Smallbore Cowboy Setups/Stands

[ShootingStar]

Hey all you SB Cowboy shooters -

Anyone have some pictures, drawings or sketches of non-permanent set-ups? I'm the new Match Director for Silhouette Shooting at Asheville Rifle & Pistol Club in Asheville, NC. Right now we are just re-starting SB Silhouette (1/5 scale animals) and I'm beginning the planning process for SB Cowboy (1/2 scale animals, right?).

I have downloaded the pdf targets from NRA site and am hoping some of you folks out there have already figured out really neat ways to setup/take down these stands and targets. Our range does not allow a permanent setup for anything because of Smallbore Prone matches held at our range. I need some ideas/descriptions or pictures or drawings or sketches - ANYTHING - that can help me along my way to getting SB Cowboy going. At this moment we have nothing except a soft-in-the-head Match Director (me)!

Where have you been that has a slick setup? Do you have something at your range you are willing to share? Do you have something that works, but you have improvement ideas - please send any and all ideas my way!!! Hurry before I figure out what I've gotten myself into.

Thanks in advance for your help.
Greg Chandler

[Bob259]

One way is to make a 2x4 rail (front) and rear extensions with a piece of plywood in between extending back and use stones or blocks to hold in place. On the front or rail we have angle iron stands screwed in where the animals go not only does it make a good stand for the animals but low shots don't shoot up the rail on you.

We had them in the ground but due to some range work we now set them up and take them down for the matches. Distances are maked in the ground at ground level so you don't have to measure each time.

[jnyork]

Greg, we just use some grader blade laid flat on the ground. Get it for free from the countty road dept or some such, you can leave it right there as it doesnt interfere with anything.

[RockRidge]

We use grader blades also. The only difference is that ours are permanently mounted about 6" above the ground.

Ed
Bishop, CA

[Baja_Traveler]

Grader Blades here also - we have rebar legs welded to the base that raise the rail 4 inches above the ground. The rails are stored in a pile behind the firing line when not in use.

[txairshooter]

Austin Rifle Club uses triple (3) stacked stands that are sunk in the ground like posts and are very stable. Target backers can be hung on the stands for shooting on paper. Big problem is the high power rifle shooters blasting holes in the stands. But 6 banks of 15 targets can handle a lot of shooters. ARC is the location of the hunter pistol silhouette nationals for the past two years and will be for 2011.

Haltom City RPC uses resetable targets on roll out racks with integral backstops. They use heavy (pistol cartridge) animals for smallbore except for rams. The racks get rolled out for the match and rolled back afterwards. Reset by pulling a cords. No berm required behind the animals to spot hits. Matches run very fast (3 relays takes 2.5 hours to shoot). No steel left on the range. HC has resets for 1/2 scale (pistol and cowboy rifle), smallbore rifle (1/5 scale) and air (1/10 scale) targets. All seem to work, but some shooter don't like shooting on reset targets.

[GTKF]

We, Colonial Rifle & Pistol Club on Staten island, have a similar problems, and use our range for SB, Pistol Caliber LA and Rimfire LA and both SB an Centerfire Hunter Pistol. We can handle 16 shooters on the line for SB and 8 for Lever Action and Hunter Pistol. We have a berm at 100 yds for the Rams. For the other animals we use folding 3/8" AR 500 steel plates (probably overkill) hinged in back over sand pits. the pits are outlined with presssure treated 4x4s. For the chickens we use two 4' X 8' plates, for Pigs two 4' X 10' and for Turkeys two 4' X 11'.We set up 2 sets of each SB animal under a plate and 1 set (10) of half size animals under each. The plates weigh 800 -1000 lbs. We raise them to a 45 deg angle and prop with 2x4s. 6 men can easily lift safely, although we have a portable winch. SB target stands are rebar and set into a 3 x 8 which can be moved by 2 men.

Here's a link to one of the turkey backstops just after installation

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g239/ ... ckstop.jpg

[edgehit]

My back hurts from just reading that post!

[Tlee]

....(snip)
Here's a link to one of the turkey backstops just after installation

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g239/ ... ckstop.jpg

GTKF--

The picture link in your message was truncated for some reason.

-Tim

[Jason]

From the link in the clubhouse...

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g239/ ... ckstop.jpg

[GTKF]

Thanks Jason

http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g239/ ... ckstop.jpg

[ShootingStar]

Everyone,
Thanks again for all your thoughts, suggestions, ideas and solutions so far! ! ! I appreciate the imagination and ingenuity that exists within our sport(s).

Let's keep this thread going to help all those interested in shooting, but may be up against a road-block at their club. Maybe some of these ideas will allow them to broaden attendance at their shoots/matches. If we keep this going, we can really stoke up people's involvement.

My next task will be trying to find someone to help me get this rolling at my club!

[boats]

I know your range from shooting Schuetzen there. What ever you do is going to have to be removable from what I can see.

Our Smallbore Silhouette dedicated range in Virginia has berms behind steel rails which are fixed at regulation NRA smallbore distance. Cowboy is at different distances Pigs and Turkeys which causes us trouble. We have additional lower berms, they have to be lower in order to keep the regulation smallbore rails exposed and available, spotting is an issue. You can see a low miss can't see a high miss on pigs and turkeys.

I have shot clubs that use steel plate behind the critters painted a contrasting color, but that's a lot of trouble to move on and off the range. And Cowboy the targets are larger set up is wider making it a whole lot of steel plate. High power on our long range we have steel box sections set in the ground low. Match day we use removable stands that plug into the steel box sections. Two feet sticking down and a flat top for the critters to set on. It holds the targets well but again the berm behind is an issue, hard to spot misses without a good dirt berm. Our Chicken and Ram High power line is fine Pigs and turkeys are the issue.

We can't shoot CLA regulation on our 600 yards range at all due to the range lay out with a big dip at 100 yards so use Rams only at 200 for 40 shots targets hung from Chains. Targets hung from chains non regulation is a good way to shoot though. We squad and shoot relays with the off relay spotting hits with scopes two guys spottting to a target. It's perhaps the best spotting I see, never a wrong call. If you hung the critters from Chains at Asheville perhaps it would get the match off the ground, let you switch to a permanent set up later.

If chains are not too your liking I would use the removable stand method, Hard to spot misses but Cowboy they are larger and not as many misses. Makes it harder for the entry level shooters. Experienced shooters know were the bullet is going even when missing so it's not a handicap. Get the match going with good turn out it's easier to get the club to accomidate is my experence.

I never understood why the match was set with different distances from Regulation Silhouette.

Boats

[lone ringer]

I never understood why the match was set with different distances from Regulation Silhouette.

Boats[/quote]

The reason the distances are different from Smallbore rifle is because we shoot Cowboy at several places where Hunter's pistol is offered and since we also shoot Hunter's pistols targets it was just convenient that distances, targets and time differences would stay same as Hunter's pistol and not Small bore rifle. As a note of interest I should tell you that I have noticed many smallbore and high power rifle and pistol shooters going for cowboy rifle silhouette but not the other way around.

[boats]

I understand Hunters Pistol is at different ranges than Rifle Silhouette and Cowboy was set at HP distances since it uses the same targets. However for clubs it would be a lot easier to have 4 berms than 6. Difference in the game with Pigs set at 60 instead of 50 and Turkeys at 77 or 75 either one would not be noticible other than a few clicks zero. Actualy range to range there is not a lot of uniformity anyway, few are mesured prececisely. You can tell from your rifles zero club to club.

We shot HP and Cowboy at Rifle distances for some time before adding the 2 extra berms and conforming to the rule. Made no difference to the way the match developed.

Boats