Thread: How to Hang a Gong

Hi guys

Looking for some guidance on the above. I’ve hung a couple of Steeltargetsnz gongs off waratahs, using 5mm galvanised chain and some carabiner type links. The carabiners are a definite weakness so I’m thinking to go to bolts M8 with slightly bigger chain so the bolts can get through the links.

But I know some people use rubber straps of various kinds - are these better? Where do you get them? How do you use them?

Any pointers much appreciated. I’m in the Wellington area.

W

See if you can track down some old conveyor belts and cut some strips off.

@WillB I’m in Welly mate, can come grab some conveyor rubber straps off me if you’d like. I put a pipe spacer in at the back to create a downward angle for splash down and takes a bit of sting out as well.

Wow, awesome, thanks mate. I’ll PM. That looks like a really good setup there.

Upright car tyre, suspend gong in middle, gives nice aiming area.

Rubber straps are just easier, cheaper, of course not that shot proof - not that chains are.

Could suspend gongs with a couple bolts and a piece of tyre side wall. The tyre side wall for suspending the gong is either obtained from the piece of tyre pegged/cemented underground -- or just cut and bent down. The first solution makes it easier to control where the gong hangs, and is more shot proof and repairable. The second sulution may be simpler but leaves only a small bridge of tire rim that can be shot out.

I did a drawing, I included a bird as eye candy.



Another method. But gong will be more muffled. Extra spacers at bottom two bolts for that downward angle splash deflection.

Man you’re an artist, that’s brilliant. Car tyre is a fantastic idea. I’ve seen them on the THLR channel when he does the Midnight Sun Challenge. I couldn’t easily bury a car tyre where I am, but I could tie it back to the waratahs. So many good ideas.

I just rang Tony’s Tyre Service in Wellington and they said sure come on down and grab a couple of tyres. Nice!

W

Bloody good set up idea. With your second diagram: if you're worried about it being muffled, you could just not bolt it at the bottom and put a section of large diameter pipe immediately behind it, then it'll ring like a bell when struck

As Cordite has drawn so amazingly well, car tyres are excellent. Gives a big arse back circle for you to locate the gong, not so easy to see a fluro yellow gong in the dry grass, way out yonder. And if you have heaps of conveyer belt/rubber sheeting etc, no need to cut it in to strips, just bolt on a full piece on the back of the gong and hang it. Chain just gets shot up, Waratahs get bent and shot, but tyres and rubber last forever.

Mount gong to the rear wall of the tyre and the tyre becomes a fragment collector. Great if you are into boolit making and don't like digging.

So glad I started this thread - I am sorted! Thanks guys for all the input and a big shout out to McNotty who has set me up with conveyor belt rubber. I’m definitely going to do the car tyres as well though. Maybe put some different size gongs in for variation. A frame like @muzza ‘s would be great for .22 practice too. I have a self resetting swinger from GC but it’s pretty average in performance.

The only downside to the tyre idea is if you have a close miss you will never know. If you punch into the tyre there will be no splash. With hanging targets off conveyor you see the bullet splash in the soil if you have nearly grazed it.
And the target also twists on the belt so you can sometimes tell if you have hit "low left".
Nothing more frustrating if you have nearly been hitting it and haven't realised!

I find shooting the plates and not the chains makes the chains last longer too.

I'm sure it would be similar with rubber straps .

Every forum needs one of these

Originally Posted by systolic

I find shooting the plates and not the chains makes the chains last longer too.

I'm sure it would be similar with rubber straps .

@A330driver think you accidentally wrote “needs one of these” instead of “has a prick like this”