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How to Build Your Own Bullet Trap

If you are a gun owner or gun enthusiast, you may enjoy practicing target shooting. While there are public shooting ranges as well as a possibility of target shooting in the open, sometimes it is more practical, safe and even inexpensive to practice at home. The safest option for your private shooting range is building a bullet trap. That way you will catch the bullets after they have been fired and have passed the target. A bullet trap also helps account for every fired bullet because it stops and holds the bullets you've fired.

Things You'll Need

Steel plate, at least 3/8 of an inch thick and 12 by 18 inches
Power drill
2x4s
Power saw
Miter saw
Pencil or marker
Ruler
Screws
Screwdriver
Staple gun
Duct tape

Instructions

- 1
  Drill holes in all four corners of the steel plate with the power drill. Make the holes slightly smaller than the screws you are going to use for the attachment.
- 2
  Cut two 12-inch lengths of 2x4 with the power saw. Cut two more 8 1/2-inch lengths of 2x4. Cut one corner of each board at a 45-degree angle with the miter saw; be very precise. This wood is to hold the steel backdrop of your bullet trap, so it needs to be strong and sturdy.
- 3
  Assemble the wooden frame for your bullet trap by screwing together a longer piece of wood to the shorter one, joining the ends that weren̵7;t cut at the 45-degree angle. Repeat for the other pair as well. Now you will have two sides of the bullet trap, resembling the letter "L," that will hold the steel plate.
- 4
  Tighten the screws in the wooden part of the bullet trap with a screwdriver to make the structure more firm, rigid and secure.
- 5
  Screw the steel plate onto the two wooden sides, at a 45-degree angle. Use a screwdriver to tighten the four screws and attach the steel safely to the wooden frame.
- 6
  Place a paper or cardboard shooting target at the front of the bullet trap, attaching it to the lumber with staples or tape.

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