..my dream. I am buying some land that has lot of unpurposed space. I was just playing with the idea of digging a trench 300 feet long 8 feet wide and ten feet deep to put in a shooting range. Any ideas about the least expensive way to dig this kind of hole?
Underground shooting range
- Thread starter pengyou
- Start date
Help Support Homesteading & Country Living Forum:
The first factor is what type of soil will you be working with? Shale, clay, sand, etc. All these will require different processes. Since you are looking at 10 feet deep, I wonder do you plan to cover it or leave it open to the sky? Also you will want to take drainage into consideration, the trench should be sloped at least 1/8" per foot of run. You are looking at a 37.5" slope. minimum. It is quite doable but will required some thought.
Yes, hope to make it covered otherwise it will end up being a long lake when it rains...will look at that after I consider the size/cost/difficulty of the hole but that this point thinking about flanged corrugated underground culvert covered with soil cement and then dirt. It is high plains desert. The earth (can't really call it soil) is hard packed with rocks, something like soil cement. For the slope I was thinking of doing it from side to side rather than lengthwise...have it drain off to the left. The drainage system will have to be sloped the 37"...but not the lwhole ength of the range, which will make the excavation a little easier, a 2 step process. First excavate the main cavity and then a trench along the side that will run from a few inches before grade to 40" below. This seems to me to be a task easily accomplished by an earth mover, and then an excavator or backhoe to take care of the drainage trench. I don't know how an earth mover will deal with rocks under the soil.
Last edited:
The side drainage is a very good idea, if you install a drain pipe or if you can get a plastic mat under the pipe, so any water flows off the side and into the drain trough. Now the other issues come to mind, 1) ventilation. 2) Lighting. 3) escape hatch / exits. The trench will have to be reinforced and by code (?) and may require exit hatches about every 20 feet. Not sure about the code issue. You most definitely will want an exit hatch at least at both ends. 100 yards is a long way to have to dig your way out of. Now I do have to ask why the 10 foot depth? 8 foot depth seems large enough? Call it a 6 inch sub floor and a 6 inch lighting drop and you still have 7 foot of head room. just curious. 8 x 8 culvert might be a bit easier to find and cheaper. 8 x 10 might be a special order, not sure about that either. Looking forward to how this progresses.
if you have the money for it,dig the trench and put some shipping containers in a row,for 300' you'd need 7 pcs of 45' containers plus one smaller..
fix the lighting and ventilation , it's more or less an indoor range,
fix the lighting and ventilation , it's more or less an indoor range,
The house has to come first, so won't be for about 2 years before ground starts breaking on this. 10'? 6" floor, 6'6" of room and the rest is to keep stray bullets from flying. The purpose of posting this now is to see if it is feasible and to see if construction has overlap with equipment rental along the way, materials can be bulk ordered at one time.
- Joined
- Sep 7, 2013
- Messages
- 18,694
I've often dreamed of doing that. Just pipe dreams though...
yes, I can understand that...that is why I want to look into the subject before I begin. I need to do some significant earth moving..if I already have the equipment on my property, the cost of digging the trench will be relatively small compared to the cost of having to move the equipment to the land JUST to dig this trench..by thinking now, I am hoping that the total cost will be relatively small - can use economies of scale to realize my pipe dream!I've often dreamed of doing that. Just pipe dreams though...
While thinking about economies of scale, consider below grade greenhouses, connected to your rifle range. Only the roof of the greenhouses are above ground. This would allow you to grow food, without exposing your self to un-friendly folks. That is my plan.
There are many reason for an underground shooting range. 1)Temp, 2) Humidity 3) zero wind, 4) little or no noise for the neighbors. It eliminates a ton of variables and could help reloaders develop a better cartridge. You can shoot day or night, rain or shine. For me it blends in well with my paranoia. It will cross connect with my below grade greenhouse and my below grade rabbit warren. I don't think I can convince the chickens it is a good idea. Finally last but not least, it makes a very handy escape route.
I'm sure those are all valid points. I guess a better question might be, is it such a high priority to have an underground range that it is more important than other projects/items? We are talking about a rather expensive project. Point being, unless you are independently wealthy, one has to choose where to spend your time and dollars. For me, there are so many other ways to spend money to help me be better prepared. If I were building a new house again, as opposed to the natural gas backup generator I have for the house, I'd put in a solar system. Maybe not for the whole house but one that could handle some lights and critical appliances. For me, I'd sleep better at night knowing I was prepared for a loss of the grid than knowing I could target shoot underground where it was nice and dry & comfortable.
Then again, I don't understand shooting in an environment that is so foreign to what we would expect during a crisis. When I shoot, I prefer dealing with temp, humidity & wind. I think it is better training unless you are training to be a paper puncher. I too don't like to bother my neighbors as I go thru several hundred rounds per session, but I deal with that by shooting suppressed ( one of those higher priority items I was talking about). The expenditures for the suppressors then serves a purpose as a prepper, in that during a crisis, quiet is better. My suppressed bolt 22lr is almost silent and very accurate out to 100 yds. 300 Blackout ain't too shabby either.
If I were the OP, getting ready to build a house on some property, I'd really ask myself if this underground range is the best thing to have during a crisis. Is there nothing better I could put into my house that would increase the odds of survival?
@OldCoot
I tend to agree with everything you said if this was a remodel / add on project. My plans are for a new build and also takes into account of my paranoia. I don't want to grow my food in open fields or above ground greenhouses. I want as much of my structures and exit routes to be concealed. I will not have any neighbors close by and I will not be part of any MAG / community groups. So concealment is top priority for me. The house will be buried on three sides and only the front entrance will be open. basically the house becomes bullet proof. Other designs incorporated into my build will negate opportunistic shooters from hitting any target inside. The shooting range will also be connect to the below grade green houses so food can be harvested even while under siege. Will this cost more, you bet but down the road, energy savings and the fact that all critical components (people included) will be safe from the SHTF zombies (nicer way to say the azzholes) it is worth the cost to me.
Yes shooting under ground is not real life experience, but once I have perfected my ammo and shooting techniques, then I can practice / hunt above ground. I will know that all my equipment is at it's optimum performance level. As for suppressed shooting, you can do that underground and be even quieter. In fact being suppressed would help with noise control at the shooters ears. Shooting supersonic ammo (above ground) suppressed will not really help with the neighbors, they are going to hear the crack of the bullet as it passes through the sound barrier. So suppressed is nice but not a way to avoid being heard by neighbors, unless only small caliber ammos or subsonic ammo is used. While hunting, 22lr or the 300 Blackout would be beneficial. We each have our way of looking at the same problems in a different way. I really do think your plan will work for you and your situation but i also think my plan will work best for my situation.
I tend to agree with everything you said if this was a remodel / add on project. My plans are for a new build and also takes into account of my paranoia. I don't want to grow my food in open fields or above ground greenhouses. I want as much of my structures and exit routes to be concealed. I will not have any neighbors close by and I will not be part of any MAG / community groups. So concealment is top priority for me. The house will be buried on three sides and only the front entrance will be open. basically the house becomes bullet proof. Other designs incorporated into my build will negate opportunistic shooters from hitting any target inside. The shooting range will also be connect to the below grade green houses so food can be harvested even while under siege. Will this cost more, you bet but down the road, energy savings and the fact that all critical components (people included) will be safe from the SHTF zombies (nicer way to say the azzholes) it is worth the cost to me.
Yes shooting under ground is not real life experience, but once I have perfected my ammo and shooting techniques, then I can practice / hunt above ground. I will know that all my equipment is at it's optimum performance level. As for suppressed shooting, you can do that underground and be even quieter. In fact being suppressed would help with noise control at the shooters ears. Shooting supersonic ammo (above ground) suppressed will not really help with the neighbors, they are going to hear the crack of the bullet as it passes through the sound barrier. So suppressed is nice but not a way to avoid being heard by neighbors, unless only small caliber ammos or subsonic ammo is used. While hunting, 22lr or the 300 Blackout would be beneficial. We each have our way of looking at the same problems in a different way. I really do think your plan will work for you and your situation but i also think my plan will work best for my situation.
Thanks for your input. It is helpful. If it proves to be economically feasible, the shooting range is likely to have closets off to either side storing goods for future use as well as a couple of water cisterns and..who knows what all. The initial idea was to have a long corridor with closets off to the side for storage....and then I started to measure...add this to it....add that to it...and I thought, if I just make the corridor longer I can use it for archery or pistol rifle practice. As more and more restrictions are put on buying firearms and bullets, more and more restrictions are going to be put on shooting them as well I have just bought some land. I will do soil tests this summer - see what's down there and what it would take to build. I have heard some people say that the earth is so compact, so hard that tunnels and such do not need reinforcement (at least the wall) - if the height is reasonable. It would not be code of any kind...but...me, have a tunnel? No, not me Mr. building inspector....
I have just bought some land. I will do soil tests this summer - see what's down there and what it would take to build. I have heard some people say that the earth is so compact, so hard that tunnels and such do not need reinforcement (at least the wall) - if the height is reasonable. It would not be code of any kind...but...me, have a tunnel? No, not me Mr. building inspector....
@pengyou
In my plans, the open trench was labeled for a future "Mushroom Farm" It is a lot easier to back fill, than dig the trench. Codes to not apply for "Future" builds. The same method was applied for the future interior and exterior fire sprinkler systems. Granted if I ever or future generation tried to sell the old homestead, these items would have to be listed as non-functioning, even if they did work. There is always a solution, sometime you just have to be a bit creative.
In my plans, the open trench was labeled for a future "Mushroom Farm" It is a lot easier to back fill, than dig the trench. Codes to not apply for "Future" builds. The same method was applied for the future interior and exterior fire sprinkler systems. Granted if I ever or future generation tried to sell the old homestead, these items would have to be listed as non-functioning, even if they did work. There is always a solution, sometime you just have to be a bit creative.
