Yep, I'll be making one in Nebraska!
There is always that one guy that needs an umbrella.....(just kidden, pretty good idea)
Ok, here is the issue with that design.
First of all, it's a great idea but what happens with those spools is they are made from green wood or lightly aged wood.
We had a dozen of them brought to our range for shooting platforms or just a place to put items on while shooting.
They are cottonwood mostly which doesn't last long in the environment and the wood will shrink leaving the tops really floppy.
Wood rot starts quickly on the bottom with ground contact.
There is a fix if one has the time to do it.
The rods that hold the two halves together need to be removed one at a time with the threaded area coated in anti-seize as they are not galvanized just raw steel that is designed to be disposed of.
The nuts holding them will rust and be locked to the rods if this process isn't followed.
The base will need short legs to keep it off the ground where moisture will rot the wood as quickly.
A finish will be required to seal the wood for a short period of time. It will still dry rot in time because it's cottonwood.
Been through all of this over the years.
Buy some pressure treated wood and be done with it. A couple of our club members built some vertical gun racks behind the benches at the 100 yard bay with pine and put epoxy paint on them.
About three years later they started falling apart from wood rot.
Another crew of club members are building new racks from pressure treated wood that will last 25 years or longer.
So we have two crews building identical racks, one using cheap wood to "save the club money" vs a crew that spent some money to build a project that will last past their lifetimes.
Which crew was most cost effective?
First of all, it's a great idea but what happens with those spools is they are made from green wood or lightly aged wood.
We had a dozen of them brought to our range for shooting platforms or just a place to put items on while shooting.
They are cottonwood mostly which doesn't last long in the environment and the wood will shrink leaving the tops really floppy.
Wood rot starts quickly on the bottom with ground contact.
There is a fix if one has the time to do it.
The rods that hold the two halves together need to be removed one at a time with the threaded area coated in anti-seize as they are not galvanized just raw steel that is designed to be disposed of.
The nuts holding them will rust and be locked to the rods if this process isn't followed.
The base will need short legs to keep it off the ground where moisture will rot the wood as quickly.
A finish will be required to seal the wood for a short period of time. It will still dry rot in time because it's cottonwood.
Been through all of this over the years.
Buy some pressure treated wood and be done with it. A couple of our club members built some vertical gun racks behind the benches at the 100 yard bay with pine and put epoxy paint on them.
About three years later they started falling apart from wood rot.
Another crew of club members are building new racks from pressure treated wood that will last 25 years or longer.
So we have two crews building identical racks, one using cheap wood to "save the club money" vs a crew that spent some money to build a project that will last past their lifetimes.
Which crew was most cost effective?
I'm not a fan of the build new ones every two years because it takes volunteers to build them and that is hard to find.
The club pays for the materials. It's no expense to the builders.
So why not build something that will last 25 years vs two years with the same manpower?
Similar threads
- Sub Category: Rifles
- Sale Price: 350.00$
- Caliber: 556X45mm
