Target Stuffing

[James]

I am looking for some help in finding a good stuffing material for a target. I have tried shrink wrap and we are still having passthroughs. I was wondering if anyone else has any good ideas on what would make a great stuffing. nothing to expesive please.

James Dickens
Musquodoboit Archers Assocciation

[whitetailarcher]

I tried for years to find something to make a target with. I did find a couple ideas, but every idea seems either to hard or too expensive. For example i heard hay bails but those don't work you'll lose your arrows if its too thick or you'll have pass throughs. I heard of collecting thousands of nespapers and using expensive clamps and 2x6's to compress them.

Eventually it was easiest to buy a $40 target from cabelas. It should last for a long time and is the best target (arrows come right out with 2 fingers)

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jhtml?id=0004694415144a&type=product&cmCat=search&returnString=No=20&hasJS=true&Nty=1&Ntx=matchall&Ntt=archery+target&N=4887&QueryText=archery+target&noImage=0&_D%3AhasJS=+&_DARGS=%2Fcabelas%2Fen%2Fcommon%2Fsearch%2Fsearch-box.jhtml.22&Ntk=Products&returnPage=search-results1.jhtml

Haha thats the website. Don't buy the stand. The target stands up fine on its own.

Sorry I didn't have any ideas but I think the best way to go is spend a little money.

[Taxman]

I've asked the same question regarding bales of straw.

Someone told me that you can buy a feed bag at the Co-op store and stuff it with the industrial shrink wrap. If that doesn't work, then someone else suggested grocery bags (lots of them).

I'd be interested in seeing what you come up with as well.

Mike

[WOOKIE]

I made a target out of a cardboard box and poly sheet. Compress the poly really tight and you should have no problems with passthoughs. I shoot 32" at 70lbs and I have never had a passthrough on it. I just made a compressed cardboard target too and it seems to work well.

[Mikey]

I have spent 6 dollars on a bale of peat moss from any landscaping store and 3 dollars on a roll of duct tape ...works well in my findings ....

another cool way is take a cardboard box .... Line it with poly ...or wax paper and go and buy a whole bunch of low expantion insulating foam .... fill the box with the foam ...tape up the box lid and let it sit for say a day or two for the foam to set up ..... cut the box off and you have a great lil' target butt. The reason for low expantion foam is that its more dense than the high expantion stuff and your butt will last longer.

I have also used a Burlap sack and the shrink wrap method ... if you work where theres alot of skids that are wrapped ....get as much used shrink wrap as possible and cram that sack full .... I mean full of the used shrink wrap...use a Tie wrap or "Zip Strip" to tie the sack of ..... turn it on its side ...use 4 broom handles(legs) attach them to the sack .... you will have a nice deer sized target butt.

Mikey

[moosecutter]

I work in a place that recieves some freight that comes packed in the high density foam ( they spray some foam in the bottom of the box, put in the material being shipped, then add more foam over the top of the material) and I use this in the centre of my target and surround it with the used shrink wrap. Works OK but I find I have more trouble pulling my arrows out of the shrink wrap part of the target then anything. Depending on what your using for a target you may have to cut the foam to fit.

[willyqbc]

good target fill is lumber wrap. If you live near a mill chances are good you can pick up a roll cheap. What usually happens is they will get the odd roll that is on backwards and therefore the logo is on the wrong side when rolled onto the loads. these rolls are no good to the mill and can usually be had for under $100. Now that might sound like a lot, but get 10 freinds together on it and you'll have target fill for everyone for ......well your grandkids will still be filling target bags with that one roll!!

Chris

[James]

thanks for all the replies guys... I have added a smash more shrink wrap to the target bag and we seem to be doing better now. Still there must be a better way to stuff a target. I will keep looking and see what I can find..... one other small thing is, Does anyone know where a person can buy the foam material that they make 3-d targets out of? I would love to get some and make 45 gallon drums of the stuff to shoot and I thiknk it would last a long time. if anyone happens to know drop me a line please.

[calgarychef1]

I heard that a box filled with rags works well. I havent tried it yet, but when my commercial butt is worn out I'm going to try the rags.

the chef

[New2Bowhunt]

I used a garbage bag stuffed with old window drapes and old jeans and they stop field points no problem, broadheads too but since i bought cheap broadheads they bent the blades somethin' good(practicing anyways). Tried a box filled partially with old magazines and bedding foam but the arrows were hard to pull out of this material and even pulled out an insert in the process so i need something more effective and larger!! I want a range size target without paying the $150.00....

[Gaelan]

I just filled a papertowel box with layers of old clothes and pads of old tight knap carpet. Just alternate, carpet, clothes, carpet, clothes, etc etc until the box is full. Seems to work well and since there is no sticky foam or plastic to bung up the arrows they seem to pull out relatively easy. Works great for field points but no clue how it'll work for broadheads... haven't tried yet.

[ghoststalker]

i used to use a cardboard box filled with old clothes. at least 1 or 2 pair of jeans for the added stopping, but make sure you remove all zippers and buttons. it works great just find the density you need to stop an arrow but still stick in enough that the arrow doesn't lay down where you'd hit it with the next shot.

[Bowbum]

I have always just used a box with old rags in it, you somtimes have to work to get the broadheads out but it has always been cheap and worked well for me.

[Weim]

A friend of mine had a old bag of insulation (R12) lying around so we bought a roll of burlap a sewed a large bag a stuffed it tight. It works well and easy to pull out. Use it mainly as a back stop. I don't use broadheads on it, I would imagine it would probably blow through.

[russ]

Rag box butts at our range here, ours are 4'x4' and have coroplast faces on them. They work pretty good. I have a layered carpet butt at home and it works alright too, just heavy.

[scooter]

How about you try this:

http://bowzone.ca/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=12

http://www.bowzone.ca/cgi-bin/albums/album12/aab.sized.jpg

Scott

[Taxman]

Hey Scott,

I can't login at the old site anymore for some reason, so I'll ask my question here.

How are those targets for making messes? Are you constantly picking up pieces?

I'm guessing the broadheads do more of this damage than points?

Mike

[Pic7]

Best stuff I've come across, is cotton!! If you can find a bail of cotton, take it. Load a feed back tight with cotton and presto, instant arrow stopper. Best of all, arrow comes out with 2 fingers.

We shot right into the bail and arrow goes in 4-6 inches and comes out VERY easy!!!

Good luck.

Serge P.

[goatseye69]

I've used round and square hay balles for years. the round work alot better, but you need lots of room.

[russ]

goatseye - I don't know about everyone else but I've lost enough arrows inside of round bales to know that it's not my favorite choice of material. Unwrapping a 1/2 ton bail isn't my idea of fun.

[New2Bowhunt]

I also have shot at round bales and i have had to rip open one round bale pretty good just to reach the buried arrow, the bail was so damaged that i am sure it would have fallen apart had someone tried to load it onto a trailer or truck. This i with field points and broadheads are even worse as they penetrate even farther!

[goatseye69]

are you guys shooting into straw or hay. I'm shooting 70pounds from 10yrds and have had to pull out 3/4 of the arrow at the most. the trick is to get a tight bale. you'll loose them in loose rolled bails. I have a few friends that shoot at bales and don't have problems like that if there packed tight. just my input.

[russ]

well I suppose you'd call alfalfa/grass hay & they were tight centers.

[goatseye69]

and they were still going all the way in? never had a problem before. maybe your hitting dead center where as I'm still hitting just off.

[Stickshooter]

What you need to do is take a cardboard box get some of that low expanding insulation foam. Not the high expanding stuff. Use as the whole can. In the end you should get about 4 or so inches. Now take a few foam ceiling boards. There should be quite a bit of room left in the box. Fill all the extra space with shrink wrap. Take a large feed bag (just ask your local should or feedlot for one) Put the box in the corner of the bag, now gather the rest of the feedbag tie it off and cut the rest of the bag off. After three months of shooting nearly every day my 50 lb long bow can only get six inch penetration on it.
Good luck