Cheap and easy steel target project complete

[Sapperforward]

I have been shooting steel for a little while now and I love it. I have been using small targets hanging on shepards hooks for pistols but wanted larger plates to shoot from a distance. I wanted to do it cheap with items I could pick up locally. I had seen this type of setup in a few other places so I decided to give it a go.

Materials:
3/4" x 10' electrical conduit (3)
3/4" flat corner fitting (2)
1" PVC pipe (36")
chain (8')
10" x 3/8" ar500 gong (2)

The stands are simple. Some of the materials I had on hand. The rest I bought. I purchased 3 sticks of 3/4" x 10' electrical conduit at Lowes for $12.00 and change and I picked up the 3 way flat corners at a local flea market for $4.00 for the set of two. The rest of the materials I had on hand.

I cut the conduit into 6 equal 5' pieces. That allowed for 4 legs, a crossbeam and left one extra piece just in case a leg or the crossbeam takes damage and needs a quick replacement.

I cut down a 36" long piece of 1" PVC into two 16" long pieces. These will be used to separate the chains to the gong targets. I wrapped them in tape for two reasons. First is to protect it from UV light. PVC gets brittle after prolonged exposure to direct sunlight. The second reason is if I hit it the tape should keep the piece from shattering and allow me to keep shooting for the day.

I have plenty of chain in my garage so I cut out 4 pieces roughly 2' each in length. I used hardware and chain connectors I found in my shop as well.

The gongs I got cheap as well, and a little story. I ordered a 10" gong on Ebay for $23.00. It was supposed to have 3 mounting holes. My original plan was to hang it from shepards hook for now and later have the option to hang it from a swinging gong stand I would build later. When it arrived it only had the typical two holes. I contacted the seller and they sent me out a new one and told me to keep and enjoy the one they sent in error. So I ended up with two 10" gongs for $23.00 shipped.

So I'm all in at:
$23.00 target gongs
$12.00 conduit
$4.00 corners
= $39.00

If I had to buy the chain, hardware, PVC, and tape I would guess I would spend another $20.00 or so. It packs up nice and neat. I hung it where my kids bike used to hang in the garage for easy storage.

I still had some time and materials on hand and decided to make a PVC paper silhouette target stand as well. Took about 20-30 minutes and didn't cost me a thing.

[Sapperforward]

This picture was taken after test firing on the the gong while it was hanging from a shepards hook before I mounted it to the chain.

[81Degrees]

Nice setup. How high are the steel targets off the ground?

[bk23103]

There's got to be a cheaper way to get metal plates.

[Sapperforward]

Nice setup. How high are the steel targets off the ground?

The bottom of the plate is about two feet off the ground. I could cut the legs and add 45 degree fittings to change the pitch of the legs and raise the gongs. I could also shorten the chains by about a foot if I wanted to.

With how wide (45 degrees) the legs currently are they stay clear of the bulk of the lead splash.

There's got to be a cheaper way to get metal plates.

$23.00 for a CNC cut 10"x3/8" target made of AR500 grade steel shipped to your door didn't seem like a bad price to me. I buy a couple steel plates that can take tens of thousands of rounds as long as I rotate them and stop buying paper. I shoot the steel and than I repaint it and shoot it again. I don't even wait for the paint to dry.

Remember any old mild steel plate won't due here.

[81Degrees]

Sweet. I'm cruising to the local hardware store this week for supplies, so this helped with ideas. I was thinking more of an angle just so the legs aren't covering such a large footprint, just a concern for my situation. And I wanted to get an idea of how wide, because I wanted three different sized targets hanging.

[L84CABO]

How do the chains hold up to being shot? I've seen people use cut up fire hose or similar wide strapping.

[NOTABIKER]

you did a nice job, Chain will not hold up with 30 cal rifle ammo. I switched to fire hose and it lasts forever.

[Calico1404]

Well done sir!

[TAS]

Nice set up. I have an old 10' x 20' awning frame that I longer use so I could easily do something similar. It's already cut in 5' sections and I have plenty of corners to use. I especially like the use of the PVC for the spacing sleeves.

Thanks for the idea to start a new project today!

[Sapperforward]

Sweet. I'm cruising to the local hardware store this week for supplies, so this helped with ideas. I was thinking more of an angle just so the legs aren't covering such a large footprint, just a concern for my situation. And I wanted to get an idea of how wide, because I wanted three different sized targets hanging.

I was worried about the angle too. I figured worse case I could cut a small notch in the corners that would allow me to fold them in a bit and change it to a much sharper angle increasing the overall height of the gongs and considerably reducing the overall footprint. After test fitting I decided against it. I like the wider footprint.

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[Sapperforward]

How do the chains hold up to being shot? I've seen people use cut up fire hose or similar wide strapping.

I haven't hit a chain yet so I don't know. I have a couple fire hoses. I may try that out later just to see how it works. I like the ease of adjustment with the chain.

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[junior40er]

where can I order those corner brackets online?

[golfish]

I haven't hit a chain yet so I don't know. I have a couple fire hoses. I may try that out later just to see how it works. I like the ease of adjustment with the chain.

Great job on the targets OP.


I've been using chain for years. It doesn't hold up well to rifle fire but I always have a few extra feet in the tool\BLM\gun box.

I like the idea of the fire hose, just haven't found any, but then I haven't looked all that hard either


Here's something you might take a look at. I know, 40.00 :0 BUT they're are made from AR500 steel.

http://www.ar500-targets.com/product-p/stand-kit.htm

[ar15robert]

I have been using 1x3 lumber and 7/16 thru rod been good so far but want to do something like this as its easier to carry around.

As for chain i just carry a couple of extra pieces not a biggie,I also carry and extra thru rod one of the kids hit one this weekend broke it clean five min later it was back up.I switched to the smaller dog chain this past trip and cut a few extra pieces.No matter the size if it gets hit its broken anyways.