Target Lifting Gear - Best Designs?

[AlanF]

We have some very ancient target emplacements at Rosedale, which are becoming so hard to maintain that we'll need to replace them v soon.

I've marked on a few different ones and reckon the easiest lifting are the old vertical lift type when they're light and well lubricated.

Can anyone with a substantial marking experience on different setups give an opinion?

Alan

[Lynn Otto]

Alan I suspect that some of your choices will be dictated by the amount of space you have. We have well balanced cantilever units but they do require a lot more space than the vertical lift type that you mention. Lower Light also uses cantilever type targets, as to which are best, I'm sure others will have more informed views than I do. Good luck, it's a large task to be undertaking.

[johnk]

Raglan Queensland shooters designed vertical machines using square tube where the saddles are supported by sets of 4 sealed bearings instead of running with metal to metal contact reequiring lubrication. They're now used there & Belmont, for example.

When carefully balanced by an experienced shooter, they can be a one hand effort. Until 2009, we had one lady in her mid 70s who kept up with it throughout the full Belmont Queens series & many on that team are only a handful of years younger.

The secret of these machines is:

Bulid them on jigs to so they're square.
Install them plumb & link them in groups (we go for 5) to maintain alignment.

I can take a series of shots & email them to you if you like.

[AlanF]

Raglan Queensland shooters designed vertical machines using square tube where the saddles are supported by sets of 4 sealed bearings instead of running with metal to metal contact reequiring lubrication. They're now used there & Belmont, for example.

When carefully balanced by an experienced shooter, they can be a one hand effort. Until 2009, we had one lady in her mid 70s who kept up with it throughout the full Belmont Queens series & many on that team are only a handful of years younger.

The secret of these machines is:

Bulid them on jigs to so they're square.
Install them plumb & link them in groups (we go for 5) to maintain alignment.

I can take a series of shots & email them to you if you like.

John,

I have heard that the Belmont ones are good. And the bearings on square box section uprights is appealing. The advantage of the vertical lift ones is that the weight of the moving parts is minimised, so getting the motion started and stopped takes less effort. The new range at Coonabarabran uses this design.

Do the bearings have hard rubber "tyres", or is it metal on metal?

I would appreciate some photos when you can get to the range thanks. Just E-mail to webmaster@ozfclass.com.