TargetTalk

I am currently living in a rural area that allows the safe discharge of firearms.

My concern is the noise level, especially from .45 target/Hardball ammunition.

Is there a source that provides information on an enclosed shooting position that provides a sound lowering effect?

Someone has suggested using a culvert pipe lined with sound absorbing material. Any thoughts?

TLE

I've seen plans for a baffle system for shooting off a bench from your window in Precision Shooting magazine, but that does not eliminate the noise from a supersonic bullet. Since all of your rounds will be subsonic, a little shelter with rubberized sheeting on the inside might do the trick. You could even have a roof over your head. Maybe a storage shed with the rubberized compound would do the trick. Hope this helps.
Chris

Do a search for "Schroeder diffusers". Easy to build, and may help with what you're looking to do.

Check with the NRA's Range Dept. They can help you

Those corrugated tubes are hell on the shooter, and only partially effective.
Best to shield the shot from the neighbors with a wall of sound-absorbing material, including an absorbing roof over the shooter.
Suburbia is growing around our club, and we're dealing with the same headache as you.
John

Shoot through a row of old truck tyres. Stack them together and shoot through the middle of them, each one acts as an expansion chamber.

Downside is that once you set them up it limits you to one shooting position and they make the place look like a junk yard.

Thanks to all!!

The tires will work, I think. Always wanted to be a Junkyard Dawg... :-)

T

j-team wrote:Shoot through a row of old truck tyres. Stack them together and shoot through the middle of them, each one acts as an expansion chamber.

Downside is that once you set them up it limits you to one shooting position and they make the place look like a junk yard.

This is an old trick that has been successfully used in backyard rifle ranges for decades. However, three comments seem in order:

1. Their effectiveness is much reduced unless the muzzle is kept well inside the horizontal tire stack.

2. Rifle shooters who may blow large amounts of unburned powder out of their barrels have been known to report that the long-term build-up of said ejecta is highly flammable.

3. In light of #2 and in order to prevent building a mosquito breeding ground, it's advisable to drill a sizable drainage hole at the bottom of each tire.

Just hearsay but sounds mostly reasonable.

A note of encouragement to the OP, though. It's possible to attenuate the sound of almost anything that launches a projectile if you just apply enough ingenuity and money. To wit:

BenEnglishTX wrote:However, three comments seem in order:

1. Their effectiveness is much reduced unless the muzzle is kept well inside the horizontal tire stack.

2. Rifle shooters who may blow large amounts of unburned powder out of their barrels have been known to report that the long-term build-up of said ejecta is highly flammable.

3. In light of #2 and in order to prevent building a mosquito breeding ground, it's advisable to drill a sizable drainage hole at the bottom of each tire.

Just hearsay but sounds mostly reasonable.

All points worth noting, I suppose that once drain holes are drilled you could hose them out with water periodically to reduce any fire hazard!