Prairie Dog Shooting Bench

C

CRE10

New member
I got tired of not being comfortable or stable on a bench and having to constantly slide my sand bags back and forth to shoot dogs. I built this with the Rugged Buddy 34" legs. I really braced up the bottom of my top with 2x6's and then made a smaller top anchored in the rear with a bolt, spacer, bushing, and wing nut. Then I have roller bearings up front so I can slide back and forth. I put in stops on each side so I can't roll off the table. It's really funny seeing my buddy trying to situate himself to shoot a dog and I roll over in an instant and shoot the dog out from under him. My top is super steady, but if I wan't I can lock the sliding top piece in place for transport or completely remove it. I even cut handles into each side to carry it. I didn't really have any plans for it, just kept tweaking and adding to it as I went. I painted it with heavy duty porch and floor paint I had left over. I'm really happy with how it turned out having hunting off it for 2 years now. I wouldn't change a thing. Just figured I'd post to give others ideas.

bench by CRE10 CRE10, on Flickr

 
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That swivel top is pretty slick. I’ve built a portable table off the rugged buddy legs too, and really like it. I just glued two pieces of 3/4 together and bolted to legs, very solid.
 
Hale yes that will work. The last several years I have been using a Caldwell Stable Table and I like yours loads better. Good job.
 
There are plans for that style some place. Where do you get the legs? I think these portable tables and benches are like holsters, ya keep seeing something better or didn’t work like you hoped.
 
I have a set of the Rugged Buddies in 28” on the way. I plan on using my Outers Varminter Rest on top of it. I really like the up/down tilt on it. Great options presented here. Thanks for sharing.
 
Originally Posted By: jshThere are plans for that style some place. Where do you get the legs? I think these portable tables and benches are like holsters, ya keep seeing something better or didn’t work like you hoped.
Amazon has the Rugged Buddy legs, two different heights.
 
I made one about the same using the same legs. No swivel though. It is pretty heavy to carry very far. I use it mostly for sighting in rifles etc. It is very steady and I like mine a lot! I made one for my son, now his boss thinks he needs one also. I usually customize mine with hand painted pictures that the individual likes. Then I clear coat it many times. If I could figure out how to post pictures I would show a picture of mine.

Rudy
 
Very clever, I did something similar years ago with folding table legs but I like this better and the swivel idea is great.
 
I bought two sets of those legs, and bolted a green treated 2x8 to each pair as a top. I intended to make a portable shooting bench, but found them so useful for portable saw horses, they never made it any farther than that! I do take one to WY, and we use it as a spartan shooting bench to check Zero on antelope rifles, but that is as close to a shooting bench as they have come. For Pdogs, I just unroll a shooting mat, and shoot off of a bipod, or use a BogPod, with a rifle rest on top. We don't shoot long on dog towns, mostly due to low numbers from plague, and shooting pressure. Shoot a few, they go down, wait for a few to get curious, and then move to the next cluster of active holes. We stay pretty mobile. We get as close as we can on the two tracks, and shoot close to the truck. Occasionally we hike out onto the prairie, but then the BogPod comes along to keep from having to sit in cacti.

But if one wants a shooting bench, that looks like a great idea.

Squeeze
 
Those of you ordering the Rugged Buddy legs you may want to order longer than you think you need then cut them off custom to you rather than get something too short. I got the 34" bc I'm 6'3.
 
The bench is heavy, but we will drive in and shoot close to the truck. My partner is quite a bit older with a bad back and likes to sit. I will sit and shoot with him then I carry a bipod and will walk around quite a bit too. Been thinking of getting a Hog Saddle and tripod.

After I built this portable bench I find myself shooting from it even though I have built in dedicated benches from inside.

bench2 by CRE10 CRE10, on Flickr
 
That does look like a sweet setup. The last time I went out, I spent a lot of time on a Caldwell Magnum Field Pod. Was a lot faster to setup than a bench and was accurate out to 400yds. Longer shot required a bench or getting prone on a bipod.
 
You shoot pd's out from under your buddy?

After watching him painfully struggle to

get a shot?

What kinda buddy would do that? Wait that's

what we do, never mind.

Good looking, functional home built bench.

Makes my home built benches look like dollar

store stuff
 
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