Shooting Rest Help

[steve4102]

I am thinking about purchasing the caldwell Rock BR shooting rest.
http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item.asp?sku=00094440907

I could use some recommendations for front and rear bags to go along with it. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

 

[Dienekes]

Not to be overly critical, but why not take the time to learn position rifle shooting (prone, sitting, offhand) and the use of the sling which will certainly serve you better in the field and be a personal accomplishment? On the few occasions you need to work off the bench just rest the forearm on whatever will bulk up enough to support it at the proper height.

Bench shooting is like drag racing--very limited relevance to anything outside itself.

 

[steve4102]

but why not take the time to learn position rifle shooting (prone, sitting, offhand) and the use of the sling which will certainly serve you better in the field and be a personal accomplishment? On the few occasions you need to work off the bench just rest the forearm on whatever will bulk up enough to support it at the proper height.

Not to be overly critical, but what good does practicing prone, sitting and offhand shooting do if the shooter has not taken the time and effort (from a rock solid rest) to find or develop a load that will bring the rifle to it's full potential. How can one learn "position rifle shooting" with a rifle that shoots for ????. Your comment reminds me of the hunter who takes his gun out to the range once a year and puts up a paper plate at 25 yards and fires off a shot or two from a standing position. When asked "aren't you going to shoot from the bench today and see if the old girl is still sighted in ?" he replies, "sheeeeet, I aint got no danged rest when I'm huntin what good would one do now. The only way to practice shootin is to shoot the way ya hunt."
Believe it or not I am an accomplished shooter. I have always shot off of bags and was looking for something new to try. Thought I could get some advice here.

 

[Strongbad]

PM sent.

 

[ocabj]

A lot of people use the Caldwell shooting rest at my club's range, mostly for the price, but it is functional. It's not a top of the line rest like a Sinclair, but it does serve well providing a good rest for chrono/load testing. Personally, I still use the range sandbags for chrono/load testing.

 

[johnmcl]

Based on Purpose, Use Standard Rock

Hey Steve,

Are you getting into Benchrest shooting, or do you simply want to shoot off a rest?

If you're with most of us and want to shoot off a rest for rifle tuning and a little fun, I'd recommend the standard Caldwell Rock rather than the BR. The cost is about 2/3rds of the BR. I've had one for two years and it works fine from 22's to my Garands. On the bags, get a selection of them and see what you like the best. I used playground sand from my local Home Depot for filler.

Let us know what you decide,

John

 

[hksw]

I have one of those Rock BR (18"), got it about a month ago. I also have a Deadshot and Rock Deluxe, all by Caldwell. (Started with the Deluxe and kept on moving up.)

You can see and compare all three on one page from Midway's site:

http://www.midwayusa.com/ebrowse.exe/browse?TabID=4&Categoryid=15820&categorystring=655***689***


IMO, the BR is a pretty good rest for the price you pay. I haven't, though, had a chance to use or even see first hand products from Sinclair or other higher end manufacturers.

The only shortcoming of the rest is the lateral fine adjustment. The top portion of the rest that moves for lateral movement pivots at one point at the front. The adjustments are made at the rear. To move left/right, the hand adjustable screw is turned that moves the rear portion of the rest platform. Since it pivots from a single point up front, the platform not only moves left/right but also turns slightly. This, though, should not be a great factor in fine tuning your aim. Aiming adjustment should be small enough to any negative effects wouldn't be seen from this shortcoming.

I think the reason for this is that it is a low cost method to provide a a solid (no excessive play) platform that is adjustable. More parts and machining are probably needed to make the plaform move truly lateraly and have no play.

Of the three rests I have (actually started with and still have a Hornady Delta Rest but haven't for years and probably will never again use that rest), I use the Deadshot for the simple reason that it is the easiest to tote around and no assembling/disassembling to do (I carry them around in a backpack). But for serious work, I'll use one of the other two.