooting noises.

I have a 31HP diesel tractor and I pilled up a decent size berm just at the edge of my useful property, behind that is a steep drop off to a stream. Had a contractor bring up a few truckloads of fill and I transported it to where I needed by my tractor it as there was not room for the truck to go farther.

Right in front of the berm I made a rack about 4' high(2' off the ground) and 4' long and 5' wide which I keep loaded with stacked tree branches. I use stuff from 1'' to 4'' packed tight and as of now nothing has made it through that wood pack and impacted the berm. As the wood gets chewed up I replace it as I live on 5 acres with plenty of branches available. Targets are easily mounted on the front of the rack.

 

[Long Barrel]

Backstop stuff

We have a backstop made of staggered stacks of tires, filled with dirt, and then covered with dirt. The tires add structure to keep the elements from washing the dirt away. You need enough backstop height to be sure no one shoots over it. Most sources say 8 feet. Avoid rocks in the fill dirt, they cause ricochets. I recall that there are some rocks in Comanche County.

Another thing to remember is that this won't stop rifle bullets. Be sure to check with local law enforcement to be sure discharging firearms is allowed in your jurisdiction. Here in Ohio we can't shoot inside a municipality.

The NRA Range Manual has a lot of drawings and data on things like this.

 

[DWalt]

It probably doesn't make much difference for a small range intended to accommodate only a few occasional shooters, but constructing an earth backstop correctly is much more complex than it first appears. Been there, done that.

 

[gman51]

Renting a front end loader around here is expensive about $700 for 8 hours only.
I would have the dirt yard haul it in and then hire someone that needs $20 for about and hour. Have them shovel the sand into the framed setup. You need get it hauled in now while the ground is dry so the truck can get in there to dump.
You could also have the sand dumped in one big pile where you want the target setup and build the framework around the sand.

 

[gregintenn]

A couple of loads of clay dirt from when my basement was dug works well for me.

 

[kd5exp]

All sound like good ideas. It just depends on what I can find or get a hold of. I have been told there is a place out here near me that has a pasture full of old tires. I had a friend bring out some rail road ties but only 4 of them. The police lady told me if you contact them the rail road will give them to you. But you need to have written permission. I will just wait and see what comes up.

 

[oldRoger]

I once had a backstop made of two layers of railroad ties behind a steel plate bullet trap.

I was younger, stronger, and not so smart when I stacked those ties, definitely not for bad backs.

Yes the RR will give you ties when they are re-ballasting, but you have to pick them up, load them into a pick-up and then unload them and stack them. A tie in good shape is a heavy item, help is required.

A dirt berm with tires to give it shape would be much easier on the back.

 

[DavidWJ]

Wow, that's really a lot of effort you're going to for safety. Great job! Around here, we just shoot into the hillside, no one around for miles either...

 

[tops]

I have been told there is a place out here near me that has a pasture full of old tires.

I got mine free at a tire store. They get 4 old tires every few minutes. Larry