Pine 24 Shot Rack

[Deweycoon]

My latest rack. It's made of pine which is a soft wood so I have reinforced it with extra screws in the base, wood biscuits and glue. It also has a large swing out foot to keep it stable.

http://www.pyroreview.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/3317/sort/2/cat/520/page/1

and

http://www.pyroreview.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/3318/sort/2/cat/520/page/1

[PyroBubba]

I like the 6-angle design. Given the fact that the rack is 6x4, I wouldn't think you'd really need any extra stabilization.

You might consider making your next rack 6x8 -- that would be pretty impressive. I am myself thinking about building 5x8 or 5x10 angle racks next time. Of course, when racks start getting big like that, storage and transportation become more difficult.

Those are the fiberglass mortars that Victory sells, huh? Never seen those before.

http://www.pyroreview.com/gallery/data/520/223100_1497.JPG

http://www.pyroreview.com/gallery/data/520/223100_1491.JPG

[Deweycoon]

I would not want to carry a 6x8, even with fiberglass tubes it would be very bulky. I would rather have 2 6x4,s.
I think your right, the rack probably is stable without any extra stabilization.

[PyroBubba]

I would not want to carry a 6x8, even with fiberglass tubes it would be very bulky. I would rather have 2 6x4,s.
I think your right, the rack probably is stable without any extra stabilization.
My racks are built with 3/4" plywood -- got that idea from InOuterSpace -- so they're not as heavy as they might be otherwise. Still, we're already doing the 2-man carry on the 3x8 racks, and I don't think 5x10s would be too heavy to carry. But there would be more problems in terms of fitting the racks into the back of a van, etc.

[MNPyro]

I have (2) 5x10 angled racks and (2) 5x5 angled racks, the design is a little different on them which makes the 5x5 heavier than need be, but my 5x10 racks aren't all that heavy.
They can be carried by one person, but it is always nice having an extra hand carrying them. I forget at the moment what thickness the plywood is, and considering I am in Germany right now I can't easily measure, but I think they are 1/2" plywood.
This last 4th of July each rack was fully loaded twice, and didn't even suffer from cracking, which has been an issue with some of your racks, as been posted earlier this year. They were loaded with a combination of Excals, Double Lightning, Tripple Impact, Rambo Kids, Knock Three Times, and High Five...I think those are all the shells I used this year...So needless to say, there were a number of different "lifts" pushing back on the racks.

MNPyro

[Deweycoon]

The cracking problem we dicussed earlier this year was a piece of 3/4" x 2" pine that was used as the base under the mortars.
I think the board cracked because it was 1 " off the ground in an angle rack with nothing to support it.
I have rebuilt the rack with a 1 1/2" x 2" base and I also make sure the base has contact with the ground.

[PyroBubba]

The cracking problem we dicussed earlier this year was a piece of 3/4" x 2" pine that was used as the base under the mortars.
I think the board cracked because it was 1 " off the ground in an angle rack with nothing to support it.
I have rebuilt the rack with a 1 1/2" x 2" base and I also make sure the base has contact with the ground.
You might want to try 3/4" plywood. I had no problem at all with my racks using that method (hat tip to InOuterSpace).

Also, in addition to wood screws, I used Liquid Nails (Projects - red label) on every joint in my racks. The glue probably does more of the actual holding than the screws do, and so any recoil stress is distributed more evenly throughout the rack.

http://www.pyroreview.com/gallery/data/520/8mortar_rack1.jpg
http://www.pyroreview.com/gallery/data/520/8June05mortars.jpg

[Deweycoon]

I think the board cracked because it was 1 " off the ground in an angle rack with nothing to support it.
I have racks built out of plywood, I now make sure the base is touching the ground and not suspended an 1" off the ground like the were in my early angle rack.
I have rebuilt this the rack with 1 1/2" stock, the base is not touching the ground but the base is not going to crack again.;)

[Dan]

I know this will sound "goofy" to some of you, but in all honesty you SHOULD NOT glue and screw the racks you make together, this makes the racks far to "rigid" and are far more likely to crack over time and use. If your racks have some "flex" to them, they are more forgiving and will last MUCH longer. I put all of my racks (both 1.4 and 1.3g) together with nails or in some cases screws, but never glue. it gives the joints the ability to give a little.

Dan