Take down shooting bench plans or design

[Special T]

Im gona head to eastern OR to do some rat shooting and was contemplating making a somewhat mobil shooting bench. Has anyone ever made one of wood that works well that breaks down for easy transport?

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[DRobnsn]

TAG

[JDHasty]

Yes. 

The easy way is to use ply wood for a top, use one side of a folding table leg set for the front and a one inch galvanized pipe and screw in flange for the rear leg.  I have never seen a decent four legged bench. They can never be leveled so they don't wobble.  Three legs are the way to go.  Sit on a McDonalds pickle bucket for a stool, or if you have a blind chair that works well. 

The benches I have today are the accumulation of four decades of starting over, improving what I have, repeating the process and they are incredible.  But they are also pretty costly to make.  I use 1-1/2 - 2 inch plywood tops and bicycle tubing for legs and use bicycle seat post clamps to make the legs infinitely adjustable from ~ 18 inches for the kids to use up to ~ 60 inches in case I have to set one or two legs down into an irrigation ditch or in case I want to stand up and shoot over sage brush.     

[Special T]

I would love to see a pic if you can tonight.

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[JDHasty]

This cat that lives in Oregon published plans of this bench he built and sold plans for quite a while ago.  It makes a good bench.  I have shot off one and it is stable.  That is how the rear leg of the bench I mention above works, except using a store bought flange it is not splayed.  So that is not so good for stability.  15 - 18 degrees is just about the perfect splay for legs if you have a chop saw and can weld.   I will try to get over and shoot a couple pics of one of my benches.

This guy improved on the original design a bit.   

http://www.larrywillis.com/shootingbench.html

Rick Jameson used to be a gun writer. 

[CAMPMEAT]

I've got a BENCH MASTER. It folds up with a carrying handle. Very well made for around $400. Last you forever..all metal too.

[winshooter88]

I built basically the same bench that shows in JDHasty's link but instead of making welded flanges I cut wedges out of wood and glued and screwed tham to the bottom of the table than screwed the metal flanges onto them. It works just fine is very stable and does not require a welder.

[JDHasty]

I built basically the same bench that shows in JDHasty's link but instead of making welded flanges I cut wedges out of wood and glued and screwed tham to the bottom of the table than screwed the metal flanges onto them. It works just fine is very stable and does not require a welder.

There ya' go!

Building my current benches costs me about $350 just for the bicycle tubing and I am in pretty deep by the time I have one built and I have three or four of them.  This one shown works really well and when we were shooting off benches like that I just kept a mattock handy to dig down a bit and level it out.  I don't like any bench w/attached seat.  They just wobble too much for me.  YMMV, you may be OK w/attached seat.  I have met some who were. 

[Kurt_S]

I made mine out of a sheet of plywood and rugged buddy folding saw horse legs.  Cost me less then 50 bucks to make and it's solid and lightweight.

[Utah]

Here's my Larry Willis design from JD Hastys link.   I used 18* angle for the legs.  Legs are 38" long.  Padded stool 28" tall.  Works for me. Steady as a rock.  I use on old padded bar stool for a chair.  Depending on where I shoot it will even fit into the trunk of a car.


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[JDHasty]

Here's my Larry Willis design from JD Hastys link.   I used 18* angle for the legs.  Steady as a rock.  I use on old padded bar stool for a chair.  Depending on where I shoot it will even fit into the trunk of a car.


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Looks great.  Remember to take a small mattock w/you for leveling.  It works so much better than an entrenching tool or a small spade.  I also used the leveling wedge blocks and stackable blocks for travel trailers & RVs before I built the leg sets I have now. 

The one I have looks just like the one in this picture http://www.yourdictionary.com/mattock

That bench is going to serve you quite well.  One other thing is an old Turkish towel will keep your arm from being burned from a hot table top.  That or there are these: http://www.sinclairintl.com/shooting-rests-bipods/shooting-rests-tops/shooting-rest-accessories/benchtop-shooter-pads-prod34106.aspx

I am really serious.  I have suffered serious burns off a table top in central WA and Montana in the late spring & summer. 

[JDHasty]

Oh wow, you put IO carpet on the top.  Great thinking. 

[skeeter 20i]

  I need to make me one of those!

[JDHasty]

If you have kids, make a shorty size set of legs.  I take a bench sized for my kids to the range w/me and it makes all the difference in the world.  A shorty set of legs will not take much effort or cost much.  Actually what I do is use the legs for one of my stools on one of the bench tops and the kids bring their little three leg camp stools.  I purposely made my stools and benches so they use the same diameter leg.     

[kentrek]

Metal collapsing saw horses and a ply wood top with a one inch thick steel plate on top of that for weight works pretty well.....it's not fancy and is not shooting specific but it works