User Panel
Posted: 6/29/2015 8:38:09 PM EDT
I have been doing lots of longer range shooting in the last couple of years, and normally shoot on steel. Recently I got on a range that goes to 700 yards but does not allow steel targets. After the very first day shooting this range, I knew there had to be a better way. We must have walked 10 miles in all back and forth to check our targets. The mirage was terrible, and even with a 60x spotting scope we couldnt really see any bullet holes past 200 yards reliably.
The property owner offered to rent us his target cam system for $20 the next time we were out there, and we gladly took him up on the offer. Not money well spent. His was a low-res 900mhz RF model with cheese grade 7 inch VGA monitor. When we actually did get enough signal, and the wind was blowing just right, we could make out our targets in all their blurry detail. When we left that day, the property owner asked me how I liked the camera setup, and wanted to know if I would like to purchase one. I was cordial and told him that it saved us from walking, and I appreciated it. Thats when he told me I could have my very own for $1050 OTD.. Thats right....Over 1k for a hack job cam system. Again, I told myself that there had to be a better, cheaper way. Watching Youtube videos, I ran across Bullseye target cam systems. To me, it looked very straight forward and used all off the shelf parts. Im pretty handy, and had a few drinks in me, so I headed to Amazon.com and ordered a bunch of shit, knowing that I would have regrets the next day. Total Amazon order was $189.31 Almost every single part that you need for under $200 bucks. Now, to be honest, I was really skeptical that it was going to actually work. Also, I really didnt have any place to test it other than the range, and I didnt want to waste a range trip testing it, so I located a road close to home via google maps that was 455 yards according to my GPS. IT WORKED. I was stoked, and immediately called a couple of skeptical shooting buddies and told them the news. Again, they were skeptical and doubted that it would actually work as well as a commercial system. Over and over I explained that what I had built was almost identical to the commercial system selling for $700 dollars, even down to the same battery pack. Both of them said "We will see this weekend'. Yeah, we would. Honestly, I was worried too, but here are the results. This was the setup at 500 yards. Everything stayed in the homer box but the antenna on my custom bed slat mount. This was the Range from the firing line, AKA bed of my truck. The barely visible blue arrow is pointing to the antenna. Strong signal back at the laptop And a live view from the camera in real time. And this is a screen snip from the laptop of what you actually see. This is a Youtube video of me shooting with the target cam cropped and zoomed in. The targets are still very very clear after editing, cropping and zooming. The only thing I noticed was there seemed to be a delay sometimes back at the laptop. I will revisit this later in the writeup. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u865qlw-mPo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDeJWAd9BTI And my buddy Russ with his GAP. Notice even on the small targets cropped and zoomed bullet holes are still easily visible. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1p37IRRGB0 So, How do you do it you ask? Well, you might do something different, but I will tell you what I did. Start out with buying these. I snipped these today, so the prices should be accurate. The antenna. We will re-visit this one Extended antenna cable. Camera. The commercial version uses the VGA version. The HD version was 10 bucks more, so I went for it instead. The router. You need the detachable antenna version This is your high gain wifi adapter for computer. I will revisit this as well. Lets just say that you have a few options here, including a repeater. Big ass battery pack with 4 outputs. Not needed really, as most of you have several laying around. I actually used 3 different ones prior to purchasing this one. More on that later. And this little jewel. You could use 1 or 2 and I will tell you why later. |
|
"Im pretty handy, and had a few drinks in me, so I headed to Amazon.com
and ordered a bunch of shit, knowing that I would have regrets the next day. " Lol, this is the most important part! |
|
Twice you've said "battery backs". I'm guessing you mean battery packs?
|
|
|
Dammit, OP, there you go, posting something useful in GD!
Thanks, this looks like a great project. |
|
Quoted:
You can skip the voltage regulator or the tandem battery pack usage if you use a 5v USB powered router and 5v camera. They'll run longer too, I let my system broadcast for 9 hours before I turned it off and went to sleep and my batteries were still at ~30%. The camera won't be "HD," but it's enough to work. The cameras all seem to use the same plug at 5v and under 1A. Sapido RB1602 and all similar models of router work; they must have an external antenna and must run off 5v USB. You need an in-line wifi booster to run on 5v, but luckily they seem pretty tolerant. Mine states 6v@2A, but it will run on a 5v 1A USB source. These setups are super simple and relatively cheap to make. It's insulting how much profit the target cam companies make. Entirely off the shelf 5v hardware, USB plugs and some minor thought is all it takes! http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31I-n2PmV1L.jpg View Quote This is probably the better option for the router. Thank you for posting it. I dont think I will negate the HD cam after looking through an SD cam the week prior. Its a HUGE difference, and worth the 8 bucks shipped for the voltage booster. Very clean setup you have. I havent had any time to perfect mine yet, just wanted to get it out there that you dont need to lay out tons of cash for such a simple thing. |
|
Quoted:
This is probably the better option for the router. Thank you for posting it. I dont think I will negate the HD cam after looking through an SD cam the week prior. Its a HUGE difference, and worth the 8 bucks shipped for the voltage booster. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
You can skip the voltage regulator or the tandem battery pack usage if you use a 5v USB powered router and 5v camera. They'll run longer too, I let my system broadcast for 9 hours before I turned it off and went to sleep and my batteries were still at ~30%. The camera won't be "HD," but it's enough to work. The cameras all seem to use the same plug at 5v and under 1A. Sapido RB1602 and all similar models of router work; they must have an external antenna and must run off 5v USB. You need an in-line wifi booster to run on 5v, but luckily they seem pretty tolerant. Mine states 6v@2A, but it will run on a 5v 1A USB source. These setups are super simple and relatively cheap to make. It's insulting how much profit the target cam companies make. Entirely off the shelf 5v hardware, USB plugs and some minor thought is all it takes! http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31I-n2PmV1L.jpg This is probably the better option for the router. Thank you for posting it. I dont think I will negate the HD cam after looking through an SD cam the week prior. Its a HUGE difference, and worth the 8 bucks shipped for the voltage booster. Wait, you're getting 500 yards from your setup and you haven't got a booster at the camera end, just a boosted antenna on a laptop at the receiving end? |
|
Quoted:
Wait, you're getting 500 yards from your setup and you haven't got a booster at the camera end, just a boosted antenna on a laptop at the receiving end? View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
You can skip the voltage regulator or the tandem battery pack usage if you use a 5v USB powered router and 5v camera. They'll run longer too, I let my system broadcast for 9 hours before I turned it off and went to sleep and my batteries were still at ~30%. The camera won't be "HD," but it's enough to work. The cameras all seem to use the same plug at 5v and under 1A. Sapido RB1602 and all similar models of router work; they must have an external antenna and must run off 5v USB. You need an in-line wifi booster to run on 5v, but luckily they seem pretty tolerant. Mine states 6v@2A, but it will run on a 5v 1A USB source. These setups are super simple and relatively cheap to make. It's insulting how much profit the target cam companies make. Entirely off the shelf 5v hardware, USB plugs and some minor thought is all it takes! http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31I-n2PmV1L.jpg This is probably the better option for the router. Thank you for posting it. I dont think I will negate the HD cam after looking through an SD cam the week prior. Its a HUGE difference, and worth the 8 bucks shipped for the voltage booster. Wait, you're getting 500 yards from your setup and you haven't got a booster at the camera end, just a boosted antenna on a laptop at the receiving end? Yes, that is correct. Just the panel antenna and the USB adapter on my laptop. Even without the USB adapter on the laptop I still get 2 bars just using the built in wifi card and 1 bar on my phone and tablet. |
|
Quoted:
Yes, that is correct. Just the panel antenna and the USB adapter on my laptop. Even without the USB adapter on the laptop I still get 2 bars just using the built in wifi card and 1 bar on my phone and tablet. View Quote I think this is due to the larger home-type router you are using, which runs on 9v. My portable pocket mini router at 5v (with only a 9dB antenna) was broadcasting about 100 yards or so. That increased twentyfold with the booster. You could probably get over a mile and a half out of yours with a 2 watt booster at the camera and a 2 watt repeater at the firing position. Maybe more than 2 miles. |
|
|
I'll have to get mine out and take some pics.
Using foscam etc requires a computer or at very least an app. I dont like taking a computer into the field. I used some video signal repeaters for $50 from China, I get a perfect signal 1200yards away. No extra antennas, nothing. Simply the stuff that came with, and I wired mine to operate 100% on AA batteries so I would be able to easily keep it powered. |
|
Quoted:
First thing I thought of as well. Probably clearer also View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
I use two iPhones and do FaceTime, works well. First thing I thought of as well. Probably clearer also I thought about that as well.. Its another creative idea. Im not saying mine is the best, just thought it was cool that it was virtually the exact same thing as the bullseye cam, but with a high def cam, longer range and 1/4 the cost. YMMV |
|
Quoted:
I'll have to get mine out and take some pics. Using foscam etc requires a computer or at very least an app. I dont like taking a computer into the field. I used some video signal repeaters for $50 from China, I get a perfect signal 1200yards away. No extra antennas, nothing. Simply the stuff that came with, and I wired mine to operate 100% on AA batteries so I would be able to easily keep it powered. View Quote Well, thats even better. Please share your setup as well. I am all about cheap |
|
I have a range extender left over from my former Phantom vision. It would let me do live wifi video to my iphone at over 100 yards. I wonder if that could be used somehow.
|
|
Damn you OP.
Another project added to my "do it one day" list. |
|
View Quote TRG |
|
First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up
|
|
|
Quoted:
Why not just use a jumper pack for the 12 v View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up Why not just use a jumper pack for the 12 v You could do that. Problem is they are heavy and expensive, and do not offer the properties of a LiION or Li polymer battery. Something I did toss around a bit before committing to my little 8 dollar booster. Like I posted above, if you were really cheap, you could use 2 battery packs with 2 usb cables in series to the camera connector for 10vdc @ 1amp. Worked perfect in my tests. Even 9vdc@ 800 mv worked fine. I just knew that I had to walk to the 500-700 yard line and didnt want to tote a motorcycle/lawn mower wet cell battery in addition to all the other shit. ETA: I think the big jumper packs and 12v wet cells are overkill. These camera devices sip power and run less than 1 amp of power. By all means use the big batteries, but figure in charging them with a car battery charger and the in-efficiency of running a converter. I would almost guarantee you wouldnt get shit for runtime compared to the lightweight Li-Ion battery packs. |
|
Quoted: First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up View Quote On my phone so no hotlink https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00HICV6I8/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_1?colid=MFGQG4SPLY3N&coliid=I2J76IJ55CEDF7 |
|
Quoted: You could do that. Problem is they are heavy and expensive, and do not offer the properties of a LiION or Li polymer battery. Something I did toss around a bit before committing to my little 8 dollar booster. Like I posted above, if you were really cheap, you could use 2 battery packs with 2 usb cables in series to the camera connector for 10vdc @ 1amp. Worked perfect in my tests. Even 9vdc@ 800 mv worked fine. I just knew that I had to walk to the 500-700 yard line and didnt want to tote a motorcycle/lawn mower wet cell battery in addition to all the other shit. ETA: I think the big jumper packs and 12v wet cells are overkill. These camera devices sip power and run less than 1 amp of power. By all means use the big batteries, but figure in charging them with a car battery charger and the in-efficiency of running a converter. I would almost guarantee you wouldnt get shit for runtime compared to the lightweight Li-Ion battery packs. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up Why not just use a jumper pack for the 12 v You could do that. Problem is they are heavy and expensive, and do not offer the properties of a LiION or Li polymer battery. Something I did toss around a bit before committing to my little 8 dollar booster. Like I posted above, if you were really cheap, you could use 2 battery packs with 2 usb cables in series to the camera connector for 10vdc @ 1amp. Worked perfect in my tests. Even 9vdc@ 800 mv worked fine. I just knew that I had to walk to the 500-700 yard line and didnt want to tote a motorcycle/lawn mower wet cell battery in addition to all the other shit. ETA: I think the big jumper packs and 12v wet cells are overkill. These camera devices sip power and run less than 1 amp of power. By all means use the big batteries, but figure in charging them with a car battery charger and the in-efficiency of running a converter. I would almost guarantee you wouldnt get shit for runtime compared to the lightweight Li-Ion battery packs. |
|
Quoted:
First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up View Quote A UPS is a bad idea. If you mean a UPS with a USB port, the rest of the inverter and monitoring equipment will still be siphoning juice at all times. If you mean a UPS without a USB port, using DC inverters from the 120v outlets, that's a worse idea since efficiency is terribly low. You wouldn't get 1 hour out of it. They're pretty darn heavy too; battery USB chargers are very light in comparison, very cheap in comparison, and provide the perfect voltage for all of the hardware already. |
|
Quoted:
Looking around this wifi antenna can go up to 4miles with a normal range of 1-3 On my phone so no hotlink https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00HICV6I8/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_1?colid=MFGQG4SPLY3N&coliid=I2J76IJ55CEDF7 View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00HICV6I8/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_1?colid=MFGQG4SPLY3N&coliid=I2J76IJ55CEDF7 It says it will but it wont. Thats the exact same antenna I linked. Trust me. 455yards and I got 2 bars on my laptop. ETA clear line of sight on an airport road |
|
Quoted:
You could do that. Problem is they are heavy and expensive, and do not offer the properties of a LiION or Li polymer battery. Something I did toss around a bit before committing to my little 8 dollar booster. Like I posted above, if you were really cheap, you could use 2 battery packs with 2 usb cables in series to the camera connector for 10vdc @ 1amp. Worked perfect in my tests. Even 9vdc@ 800 mv worked fine. I just knew that I had to walk to the 500-700 yard line and didnt want to tote a motorcycle/lawn mower wet cell battery in addition to all the other shit. ETA: I think the big jumper packs and 12v wet cells are overkill. These camera devices sip power and run less than 1 amp of power. By all means use the big batteries, but figure in charging them with a car battery charger and the in-efficiency of running a converter. I would almost guarantee you wouldnt get shit for runtime compared to the lightweight Li-Ion battery packs. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up Why not just use a jumper pack for the 12 v You could do that. Problem is they are heavy and expensive, and do not offer the properties of a LiION or Li polymer battery. Something I did toss around a bit before committing to my little 8 dollar booster. Like I posted above, if you were really cheap, you could use 2 battery packs with 2 usb cables in series to the camera connector for 10vdc @ 1amp. Worked perfect in my tests. Even 9vdc@ 800 mv worked fine. I just knew that I had to walk to the 500-700 yard line and didnt want to tote a motorcycle/lawn mower wet cell battery in addition to all the other shit. ETA: I think the big jumper packs and 12v wet cells are overkill. These camera devices sip power and run less than 1 amp of power. By all means use the big batteries, but figure in charging them with a car battery charger and the in-efficiency of running a converter. I would almost guarantee you wouldnt get shit for runtime compared to the lightweight Li-Ion battery packs. Idk, this is LiON, $40 and will start your Honda if you forget to turn off the lights. I have one. http://www.farmandfleet.com/products/804242-peak-jump-starter.html Oh, and it also has a usb outlet too for the lower power stuff |
|
Quoted:
Idk, this is LiON, $40 and will start your Honda if you forget to turn off the lights. I have one. http://www.farmandfleet.com/products/804242-peak-jump-starter.html Oh, and it also has a usb outlet too for the lower power stuff View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up Why not just use a jumper pack for the 12 v You could do that. Problem is they are heavy and expensive, and do not offer the properties of a LiION or Li polymer battery. Something I did toss around a bit before committing to my little 8 dollar booster. Like I posted above, if you were really cheap, you could use 2 battery packs with 2 usb cables in series to the camera connector for 10vdc @ 1amp. Worked perfect in my tests. Even 9vdc@ 800 mv worked fine. I just knew that I had to walk to the 500-700 yard line and didnt want to tote a motorcycle/lawn mower wet cell battery in addition to all the other shit. ETA: I think the big jumper packs and 12v wet cells are overkill. These camera devices sip power and run less than 1 amp of power. By all means use the big batteries, but figure in charging them with a car battery charger and the in-efficiency of running a converter. I would almost guarantee you wouldnt get shit for runtime compared to the lightweight Li-Ion battery packs. Idk, this is LiON, $40 and will start your Honda if you forget to turn off the lights. I have one. http://www.farmandfleet.com/products/804242-peak-jump-starter.html Oh, and it also has a usb outlet too for the lower power stuff Maybe so. I dont see anywhere that says Li_Ion, but it could be. Most of those booster packs are heavy ass wet cell or glass mat batteries. Again, something I thought about but decided against over weight and size. |
|
|
Quoted:
Looking around this wifi antenna can go up to 4miles with a normal range of 1-3 On my phone so no hotlink https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00HICV6I8/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_1?colid=MFGQG4SPLY3N&coliid=I2J76IJ55CEDF7 View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00HICV6I8/ref=aw_wl_ov_dp_1_1?colid=MFGQG4SPLY3N&coliid=I2J76IJ55CEDF7 made hot |
|
Quoted:
Maybe so. I dont see anywhere that says Li_Ion, but it could be. Most of those booster packs are heavy ass wet cell or glass mat batteries. Again, something I thought about but decided against over weight and size. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
First off this is fucking great. And for your Feild battery box how about a small battery from a mower or a bike or even a ups back up Why not just use a jumper pack for the 12 v You could do that. Problem is they are heavy and expensive, and do not offer the properties of a LiION or Li polymer battery. Something I did toss around a bit before committing to my little 8 dollar booster. Like I posted above, if you were really cheap, you could use 2 battery packs with 2 usb cables in series to the camera connector for 10vdc @ 1amp. Worked perfect in my tests. Even 9vdc@ 800 mv worked fine. I just knew that I had to walk to the 500-700 yard line and didnt want to tote a motorcycle/lawn mower wet cell battery in addition to all the other shit. ETA: I think the big jumper packs and 12v wet cells are overkill. These camera devices sip power and run less than 1 amp of power. By all means use the big batteries, but figure in charging them with a car battery charger and the in-efficiency of running a converter. I would almost guarantee you wouldnt get shit for runtime compared to the lightweight Li-Ion battery packs. Idk, this is LiON, $40 and will start your Honda if you forget to turn off the lights. I have one. http://www.farmandfleet.com/products/804242-peak-jump-starter.html Oh, and it also has a usb outlet too for the lower power stuff Maybe so. I dont see anywhere that says Li_Ion, but it could be. Most of those booster packs are heavy ass wet cell or glass mat batteries. Again, something I thought about but decided against over weight and size. Here's it's bigger brother: http://www.farmandfleet.com/products/895837-peak-lithium-ion-jump-starter.html about 4 lbs. |
|
Do you have a link to the adjustable usb power reg I am having a hell of a time finding this thing
|
|
Tagged. Like I don't already have a half dozen partially finished projects cluttering the garage. Always room for one more!
Quoted:
. Im pretty handy, and had a few drinks in me, so I headed to Amazon.com and ordered a bunch of shit, knowing that I would have regrets the next day. View Quote First stop: the liquor store! |
|
Quoted:
Do you have a link to the adjustable usb power reg I am having a hell of a time finding this thing View Quote No problem http://www.ebay.com/itm/281550409630?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT |
|
That is great! I love my bullseye target cam and recommend them to everyone, but if your budget is tight and/or you like DIY then that is pretty bad-ass.
I will say that target cameras are HIGHLY underrated. People are mixed on their opinion and need of them though. I have found the biggest benefit (not sure if you could get it to work on your system), is superimposing images captured from the camera on top of each other and flashing it on and off. Basically the last shot/shots you take will look like they are flashing on the image. Trying to resolve a grouping of .22 at 200 yards when it is covered with hundreds of other hits is a bitch without it. |
|
Quoted:
nice! where in Texas do you shoot? View Quote Several places. For 1000+ there is Battlefield just north of Greenville,TX. For up to 300 meters on steel I go to B-Tactical in Caddo Mills. Ran into several ARFcommers there, including Jacqfrost thats suing Eric Holder.lol. The one posted above I am at a privately owned club in Terrell,TX. If your close, hit me up and we can go shoot. I go at least twice a week. |
|
Quoted:
That is great! I love my bullseye target cam and recommend them to everyone, but if your budget is tight and/or you like DIY then that is pretty bad-ass. I will say that target cameras are HIGHLY underrated. People are mixed on their opinion and need of them though. I have found the biggest benefit (not sure if you could get it to work on your system), is superimposing images captured from the camera on top of each other and flashing it on and off. Basically the last shot/shots you take will look like they are flashing on the image. Trying to resolve a grouping of .22 at 200 yards when it is covered with hundreds of other hits is a bitch without it. View Quote Im sure your cam is great. I based my build off theirs. I could have duplicated it exactly, but wanted an HD camera with extended range over their model for less cost. Would it be possible for you to post your kit? I have been scratching my head as to how the hell they are running that cam on 5 volts. I know the cam I have is the same one but HD which might not work as well at 5Vdc. I assume they either run a double cable for 10Vdc or they are running their cam on 5Vdc and staying with the SD cam for this exact reason. |
|
|
Quoted:
That is great! I love my bullseye target cam and recommend them to everyone, but if your budget is tight and/or you like DIY then that is pretty bad-ass. I will say that target cameras are HIGHLY underrated. People are mixed on their opinion and need of them though. I have found the biggest benefit (not sure if you could get it to work on your system), is superimposing images captured from the camera on top of each other and flashing it on and off. Basically the last shot/shots you take will look like they are flashing on the image. Trying to resolve a grouping of .22 at 200 yards when it is covered with hundreds of other hits is a bitch without it. View Quote As stated above, I can, and have run their software with this system. All you have to do is configure your router for a static IP and input their IP address. I preferred the Foscam software to theirs. Again, its a preference thing. |
|
Sign up for the ARFCOM weekly newsletter and be entered to win a free ARFCOM membership. One new winner* is announced every week!
You will receive an email every Friday morning featuring the latest chatter from the hottest topics, breaking news surrounding legislation, as well as exclusive deals only available to ARFCOM email subscribers.
AR15.COM is the world's largest firearm community and is a gathering place for firearm enthusiasts of all types.
From hunters and military members, to competition shooters and general firearm enthusiasts, we welcome anyone who values and respects the way of the firearm.
Subscribe to our monthly Newsletter to receive firearm news, product discounts from your favorite Industry Partners, and more.
Copyright © 1996-2024 AR15.COM LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Any use of this content without express written consent is prohibited.
AR15.Com reserves the right to overwrite or replace any affiliate, commercial, or monetizable links, posted by users, with our own.