Pit blind

ira

ira

Active member
Thought that some of you might find this interesting. We (Schupp, bro and I) decided that we wanted to put a pit blind or 2 up at Locust Grove, our WRP tract. Looking into it, we found that there are quite a few easement restrictions as far as material, removeability and size were concerned. Concrete is not allowable and steel rusts, sweats, is loud and has become expensive! So, I decided that we should build our own...

We wanted one that could shoot 4 guys with a cool blind system on it. We also wanted the parts to be nestable for transportation reasons and wanted to be able to assemble the blind on site.

Here are the pics of the first one fresh out of the mold. It is 12' long and has 2 2-man shooting holes in the top. I have a cool blind system figgured out for it and will get pics of that once I get it made and installed.

Our biggest challenge this year has been all of the flooding. Not only has it drowned our food over and over again, it has covered all of the areas where we were going to install the pit! Only good thing is that we held the water from this last flood and wont have to pay to make it rain by exchanging diesel fuel for water......

Here are the pics.... Comments?

pit1.jpg


pit2.jpg

 
Ira,

Are those 2 pits - one flipped over on top of the other? Fiberglass sounds like a good choice in building materials and it should be easy to maintain. Kind of like a big bathtub in the field:) I'd like to see some pics of it in the ground and more of it in action. Good luck!
 
you mentioned flooding in your spots ,well this reminds me of our tubs we use here and we put "L" brakets of angle iron down the sides and put 2 by 10`s on them and pile on the rock so it wont pop when tide comes in,also another trick we use is to let them fill with water they wont pop then.. more pics of inside from topside there great idea..so did you make your own molds??

some have plugs in the bottom to let water out in high spots like on ledges but wont work in the ground.

use high capacity bilge pumps or sump pumps to pump them out...

one fella down here actualy has a tub out in the bay in front of his house.as soon as the tide drops and the top rim of the tub shows he flicks a switch and the submersable pump pumps his tub dry ,he said by the time he gets to it its empty and ready to thro out the dekes..

so i see buldges are they reinforcement 2x`s etc...?
 
Dave, it can be used either way. You would have to build a top if you were just going to use a half. With 2 parts like the one shown in the pic, it is designed to be shot out of either direction and the waterline to come all the way to the top of the blind. There will be a little free board, but not much.

I plan to use some half blinds in areas where we have some cover or are only going to shoot one direction. Just build the blind top out of treated lumber and cover with tarpaper.

I will get more pics next time I am up at the farm.
 
Shermie, yes, I made the molds. We will have to anchor to prevent "popping." The bulges are just there for strength- have to have corners and bumps or you dont have strength.

Still havent decided exactly what I want to do as far as anchoring goes. Have a couple of ideas that should work, still trying to think of something better.

If anyone has suggestions, I would like to hear them...
 
Are you using a backhoe to bury them? Probably a deadman off each corner of stainless cable and a bucket of cement. Are you going to glass the halves together out in the field?
 
Very cool idea Ira.

I'd go with some treated timbers on top of the flanges and maybe a concrete footer w/ a vertical post on each corner that you can attach the horisontal timber to.

Does that make sense?

-D
 
Lee, that is kind of what I was thinking of. Deadmans with wash tubs of concrete with wire in the bottom of it. No, the plan is to just bolt them together with lots of silicone. I really dont think we need to glass them together or glue them together with the glue that we use on the boats. they just use silicone on storm shelters and some tanks that go underground......
 
I've was involved with pit blinds for 20 yrs when I lived in Delaware.

That looks like a great setup you have.Very creative

I have found that in general that :The Elements always win out!!!

So have a good pump out system,a sturdy pair of hip boots and waders,

and ....a good set of ear plugs. :)

When the pit is operational,post up and let us know what worked or didn't.

Good luck
Tom
 
One other thing that I forgot is that we are pumping it full of water on the last day of the season. Also will pump it full during the season as long as there is fair warning!
 
Ira, you need to talk to some power company lineman and see if they could loan you some screw anchors and strand for your project,they work real well in flooded condtions and are very duarable.If you have any questions send me pm. Brian
 
Hey Ira!

Pit looks good.

The biggest things about a pit are 1. ways to cover up the people who aren't calling and want to watch the ducks, 2. Easy ways to get in and out of the pit, 3. Related to #2, usable dog box area.

I'd like to see some pics of the inside.
 
The pit looks really nice. Will be in the market for one shortly.


Instead of silicone for the joint sealer, you may want to look at either urethane or the 3M Panel Bond Adhesive.
 
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Ira, couldn't you just get some 18 foot long 2X12's and lay them over those widest spots and then lay a couple more across the ends and cover it all up? That's what we do with our steel pits and it works fine.

What's it costing you to make those? I'd love to get some made out here in CA as all the salt we have in the ground rusts ours out fairly quickly.
 
Yes, I think that would work- we have discussed bridge planks, I beams, and screw anchors. Price on what you see in the picture with doors is going to be in the $5000 range. Probably more like $5750 next year. Cool thing is that they can be nested for shipping and multiple blinds could be sent on the same pallet. I think on site assembly will be a big bonus too.

Rumors that raw material prices may decrease some- I will believe that if we see it!
 
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