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Disabled Hunter Invents Shotgun Boom
Craig Simpson has hunted all his life, but 10 years ago he thought he'd never hunt again. Injuries suffered in a car accident left him a quadriplegic.
Simpson decided, however, that he was not going to give up the things he loves and with help from friends and an organization called Capable Partners, he's contin
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Disabled Hunter Invents Shotgun Boom FARM HOME Miscellaneous 25-4-5 Craig Simpson has hunted all his life, but 10 years ago he thought he'd never hunt again. Injuries suffered in a car accident left him a quadriplegic.
Simpson decided, however, that he was not going to give up the things he loves and with help from friends and an organization called Capable Partners, he's continued to hunt with shotguns and a crossbow from his power wheelchair. His wife and their 11-year old daughter are also hunters.
Because of his condition, Simpson can't hold a gun up to aim it or pull the trigger. But he can swing the gun if it's steadied so he developed a boom that, when attached to his wheelchair, holds the gun steady while he aims and shoots. It mounts on his wheelchair and is balanced by a set of weights that Simpson made by melting down lead tire weights.
He tried several different systems for pulling the trigger with his teeth and mouth. Finally, he hit on a design using a small cable from a radio-controlled airplane wing controller to a specially made mouth piece, with a spring between the trigger and trigger guard to bring the trigger back in place so it can be fired again.
"The mouthpiece is shaped like a duckbill, machined out of aluminum and fully adjustable for cable tension," says Simpson.
The cost for materials was only about $150. Simpson notes that he's used his boom only with his shotgun, although it could be used with rifles and also crossbows. He says this type of boom is not currently being manufactured, so disabled hunters will need to make their own. "It would be hard to make one that could be sold widely, because of the difference in chairs and each individual's abilities," Simpson says. "I'm happy to share ideas on it with other disabled hunters who want to be able to enjoy hunting again and I have talked with friends and board members at Capable Partners about putting blueprints on our website." (Capable Partners' website is www.capablepartners.org .)
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Craig Simpson Simpson, 4409 Shari Ann Lane, Brooklyn Park, Minn. 55443 (ph 763-549-1842; email: crsimpson@yahoo.com).
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