Foam Target

[Nala]

Looks like you guys have much better luck dealing with T****** S***** than what I have had.

I done the 3x3 foam block thing back in Florida and when I get here, Spring, Texas, I found the nearest store and went in and asked for some foam blocks.  Let me tell you, these guys at this store guard those darned things like they're GOLD!  I bet I went in there 3 or 4 times trying to get them and never was able to do it.  I even offered to BUY them cause one of the guys said they are under ORDERS that they CANNOT get rid of them cause they have to pay for them.  So I told him, "Charge me what you have to pay, I'll be happy to pay it."  NOPE!!  No go on that either.

About a month later I just happened to pull in there and drive around back to the dumpster and I couldn't believe what I was seeing, there in the BIG LONG dumpster was 10 of those foam blocks!  I hurriedly grabbed those blocks and stuffed them in my SUV.  Grinning like a opossum, I went into the store to find that guy that has been such an A-Hole to me the times I've been in and asked nicely for them, when I did located him I asked if they had any MORE of those blocks they were planning on throwing away cause I just filled my car with the ones in the dumpster.
I could tell he was PO'ed.....I just smiled and said THANKS ANYWAY and left.

I went by there about 2 months ago and went in the back, in the fenced in area, and I came upon a stash of those block that had to be 25 feet long, by 10 feet wide and 10 feet tall.  I don't know how many they had in there, it was HUMONGOUS!  All those blocks and they wouldn't give me 9 of them even when I offered to pay for them.

I'm going to have to find another store soon cause a couple of mine are getting shot out.  I move them around to minimize problems, but I could use a couple more.

The targets work great though.

I've also heard that DOCK FOAM also works great and can be found for cheap.  Search Craigs List.  I bet if you found some and explained your situation how you need exercise and such, they'd probably give you a really good deal.  Lots of times they just want it out of their yard.

Nalajr

[Whitetail Addict]

I bet those guys at the supply store weren't traditional archers, if they were they probably would have shared them with you. In my experience, trad shooters will help a brother out any way they can.    :D  

I'm not knocking anybody that shoots anything other than traditional, we're all a part of something bigger than what we choose to shoot/hunt with. Just something I've noticed about trad folks in general. Thanks Nala

Bob

[sheepdogreno]

I will say I go thru my cardboard box fiklees with rags targets fast. Cardboard gets shot out so fast its annoying to keep restuffing new boxes. One kd bigjims 18-1 blems doesn't look too bad!

[highlow]

I have a Buck Commander and will never buy another. Cheap but will cause hernia trying to extricate one's arras. Might be due to my advanced age but they hold arrows in a death grip. I'm a believer, finally, in the old adage, "You get what you pay for". In most cases that is.

[**DONOTDELETE**]

Originally posted by BigJim:
I hear lots of solutions for "cheap" targets, but I can't help but think that many of them take more effort to build, gather, or take care of than what you are saving.

Yes, I am not of the age/state of mind that I think about every penny, but I have so little time to traipse around that quick is often cheaper.

Sure, I sell the stuff, but that is because it is easy to sell. The products speak for themselves.

Last year, I would have pallets of blem 18-1 targets shipped in and they sold well. This year, I was disappointed to find out that they weren't making nearly as many blems and didn't even have a pallet of them to buy...They have new employee's though and that means blems    
BigJim

I gotta go along with Big Jim here... These Rhineheart 18-1 targets are the best bang for your buck. they last for years and years just using field points and you can use them for broadheads too. I keep one in the shop to test bows on that i shoot daily.

 

[Whitetail Addict]

Originally posted by Kirkll:
 

Originally posted by BigJim:
I hear lots of solutions for "cheap" targets, but I can't help but think that many of them take more effort to build, gather, or take care of than what you are saving.

Yes, I am not of the age/state of mind that I think about every penny, but I have so little time to traipse around that quick is often cheaper.

Sure, I sell the stuff, but that is because it is easy to sell. The products speak for themselves.

Last year, I would have pallets of blem 18-1 targets shipped in and they sold well. This year, I was disappointed to find out that they weren't making nearly as many blems and didn't even have a pallet of them to buy...They have new employee's though and that means blems      
BigJim

I gotta go along with Big Jim here... These Rhineheart 18-1 targets are the best bang for your buck. they last for years and years just using field points and you can use them for broadheads too. I keep one in the shop to test bows on that i shoot daily.

     [/b]

I don't doubt that a bit and I'd love to have one. I mentioned earlier that due to health issues (not being able to work), money is tight right now. I'm not looking for cheap target ideas because I don't want to spend the money. I'm just looking for ways around spending money that would be better spent elsewhere. I don't like it, but for the time being that's just the way it is.     Thanks.

Bob

[achigan]

bob. there is already a thread here on making your own bag target. stuff a plastic seed/dog food bag with other plastic film. shopping bags, plastic wrap from distribution warehouse, scrounge up what you can. mebbe by the time you need a bh target your finances will have changed for the better.

[achigan]

doh! shoulda read more 'fore i posted...

[northener]

Dont forget about judo tips or blunts if you have room to shoot outside,couple of tennis balls for targets and your good to go for years.

as previously mentioned hay bays  blunts work great here.

I am in the process of saving grocery bags  i am stuffing them in a empty cat food bag made out of woven nylon, but like BigJim mentioned it will take a very long time before one has enough for a target

btw  spray foam is NOT cheap, your much better of putting that money in a target from wally world.
fwiw I have rineharts 18-1 target i am certain it will last me a lifetime with target points  money well spent.

[Michael Salter]

My local "Wally World" has 30 inch by 30 inch foam targets with one bullseye on one side, 5 small bullseyes on the other side, and two bullseyes on each end. They sell for about $18. I bought several but my first one is still going strong after 2 years of use.

Another bag alternative is coffee bags. If you have a coffee roasting company in your area, the raw beans come packed in burlap sacks. You can usually get as many as you want from big commercial roasters that sell in stores or small scale roasters that process the beans for local coffee shops just for asking. Usually the bags are cut open in ways that they cannot be reused for coffee beans again. Stuff the best ones with other burlap coffee bags, old clothes, carpet scraps, hay/straw, just about anything that will stop your arrow.

[mahantango]

I stuff feed bags (double layer) with plastic grocery bags and fiberglass window screen scraps. Doesn't get as funky as old clothes and rags.

[Whitetail Addict]

Thanks a lot everybody, more good ideas.

northener, in all the years I've shot a bow, and all the different things I've shot with a bow, I've never thought of tennis balls with blunts. Thanks. Thank you all again, I really appreciate your help.

Bob

[Nala]

If you were closer to me I'd help you put together one of these 3x3 foam targets.  They are great for sure.

Here's how I have mine set up and it has worked for me for several years now...

Get 9 1x1x18" foam blocks from T****** S#####.  Then get 2 ratchet straps 15 feet in length.  Lastly get some 1"x4" boards and cut them slightly less than 3 feet.  You need 2 per side so that's about 24 board feet.  They're cheap at Lowes and you can even get ones that aren't straight or otherwise not perfect.

Stack the blocks in 3x3 style and then take the straps and secure them.  Slip the boards under the straps on each side and when you have it all leveled up, ratchet those things down tight and you won't have to worry for several thousand shots.

Good luck.

Nalajr

[Shakes.602]

I got a great deal on a 1" thick Insulating sheet of foam because it had been damaged. I cut it down and tripled it. Put it in front of my hay bails and have been shooting the heck out of it! The only downfall is the arrows tend to collect the Hot Foam as they go through it. Little scraping and all is groovy once again!

[Whitetail Addict]

I'm sorry for bumping this back to the top, but I just realised I missed the last two posts. Thanks for the info and the offer Nala, I appreciate it. Thank you too shakes, much appreciated.

I talked to a farmer friend the other day that I've gotten hay/straw bales from for years, and he wants to drop off one of the big round bales for me. Seems like overkill, but it should hold up for a while. We've helped each other out with different things over the years and he won't take a dime for it. Says he's interested to see how it works out for me, nice guy. Thanks.

Bob

[boog21]

Shoot the round bail from the side.  I've had arrows go all the way in when shooting at the ends.  

Also, after much experimentation with home made bag targets, I've concluded burlap sacks stuffed with plastic pallet wrap last longest.  Woven plastic feed sacks start to break down in the weather after a few months and break open.  I've also had critters rip them open and drag plastic all over with some I hang in the woods.  Shopping bags for stuffing tend to get pushed out the back of the target by my arrows, and heavier kinds of plastic turn into plastic mulch inside the bag after a while.  Old clothes or towels or pillows make great stuffing but start to stink and weigh a ton after they get wet.

TS sells 50 lb. burlap sacks for a little over a dollar, and most places I've asked are happy to set aside plastic pallet wrap for me for free.  The sacks are pretty loosely woven, so I double up.  I traced a template of the vital area off a 3D deer target and use permanent marker to draw the vitals on the burlap sacks.  I hang the sacks sideways between small trees in the woods or from a simple frame made out of 1 inch PVC in the back yard.  Arrow removal is easy, but no good for broad heads.

About shooting in the house . . . No basement for me either - living room to bedroom at the end of the hall is about 15 yards - only when the wife is out!

[Whitetail Addict]

I wondered about loosing arrows like you mentioned with the bales being so big, thanks for the tip. thanks for the other ideas too, I appreciate it. Yeah, we tend to see some things a little differently than the wives do.   :D    Thanks again.

Bob