Any Plans or PICS of Homemade Pellet Traps?

[Nalajr]

Hey all,

I need to get a new trap to shoot in my back yard. I haven't been using anything fancy, just something I threw together out of some wood scraps. I'd like to get some plans or ideas for a decent pellet trap for 0.177 that would be ok to stay out in the rain and elements here in the Houston area. It doesn't have to be fancy or even nice, just effective at stopping pellets and being kinda quiet so I don't bother my elderly next door neighbors.

Any ideas or suggestions on designs that have worked for you or that you have seen?

I also wouldn't mind buying one of those so called "bullet boxes" that have the metal sides and back construction with a sloped back. I'd like to quiet it down though. The problem I have found in all the ones I have looked at online is that they are small. I'd like to have one that I can hang up a standard sheet of paper with 4 separate targets in each corner and go to it.

Thoughts or links please. If you have any pics of some that you have made or bought, please post them so I can get some ideas.

Have a good weekend.

Larry





Thanks for your time.

Larry

 

[kayaker]

Larry Go to the search box type in pellet traps then check the general airgunning box .You will find all kinds of home made traps . I prefer a 5 gal bucket filled with rubber mulch from home depoe best of luck Darell

 

[stoti]

I've used a couple of hay bales side by side for quite a while because they're silent when pellets hit them. They stop everything up to my .25 cal shooting the 33.95gr JSB's at 885fps. Every once in a while if I shoot the same spot 7-8-9 times in a row, the pellet will go through the hay bale. I put a thin piece of plywood behind the hay just in case some pellets do fly through and we've never had a problem. We hung some old carpet on the backside and that worked too. About 1 out of 60-70 pellets, if in the exact same spot from my .25 cal will go through and hit the plywood or carpet, but we've never had anything go past the carpet or plywood and hit the fence, ever!. For a .177 you'd be fine with one bale and a piece of carpet or plywood behind it, probably wouldn't even need that! It's cheap, quiet, easy to use and we put lots of targets all over it. If you wanted you could put two bales back to back and nothing like a .177 caliber would go through it, especially if you put plywood behind them! At $7 per bale, it's worth a try!

Not the best picture but you can see the two hay bales side by side in the background, one is at 40yds the other at 50yds.

Stoti

 

[DirtyDovi]

While this setup could absolutely be used outside, 
I personally use it to be able to shoot inside in my apartment, so I can shoot daily/nightly throughout winter.. 

There are 4ft x 6ft rubber mats 3/4" thick.. They're known as 'stall mats'. Amazing for stopping rounds..
1 would stop .177 rounds. I shoot .22 and .25 cal, so, I double up the mats to give 1.5" total depth/thickness..

Anyways, they can be cut to a specific dimension and then boxed in using either a metal or wooden frame..

I threw together a quick video that sort of walks through the process, and gives the info along the way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmrXPCpNXSw

 

Sam -

PS: Since I did that video, I've moved again.. Here's the same setup at my new apartment..
It is exactly 10 meters away from where my little bench rest table is located:

 

[Bigragu]

Heres mine. 10”x10”x6” deep outside dimensions, with 1 1/4” inside flanges on the sides and top, and 1” inside flange on the bottom. Fully welded seams, all made out of 1/4” steel plate. It has 4”x4” 45 degree back support legs and a 3” swivel handle on top. Lastly, it is stuffed with 7 lbs. of duct seal bars. A great friend of mine built it for me based on pics of a 16 ga electrical pull box with similar dimensions. But my 30 caliber pcp beat that thing up so bad the magnets won’t hold on to the targets cause there was no flat spot for the magnets to set on. This one here, pretty much laughs at 30 caliber pellets. They don’t even phase it. I use clip magnets for the 8” x8” sized targets and flat round magnets for the 10”x10” sized ones. This thing weighs in at around 60 lbs.

if I ever decide to mount it permanently outside on a post, I have weep holes drilled out at the bottom. For now, cause of its weight, I use a hand truck to roll it out to my front lawn where I target shoot.

 

[Brislee]

Simple and cheap (free) cardboard box (as big as you need) with 30 layers of cardboard packed in it and one thing layer of roofing rubber at the bottom of the box for good measure. All the cardboard comes from the cardboard only dumpster behind our local Target and the roofing rubber came from a dumpster by a roofing company. 

Even alot of shots in one spot haven't passed through. When it wears out, make another for free. Best part is it is just about silent. 

 

[intenseaty22]

I’ll do you one better than pictures, here’s an instructional video. Super Easy and Cheap. I’m kinda biased towards it cause it’s my design

https://www.airgunnation.com/topic/super-easy-target-build-video/

 

[Bigragu]

I plan on making one of yours, INTENSEATY, due to the lightweight nature of it. Maybe I’ll use your design for those long, front lawn shots, and just use my 60+ lb trap for in the garage shooting hrs a chronograph instead. Just too hard pulling a hand truck toting this thing, while on a cane. 

 

[DirtyDovi]

intenseaty22, I really dig that design that you've come up with.. Nicely done!
I was going to go a similar route, but, I needed something lot bigger to insure that mine would catch severe flyers.. 
After accidentally sending a pellet sailing about a foot off course and through my previous apartment wall, [oops]
I went with my design up above..

That's the 'backstop' that I pin paper targets to anyways..

I also have a folding bar stool that I put in front of that, and put other things on it to shoot at..

1 is a commercial grade [overkill] pellet trap designed for use with .17 HMR and .22 LR rimfire [and larger] cal ammo..
2 is a knock-down string-reset Rat target.. 

Endless fun.

 

Sam -

 

[Aimright]

I like that inteansity22 setup also, think I will plagiarize that since I already have a bunch of similar plastic crates from Coscto - well sorta, the ones with yellow lids that just snap on if you know what I mean. Was thinking about gluing some binder clamps on each side of the cutout to hold the target.

 

[intenseaty22]

Thanks guys. I did build a larger one that I posted on the original thread. I have hit the plastic face here and there, but for the most part I’m pleased with them. I usually sight in fairly close range and and walk it back to 30 to avoid damaging it. The smaller one is very portable and take it out to friends houses and such. You can always place a backstop as a backup behind it. I’m thinking about making a faceplate for it too? Anyway, glad it’s helping some of y’all. 

 

[DirtyDovi]

Bigragu,

The metal-fabricator & MIG/TIG welder in me got all excited when I saw your trap! 
Great looking design, and very nicely done! That box is an absolute tank! Awesome!

 

Sam -

 

[DirtyDovi]

intenseaty22,

Welcome dude, and right on!
That makes sense, and, I like the idea of it being 'portable', that's a great perk for shooting at other locations..
Nicely thought out! To move mine, I damn near need a fork-lift.. haha All that solid rubber weight added up fast.. 

 

Sam -

 

[Bigragu]

Bigragu,

The metal-fabricator & MIG/TIG welder in me got all excited when I saw your trap! 
Great looking design, and very nicely done! That box is an absolute tank! Awesome!

 

Sam -

Sam, if you do make one, really consider the placement of the target sizes within the paper when designing yours. 

As an example, I like to use the splatterburst targets with the center diamond, and four diamonds at each corner. I took all the dimensions off of that target to design this heavy duty trap. With the flanges at the face, it gave me a clear path to each diamond in the corners, and none would infringe into the flange. Those targets were 10”x9” I believe. 

I also like Caldwell’s splatterburst type of targets with the 3” round targets at all four corners. Those can be found cheap in packs of 50 at midway under the blemished section. Anyway, I didn’t pay attention to the placement of the bulls within the paper, and when I attach those to the trap, depending on how you orient them, either the top two or the bottom two will have a portion of their diameters into the steel. You follow me?

i can get around that by either removing the targets from the paper they are on and stick them on some cardboard that makes them miss the steel, or shoot the top two, walk down, slip the target upwards, then shoot the bottom two. 

If I had to do it over again I’d have made the top and bottom flanges at both 1”, and the sides still at 1 1/4”

 

[elh0102]

My favorite beer comes in a 12 bottle cardboard box. The box is the same size as about 90% of the junk mail catalogs we receive. I buy a 12 bottle box, unload the bottles, and begin stashing the junk mail in the box. It fills at about the pace I buy the beer. When full, close it and seal with duct tape. If I shoot a lot, I may have to tape again before replacing the box. Since I am buying the beer anyway, the cost is just a little tape.Works great, and is quiet. I attach targets with painter's tape, which peels off easily. 

 

[DirtyDovi]

Bigragu,

Awesome man, thanks for the added info and details, that all makes perfect sense! 
I am also a huge fan of using shoot and see / reactive targets, so that info is really helpful to me.

I used to go with Birchwood Casey Splatter targets, but, I go through them really fast.. 
While on Amazon, I ran across those SplatterBurst targets, and absolutely love them! 
I go with the 100 count pack for $29.99, and I believe that they measure 8" x 8' 

When shooting them, I don't just rely on the center/bulls, or the 4 main outer circles.. 
I shoot for dead center of all of the small 'replacement' stickers normally used to cover up shots.. 
That way, I have 19 'targets' before I even get to the last 5 main ones.. 
Those are usually the ones that I'll shoot continuously to see how many pellets I can send through the same holes..

 

2 nights ago, I just got my Puncher Breaker back from being serviced, 
so I needed to pop it's acessories back on and get it sighted in again.. 
On this target, I used the center/lower dot to initially sight in, 
then bulls to see where things were at, finally chasing around the outside.. 
Between the top and center, and the right and center, there are a few extra shots.. 
That's there the 7's 8's and 9's are printed in tiny font.. Not anymore!
Quantity-to-Price ratio: These targets absolutely rock!

Amazon Link if anyone is interested in them:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0179SSDMC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

Sam -

 

[DirtyDovi]

elh0102,

THAT is a GREAT idea!
Cheap, Simple, and Effective!

Now that you mentioned that, ya got me thinking.. 
I wonder if we call/email the phone company, if they'll still give us those fat freebie yellowpage phone-books?
As a kid into my teens, I remember them being around 6x8 or 8x11 and a few inches thick.. 
One or two of those things would work fantastic!

 

Sam -

 

[Bigragu]

Sam! Nice shooting, but, hey, you missed the #7 on the far right, so, it’s just like any old target then.....NOT! Kidding, man! That’s some awesome shooting. 

Ome of these days I’m gonna set up a good back stop on a sunny day, and hang a piece of bacon out right dead center, and nail all the meat bees one by one as they hover around. Always wanted to try that, as I hate those suckers anyway, every time I cook outside, lol

 

[DirtyDovi]

Hahaha

No way dude, I just double checked, and yup, you're right.. I sure did miss that #7.
I think it was more like a brain-fart, and I totally forgot to even take a shot at it.

Nice catch! Your eyes aren't as bad as you claimed in your captcha thread.

Thanks, and, that's a great idea! I really think you'd have a blast doing that! 

When at my sportsman's club shooting with the guys, I'm usually the odd man out.. 
The ol' black sheep that shoots .22s and PCPs while they're using AR15s and larger cal rifles..

With mandatory hearing protection, I'm like a ninja-sniper out there..
They can't hear me shooting, but usually figure that it was me 'after it happens'...
I constantly shoot the tacks holding their targets up, and cause them fall on the ground.. lol 
A few of us also try to hit bugs and whatnot if/when we have the chance. It's too much fun! 

Great bunch of people there - lots of [safe] antics every time. 

 

Sam -

 

[DuncanHynes]

Old apartment lockbox cover from utility company. They are made to be outside. Heavy, rope light LED on that inside lip to the right for night shooting. Two stacked ballistic rubber blocks inside. Stays outside, portable. I only have a 30ft lb .22 Wildcat. I shot at it once without the rubber to see if a stray round would go through-NOPE (big dent.) BTW that wood block had 2 nails, smallest was thumb tack nail, 1.2mm wide. I missed it but got it 3rd try. 25 yards. The bigger nail got first time. Was with a Sightron SIII on 24x, lol.