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Concrete shooting bench

6K views 18 replies 14 participants last post by  dgeesaman 
#1 ·
hello
I am on the Board of a new gun club forming in N.GA.
We plan on having Concrete shooting benches and I need the approximate
cost.
We could have many as 16 concrete benches.

regards
Wm Parker
 
#2 ·
Here is one option I found

Very nice, but out of our budget

Below is the requested pricing for the purchase of (3) Shooting Benches without Pad:

QTY
DESCRIPTION
WEIGHT/EA
PRICE/EA
3
Shooting Bench
With Legs & Rotating Seat Assembled
(Pad Not Included)
~580 lbs.

$966.00
*Required*Pallet for Shipping Purposes
(Shooting Benches Ship 1/Pallet)
~25 lbs.
$15.00

Below is the requested third-party carrier cost from our plant in Henderson, CO to Escondido, CA.

QTY/PRODUCT
FREIGHT COST
(3) Shooting Benches without Pad
$751.00
*Third Party Carrier Delivers, Contractor Unloads, 15 minutes from the time of arrival for the Shooting Bench(es) to be unloaded by the customer.
Due to our unfamiliarity with your facility and/or unloading capabilities, we prefer that you coordinate your own shipping/freight via a third party carrier like SAIA or R+L Carriers, but we can supply a third party carrier quote if needed.
If you request that we coordinate shipping, please note that the third party carrier quotes are based solely on the information you provide us regarding your facility & unloading capabilities.
Customer is responsible for unloading delivery truck.
Vaughn Concrete Products will not be liable for any additional costs incurred.

Pricing does not include any applicable sales tax (if applicable) and is valid for 30 days. If it has been longer than 30 days, please contact our office for updated pricing.

All orders are COD unless an open account is currently established with VCP.

Shooting Benches are placed upside-down on a standard 4'x4' pallet.

Production lead-times will vary, so please call for lead-time if you would like to place an order.

If you haven't already done so, please visit www.shooting-bench.com for more information on our Shooting Benches.

If you have any questions, please feel free to call our office.

We look forward to working with you!

Thank You,

Jordan Carlisle
Vaughn Concrete Products, Inc.
v.877.827.8255 | f.877.827.7363
www.vaughnconcreteproducts.com
 
#3 ·
Our gun club poured their own. Sonotube to form the 3 legs and a simple frame to pour the cement for the table. Chairs are not attached but cabled to the bench so they can be moved to either side. The only picture I have is with my spotting scope mount but you might be able to see enough to get an idea of how they are built.
 

Attachments

#8 ·
Our gun club poured their own.
I agree with JT.

Unless your Club has money to burn, make your own, (a few at a time) far cheaper than hiring someone to do it.

Decide the measurements required and get someone local to make up/weld the frames for you a few at a time as you need them. Make up two wooden top frames yourselves. Two hours, two lads/ladies, some aggregate & concrete and some mesh for stability.

Its got to be cheaper than hiring in and paying a contractor, unless the contractor is a Club member and is going to see you right.

Giz :)
 
#6 ·
Find the most local to you firm that makes concrete products to find out what it would cost to make a top form to your specs and pour some complete with some crossed rebar inside.
I agree with making your own 3 legged peds as the top will sit on 3 without rocking or need to shim (just like any tripod).
 
#9 ·
Definitely make your own. Pretty simple process. One thing to remember, the slab that holds them. I shoot at several clubs where the slab the benches sit on is too lightly constructed. When someone walks on the slab behind the benches, you can see your scope move on the target. These are clubs with solid concrete benches, both the top and the bases. The slab is as important as the benches.
 
#10 ·
I helped make a few at my club.

I welded up the legs and cross beams out of i beams, and welded some anchors at the top and set it in the forms and we had a concrete truck deliver the structural concrete.

Once poured and set, we attached three boat trailer jacks with wheels on the legs and flipped them over.

that way, we raise the boat jacks and we can wheel them across the concrete pad that is the shooting line.

Regards,
Crankster
 
#13 ·
Kinda looks like that 800# is gonna be pushing that base block into the ground over time?
 
#15 ·
Makes me think I should have kept my dad's dozer trailer after he died.....
Probably could have built a substantial table on it from some of the junk steel/iron too.
Too soon old, too late smart.
 
#16 ·
Yes, you can build them yourself, but don't forget to include the cost of lumber to build the mold(s) depending on how many you want to make at a time. Plus consider the amount of time it will take you to make 16.

I wanted a couple for my house and bought two from the St. Louis Benchrest club. They are the best size/shape concrete benches we shoot on anywhere. Cost is $100/top. Things like rounded corners make a big difference for comfort. You only want to do it once, so do it right if you can.

If you have a trailer and could go get them yourself, it may be something to consider.
 
#18 · (Edited)
I think that the best solution could be prefabricated pieces.
You can prefabricate pieces with reinforced concrete.

For the benchs: You need a nivelated base, on the ground, and four planks for give form to the side parts. One plastic sheet, over the ground. and covering the internal side of the planks, and you will can easily unmount the formwork.
For make round corners you only need to attach a cheap plastic piece like this to the planks:



For the pillars: You need PVC tubes, that you will use as formworks for the concrete. For three or four pillars by bench, around 250 or 300 mm tubes could be a good size.

Don´t forget to make good foundations.

When you have all formworks ready, call for a concrete truck, extend and compact concrete in benchs and tubes. When concrete have enough resistence (usually at 7 days), then, mount the benchass over the pillars, using a good cement mortar.
For the reinforcing bars, you can use 12 mm diam bars, making a grid of 20 x 20 cm, and you can form handles to elevate slabs later (with a crane, for example, if you need it).

Concrete density is 2,5 Ton/m3, so you can know the weight of each piece when you design it.
When you call for a concrete truck, first you need to know the concrete volume you will use. So, measure benchs, pillars and foundations, and get the volume.
If you make 0,9 x 0,9 x 0,1 m slabs (0,08 m3 = 200 Kg), four pillars (0,3 diam x 0,8 height = 0,25 m3), and four foundations (0,4 x 0,4 x 0,3 = 0,2 m3), each bench will need 0,5 m3.
Steel bars for reinforcing, could be around 15 Kg/m3.
In Spain, concrete price is around 50 EUR/m3, so I think in USA could be similar.
Steel price for reinforcing bars is around 0,8 EUR/Kg
So, 16 benchs wouldn´t cost more than 800 or 900 EUR (900 or 1000 $)

Another solution could be to use prefabricated factory pieces. You would need to look for a local store that have pieces in U or rectangular form that fit your needs. Pieces in U or rectangular form could be used for civil works like roads drains, by example.
 
#19 ·
My clubs concrete benches are nice and solid, concrete top and cinder block for the supports. They are a T shape top for both left and right hand shooters, with a simple wall of block in front to form the front support and a wall in back one block length wide for the rear support.

The guys built eight of them using one form and concrete they mixed on site.
 
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