Bullet trap ideas for recycling lead

[Dannix]

Wow Pat, that's a really nice looking spot. Your backyard, or nearby range or national forest?

[PatMarlin]

That's a little valley that opens up in the National Forest about 5 minuets from the house. Rare in these parts to get a shot even 75yrds as we are in the mountains, and this place has about almost 300 yrds of a flat stretch.

Set up under an old growth umbrella shaped oak tree and you've got a target out to 230yrds all day. Really neat. I've been wanting to put together a small shooting club and still will, hopefully this year, so we can meet at least once a week.

[kyswede]

I filled a 5 gal. bucket with play sand, put a lid on it, and laid it on its side. I fired 10 rounds of 148 gr. 38 Spl. WC and 4 rounds of Fed. Hydra-Shok +P 129 gr. into it from about 25 feet. One HP went out the side of the bucket, all the rest were recovered. 1 of the WCs broke into coin-shaped segments, 8 pieces recovered. Has anyone ever seen a WC do this? I bought the WCs online and loaded with 2.8gr. Red Dot. The hole in the side of the bucket was patched with duct tape from the inside.
kyswede

[Jim_Fleming]

All you'd have to do with the lid is back it up with some sheet rubber, at least 1/8th inch thick... Preferably thicker, to keep the sand from dribbling back out of the entry holes... I didn't think of that when I posted my stick figure drawing a few pages ago.

GOOD JOB, kyswede... no kidding.

Looks like lids would be "weak spot"- need extra's- could back-up lids with cardboard after they get shot up, or take the old ladies iron and remelt the top?

[kyswede]

I will use this mainly for recovering 38 Spl. boolits. I plan to put a steel plate or plywood in the bottom if I use it for .357. The wadcutters chrono'd 634 fps avg. thru my 2" bbl. Charter Arms and 702 fps avg. in my Taurus w/6" bbl. If I keep my aim on target my 1300# of lead will last forever. I will try the rubber, as sand was pouring out of the holes in the lid. I patched the holes with duct tape inside and out. Learned that trick from Red Green lol. Lids are 99 cents and buckets are about $2.50 at Lowe's. So far I have $5 in the sand trap. I understand wet sand seals better, so I may try that next.
kyswede

[jsizemore]

You might try some of those plastic corrugated campaign/realtor signs. The holes on those close up pretty good especially a double stack of 'em. Should have plenty come available with elections not too far away.

[PatMarlin]

Well I think I'm gonna make some bucket traps with a steel bottom, stuffed with the fine sawdust from my mill. 3- for 50, 100, and 200 yrds.

Need to make some stands to get them off the ground.

Be great if the work for the portability. I just wonder how easy they will get blown over from the impact.

[Jim_Fleming]

Ky, just also remember that wet sand is a LOT heavier to lug around... Yes it works, very nicely. My barrels that I set up last year are terribly heavy BEFORE the sand was encouraged to get wet... But I also won't be moving them with the sand in them... I'll shovel out the wet sand, sift out the spent boolits, and so forth...

J.

I will use this mainly for recovering 38 Spl. boolits. I plan to put a steel plate or plywood in the bottom if I use it for .357. The wadcutters chrono'd 634 fps avg. thru my 2" bbl. Charter Arms and 702 fps avg. in my Taurus w/6" bbl. If I keep my aim on target my 1300# of lead will last forever. I will try the rubber, as sand was pouring out of the holes in the lid. I patched the holes with duct tape inside and out. Learned that trick from Red Green lol. Lids are 99 cents and buckets are about $2.50 at Lowe's. So far I have $5 in the sand trap. I understand wet sand seals better, so I may try that next.
kyswede

[JIMinPHX]

Weight of steel is about 0.283 pounds per square inch. Don't ask why I didn't have to look it up.

You might want to look that up next time. I think that you mean cubic inch.

[JIMinPHX]

JIMinPHX, I know Phoenix is a big place, but does the name "Arizona Red" mean anything to you?

No.

Care to fill me in on what I'm missing?

[Xcaliber]

Made this to collect my lead from .38/.357 revolvers. The rubber tire flats hold well
till you get a concentrated area ,..the rubber finally gives up to higher velocities
from my .357 14" Max. They go all the way thru and the 3" steel back up box stops them and fall into the screen. no dents so far. The rubber tire flats are easily replaced when needed.

[frankenfab]

Xcaliber, that is WAY cool.

[Xcaliber]

Frankenfab, using the rubber tire flats works for 1 person trying to find that magic load we all
seek to use. I got lucky and have 8' slabs from a tire place that throws them away. I have a source where he gets them when I need more. The trouble of using the rubber flats is if you get a lot of people shooting at 1 spot all the time, they wear thru in time. no more then what I shoot on occasion or working up a load it works to recover your lead back again. Its good
enough for what I do.

[mc_1_2_3]

Here is my entry in the Bullet Trap thread...







It is not armor plate steel, but, at a maximum 12 degree angle, should have no problem with most any rifle caliber I will be shooting. There is now a plate welded on top also. There is a removable plate on top of the pipe and the pipe extends about 6 inches below the funnel. It comes in at about 830 pounds. I have an old axle with a trailer tongue that will work perfectly for moving around the farm or to load on a trailer. Otherwise, there is a loop on top now for lifting with a tractor.

What do ya think?

[41mag]

Personally since I have a piece of pipe, and can probably round up a couple of pieces of plate, I will most likely build one similar to it sometime later this summer.

Since my pipe is 14' long it will require a "little" trimming to length. I will probably also make mine a bit smaller as I am only really looking to catch some revolver and pistol rounds. That said once I get ready I will definitely be looking back here to see how yours is working out.

[grumman581]

What do ya think?

Nice design... Probably the heaviest design so far... Anything worth engineering is worth over-engineering...

[bensonwe]

mc 1 2 3 very cool design. please forgive me i know little about a boolit trap. how are the boolits recovered?

[pps]

Here is my entry in the Bullet Trap thread...







It is not armor plate steel, but, at a maximum 12 degree angle, should have no problem with most any rifle caliber I will be shooting. There is now a plate welded on top also. There is a removable plate on top of the pipe and the pipe extends about 6 inches below the funnel. It comes in at about 830 pounds. I have an old axle with a trailer tongue that will work perfectly for moving around the farm or to load on a trailer. Otherwise, there is a loop on top now for lifting with a tractor.

What do ya think?

Absolutely fantastic if you have a range in your backyard, and don't have to move the trap around.

[mc_1_2_3]

mc 1 2 3 very cool design. please forgive me i know little about a boolit trap. how are the boolits recovered?

The pipe extends about 6 inches below the funnel. The boolits should just drop into a metal bushel basket that will fit under the pipe. The basket top will be above the bottom of the pipe to be sure no boolits fly out.

[Jim_Fleming]

41Mag, with respect, sincerely, I suggest you rethink your plans... Very likely you will wish later after building the trap, you will say, "Man oh man! I wish now I'd've built this trap to handle everything I throw at it...

We all do it, myself included!

Personally since I have a piece of pipe, and can probably round up a couple of pieces of plate, I will most likely build one similar to it sometime later this summer.

Since my pipe is 14' long it will require a "little" trimming to length. I will probably also make mine a bit smaller as I am only really looking to catch some revolver and pistol rounds. That said once I get ready I will definitely be looking back here to see how yours is working out.