After spending (wasting) money on several cheap rifle rest over the years I want to buy a good quality rifle rest.

My shooting off the bench mainly consist of developing loads for NRA Highpower and hunting. The stocks vary greatly in width. I am not planning on shooting Benchrest Matches.

Is this a good choice and if not what would be?

Any recommendations for a rear bag?

http://www.sinclairintl.com/pr.../5327/Shooting-Rests

And yes, I am left handed.

That will probably do you fine. Get a "Protector" rear bag while you have Sinclair on the line.

The experience of a fellow sinister (that's left for all you non-atin speaking righty folk) shooter, for what it's worth.

If you are not going to be shooting in matches with the rest-- why do you want a windage adjust? You probably will not find the forend stop to be of much use either. Also--that bag will not work for narrow forends. You could save a bit of money buying the general purpose Sinclair light weight rest (with non windage top) and adding the forend BR adapter (sinclair part # 04-1700) which will convert your forearm to 3". I have that lightweight non BR rest and adapter with which I do exactly what you say you intend to do-- I also have a true (heavy, and I do mean heavy) BR rest for use shooting BR.

One nice thing about the Sinclair rests is that you can buy the base (the heavier the better if you think you might possibly someday get the BR bug) and then buy tops to fit on it. In this case the lass expensive general purpose top. I would recommend the Edgewood front bag that is made for sinclair tops and 3 inch forearms. You can get them from Sinclair. The leather sides will help to keep the bag in shape and prevent the sand packing. The sinclair bag pictured is ok and I use one for rimfire BR, but the Edgewood will work better for the heavier usage of centerfire and is not really very expensive.

As for rear bags, I am guessing that you currently are not shooting wide BR style buttstocks--therefore a Protector single stitch would do--rabbit ears if you are not using a cheekpiece--bunny ears if you are. Again--if you want the best you'll want the Edgewood version--probably medium high.....

Edgewood bags are top quality and expensive. I prefer the Protector all leather for my rifles. Not because they are cheaper, they just suit me. I do shoot BR and use a one stitch inorder that the corners of my flat bottom butt stock will ride on the corners rather than the bottom of the bag. An owl ear as stated above is better for a hunting stock. I use a Shadetree Engineering rest top on my Bald Eagle base. I change bags and use it for my hunting rifles also.
Butch
www.shadetreeea.com

Let's not confuse the poor guy. Protektor rear bags come in rabbit eared (tall ears) and bunny eared (short ears); owl eared bags are front bags. A lot of people like Protektor bags for good reason. Edgewood front bags are not too expensive and can be made expressly for the Sinclair rest. IMHO they are best since they combine the leather sides with a cordura top. This allows SOME stiffness but also pliability. With an all leather front bag it's all stiffness until and unless it becomes well worn, when it becomes either limp or cracked, depending upon how well you have cared for it.

Limp bags will allow the sand inside to pack, which creates a hard surface and the forend of the rifle will bounce a bit, giving you some vertical stringing problems. Cracked bags leak.

There are also cheaper bags, such as the Caldwell bags, which are just backward (cordura sides, leatherette top) which also allow sand to pack. I bought a full set of them to use for hunting rifles and ARs and etc. Although they are all shaped differently, they are made by Caldwell to try to fit as many forends within their group as possible and hence did not fit any of my guns REALLY well and I had forends sliding around in them. The only one I still use is the round bag, for ARs. Since getting the Sinclair BR adapter for the hunting type rifles, I do not have that problem. It fits just right on a standard 3" flat BR bag.

You will want to get the largest heaviest when filled, bag you can afford for the rear although probably not the Caldwell magnum bag for the Sinclair rest. It will be too tall. You want to fill the bag as full as you can and the ears until they are full, but still a bit pliable. Width between ears is a personal choice to a degree. Most BR shooters using very wide flat stocks --who may be mostly LR BR shooters, will use a double stitch bag. I have seen specially made triple stitch bags. The front bag should be filled to the point where it keeps it's shape, but is not rock hard. You'll have to play around with the fill to find the right amount for your rifle. I have one bag that I use for many non BR rifles and calibers which
I keep fairly soft. I have 3 different rear bags; that just cannot be helped with so many different buttstocks. I've not experienced any problem with the 2 Caldwell rear bags I have used for the non BR rifles.


http://www.protektormodel.com/


A friend reminded me this afternoon to say that there are sand fillable doughnut type bags to stabalize and/or increase height of rear bags. Also, a convenient light rest like the Sinclair can always have weight added if you need it but a heavy rest is a pain in the *** to lighten if it can be done at all.

Have you shot BR or have you just followed the forums?
Butch

I'm just a shooter for now. When my boys get a bit bigger (3yr and 22mo) I want to compete.

I went w. the Sinclair general top and man love it!! I shoot a lot of different stock profiles from Accurate Innovations hunting rifles to McMillian A3 and A5. THis rest id really good. I took off the forearm thingggy. No use for me.

Also went w. a Protector bag. Phil (Sinclair) recommended it and I like it. Had the set up for about 1.5yrs. Also agree on the windage point -- I never use it.

At some time in the future you may find the forearm thingy to be of use. Don't lose it.

Biscuit,
My question was aimed at amman
Butch

quote:

Originally posted by butchlambert:
Biscuit,
My question was aimed at amman
Butch

sorry Butch

you might think twice about trying to fool butch. do any of you wonder why he has a shadtree top? or what it is? it would appear we have some folks that dont know what is used and how we use it in the br game. i am just makeing an observation here and not criticising. ask some more questions maybe we can get another shooter.

some shooters can and do jerk off a barrel after a 5 shot target and put on a new one before the next target. we usually have about 30 minutes between targets to load and clean and change barrels or scopes [yep, scopes too ]

Ray,

One of us is obviously confused. Read my original post. All I want is some advice for a rest and rear bag for the activities described. I do not know what "jerking off" a barrel has to do with it.

I am sure the Shadetree top and Bald eagle rest are very high quality. Since you ask, I do not wonder why that is the equipment he uses. Also I think I know what it is. As far as shooting benchrest, maybe after I cannot see my front sight I will give up Highpower, but hopefully that is a bunch of years away.

Mike,
Knowing Ray, I know he is not slamming you. Anybody from your part of the country has to be a good guy. It is too bad that my Grandson didn't get to shoot BR when it was done in Lafayette. He absolutely loves mudbugs and all cajun food. I'm afraid he will take his football talents to LSU.
I do think you have been given some good advice on shooting equip. The only advantage to a joystick rest is speed. If you are trying to beat a wind condition, it is fast to get back on target. If you are working up loads and have plenty of time you need a very strong and heavy base with good bags. Time is not of essence.
Butch

Butch,

I use to shoot in that 200 yard pit in Lafayette. I believe the big benchrest match was called the Crawfish Invitational and always heard it was a tough Benchrest Match because of the swirling winds. That range was closed and moved to Arnoudville. They are shooting out to 300 yards and we are planning to build a 1000 yard range there for highpower, 50's, BR or whatever can bring in some revenue.

We shoot a 600 yard only match in Donaldsonville LA. On the F-Class side there is a gentleman by the name of Don Geraci. You may know him.

I hope your son is a QB, we need one. Are you looking for a head coaching job.

I've shot with Don for a lot of years. He always has nice equip. and is a pretty good machinest for a home builder. He was one of the very best BR shooters 20 yrs ago and is in the Hall of Fame. Didn't know he was doing FClass.
My Grandson is a kicker and is one of the top rated high school Sophmores in the nation.

He has all the tools, he just needs to keep his head on straight.
Butch

mike sorry to offensive, i was not responding to you.

No problem, I hope I was not too direct. I appreciate the advice.

My Palma Rifle can consistently and repeatedly shoot groups in the 5s and and sometimes in the 4s with a cheap rest. I think with a little knowlwdge learned from BR shooters and better equipment I can shoot a little better groups and work out better loads. At a 1000 yards it all matters.

well you were pretty direct. however----
perhaps the question should be asked - do you want to use a joystick? will it get in the road when down with the bugs n snakes? is it hard to operate the knobs on a windage top when prone. i dont shoot f class -but if it shoots a projectile i am subject to pulling a trigger anytime.
if you already have a base that can accept a post the shadetree top might be a real option if you want a joystick. after that there is a seb and a farley, both sticks. after that the knob turners are all you got. sometimes you just got to try a variety to find what suits you most. if possible shoot off someones rest to see if it fist you and your style. many folks try one or the other and soon find it just is not for them and their style.
my first rest was a caldwell tripod, not the slingshot, i adapted it to a windage top and added wt- it is a winner now, but i use a farley to compete nowdays, just so i can shoot a big group faster!!!

So I guess I will order

Gen II BR rest Complete without the windage adjustment

Two different width Protector Owl ear front bags

One Bunny ear Protector rear bag.

Thanks for the help.

you should be happy. see if you can con don or someone to show you how much sand to put in. don has been known to pack them rather ah shall we say umm heavy [and tight]
getting the right amout of sand is important as well as the fit of the butt and forend. too much and you may get bounce ,some say, and too little and it is always settling. in addition to this is kind of sand to use- and on and on. there is no right or wrong answer, only what works for you. we all have been down the road for the search for the perfect bags- and rest!
its a long road.

Sinclair rest is excellent. This looks like the fully adjustable benchrest top - very good. I like the 30 degree angle of the front legs for fitting a bench. I use the Big Foot disks under the height adjustment screws. I use the quick elevation rear adjustment screw option. Buy one of the small levels for leveling rest. Protektor are very good bags. Lots of options on Protektor website. I like the Loaf Bag. Long ears for stocks with no cheek piece. Short ears for stocks with cheek piece.

For a rear bag, get a Haydon Humper from Russ Haydon. Best out there, if you can carry it. Call Russ, many variations available.

When you get right down 2 it, the only thing touching the gun are sandbags so the gun doesn't give a _____'s ___ what's holding the front one up. For years when I first shot off a bench, I used two bricks stacked with a flat bag on top - JUST like the early BR shooters used!!

Adjustable rests are mostly for shooter convenience - accuracy is mostly determined by other factors.

You probably haven't shot BR in 35-40yrs.
Butch

Who me?

quote:

Originally posted by sonofagun:
When you get right down 2 it, the only thing touching the gun are sandbags so the gun doesn't give a _____'s ___ what's holding the front one up. For years when I first shot off a bench, I used two bricks stacked with a flat bag on top - JUST like the early BR shooters used!!

Adjustable rests are mostly for shooter convenience - accuracy is mostly determined by other factors.

I wish I would have read this post sooner, could have saved over $400.00.

Seriously,

My lovely wife bought the rest and other components I listed above along with the sand and funnel from Sinclair for my Christmas present. She is a good woman.

I have used it several times and am very pleased with the product. Thanks to all for the advice.

Fun to go back to basics now & then.

Looking in Warren Page's "The Accurate Rifle", on page 16 it shows a .53125" group fired at 200 yards on June 13, 1948! That's about 1/4 minute accuracy probably fired using plain ol' sandbags.

She sounds like a keeper Mike.
Butch

Not to brag, well maybe a little, she bought my Krieghoff 470 double for our anniversary this year, I really wanted it but was too tight to buy it.

And she loves Africa as much as me!

Are you going to the DSC this weekend?
Butch

I am planning on it, have a room at the Comfort Suite and plan on atteding Retreevers dinner on Friday.

The only kink will be is I have a meeting on thursday at work, so I will not leave until noon. Some rain/snow is forecast with a drop in temp so I am worried they will shut down I49.

My Grandson and I will be there Saturday. We will spend some time at the Heym both with New Guy and Josh likes to visit with the guy that makes the custom flyrods.
Butch