1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved bullet target stand. More specifically, the present invention relates to a folding target stand which is capable of presenting a bullet target to a shooter at varying heights, and which may be operated without the use of tools.
2. State of the Art
Bullet shooting and shooting competitions are quite common, both among hunters, sportsmen, outdoor or gun enthusiasts, and police, military personnel, etc. Shooting is undertaken as a recreational activity and as training. Frequently, shooting competitions are undertaken which involve a single shooter or multiple shooters. The shooters are required to accomplish a certain objective within a certain time period or with a particular accuracy. One such a shooting competition involves a wild west type shootout.
In such a shooting competition, multiple targets are placed at varying heights, distances, and locations within a shooting range or at some desired location. A shooter is required to hit the various targets in a particular order, or to hit the all of the targets as fast as possible, etc. It will be appreciated that much of the difficulty in having such a shooting competition is transporting the targets to the desired location and positioning the targets. Significant time is typically required to set up a number of targets. Additionally, many shooting ranges will not have a sufficient number of mounting brackets for mounting the desired targets, or the available mounting brackets will not be in the desired locations. Individuals or groups of shooters who desire to have such a competition may not have sufficient target mounts.
Additionally, many shooters simply desire a target stand which is easy to transport and operate. It is desirable to have a stand which may be operated without requiring the use of tools, and which allows a shooter to adjust the height of the target so as to accommodate various different shooting ranges or desired target positions.
There is thus a need for a target stand which is suitable for various target shooting situations including various shooting competitions. Such a target stand should allow the user to easily set up the target stand. Such a target stand should preferably allow a user to position the target at two or more heights. It is also preferable that a target stand allow a user to set up and operate the target stand without the use of tools. Preferably, the target stand is easily portable and configured so as to permit use in a variety of environments and a variety of different shooting scenarios.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved target stand. It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved folding target stand which is relatively inexpensive and easy to use.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a target stand is provided which is portable, and which may be moved without disassembly. A target stand may be provided with legs which fold together and with a target mount which folds against the legs so as to present a compact assembly which is easy to transport.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a target stand is provided which may be operated without requiring the use of tools and without requiring disassembly of the target stand. A target stand may be formed which has slots formed therein which allow the target mount to be moved into the desired position and to be locked into the desired position. The target stand may be formed with legs which are pivotably attached so as to allow the legs to extend into an operating position. The legs and target mount may be attached to the target stand in a manner which does not require the loosening and tightening of bolts during use or which does not require the use of tools to operate the stand.
According to another aspect of the invention, a target stand is provided which allows a user to mount the bullet target in different positions so as to vary the height of the target. A target mount is provided which may be rotated and locked into different positions so as to position a bullet target at different heights. A target stand is also provided which utilizes multiple mounting locations for such a bullet target to thereby facilitate mounting of the target at different heights while maintaining proper orientation of the target.
According to another aspect of the invention, a target stand is provided which better withstands the impacts from bullets striking the bullet target or target stand. A target stand is provided which has three legs and in which two of the legs face rearwardly from the target stand so as to better stabilize the target stand when struck by bullets.
These and other aspects of the present invention are realized in an improved target stand as shown and described in the following figures and related description.
Various embodiments of the present invention are shown and described in reference to the numbered drawings wherein:
It will be appreciated that the drawings are illustrative and not limiting of the scope of the invention which is defined by the appended claims. The various embodiments shown accomplish various aspects and objects of the invention.
The drawings will now be discussed in reference to the numerals provided therein so as to enable one skilled in the art to practice the present invention. The drawings and descriptions are exemplary of various aspects of the invention and are not intended to narrow the scope of the appended claims.
Turning to
In use, the target mounting arm 26 may be rotated in a counterclockwise between the position shown and a second position. In the position shown, the upper target mount 34 is in a proper position for mounting a bullet target 42, i.e. the bullet target is mounted in the desired angle relative to the ground. In the embodiment shown, the target mounting arm 26 may be rotated by 90 degrees counterclockwise so as to allow mounting of the bullet target 42 to the lower target mount 38.
The front leg 14 is oriented so as to extend forwards towards a shooter. The rear legs 18 are oriented so as to extend rearwardly such that, if viewed from the top, the rear legs would form about an 80 to 90 degree angle between each other, forming about an 130 to 140 degree angle between the front leg 14 and each rear leg 18. Each of the front leg 14 and rear legs 18 form about a 45 degree angle to the ground. If desired, the legs may be bent or otherwise provided with feet.
The arrangement of the legs 14, 18 provides greater stability to the target stand 10. Tripods, easels, stands, etc. (including target stands) typically include three legs which extend symmetrically from a central point (as viewed from above, a 120 degree angle is formed between each of the legs). Additionally, existing stands utilize two legs which extend forwards and one leg which extends backwards so as to place the weight over two of the legs (such as an easel, which places an object between and above the two front legs). The prior art configuration (placing the weight of the object being supported between two front legs) provides greater stability in a static position, and has thus been used in prior art target stands.
The arrangement of the legs according to the present invention provides lessened static stability as the weight of the target is above a single front leg, but provides greater stability and resistance to movement when struck by a bullet by providing two rearwardly facing legs 18. It is well known in the prior art designs to have the rear leg driven into the ground by the force of bullets hitting the targets. This changes the angle of the target relative to the ground and can create unsafe ricochet situations.
Arranging the rearwardly facing legs 18 so as to form an angle of about 80 to 90 degrees as viewed from above provides additional resistance to movement when struck by a bullet and provides greater protection against ricochets or splatter from bullet hitting the legs 18 being directed towards a shooter. Thus, the leg arrangement of the present target stand provides both greater resistance to movement of the target stand when hit by bullets and reduced risk of ricochet to the shooter. Bolts 54 or other suitable fasteners are used to hold the various pieces of the target stand together, and include a center bolt 54a, a lower bolt 54b, and rear leg bolts 54c.
Turning now to
The target stand 10′ provides a shooter with 3 different heights at which a bullet target may be mounted. With the target mounting arm 26′ in the position shown, a bullet target 42 may be mounted to either the upper target mount 34 or the middle target mount 62. By rotating the target mounting arm 26 by 90 degrees counterclockwise a bullet target 42 may be mounted to the lower target mount 38. The holes 66 are shown as square holes, allowing a user to use carriage bolts, which have a square portion near the bolt head, and wing nuts to mount the bullet target 42, eliminating the use of tools to mount or re-mount the bullet target. Thus, in a shooting competition where many different target heights are desired, a user may easily adapt the present target stand 10′ to one of three available target heights. Using multiple target stands 10 or 10′ allows multiple targets to be mounted at varied heights and locations.
Turning now to
In operation, the center bolt 54a (
When the target mounting arm 26 is oriented vertically as shown, the lower bolt 54b is aligned with the section 82 of the arcuate slot 74 such that the target mounting arm may be moved downwardly relative to the side brackets 22, causing the upper bolt 54a to slide into section 94 of the L shaped slot and causing lower bolt 54b to slide into section 82 of arcuate slot 74, thereby locking the position of the target mounting arm and preventing rotation of the target mounting arm. The target mounting arm 26 is then in a position whereby a user may mount a target 42 (
The target mounting arm may be rotated by about 90 degrees counterclockwise so as to align the lower bolt 54b with section 78 of arcuate slot 74, allowing the target mounting arm 26 to be moved relative to the side brackets 22 to thereby move center bolt 54a into section 90 of L shaped slot 86 and to move lower bolt 54b into section 78 of arcuate slot 74, locking the target mounting arm 26 into a second position whereby a target 42 (
If the target mounting arm 26 is in an unlocked position, it may be rotated counterclockwise until lower bolt 54b is adjacent the clockwise end 102 of the arcuate slot 74, positioning the upper target mount 34 between the legs 14, 18 (
Turning now to
Turning now to
Turning now to
Turning now to
Turning now to
Once the target mounting arm 26 has been rotated by 90 degrees, the lower bolt will be adjacent section 78 of arcuate slot 74. The target mounting arm 26 may then be moved downwardly relative to the rest of the target stand 10, causing the upper bolt 54a to slide into section 90 of L shaped slot 86 and causing lower bolt 54b to slide into section 78 of arcuate slot 74, thereby locking the target mounting arm into the position shown in
As will be appreciated from
It will be appreciated that the angle of rotation required to move the target mounting arm 26 from a first position such as that shown in
It will also be appreciated by those of skill in the art that the holes 66 are preferably provided to enable a user to attach any of a variety of presently available targets. Thus, the target stand 10, 10′ can be sold separately and used with a number of targets already owned by the purchaser.
There is thus disclosed an improved folding target stand. The preceding figures each illustrate different aspects of then target stand, and for clarity, each figure does not show all aspects of the invention. It will be appreciated that numerous changes may be made to the present invention without departing from the scope of the claims. It will also be appreciated that a folding target stand according to the present invention need not include all features as shown in the preceding figures.
The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/713,175, filed Aug. 31, 2005, which is incorporated herein in its entirety.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20070045965 A1 | Mar 2007 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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60713175 | Aug 2005 | US |