Rear Bag Interferes with Holding Gun

[taliv]

You only need one rear bag. The game changer mini in the wax canvas from Armageddon gear.

 

[Swifty Morgan]

Adjustable front rest (as in my member photo)
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/538755/protektor-metal-rifle-and-pistol-rest-steel-black

That rest has 1.25" more vertical range than the one (I think) I have.

 

[stillquietvoice]

I have a Caldwell front and rear bag set that cost 35 dollars at Walmart to resty rifles on. Also bought a collapsible plastic table and a three leg stool that put me at the right height to sit comfortably straight up. I use that set up for field use the range I attend have ambidextrous wood benches and sand bags but I still use my own bags.

My biggest issue with plastic table is that my bags tend to slide around under recoil.

 

[Picher]

When I got the gun, the butt was very low, so I had to hover over it with limited support while I tried to sight through the scope. It seemed a little strange to put that stock on a gun that came with no iron sights. I'm not complaining. I probably have $550 in it, including the glass, sling, and cheek riser, and the ammo is very cheap and shoots well.

I'm Googling around to see if there's a table out there with 4 adjustable legs for under a hundred bucks. The front rest can't overcome the slant of the table on ground that isn't flat.

Go to a building supply store and get 2 8x16", 1 1/2" thick concrete blocks to put under the front legs to level up the bench. If it's not high enough get 4 blocks and place two under the front legs.

The proper way to hold a rifle at the bench is to have the front bag soft enough, and shaped well enough to cradle the rifle. If it grabs the forend, sprinkle some baby powder on the bag to reduce friction and provide uniform rearward movement of the rifle. A stop on the rest should position the forend of the rifle at the same point for each shot. The rear bag should also allow smooth slippage when the rifle is fired.

The rifle should be firmly against your shoulder, in the "pocket" between the shoulder socket and the neck, but not against the collar bone. Position the rifle exactly the same for each shot.

Use thin overhead muffs and position the shooting side as high as possible, but still covering the lower part of the ear. If your head/neck doesn't allow that, use ear plugs, at least for the rifle side of your head.

If you have a tendency to flinch, or shooting a hunting rifle that has considerable felt recoil, buy a PAST "magnum" shoulder pad that straps on. If shooting a magnum or other very heavy-recoiling rifle place a sandbag (I have a softly-filled bank bag) between the buttstock and your shoulder.

It's important to be comfortable when shooting rifles that recoil about like a 30-06, or greater. You can't group when you flinch, so if you can't use pads to keep from flinching, consider a lead-sled as the last resort.

 

[Varminterror]

You only need one rear bag. The game changer mini in the wax canvas from Armageddon gear.

Picked up a pint sized game changer last weekend, waxy, heavy fill.

Absolutely the most stable bag I have used. Only downside is the density for CARRY - it weighs exactly the same as my larger OG Gamechanger and Fortune Cookie. But it is easier to pack into my bag. It was almost shocking the first time I dropped one onto the barricade, very, very solid. I’m taking a couple weeks of practice before putting it to use at a match, but it’s notably more stable than my other bags - especially for its size.

 

[d2wing]

One thing you could do is buy non skid pad like people use in camper drawers. Another thing is I rest the front forearm on the bag or other rest and use my left hand to stabilize the butt and sometimes manipulate the rear bag. It depends on the setup.

 

[rbernie]

Another thing is I rest the front forearm on the bag or other rest and use my left hand to stabilize the butt and sometimes manipulate the rear bag

I've been told alternately that, a) I need to use my offhand to stabilize and/or pinch the rear bag, and b) that doing so is The Work Of The Devil and that I need to use my offhand to stabilize the forearm as if I were shooting a 1903 from a slung/prone position.

I do most of my shooting offhand or from field expedient positions where I'm using the offhand to pin the rifle to some sort of rest - I dunno what the heck I'm supposed to do with it when I'm sitting at a bench.

 

[Varminterror]

Off-hand on the rear bag vs. the forend?

How about neither?

 

[Nature Boy]

It might be helpful if the OP could post a pic of his set up

 

[Bfh_auto]

I've been told alternately that, a) I need to use my offhand to stabilize and/or pinch the rear bag, and b) that doing so is The Work Of The Devil and that I need to use my offhand to stabilize the forearm as if I were shooting a 1903 from a slung/prone position.

I do most of my shooting offhand or from field expedient positions where I'm using the offhand to pin the rifle to some sort of rest - I dunno what the heck I'm supposed to do with it when I'm sitting at a bench.

The answer to that statement is yes.
It depends on the gun and the setup whether I support the bad for the forearm with my left hand. I try both and let the target tell me which is better.

 

[Walkalong]

How about neither?

Depends, but for a Benchrest gun as pictured that is going to track the rest and bag extremely well, with low recoil and weight enough to keep it stable, no, you do not need to hold the stock up front, nor do you need to squeeze the rear bag, unless you are a bag squeezer (I am not).

Can you? No one I ever saw held the rifle up front in a Benchrest match, but again, low recoil, plenty of rifle weight, flat fore-end on a flat front bag with ears that hold it from moving side to side, a rear bag with ears that fit the stock and talcum powder to keep things slippery.

A higher recoiling rifle in a field position? A lot of people use the offhand to help stabilize the rifle, using pressure and check weld to control the rear of the stock however else it is supported.

 

[d2wing]

My advice is based on the equipment and situation the OP is in now. I am sure we would like to have the greatest in rests and equipment and do it perfectly. It depends on what a person is trying to accomplish as how much a person wants to spend. For sighting in a rifle with the equipment he has my advice is good. Bench rest shooting is another ball game.

 

[Varminterror]

Dude’s shooting from a bench, sitting on a front rest and rabbit ear rear bag, he’s a lot closer to Benchrest position than any field expedient position.

Considering a low grade front rest or a bipod on the bench, elevation aiming correction will be better controlled on the rear bag, so if I were shooting it, my off-hand would be on the rear bag.

I’ve not found an application where holding the forend was the best technique from front and rear supports.