pyroguy1960 Posted October 16, 2010 Posted October 16, 2010 (edited) So I had created a thread before about options for 8" guns....and the consensus was bury it. At the end of the day however, I need something portable. So here is what I made, used 3" long drywall screws to put it together so it won't come apart....bottom is two 3/4" plywood sheets glued together. What ya reckon, safe? Edited October 16, 2010 by jms04081974
Algenco Posted October 16, 2010 Posted October 16, 2010 I would box the entire rack with 2" thick wood, just in case
pyroguy1960 Posted October 17, 2010 Author Posted October 17, 2010 Just got back from shooting it, no issues so far, nothing loosened up. When you say box the entire rack, you mean put 2" thick siding on it so to speak?
Algenco Posted October 17, 2010 Posted October 17, 2010 Just got back from shooting it, no issues so far, nothing loosened up. When you say box the entire rack, you mean put 2" thick siding on it so to speak? yep, just for peace of mine
Ralph Posted October 17, 2010 Posted October 17, 2010 I would box the entire rack with 2" thick wood, just in case I wouldnt simply beacuse if you encase it in wood the blast has to move wood if it is more open the blast harmlessly affects only air
pyroguy1960 Posted October 17, 2010 Author Posted October 17, 2010 I would be curious as to what would happen in a flowerpot situation if I did encase it in wood.....does also seem to me like it would just add danger to have more wood scraps flying around. The way I built it, with long screws & fairly thick wood, it's very sturdy as it is. The picture doesn't really do it justice in that regard. Almost makes me want to do some testing and intentionally induce a flowerpot in a controlled situation....I looked for vids for large caliber shell flowerpots and couldn't seem to find any.
Arthur Posted October 17, 2010 Posted October 17, 2010 Do tell, what's the advantage of that rack? The base is little larger than the tube footprint so the down force is not spread much, and as there is only one tube it's only as stable as a bare mortar, and will still need serious staking.
pyroguy1960 Posted October 17, 2010 Author Posted October 17, 2010 (edited) The stakes are very long and have holes in them, through which I put E-Clips, not to mention they are not re-bar they're the stakes used to make concrete forms, which are very heavy. So when this thing is all hammered in tight, it is very secure. In fact at my shoot site, I have to shoot at an angle to get the shells out over a lake. So this was shot last night tipped about 10-20 degrees with a 2x4 wedged underneath to fill the gap. It didn't budge an inch after 4 shells. Am I missing something? How would I do that with a bare mortar? Edited October 17, 2010 by jms04081974
pyroguy1960 Posted October 17, 2010 Author Posted October 17, 2010 Does anyone have a picture of how these are constructed in a commercial setting? At a professional display, these are racked aren't they?
pyroguy1960 Posted October 17, 2010 Author Posted October 17, 2010 I found someone selling a single shot 8" rack online, this looks a little flimsy to me though
nater Posted October 17, 2010 Posted October 17, 2010 (edited) Does anyone have a picture of how these are constructed in a commercial setting? At a professional display, these are racked aren't they? The shows I've shot, 8" and larger guns were buried. We had 32 8's one show, some were angled and others were straight up. We just dug the holes at the angles we wanted with a power auger. I don't think you get much more portable than just digging a hole, but some shoot sites need to have everything racked. According to 1123 8s and larger need to be in singles anyway with some distance between loaded guns. Unless you want to buy a new gun, I wouldn't intentionally test a flowerpot situation. I've seen an 8" go inside the gun, and there was nothing left, we didn't even find enough pieces to account for half the mortar. I agree with Ralph, and wouldn't box the rest of it in, for the same reasons he mentioned. Edited October 17, 2010 by nater
dagabu Posted October 17, 2010 Posted October 17, 2010 The shows I've shot, 8" and larger guns were buried. We had 32 8's one show, some were angled and others were straight up. We just dug the holes at the angles we wanted with a power auger. I don't think you get much more portable than just digging a hole, but some shoot sites need to have everything racked. According to 1123 8s and larger need to be in singles anyway with some distance between loaded guns. Unless you want to buy a new gun, I wouldn't intentionally test a flowerpot situation. I've seen an 8" go inside the gun, and there was nothing left, we didn't even find enough pieces to account for half the mortar. I agree with Ralph, and wouldn't box the rest of it in, for the same reasons he mentioned. Good catch Nater! I didn't want to make that statement without backup and a call to one of my club members revieled that "We can't use racks for 8" and larger" but couldn't site the reference.
pyroguy1960 Posted October 17, 2010 Author Posted October 17, 2010 Burying unfortunately is not an option where I shoot..... it would be underwater if I dug a hole that deep.....so I guess I'll just have to make due with that rack. The way I lean it, if it falls it would just be shooting into a large lake anyway....
Updup Posted October 17, 2010 Posted October 17, 2010 Burying unfortunately is not an option where I shoot..... it would be underwater if I dug a hole that deep.....so I guess I'll just have to make due with that rack. The way I lean it, if it falls it would just be shooting into a large lake anyway.... Your shooting from a dock? Or a very thin island?
pyroguy1960 Posted October 17, 2010 Author Posted October 17, 2010 I very thin peninsula, if I dig it will flood with water at about 4-5 feet down....it's right at the waters edge....
Updup Posted October 17, 2010 Posted October 17, 2010 I very thin peninsula, if I dig it will flood with water at about 4-5 feet down....it's right at the waters edge.... Ahh, okay. I think that rack, (or mabye we should be calling it a stand) looks great! Strong and easy to use.
pyroguy1960 Posted October 17, 2010 Author Posted October 17, 2010 It's actually really portable too, doesn't weigh to to much and it fits in the back seat of my 4dr sedan....just barely, but it fits....
nater Posted October 17, 2010 Posted October 17, 2010 Burying unfortunately is not an option where I shoot..... it would be underwater if I dug a hole that deep.....so I guess I'll just have to make due with that rack. The way I lean it, if it falls it would just be shooting into a large lake anyway.... Actually, in the picture I attached above, some of the mortars flooded before the show. I don't see a problem with the stand you built, but I don't have a ton of experience with large shells under my belt either. If it is stable and holds the mortar up without issues, I think you'll be fine.
WonderBoy Posted October 18, 2010 Posted October 18, 2010 (edited) Here's a picture of some 6's from a shoot last year. Unfortunately the 8's are just on the other side of him, but they were built the same way, except they only had 2 guns per rack. I shot a show last night where there were 3 8's per rack. Those were a pain in the butt to move. For the 10's and 12's we put them in plastic 55 gallon drums full of sand, maybe you could do that instead of burying them in the ground. Your rack looks nice, but makes me nervous because it is so short. All of the racks I've used were all nearly as tall as the muzzle of the gun. @nater next time I would recommend putting the mortars in big trash bags before burying them, it keeps the water out. Edited October 18, 2010 by WonderBoy
nater Posted October 18, 2010 Posted October 18, 2010 @nater next time I would recommend putting the mortars in big trash bags before burying them, it keeps the water out. We did put them in trash bags, that is what surprised us. Only a few of them got wet, and there was no rain. All of the shells stayed wrapped in plastic, and the guns that were flooder were moved and staked. During the show, all the big shells fired as planned, so the audience never knew. The only thing we could think of is that we hit a spring or an area with a high water table. We were shooting from the top of a hill, none of us thought we'd hit water there.
WonderBoy Posted October 28, 2010 Posted October 28, 2010 Here's a picture from the shoot I was describing previously. The 8's are on the right then the 10's and a 12 on the far left.
pyroguy1960 Posted October 28, 2010 Author Posted October 28, 2010 That's unfortunately not an option for me either as it's far from a portable solution, can't really put a 50 gallon drum and a butload of sand in the back seat of a 4dr sedan.....I've since shot almost 10 shells from that 1 tube rack I've made and it hasn't loosened up at all or tipped so much as an inch....I think it's good to go.
pyroguy1960 Posted October 28, 2010 Author Posted October 28, 2010 I gotta move out to the sticks again and live on a farm or something.....it sucks I have to cart all my stuff to a relatives house to shoot everytime....
pyroguy1960 Posted October 28, 2010 Author Posted October 28, 2010 Oh by the way, that picture brings up a question....do you tape that tin foil to the tops of the mortars to secure it? Do you remove it before you shoot them?
dagabu Posted October 28, 2010 Posted October 28, 2010 I gotta move out to the sticks again and live on a farm or something.....it sucks I have to cart all my stuff to a relatives house to shoot everytime.... Why not just permanently bury the guns flush with the ground and use a stone cap to cover the openings? Wouldnt the relatives be OK with that?
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