This is a about an idea/invention of one of our club members and a friend of mine, John Bergquist. He graciously runs FT matches at his Cambria ranch, usually by invitation, mostly for our local club members. During these Covid years we have been using his course almost exclusively for our monthly matches. A few years ago, he had a breadboard version of an auto-reset field target that he used at a couple of his matches. It had a few glitches but it was fun when it worked since it also had audio feedback (in that instance, a rooster target with rooster sound). He is a retired electronics engineer and I'm a retired mechanical engineer. A few months ago, we were discussing what projects we wanted to do in the coming year. I suggested that he pursue that auto-reset target and I would help him with the mechanical aspect if he did so.
He worked out all the electronics with some improvements for reliability and then went to a short run production of circuit boards. I worked on the mechanicals which were mostly 3D printed. By rev-B of the circuit board it was working good. So we built enough so that I could replace all the strings on our Gamo field targets for matches at the SLSBA range, and he would do the same for his range. Currently, they are designed to attach to stock Gamo and Umarex targets.
I brought targets down to Los Angeles to use in a CASA match last weekend. They all worked perfectly and I got some good feedback from the competitors.
This coming weekend, we'll be shooting John's targets at the Cambria match. The smallest batteries give about 400 cycles on a charge, but the device can hold a larger battery that should last 1000 cycles before recharging. John typically keeps his targets out year round so he added some solar chargers to keep them charged month to month. He also added PA speakers to the farthest targets so they could be heard better. We will see how everything holds up leaving them out year round. The strings were always the worst part as they got drug around and chewed by wild animals between matches.
Three of us (John Bergquist, Scott English, Scott Hull) met at the ranch this morning to do some target maintenance and add the auto-reset devices. We finished early this afternoon and left the targets turned "on" and ready for the match on Sunday. Box of reset mechanisms ready to be installed:
Far targets with solar chargers and PA speakers. Some of the other targets are hidden back in the forest, and with no strings to follow, we decided numbers at each targets location would be prudent:
I'm looking forward to the match.
He worked out all the electronics with some improvements for reliability and then went to a short run production of circuit boards. I worked on the mechanicals which were mostly 3D printed. By rev-B of the circuit board it was working good. So we built enough so that I could replace all the strings on our Gamo field targets for matches at the SLSBA range, and he would do the same for his range. Currently, they are designed to attach to stock Gamo and Umarex targets.
I brought targets down to Los Angeles to use in a CASA match last weekend. They all worked perfectly and I got some good feedback from the competitors.
This coming weekend, we'll be shooting John's targets at the Cambria match. The smallest batteries give about 400 cycles on a charge, but the device can hold a larger battery that should last 1000 cycles before recharging. John typically keeps his targets out year round so he added some solar chargers to keep them charged month to month. He also added PA speakers to the farthest targets so they could be heard better. We will see how everything holds up leaving them out year round. The strings were always the worst part as they got drug around and chewed by wild animals between matches.
Three of us (John Bergquist, Scott English, Scott Hull) met at the ranch this morning to do some target maintenance and add the auto-reset devices. We finished early this afternoon and left the targets turned "on" and ready for the match on Sunday. Box of reset mechanisms ready to be installed:
Far targets with solar chargers and PA speakers. Some of the other targets are hidden back in the forest, and with no strings to follow, we decided numbers at each targets location would be prudent:
I'm looking forward to the match.
