Ever since I took up hunting more seriously I have wanted to build a place I could go and shoot my bow without having to get all set up every single time. I have a little over an acre and my property backs up to the river so I have the space to do it.
I marked out the area and tilled the ground. I wanted a nice clean space that I didn't have to worry about mowing or doing any work to. Once I had that done I had the boys rake out the grass and other trash that came up with it.
Once that was done I headed to my favorite store, Lowe's. I purchased the following items:
(2) 10 ft 4x4
(4) 10 ft 2 x4
(2) Sheets of plywood
Box of exterior screws
4 Screw Eyes
4 S hooks
Had 4 bags if Quick concrete left in my barn
Had some shingles left at the house when I purchased it
Liner for weeds
Black mulch
Once I had my supplies. I got to work. Well not that quick. I work a lot of hours so just about every night I came home work I was outside working on it. Well, most days. I had a pipe bust and spent an entire weekend digging that out. Thankfully, my wonderful brother-in-law came and helped me finish that project or I may still be without water. I cut the 4x4 in half, so two 5 ft pieces (in case math is not your specialty). I dug two holes about 1 1/2 to 2 ft deep. I did two stands and one is 38 inches apart and the other is 52 inches apart. I have two different size bags. Eventually I want to put up a third with a 3-D target underneath.
Once the posts were in I mixed up some concrete and poured around the posts. I first made sure they were level. I did this by laying an old piece of trim across the top and put a level on top. We also held the board across the front to make sure we were level across. I did two bags to start and poured then let those sit for a day. Then mixed an poured another bag to top it off. I let those sit for about two days until I felt like they were fully dry.
Next, was adding the top. I have researched and looked at a wide variety of stands. I improvised and did my own design from here on out. I measured across the top of the beams and cut my 2x4 to match. Once they were cut I took my drill and drilled the hole for my screw eyes. I drilled with a bit first then started the screw eye. Those are not fun to put in let me say. I grabbed a screw driver put that through hole of the screw eye and turned. I then drilled the 2x4 in the top of the posts.
From there I cut the 2x4 into 16 inch cuts. These cuts I cut at an angle for the roof. Two on each side and then nailed those in. Once that was done, I cut the plywood and nailed on the roof. We then added the shingles.
I stained the wood and ended up adding two 2x4 on my larger bag to support the weight. I did one on each side of outer posts. We laid our plastic down for weeds and through on some mulch and I have my very own archery range. I couldn't be more in love with it. I am going to add some spotlights and other solar powered lights so I can shoot at night.
Comments