Airgun Shooting bench?

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Mycapt65

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Apr 24, 2019
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NY, United States
Because of construction I've been temporarily shooting off a cheap, wobbly, plastic Walmart folding table on my porch and rear deck. With construction done and the table wobbly and sagging I'm ready to make something better. I want something with a smooth top but some grip. Concrete my preference, is probably too heavy unless I make it very thin. I'm thinking a plywood top but this will be in the weather and I'm concerned about delamination. Perhaps sealing marine plywood?
Any suggestions? What do you use for a permanent outdoor airgun bench?

Thanks
Ron
 
A good stable bench top is a good 3/4 inch plywood or the thickest treated toung and groove deck boards with several coats of a good brush on polyurethane. However it will require maintenance and refinishing to keep the polly intact. With anyrhing wood it is never permanent without maintenance
 
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Mycapt65 said:
Because of construction I've been temporarily shooting off a cheap, wobbly, plastic Walmart folding table on my porch and rear deck. With construction done and the table wobbly and sagging I'm ready to make something better. I want something with a smooth top but some grip. Concrete my preference, is probably too heavy unless I make it very thin. I'm thinking a plywood top but this will be in the weather and I'm concerned about delamination. Perhaps sealing marine plywood?
Any suggestions? What do you use for a permanent outdoor airgun bench?

Thanks
Ron
Click to expand...
Marine ply is very $$$$$ , i would use 2x6 or 2x8 edged and glued to make a top , then several coats of marine deck varnish OR just had that pic in my file , in reality to heavy . I bought "Used scraps" of Marine ply at a pontoon boat repair place from re-decking jobs 2 ft. x 4ft. pieces for small amount $ . three coats of marine Spar Varnish and 8 years later as row boat seats out in the weather Still holding together .
20190329_135609-Copy.jpg
 
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Mycapt65 said:
I love that! Even had a place for a sun umbrella! A little too big for my porch though.
Click to expand...
just had that pic in my file , in reality to heavy . I bought "Used scraps" of Marine ply at a pontoon boat repair place from re-decking jobs 2 ft. x 4ft. pieces for small amount $ . three coats of marine Spar Varnish and 8 years later as row boat seats out in the weather Still holding together .
 
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In my side yard I use an adjustable welding table from Harbor Freight. With a shop stool that has adjustable height legs it makes a great combo. The table top has slots cut into it for welding but I just lay a towel over it when shooting to keep little things from falling through. The towel is also soft to the touch and keeps the table top cool in the summer. The table is light enough that you can move it by yourself yet still heavy enough to be stable for air rifles. I don’t leave it out permanently so I’m not sure how it will perform after long exposure to weather but I’d imagine a small tarp or even a large garbage bag would cover it well.

 
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I've made several benches in the past. They were very difficult to move around, and anything made from wood was subject to the elements. So I settled on a store bought 2000lb capacity table with a bamboo top that I can move into my shooting shack when not in use. It cost about $150 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B8SDBLTJ?ref=ppx_pop_dt_b_product_details&th=1

A proper bench

While I really don’t enjoy shooting off of a bench, it can be a useful tool when testing different products and tunes. For years I’ve shot off of a Lifetime (like Rubbermaid) portable table, then recently I purchased a Caldwell Stable Table. Both did ok for what they were, but I needed...
www.airgunnation.com www.airgunnation.com

-Michael
 
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beerthief said:
Marine ply is very $$$$$ , i would use 2x6 or 2x8 edged and glued to make a top , then several coats of marine deck varnish ORView attachment 544816
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I do not know anything about marine plywood, except it has no voids nor do I thin patches in exterior plies. I would think pressure treated plywood or solid, then treat with a lot of thinned linseed oil to make it water repellant
 
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jkingrph said:
I do not know anything about marine plywood, except it has no voids nor do I thin patches in exterior plies. I would think pressure treated plywood or solid, then treat with a lot of thinned linseed oil to make it water repellant
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Spar varnish is used on boat's and exposed to all weather conditions . Marine plywood is special glue and made to be under water , hulls of boats . last i priced 10 years ago $178 .00 a 4x8 sheet .
 
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Mycapt65 said:
This is the direction I'm looking at. If not fiberglass, two part bar top clear resin.
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My dad and I built a large well cover in this manner back when I was around 8 years old. We didn't even use treated plywood, but it held up well until I was in my 40's and the fiberglass was still like new. The plywood underneath eventually rotted out however, which when you consider the humidity under a well cover is only to be expected.
 
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I'm in the process of building a removable/storable bench that integrates with my back deck. I posted some early pictures of me getting it together in the Proper bench thread. It is built and the polyurethane coatings are drying. I should be shooting off of it by this time next week. The front of it rests and mounts on the temporary railing on my deck. The rear 4x4 leg folds up and I can carry it away ans store it.
 
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Dead-On said:
I'm in the process of building a removable/storable bench that integrates with my back deck. I posted some early pictures of me getting it together in the Proper bench thread. It is built and the polyurethane coatings are drying. I should be shooting off of it by this time next week. The front of it rests and mounts on the temporary railing on my deck. The rear 4x4 leg folds up and I can carry it away ans store it.
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Do you have a link to the thread or pictures. I did something similar when my rear deck had rails. My front porch is close enoughto the ground it's not getting rails. The rear deck has a nice view so it's getting minimal railing that I probably wouldn't anchor a bench to. It's just my wife and I and she shoots too so my tables can be made fixed in both the front and rear. The front and rear tables face west and east respectively to provide proper shade and natural lighting. It's crazy hot in the Arkansas summer sun..
 
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