Our New Range

Yes sir! Looks great!

Should be a wonderful test site; protected from wind. Early in the morning, I can just see the flag ribbons hanging motionless. Under such conditions one can shoot some unbelievably big groups if you try to shoot too fast. HUH?? Say what?? Yep, believe it or not the same thing is true about shooting in a tunnel. I'll give you a little tip. :cool:

Go to Google or your favorite search engine and type in, "Vortex Cannons" and do some studying about vortices. It's a real eye opener and I believe explains why most expert benchrest shooters are scared to death of a supposedly 'zero' condition. ;)

Later

Gene Beggs
 
Looks great. only minor difference I would have made is I would have poured the bench top with the left over ready mix concrete from your floor pad. Im sure you wont have any trouble but bag crete is hard to finish and not as strong and ready mix. You will be fine though. I think you will really enjoy having your own place. I certainly do. I did notice how nice your cuts were on your rafters. the pitch looks perfect. I myself need to make a cover for my outside benches and I may steal a little of your technique. Well done!!! Lee
 
When you use Sakrete just add a couple of shovels of Portland cement and mix well and it will be as strong as the premixed stuff. We mix our own at work, not out of a bag, but our own batch plant. The benches Boyd posted pictures of that I made are about 7500 psi and all white Portland in the mix. They came out nice.
 
I wasn't trying to be smart or anything such as.
I have been pouring concrete since I was 16 years old. Finishing concrete has paid my bills for many years since. The larger 'Probably white rock" in the redy mix would simply add strength and stability to the table top. I assume the bench will be subject to outside weather? The extra cement in a 5.5 or 6 bag mix would have also offered a bit more cream as well, so no honey comb, or rock would be exposed on the side of the table. water can and will find its way into the honeycomb and potentially cause issues in the years to come.
sack crete with small gravel or aggregate simply isn't as strong as the concrete in that floor. The floor looks great by the way, looks like professional work. I was just offering an observation that most wouldn't think about. maybe the next guy will now know?? that's all!! I think the hole idea is fantastic. I enjoy the heck out of my private range. Lee
 
Lee Martin said:
We set the bench back to allow the roof to block more sun (which is directly on the front from 10 AM - 3 PM).

-Lee
www.singleactions.com
Click to expand...

Lee,
As you know, there are thousands of ways to do what you have done. What you have built on your property is yours and it has been done your way. It is a fine arrangement and it will out last you and me. If it should ever need repair, you can fix any way you want to.

The rest of us can envy you. We would all like to have such a class shooting range on our property. Thank you for posting your results.

You are an inspiration to the rest of us.

Bill
 
Lookin' Good!

Lee, you will sure enjoy that private, secluded test range when you get heavier involved in benchrest.

Being able to test bullets, barrels, scopes, tuners etc in a zero wind condition will be a great asset to you. I hope to see you get more involved in benchrest competition next year.

Later,

Gene Beggs
 
Many thanks Gene. And I do look forward to competition starting in '16. As for our range, the trees do shelter us but we get wind. Not the steady, direct flow you guys in open areas deal with but it's there. We're at the base of a mountain and see a lot of swirling conditions around the field (which spans 15 acres carved out of the woods; your vortex comment is pretty apt). That said, my wind meter has gotten off easy this summer. We've had relatively still, albeit very hot and humid air. In the fall, winter, and early spring is when we see wind, sometimes in force.

If any of you are in the Northern Virginia area drop me a line. Maybe you can try the range firsthand.

-Lee
www.singleactions.com
 
Lee Martin said:
Thanks Don. We were thinking that same thing on the form. Glad to hear it works well for cutting the edge a bit.

-Lee
www.singleactions.com
Click to expand...


Lee; As one who has a bunch of years on concrete, I would urge you to install a "chamfer strip in the out side corners so eliminate sharp edges. They only need be the same height as the 2x4"s. We always use "Parafin" oil so the forms strip easily. Some other type of thin oil would probably work if you don't have parafin.

Good luck;
Joe
 
Drip edge installed:



I decided on corrugated tin for the roof:



The panels were screwed into the wood, seven sheets to a side:



We fabricated the cap pieces ourselves out of steel. A shot just prior to the last one going on:







Hurricane clips screwed in:









All that's left is to cover the gables with T-111 and install a 24" wide by 7 foot long loading bench.

-Lee
www.singleactions.com
 
From one builder to another

Well done, Lee.

That structure is stout. It will stand amoung those trees as a tribute to the builder for many years.

Concho Bill
 
Nice looking facility. However, consider putting sound insulation in the front side of the roof, as that is where muzzle blast will reflect from. (As alluded to in a previous post.) Unmatted fiberglass, held in place by wire mesh is a possibility. Other possibilities exist, your local home improvement store has other options. Here is a link to one retailer selling acoustic insulation: http://www.homedepot.com/b/Building-Materials-Insulation-Acoustic-Insulation/N-5yc1vZc612

Hope this helps.
 
Nice job !

A 2¢ suggestion… put some diagonals above the rafter ties, between the corner posts. Eliminates racking, ties the tops of the posts together.

HTH
 
This is an excellent thread about a great project

Lee has shared with us a project that many of us would love to have on our property.

A project like this can be built many different ways. It causes us to consider the features that we would like to incorporate in our own range.

In my career as a home builder, I have designed and built many houses and I don't believe I ever built the plan twice. It is in our nature to change and try to improve on earlier projects. That is just the way it is.

Thank you, Lee, for sharing your range project with us. You may have given others the encouragement to build their own.

Concho Bill
 
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