Hello All,

So I need a backstop on my land. As luck would have it, some previous owner of the property left behind a 7 foot diameter, 1 inch thick piece of steel. Not sure if its mild or hardened steel (probably mild), but at an inch thick it has plenty of heft to stop bullets.

So here's the issue... an online calculator says the thing weighs 1,500 lbs. Wow, ok... so how do I make it into a backstop? Trying to make a frame that could hold its weight as it leans towards the firing line seems mildly impossible... or at least it would be an engineering masterpiece.

What I want to do is dig a notch/hole/ditch in the hillside, and then drag the steel plate with my truck until it falls in the hole. It would end up leaning away from the shooter, at about a 10-15 degree angle. Just enough so it doesn't fall forward.

Here's the real question: Would bullets (anything from .22 to 8mm Mauser) disintegrate against this steel backstop sufficiently enough to pose no problem to either the shooter (50-100 yards away) and to the nearest house (about 600 yards away)? I remember watching those slow motion videos of bullets hitting hard stuff and they disintegrate pretty well if they hit something hard enough at zero or close to no angle.

What do you think? Thanks for reading!

44henry

I think you are over complicating it.

Why not just build a dirt berm?

High velocity rounds will go through it. Two Barnes 150 7mm punched 3/4 of the way through one at 550 yards.

If it is mild steel, you are going to be very surprised if you shoot 100 yards or so.

A guy had a 1 inch piece up at our little range for handguns.
I had some 130gr hollowpoint 30-30 Sierra's loaded in 308 for
groundhogs. At 100 yards 3 of those things burned holes about
3/4" deep and and wide in that steel. I never thought such a light, fragile
bullet would do any damage. After I helped him take it down and weld them
up, he told me he was about to take all his steel down, people kept blowing
holes in them. I honestly think most folk did not think they would hurt anything.

Mild steel is softer then you think

Shoot it with a ballistic tip out of something like an '06 at 100 yards.

That will tell you a lot about what you are dealing with.

I think with the angle (lean) your bullets would tend to ricochet? That's how I'm reading it.
Suggestion: shoot INTO the open in, filled with dirt and debris. I use old railroad ties and cleared trees/debris behind it - no issues at all

We had steel plates and similar results to Dillonbuck

This. Your plan will not work very well, centerfire rifles will badly divot it or blow right on through. Then, you do not want to be shooting it at 50-100 yards because a hit in a divot can come right back at you. This is why metallic silhouette ranges always use hard steel like AR500. A nice dirt berm will do just fine.

You say there is a house 600 yards downrange????

I made a swinging target out of 1" thick Mild steel and it quite possibly was low alloy high strength A572gr 50 steel

Took the swinging target to the range put it out at a 100 yards and started blasting away with my Socom 16 308 16" barrel rifle

Less than a 100 rounds and I had blasted several holes right threw the 1" target pads

AR Plate is much harder and can take the abuse a lot better but it can even fail after time.

Just build a dirt backstop.

Although this material is in hand, it sounds like you're outside your capacity. Sell the plate to someone who can move it. You should be able to easily get $0.25/lb, if the piece is useable. To the right buyer, you could get upwards of $0.50/lb.

Well, you have a hill to work with, at least. I didn't on my acre and half lot.

I took a 55 gal drum, put it on it's side on a stand with a hole cut in the "top-side" to fill it with sand. On the shooter's side (end of drum) I mounted a piece of plywood to mount targets to. Eventually this has to be replaced, there is some sand leakage, and you have to be certain that your accuracy is enough you don't miss putting the bullet into the barrel of sand itself, but for sighting in or group work out to 100 yards, it has worked fine for me.

Except when a neighbor moved in and built a house directly behind the drum. Some adjustment required.

And after a time, one can screen the sand and recover lead for cast bullets or other uses, keeping in mind the lead hazard.

Pffft

36" trunk slice of white oak. Youre welcome.

I thought at first this was about backstraps, what a disappointment.

This.

Thanks guys,

Not the answer I wanted, but definitely the input I needed. Sounds like the big steel plate is a no-go.

A dirt berm is out of my reach right now. I could dig a hole for a steel plate I already have, but renting machinery for a berm isn't in the budget. Oh well, good things come to those who wait.

44henry

I have 4 old truck tires stacked up and filled with sand.

This is a good Idea. If you want to get crazy, get yourself a couple used CAT 980 tires.

You might look into getting a few truck loads of fill dirt.

You don't need machinery for a dirt berm.

But a big dump truck load of dirt or two. Have them dump it. Set up a target. Start shooting.