Thread: Shooting ranges

Actually came up and had a great look around the pistol side,(and removed a bit of paint from their targets! And a big thanks to the guys for showing us around and explaining the history, issues, etc.... A great day and heaps of great info - and a good bunch of folk)

We run out of time to pop over the fence, so thanks for those links. I must say i didnt look at google maps for ideas, and that was a great set of photos..... And will remember that tip for future....

Originally Posted by timattalon

Have a chat to these guys or pop up from where you are and have a look on any Tuesday evening. The benches are fro standing shooting and it is a full no escape range with open air over the range itself. The no escape is achieved with heavy Timber beams across the range at intervals so from the firing position they appear to overlap thus any projectile discharged from the firing line are kept within the range.

Home page
New Zealand Handloaders Association | Proudly established to promote amateur shooting for the recreation of its members and the general public.

The firing line
Rifle Range | New Zealand Handloaders Association

Google earth Note the bands across the range at intervals. The steel (twin) ones are girders hold the movable bullet traps at different distances, the grey are the heavy timber beams
https://www.google.com/maps/place/59...d7b41b!6m1!1e1



I am not saying you should copy what NZHA have done, but you should get some ideas as to what works and what can be done differently. They have a pretty good set up in my view.

Ok so this is where its at, at present.
Any thoughts/comments????
Baffles are still missing (need to pull finger on sorting the design for that) and long range buildings not designed - as they tie into the baffle design.
Club house/indoor range - will be next phase, its just a 25mx50m block at present (current thought is to turn it into a 2 storey, range on the ground floor, club rooms, kitchen etc on top - then should be able to see over the general site from the top - plus shoot pistols inside. Could also hire out for functions etc... Lots more though to go into this yet, just trying to sort the outside at the moment.

We have about 5000m3 of the dirt onsite now and more happening for the next 2 weeks, so looking good!!

Please tell us which island it's on at least, apologies if I've been looking against my eyelids.

Originally Posted by Ryan

Please tell us which island it's on at least, apologies if I've been looking against my eyelids.

The mainland... South canterbury.
Your thoughts?

Thanks for that.
The 200m rnge will be able to have targets at 25, 50, 75?, 100, 150 and 200m. Just sorting the baffles this week, which will be the decider. All at same height, not up hill, so have to pick 1 range begoe going forward - this may change depending on baffles ( m big head ache.... )

The timing issue is up for debate. 15mins on a open type night ok?

Trying to allow for all of those uses.

Originally Posted by Bagheera

I'd start by thinking of the possible uses people might make of the range:
sight in
accuracy testing
trajectory testing
technique practice
competition

Intermediate ranges
A big wide target at 25m would also be useful for people starting a sight in session.
A 50m butts or target frame half way down the 100 side would be very good, for those sighting in / testing .22RF.
I don't know, would a small target at 150m be useful for .17HMR and similar ?

Time between going forward to targets:
(The 5 minutes used at TECT is a bit short for me)
15 min sessions sound about right to me.
It's enough to fire a couple of 5 shot groups with some frigging around adjusting sights, torquing up and what not
or else long enough to do a slow group allowing the barrel to cool.
or enough to shoot a couple of positions practice.

Drainage

If ground is flat naturally then you guys in the South don't need a North Islander to tell you what liquiefaction is.
If ground has a slope then it's a good idea to do slit trenches say 300mm or one narrow digger bucket wide and maybe 600mm deep running downhill with an interceptor drain across the top of the slope and a bigger runoff drain at the bottom of the slop leading down to a soakpit full of rocks or a pond outlet or some such. Fill em with rock or gravel

Also the piled earth berms are going to weigh down on the ground and squeeze water out of the ground slowly over a couple of years (if clay) so they will be wet alongside - slit trenches underneath will carry some of this water away

This will take a lot of gravel but it's easier at the beginning of the project


Also whilst digging, if funds allow, a shallow trench with electrical conduit all sealed up and a draw wire running through would be a good extra if run down the line of some ranges - you could later run cables for turning target control or moving target control etc

It will be good to see this project take shape

Thanks for that
The drainage is going to be a close one. The site slopes about 800mm side to side and is about 300mm from end to end, the soil is quite permaable, and theres a main drainage canal running on the down side (drain goes for miles up and down from this site. At the moment the thoughts are along yours, with the addtion of novaflow pipes in as many as possible - all draining towards the canal drain.

The power distro around the site, we might be onto a moleplow to put in the main feed. Hopefully at the same time we can get so ducts run around the place for your exact reasons. The whole site will have wifi and internet(target cameras, target control, site cameras, access control, scoring, porn watching while waiting to shoot, reading the forum, etc) but getting power around is still being sorted (lighting, running boar, target turning actuators, access control, )

I'll try and post some pics up etc, as and when things of note happen.

Originally Posted by 308

Drainage

If ground is flat naturally then you guys in the South don't need a North Islander to tell you what liquiefaction is.
If ground has a slope then it's a good idea to do slit trenches say 300mm or one narrow digger bucket wide and maybe 600mm deep running downhill with an interceptor drain across the top of the slope and a bigger runoff drain at the bottom of the slop leading down to a soakpit full of rocks or a pond outlet or some such. Fill em with rock or gravel

Also the piled earth berms are going to weigh down on the ground and squeeze water out of the ground slowly over a couple of years (if clay) so they will be wet alongside - slit trenches underneath will carry some of this water away

This will take a lot of gravel but it's easier at the beginning of the project


Also whilst digging, if funds allow, a shallow trench with electrical conduit all sealed up and a draw wire running through would be a good extra if run down the line of some ranges - you could later run cables for turning target control or moving target control etc

It will be good to see this project take shape

You only really need Novaflo (with a sock) in clayey areas where the clay will gum up a trench. If your trench is pea metal or loose stones and more than say 200mm wide it should be ok but talk to local contractors

Ideally you have a rectangular grid - one shallow drain at the top to head off surface water and a series going down towards the main drainage canal to drain the site

Damnit, this range is way too far away from my location.

Originally Posted by Ryan

Damnit, this range is way too far away from my location.

We have hotels here...., and a Airport!

Originally Posted by 308

You only really need Novaflo (with a sock) in clayey areas where the clay will gum up a trench. If your trench is pea metal or loose stones and more than say 200mm wide it should be ok but talk to local contractors

Ideally you have a rectangular grid - one shallow drain at the top to head off surface water and a series going down towards the main drainage canal to drain the site

Gottcha on that. The soil type is quite fine, so a bit worried about fines migration, gumming up just rock drains. Plus we have a few metres that may be going to be 'donated' .....

I think in may try and put some trench's on the plan with slopes etc and try and figure it out a bit more scientifically than just a scratch in the ground later.

Another user group / stakeholder you might consider adding.

Corporate events and hiring of the facility for 1/2 & 1 day blocks. Range utilization and conferencing.

Have you considered running a shop on site?

Originally Posted by Dangerous Dan

Another user group / stakeholder you might consider adding.

Corporate events and hiring of the facility for 1/2 & 1 day blocks. Range utilization and conferencing.

Have you considered running a shop on site?

Both very good ideas.

As far as the fines migrating through to the trenches goes, can you have sumps at intervals which can be dug out every year or three?

There are plenty of ways to skin a cat - if the trenches have sloping bottoms towards the downhill, are say 200mm+wide and filled with bigger stones eg AP40/70 (like in concrete retaining walls) on the bottom and cheaper 20mmdown or pea metal on top then you should be fine. Again, a local contractor with experience will know what works and what doesn't so their experience would be best

As for sumps, a trench of peametal tends to pour out of any cut so the best sump may be a plastic 44gal drum with a liftable concrete lid on top but that costs more money. Plastic drums make great silt traps though


As far as the fines migrating through to the trenches goes, can you have sumps at intervals which can be dug out every year or three?[/QUOTE]

Trying to work on the conference type thing. Things like company offsite planning sessions, workshops etc.... use the club rooms, end of day a few 'shooting' guys turn up and all can have a shot, then a 'fanta' and off. It all depends on the type of club rooms that get put there (read - how many dollars spent)

The shop one is prob not going to be a flyer, as the location doesn't really suit. However for competitions, we could have a area for vendors to set up in.

Originally Posted by Dangerous Dan

Another user group / stakeholder you might consider adding.

Corporate events and hiring of the facility for 1/2 & 1 day blocks. Range utilization and conferencing.

Have you considered running a shop on site?