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Airguns, AirSoft and MilSim Air rifles and pistols, AirSoft and Mil Sim Discussion |
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#1
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DIY Pellet Trap
Hi all, well this air gun hobby has taken me quite literally by storm. What started as curiosity in December has spiraled into a passion. I've picked up a few guns over the last couple of months and weekend plinking in the backyard has become something of a routine.
I quickly realized that shooting into cardboard and haybales wasn't catching bb's and pellets as well as I would've liked. Spraying lead all over the yard was not an ideal situation so I decided to build a more robust pellet trap. Taking inspiration from some DIY projects published online, I got to work putting one together last weekend. Saving on cost of materials was the goal (so I could instead spend of the money of more air guns and ammo, duh!). That sent me scouring on Craigslist, where I found some shipping containers that were being thrown out and listed for free. These crates were too big on their own to be readily used for a trap, so I cut one in half. This also gave me the configuration I wanted, as I planned to shoot into the face, rather than the top. After considering various materials to use as a backstop (sand, duct seal, etc.) I decided on using mulch as it was the most inexpensive and does the job well enough. The next challenge was creating a wire mesh that would hold said mulch compactly against the back end of the pellet trap. So I built a framed screen using 1/2" hardware cloth as a screen and secured about 5" from the back wall. Following this, I built a frame out of 2"x3" boards for the front to add rigidity to the cheap shipping crate plywood as well as keep any stray bb's or pellets in the "shooting gallery" half of the trap. A dowel rod was insert across the top behind the front frame to hang targets from. And lastly, I salvaged some wood from the original crate and created a top for the trap, making sure that the back half is easily removable so more mulch can be dumped in when needed. Here's the finished product! I've already used it and am very pleased with the results. The mulch stops pellets dead in their tracks, and the hardware cloth can take a beating, with only the occasional split from a direct strike. Hopefully this trap will withstand the abuse for months and years to come, as I plan to make good use of it.
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"Let him that is without stone among you cast the first thing he can lay his hands on." -Robert Frost |
#3
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Looks like a fun project, good job. I just fill a cardboard box with rubber mulch and duct tape it as it gets shot up. 16" will stop anything from pellets to .223 and broadhead arrows.
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#5
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We had an event years ago... we took a wood crate from shipping a lexus to USA. lined the back with carpet. carpet and 1x1 as spacers
the 3 layers of carpet soaked up thousands of pellets...
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Rule 1- ALL GUNS ARE ALWAYS LOADED Rule 2 -NEVER LET THE MUZZLE COVER ANYTHING YOU ARE NOT PREPARED TO DESTROY (including your hands and legs) Rule 3 -KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOUR SIGHTS ARE ON THE TARGET Rule 4 -BE SURE OF YOUR TARGET AND WHAT IS BEYOND IT (thanks to Jeff Cooper) |
#7
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Nice! I may try this!
I'd be afraid the hardware cloth would get cut up. I wonder if there's a way to sort of glue the rubber mulch together into a mass so you don't need the screen ?
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================== Remember to dial 1 before 911. Forget about stopping power. If you can't hit it, you can't stop it. There. Are. Four. Lights! |
#8
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Or make large thinner strips all the same size so they can be layered or replaced. Probably need several gallons though, maybe more, not cheap. Nice pellet trap, OP. How is it noise wise?
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#9
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God so loved the world He gave His only Son... Believe in Him and have everlasting life. John 3:16 NRA,,, Lifer United Air Epic Fail Video ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u99Q7pNAjvg |
#12
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I only screwed the mesh frame into the crate, so when it comes time to replace, I'll be able to take it out and pop in a fresh one. If figure by the time that happens, the trap will need to be cleared anyhow.
__________________
"Let him that is without stone among you cast the first thing he can lay his hands on." -Robert Frost |
#13
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Quote:
Thanks! Noise-wise, there remains a slight bit of impact sound when the pellet nests into the mulch (and more so when I'm plinking cans resting inside). But the way the trap is built like a speaker, its loudest from the front, otherwise the noise is pretty muffled from the sides and behind.
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"Let him that is without stone among you cast the first thing he can lay his hands on." -Robert Frost |
#14
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Thanx for the info.
I didn't know that Flex Seal was popular. My air rifles are quiet enough, it's the pellet thwack that gives it away.
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#17
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Saw a cool DIY trap very inexpensive.
Start with any 5 gallon bucket you have laying around, one bag of rubber mulch 7-8 dollars at Home Depot, dump the mulch in the bucket, cut out a circle of cardboard using the bucket opening as a template, push the cardboard circle into the mouth of the bucket to hold the mulch from moving, there you go. |
#19
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I like it.
That rubber mulch is another option. If you wanted to make it longer you could do it more like a traditional bullet trap and pile the mulch.
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NRA Endowment Life Member USMC 2001-2012 Never make yourself too available or useful...... Semper Fidelis John Dickerson: What keeps you awake at night? James Mattis: Nothing, I keep other people awake at night. |
#20
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Quote:
Then again, I shoot only .177 into this trap which improves the chances few direct strikes into the wire simply because the pellets are smaller. And no magnum powered rifles...
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"Let him that is without stone among you cast the first thing he can lay his hands on." -Robert Frost |
#21
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Quote:
But if and when I swap out the mulch, it'll probably be rubber.
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"Let him that is without stone among you cast the first thing he can lay his hands on." -Robert Frost |
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