Homemade shooting rest

[atvgod821]

I will be going out to the range on Sunday or Monday to dial in my new setup. I decided it was not worth the effort to do without a shooting rest. I did not like the price for the cheap ones and the good ones I do not want to spend that much money, so I made one.

I cut two treated 4x4's at 19-1/2" inches, made a "T" shape with them and fastened with Simpson corner brackets. I then used a 1" spade bit and drilled down about 3/4" on the top of the "T", then drilled a pilot hole for a recessed 6" long 3/8" lag screw and washer to secure the "T". On the bottom corners I drilled just shy of the depth of the 4x4 and inserted threaded grommets into the 7/16" hole. I then added 4" long 3/8" carriage bolts with wing nuts into the grommets for adjustable legs. I turned it right side up and added a 6" long 2x4 with three pre-drilled holes to the bottom part of the vertical part of the "T". I thread into that a "U" shaped rubber coated hanger for the butt stock to set into. The hangers are for hanging a shovel or hammer on in the shed/garage. I then cut a 12" long 4x4 and centered it on the horizontal part of the "T" and fastened it with the same Simpson bracket. I drilled three holes in the center of that and installed another "U" hanger in that piece.

The end product is a shooting rest that is offset to fit a rifle, has adjustable legs for elevation and also has many adjustments for the length of the rifle. My Bone Collector and my Marlin .22 fit it most excellent. I will post pics as soon as I have time to. Total cost was $21.98 for the hardware, I already had the lumber.

 

[atvgod821]

I will try to load these pics.

 

[exMember]

thats pretty damn crafty! I like that!

 

[atvgod821]

Here is the target stand I made. It can be filled with water for weight.

 

[atvgod821]

Thank you.

 

[Muley Hunter]

The rest looks good, but it might be hard to make small adjustments.

 

[blueboy1]

Good job pretty crafty gun rest and target stand. Good Ideas!!

 

[Spitfire1]

Nice going there atvgod ! Here in my neck of the woods we use a sturdy table and sand bags as a rest for dailing in a rifle !

 

[inline50]

With two U brackets the rest can double as a gun holder when you need to clean or work on your firearms as well. I like the fact that the butt of the rifle will be off the table.

I've been looking for a design for a target holder to make that is light, durable and portable to throw in my truck. Hope you don't mind if feed off your idea.
:scratch: Wondering if you could fill the piping with sand instead of water :?:

 

[sqezer]

I don't think he will mind at all, that's what is so great about sharing ideas, we all gain form others ideas.

 

[atvgod821]

Muley, all three points of the rest can be adjusted with the threaded legs, the front and rear mount each have three adjustments for different rifles. It fits all of my rifles, so that is the main concern.

Inline50, take the ball and run. I use water because I can dump it out when I am done. I stack a few of these upside down and store them outside. I used 1-1/2 pvc for the pipes. I also used a torpedo level when gluing it all together so it would level on the ground and the upright boards would be plum. I also used the writing on the pipes as a reference when connecting pieces together. I go to the recycling center and get t.v. boxes to use for a backer, and use large binder clips to fasten it to the boards. I also use spray adhesive to attach my target to the cardboard. If you want to keep your targets, just heat them up with a hair dryer at home and the adhesive will let loose. I stick two used targets together back to back, and use hangers from the clothing stores with the adjustable clips to hang them in the gun closet.

Thank you all for the comments. I have gotten tons of information off of this site and others, so the least I can do is return what knowledge I have to offer.

 

[hawgslayer1]

Have to hand it to ya buddy. Thats a cool rest :cheers:

Ray........

 

[atvgod821]

I tried the rest out this evening at the range with my .22. I have never used a rest before, so it was all new to me. After getting the front legs adjusted it was a breeze to make small corrections with the rear. I did get lazy with my grip and caught my ring finger with a case that was getting ejected. Small cut and kind of hurts, but I did learn something from it. I will probably add a camper level to it to get the side to side sitting level on the bench, and maybe some stain when it dries out, other than that it worked great. As soon as I get time with the ML on the rest, I will update you guys on how it works with some recoil.

 

[atvgod821]

I tried the rest with the ML last weekend, what a dumb idea. The rest worked great, even with the recoil of the ML, but it was 90 degrees outside that day. Needless to say, I gave up before I even got it sighted in. Now I can see what a "crud ring" is after this session.

 

[teacup]

Man thats slick!!!!! GREAT IDEA

 

[Smokin' Joe]

I just seen your post on your home made shooting rest so I thought you might be interested in looking at my homemade portable shooting table. I got the main idea off youtube. I modified mine quite a bit to meet my needs. I had to make my brother one also after he used mine. Works good!
Joe

 

[atvgod821]

That looks great. I do not have any private land to practice on, just the shooting range that is eight miles away. They have steel shooting tables with swinging seats to accommodate right and left hand shooters. If I had land to shoot on, I would be taking your ideas and making me a table.

 

[Smokin' Joe]

I think I'm going to be guilty of "Copyright infringement".......I like your target stand and the fact that you can add weight simply by filling it with water. Great idea!

 

[allchokedup1]

I just seen your post on your home made shooting rest so I thought you might be interested in looking at my homemade portable shooting table. I got the main idea off youtube. I modified mine quite a bit to meet my needs. I had to make my brother one also after he used mine. Works good!
Joe

Now thats awesome, Great job. Those sawhorse legs make it real handy and easy to set up. Sweet shooting bench!
Thanks , David

 

[allchokedup1]

I will try to load these pics.

Thats some good thinking going on right there. Great shooting rest!