What's Your Portable Range Setup Look Like?

[SloppyJ]

Well my very close and convenient gun range has shut down. They claim certain issues but the fact of the matter is they've been looking to shut it down for a while. That leaves me SOL. I have a spot about 45min away at my in-laws where I can go shoot across pasture with a very large mountain for a backstop and no threat of stray bullets going anywhere. At this point, it's my only option. That leads me to figuring out a portable setup that's easy to take down and setup.

The good is that it will allow me to shoot roughly 400yds which is a LONG ways down here. The bad is that I'm used to shooting off benches and not needing anything more than some targets to have a day at the range. I have quite a bit of load dev to do so I need to get after it. I was thinking of picking up a shooting mat, seems I'll be shooting prone from now on. I can build some sort of target stand unless there's one available that's worth it. The last thing I'd like to get is some sort of steel setup that's portable. I have access to a side-by-side so I can load it all up and go but down here in the south, we don't have the opportunities that you all do out west going to find some random land to do some target practice so I'm very inexperienced when it comes to this type of stuff.

Looking for some advice on what type of products you would recommend for a portable setup.

Thanks!

 

[hereinaz]

My tripod and a shooting mat is my portable shooting kit. If I have a table, it is to do work on rifles and lay out gear I will be using.

That promotes shooting like I do during a hunt.

 

[Steve300xcw]

A "borrowed" real-estate for sale sign makes a dandy cardboard target holder. These can be found in a yard near you!! I used to keep a hard plastic truck mudflap stuffed in one. Then just stapled the target to it, that worked pretty slick

I use a shooting mat with a bipod or my pack when sighting in a rifle or shooting a canyon.

Have been shooting mostly offhand lately...I prefer rocks or random crap in a clear cut, mainly as I dont have to go out and set things up


Old pics as I dont seem to take many pics anymore

 

[TaperPin]

For a target holder I like these Trojan foldable sawhorses - if you hit the horizontal board it’s no big deal, and it’s stout enough to hang a heavy gong below, and a few 2x2 boards pointing up, screwed to the horizontal, give you something to clamp a cardboard target to. Or clamp a piece of plywood to the horizontal board.


It’s a lot harder to get a solid shooting bench that’s portable. I don’t care for trying to stay clean laying down in the mud or powdery dust, but you have to do what you have to do. The harbor freight tarps that are dirt cheap on sale are not much more than the cost of heavy plastic and keeps a shooting mat cleaner. I know one guy who shops for them with coupons and only pays like $2 each for a small one. He doesn’t even clean mud off them, just tosses em in the trash.

A shooting bench made from two layers of 3/4” plywood with galvi water pipe for legs is common, and portable, but they are not as steady as a heavy bench. There are companies that make a similar bench, but it has a metal frame stiffening the plywood.

A lot of guys recommend getting an adjustable stool for playing musical instruments to sit on.

Many times if a make-do bench isn’t super solid, groups open up.

 

[Steve300xcw]

A lil bigger tarp or shooting mat is nice when its dusty. Expecially with certain muzzle brakes

 

[dster3]

Shooting mat (Armageddon gear is what I have) tripod with a plate,, bipod and some steel targets. Your best bet will be shooting prone if you need to be portable.

T posts are cheap, and theres lots of hangers out there that bolt directly to T posts (atlas target works, JC steel, TA targets). If youre able to leave the posts up, then thats less work each time.

Theres also options to use conduit for legs and some brackets with a 2x4 to hang gongs or other steel targets.
Pick up a metal base and use 1x2 wood legs with some cardboard stapled to it.

 

[SloppyJ]

A lil bigger tarp or shooting mat is nice when its dusty. Expecially with certain muzzle brakes

Unfortunately dust isn't as much of a concern as the ticks will be. Plenty of ground cover.

 

[SloppyJ]

Shooting mat (Armageddon gear is what I have) tripod with a plate,, bipod and some steel targets. Your best bet will be shooting prone if you need to be portable.

T posts are cheap, and theres lots of hangers out there that bolt directly to T posts (atlas target works, JC steel, TA targets). If youre able to leave the posts up, then thats less work each time.

Theres also options to use conduit for legs and some brackets with a 2x4 to hang gongs or other steel targets.
Pick up a metal base and use 1x2 wood legs with some cardboard stapled to it.

I was going to get an Armageddon gear rear bag anyway so I'll see about getting one of their mats too. The fields are sectioned off with T posts so i can definitely find one to shoot at.

 

[Steve300xcw]

Unfortunately dust isn't as much of a concern as the ticks will be. Plenty of ground cover.

You might be surprised at how much crap gets stirred up buy a muzzle brake. Expecially something like a radial styled one with ports that point down....

I had a terminator brake on a 300rum that wasnt quite timed right. That stupid thing would throw rocks at you, until I got it fixed

 

[Macintosh]

If you have vehicle access, one of those cheap 10x10 pop up tents is nice in the east where wind isnt usually as much of an issue and its always raining. Makes a nasty day a heck of a lot more enjoyable.

If its your family’s place maybe you can hang a few steel plates and leave them, and just put up paper targets on a portable stand and move your shooting position for variety on the steel.

 

[northernalpine]

For known distance shooting I made a stand out of about $10 worth of 2x4’s, some spare hardware, and paid ~$25 for an 8” steel gong. Have a couple of them now because they’re pretty cheap, the whole setup is less than $40 including a can or two of cheap spray paint for target refresh. Best part is, you can just staple or thumbtack cardboard with paper targets onto the vertical 2x4 if I want to shoot groups for load dev or check zero.

I have a range bag that holds eyes/ears/etc, a shooting mat that never leaves my truck, and I’ve been grabbing the tripod regularly as of late because I want to improve my tripod shooting.

Not my exact setup, but you get the idea.

 

[Formidilosus]

Looking for some advice on what type of products you would recommend for a portable setup.

Thanks!

 

[chindits]

This time of year it looks like this




If I’m driving to relatively flat sage country I have a 3 leg folder that I can use rocks or tie off to keep the wind from knocking it over

 

[hereinaz]

I was going to get an Armageddon gear rear bag anyway so I'll see about getting one of their mats too. The fields are sectioned off with T posts so i can definitely find one to shoot at.

Based on my experience with t posts in the desert, add fence mending gear to the kit, lol, eventually you’ll clip a wire and you will definitely shoot the t-post.

 

[Tcmo-33]

Mildly old post but I figured I’d share my setup. I just Made a really simple stand out of emt conduit, 4 washers that would fit on the outside of the emt and and 4 bolts that fit inside the emt. If you shoot the emt, just replace it. All I did was weld two washers together and weld the washers to the bolts. Only thing to worry about is your spacing between the bolts. On my first set I had them too close and would knock the stand over. My second sets are probably at a 90 degree angle. As for the steel I had someone local to me and I just used baler belting for my hangers. Only problem I have had with the belting is that bullet splash seems to get hung up on it which can have a few sharp spots.

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