Shooting back stop?

Sigarms · 2025-09-26T06:11:31-0400

Can anyone post pictures of shooting back stops you have built?

Downsizing house and land, and where we are moving to only has a little less than 4 acres. Closest homes are about 100 yards on each side. I've got a good 100 yards from behind the new home to the edge of our property line behind the home. Large tobacco fields behind the property line. Home outside of town limits (town population 3k, moving up from the current town of 600).

Reason why I ask is we are also have walk out from the unfinished basement dug out and enlarged from whats currently there, and I'm actually going to have a crapload of dirt to get rid of.

I was thinking of perhaps building a 3 sided retaining wall using lumber and fill in with dirt. Figure make the wall at least 8' tall on the backside (see below)

Just trying trying to keep it simple and not overthink it.

I'm figuring if using cans, even with supersonic loads, shouldn't really disturb anyone on the road.

Where I'm at now for the last 20 years, I just drive out back and actually have a great hill for a backstop with no one around.

Mtsoxfan · 2025-09-26T07:48:26-0400

I feel your simple design is great. Simple, effective and in a designated area.

Duds13 · 2025-09-26T07:52:14-0400

Sigarms said:
Can anyone post pictures of shooting back stops you have built?

Downsizing house and land, and where we are moving to only has a little less than 4 acres. Closest homes are about 100 yards on each side. I've got a good 100 yards from behind the new home to the edge of our property line behind the home. Large tobacco fields behind the property line. Home outside of town limits (town population 3k, moving up from the current town of 600).

Reason why I ask is we are also have walk out from the unfinished basement dug out and enlarged from whats currently there, and I'm actually going to have a crapload of dirt to get rid of.

I was thinking of perhaps building a 3 sided retaining wall using lumber and fill in with dirt. Figure make the wall at least 8' tall on the backside (see below)View attachment 4126159

Just trying trying to keep it simple and not overthink it.

I'm figuring if using cans, even with supersonic loads, shouldn't really disturb anyone on the road.

Where I'm at now for the last 20 years, I just drive out back and actually have a great hill for a backstop with no one around.

I have a pit that is basically what you are you thinking. The sides angle out a little bit, that's really the only difference. Has a metal roof at a slight angle. Came with the house when I bought it. I'll get some pics this weekend and post them.

bdhsfz6 · 2025-09-26T08:26:26-0400

I had an unused section of one of my fields that I converted into a shooting range. The area was too steep to be useable for much else and there is a quarter mile of woods behind it. It's also on the other side of the ridge, so the noise can barely be heard from the house.

I cut a line of trees on the edge of the field and laid the trunks & slash on top of the stumps. I then cut back the bank to level the area and piled the spoils on top of the tree trunks:

The finished bank is about 8" tall and the woods behind it take care of any strays. Took about a week working afternoons & evenings. Also a great way to break in the new tractor.

D&D · 2025-09-26T08:40:18-0400

https://nra.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/NRA-RANGE-DESIGN-AND-SAFETY-HANDBOOK-DEC-2022-22-12-22-1.pdf

Rvrrat14 · 2025-09-26T08:57:05-0400

Tractor and dirt, BERM! They just go together. Same as me.

deezler · 2025-09-26T09:50:46-0400

Ok so we want a dirt backstop/berm of at least 8' tall, sure. But how wide does it need to be? And for light caliber target practice (say, 9mm and .22 only), what would the minimum reasonable "empty land" distance behind the backstop be? I'm just starting to plan mine. Only have like 75 yards linear range and then a quarter mile empty woods behind it.

part-time-Farmer-NC · 2025-09-26T10:16:29-0400

Mine uses the natural lines of the land. I will take a pic later today/tomorrow if its raining.

In a nutshell I have a pretty sizeable dirt pile that I cut into from the bottom and made a two tiered flat face. First flat face is ground level to about 4 ft high. Second flat is 4ish feet to about 7-8 ft. The whole pile is about 20 ft thick. I didn't pile that dirt there my FIL was cleaning up with a bobcat years ago and piled it there. Some of that dirt came from when he deepened the pond. The other is mostly blended clay. I only use that for pistol/shotgun shooting. Only because its in a wooded section and the distance is under 50 yards.

My Rifle "range" is down hill from my shop with the bottom being a 2 acre pond. I place the 100 yd target about 30 ft from the waters edge. The 200yd target is across the pond on the pond bank. It has a 6ft high berm across the length of the pond (it is the pond dam) and it is about 30 ft across the top. I sit uphill on an estimated 10-15 degree slope. When I look behind the target it looks like the top of the target is about 20 ish feet from the water.