I don't really want to spend much money on it.
Thanks
Expandable foam from the hardware store can get out of hand fairly easily, and it is gooey, so be sure not to get any on your clothes because it will be there to stay [personal experience]. ;-)
The hardware store foam is a bit different from the commercial repair kits, so it likely won't last as long.
I have repaired 100+ McKenzie targets using the expanding foam. That foam, which comes in a bright red and yellow can-don't remember the specific brand name-is not as dense, not as tough as the original foam. But, you can squeeze at least an addition year's use out of a target, maybe more, depending on the amount of use.
This is what I do. First, take some measurements in regard to the scoring rings. Diameter. Relation to the front quarter. Shoot the cavity with foam. No need to completely fill the hole, because the foam expands to 2 to 3 times the original size. Also, fill up the dozens, hundreds, of single holes on the rest of the body. Use a putty knife to scrape the foam over these individual holes. Wait 1 to 2 days to completely dry. Depends on temp. Trim excess with a big kitchen knife. Then, sand with an orbital sander using very coarse pad, maybe 40 or 60 grit. Very important here to sand smooth. You can even sculpt the foam using the sander. I make sure that front shoulder area is well defined. Next, I cut in the scoring rings. Use a small propane torch, heat the end of a screwdriver or old kitchen knife till the end is red hot, then start etching in the rings. You can go only a few inches before the screwdriver end cools, so you will have to heat and reheat that screwdriver end several times. Finally, repaint. Depending on size of target, might take 1 to 1/2 can of spray paint for an average deer size target.
Total investment? Maybe $7 in materials, and an hour or two of labor. I have done so many of them, I can crank 'em out assembly line fashion real quick.
I have maintained our local range here in Colorado for 25 years, and I have repaired 100-125 of these targets over the years. When I am finished with a target, it looks as good, sometimes better, that the original. Our club usually gets one good year's use out of a repaired target. If you are using that repaired target for your own personal use, that target will prob last several more years.
Or, you can do what we are now doing. Getting rid of the McKenzies, and slowly switching over to Rhineheart.
Are the specialty kits worth the money?
Will I blow the new core out after a few weeks? or will it last a season or two?
I do use the spray foam but get the blue can for windows and doors. It is more flexible and stops arrow better than the black can.
I repair using both materials. I use the expensive stuff on targets that I shoot more and the cheap stuff on targets that I don't shoot much.
I usually shoot judos outside at leaves, weed heads, etc. and only start shooting at my 3D deer as the season get's close and I get a year or so out of a target repaired in this fashion. I'm also shooting a recurve so that may not be the same wear and tear that a higher speed compound will do. But then on the other hand I shoot arrows that are like telephone poles with the corresponding ft/lbs compared to most arrows shot from compounds.
If you want to beef the repair up even more, get some VERY thin flexible plastic tubing and insert it into the part of the target that's still intact while having the rest be where the repair foam will be to reinforce it.
But the thing that wrecks my 3D target more than anything are the darn BUCKS when they go rut crazy and they attack my target and it winds up on the ground with the legs broken! I've had to fix my target TWICE using concrete reinforcing rod stuck into the ground and halfway up the legs. It works but you've gotta be REAL sure that you don't miss and hit the leg!
I fixed my target 4 days ago. I don't think I mixed the two components perfectly. Now, my target is mostly cured. But it also has a lot of sticky liquid left in the foam. I don't want my arrows all sticky. I asked Magic fix for suggestions and they haven't answered me.
Also, I was hoping for a solid repair like Rinehart targets. Instead, it is still foam. It has a lot of air bubbles just like magic foam from Menards.
I'm thinking I may need to cut out the sticky parts and rerepair that...
First get the foam in a can. Don't think it will matter what kind.
second go to your favorite, well patronized, taxidermist and ask him really nice for some scrap pieces of foam he cuts from altering forms. (lots of us save ANYTHING like that so we can recycle them, as foam is so expensive.
As you fill in the voids with the spray foam, jam the scrap pieces into the larger holes, more foam, more pieces of scrap...you get the idea.
If you are real lucky, that taxidermist will have some pieces of cork bark (natural bark from the cork tree). This stuff really stops an arrow. Just don't put too many layers of it cause it really grabs an arrow and you will be cursing me.
ok, just send me a tip cause I JUST SAVED YOU THE $125 REPAIR KIT CHARGE.
