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We are starting a new indoor shooting league and I am wondering what people are using for their fault lines and shooting boxes for indoor matches. We can't spike down furring strips, 2x2's, or pvc because of the concrete floor.

we have thought about fastening pvc or furring strips to a rubber mat for 3x3 shooting boxes. We are open to ideas! Thanks

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We are starting a new indoor shooting league and I am wondering what people are using for their fault lines and shooting boxes for indoor matches. We can't spike down furring strips, 2x2's, or pvc because of the concrete floor.

we have thought about fastening pvc or furring strips to a rubber mat for 3x3 shooting boxes. We are open to ideas! Thanks

Duct tape?

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Chuck, I've thought about this and the current floor is a little dusty. we have a 'fun match' that is not sanctioned where we use tape and the tape even peels up from time to time. I'm more worried about someone knocking a box out of position or kicking a fault line.

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We just use duct tape.

Only a few indoor matches in the winter so simplicity is the goal.

It is difficult setting up anything other than classifiers or very simple stages, on account of the angles. Not allowed to put rounds into the walls.

Because of these limitations the simple solution is most practical.

Not to mention big movement is kinda sketchy as the polished concrete floor can be really slick!

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Chuck, I've thought about this and the current floor is a little dusty. we have a 'fun match' that is not sanctioned where we use tape and the tape even peels up from time to time. I'm more worried about someone knocking a box out of position or kicking a fault line.

Wipe or clean where you need to tape. Mark 2 corners with blue tape.

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we just formed a uspsa club so it will have to be legit and conform to the rules.... I'm thinking of using more classic targets and more arrays, but we have stages where you can definitely get some movement (for indoor). We can use limited steel, I'm thinking using more plate racks to keep shots off the floor. still the hardest thing is going to be keeping fault lines from moving around. I think using tape on the floor to mark corners and edges of boxes, lines, etc... Hoping we can get it all figured out.

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we just formed a uspsa club so it will have to be legit and conform to the rules.... I'm thinking of using more classic targets and more arrays, but we have stages where you can definitely get some movement (for indoor). We can use limited steel, I'm thinking using more plate racks to keep shots off the floor. still the hardest thing is going to be keeping fault lines from moving around. I think using tape on the floor to mark corners and edges of boxes, lines, etc... Hoping we can get it all figured out.

Fault lines do not have to be on the floor. You can use rope and target stands. Granted they can be "moved" but it may help. We used to have an indoor match and they would use sheets hanging from the target shuttle wires as vision barriers. and "walls". You will find that you may be able to get a bit more freestyle than you think.

Also, I remember shooting some poppers at the Scottsdale Gun Club that had some sort of bullet trapping coating on the face that worked pretty well. The only issue I remember is that the coating was black and that, combined with the black back stop, made for a stealth target!

I have also seen wood shrouds surrounding poppers that kept splatter contained to some degree. You would probably want to stick to forward falling poppers.

Out of curiosity, where is this range?

Later,

Chuck

(I really miss "Action Pistol Night" at the local range. A short drive for a change and no dirt/sand and A/C made it all the better!)

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We shot indoors and they used tape..always had pizza on Tuesday furnished by the range..

Nothing better than the smell of gun smoke and pizza on Tuesday

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we just formed a uspsa club so it will have to be legit and conform to the rules.... I'm thinking of using more classic targets and more arrays, but we have stages where you can definitely get some movement (for indoor). We can use limited steel, I'm thinking using more plate racks to keep shots off the floor. still the hardest thing is going to be keeping fault lines from moving around. I think using tape on the floor to mark corners and edges of boxes, lines, etc... Hoping we can get it all figured out.

Fault lines do not have to be on the floor. You can use rope and target stands. Granted they can be "moved" but it may help. We used to have an indoor match and they would use sheets hanging from the target shuttle wires as vision barriers. and "walls". You will find that you may be able to get a bit more freestyle than you think.

Also, I remember shooting some poppers at the Scottsdale Gun Club that had some sort of bullet trapping coating on the face that worked pretty well. The only issue I remember is that the coating was black and that, combined with the black back stop, made for a stealth target!

I have also seen wood shrouds surrounding poppers that kept splatter contained to some degree. You would probably want to stick to forward falling poppers.

Out of curiosity, where is this range?

Later,

Chuck

(I really miss "Action Pistol Night" at the local range. A short drive for a change and no dirt/sand and A/C made it all the better!)

Chuck the range is in Charlotte, NC. I'm thinking of some sort of shrouded box to build over my plate rack, but I'm not sure we will be able to get poppers... I want to try to get people to not hit the floor.

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  • 4 weeks later...

I shoot regularly at Centennial Gun Club in Colorado. They use PVC pipe and some kind of "concrete" tape? It's like duct tape, but very "plasticy" and I've also seen it used in warehouses for marking inventory locations, forklift lanes, etc. It sticks to concrete WAY better than duct tape.

Please AVOID PVC fault lines. I've personally stepped on it and took quite a head-banging fall when it rolled out from under me. I would like to see 1x2's with that plastic concrete tape myself. I would caution against the sandbags and no tape... seems the fault line could slide if stepped on.

Good luck!

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Use metal target stands with wood sticks, sticks get plenty of hits so PVC will need to be replaced often.

Large office clips to hold targets, we store sticks in a bin on the back of a cart that has shelves to hold

targets. Top part holds stands, two drawers hold clips duct tape paint and pasters. When finished every

thing is in or on cart to be put away.

have one swinger and four barricades. Barricades made from plywood with legs stand up in metal target

stands. Swinger has wrapped runner held in place with wire ties, won't slide. Targets stands are metal

very little problems with movement usually when someone bumps it while scoring.

Using the office clips loose about five a match because of hits, sticks last quite a while replace

about once a year.

Cart was the trick for us been used about seven years now at two ranges.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Tinplate sheets on walls to protect against splatter. Plate inside old wide car tire. Tires around poppers to protect the floor. They do ricochet sometimes, but nothing dangerous.

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  • 4 weeks later...

We had our first official USPSA match indoors last night. 35 shooters, 4 stages over 3 bays, (2 classifier stages on one bay). We started shooting at 6:30pm and were cold and cleaned up by 9:30pm

We used:

3/16" plywood under the steel poppers which worked well and taped the wood down then marked the popper location on the plywood.

1x2 furring strips taped to the ground for boundaries along with snow fence that was clipped up to the top of the target track

Our bays are 9 lanes wide and we had two long stages.... one with classic and one with metric targets. The metric targets got really busy and the stage had 4 ideal shooting positions. The classic target stage required 5 ideal shooting positions, but with smaller targets it didn't seem as busy.

Ran two classifiers (Melody Line and More Disaster Factor) on the same bay set up side by side.

Lessons learned

If you use a MGM swinger you need a way to hold it down on the floor... via sandbags, spikes into wood, or something....

Don't try to get too busy w/ stages. Sometimes less is more

Future ideas

Purchase or fab up some mobile bullet traps

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