American Airguns Blog
The Random Ramblings Of An Airgun Addict

One reason I like airgunning so much is that I can involve so many of my interests into one hobby. On top of my love of airguns and shooting, I can involve my interested in technology and computers by having my website. I have always enjoyed working with my hands and being creative by making things from wood and metal. Over the last few years I bought a cutoff saw, welder, and grinder that now I don't know how I lived without them.

I had been wanting to make a flip up/down target like the one that Knockover Targets make but I didn't like their design. I wanted a design where the bottom disc was only visible after the top disc was hit. I have been thinking of how to design a target like this since the first of the year but couldn't come up with a simple design that would be easy to make. Then in early April I was pulling down my attic ladder when I noticed that it had two springs on either side for it that held it up when the ladder was up position and down when it was in the down position.

Just like that I had the answer to my design problem. A spring could be used to hold the flip target up and then when it is hit it and the spring moves past the pivot point of the target arm, it will pull it down and hold it. Time is a precious commodity and I had to sit on this design for a long while before I could actually build a prototype. So back in late May I finally had some spare time and headed out to the garage workbench. I built up a basic design and played with it a bit and got a prototype that works really well. The spring holds the target firmly but the direction of the holding force is such that it doesn't affect the amount of force required to flip the target between positions. I tested it out in the backyard for a few weeks now and it hasn't failed me one, not yet anyways. I may try to take it to the Nationals this year and give it a more comprehensive test.