What brand of front rest or bi-pod (Both?) do you use for zeroing and load development?
- Thread starter xphunter
- Start date
I find a lot bags and rests I have used do not work properly for ARs.. I had problems with the pistol grip touching the bench if bags was not high enough.. I use the Caldwell tackdriver bag. Still not perfect 100% of the time but it does help me shoot tiny tiny groups with my Ars.
dan brothers
New member
I was working up a load for a 7mm mag today... shooting prone with a bipod with a rear bag... it worked pretty good keeping everything steady at my 365 yd target.
I didn't think 7 mm mags would shoot 139 horny btsp bullets accurately at 3355 fps... but they do... it surprised me.
I didn't think 7 mm mags would shoot 139 horny btsp bullets accurately at 3355 fps... but they do... it surprised me.
ninehorses
New member
Hart or Bald Eagle depending on stock. A friend has a Caldwell BR, don't waste your money. Cast iron is your friend here.
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xphunter
Well-known member
Originally Posted By: ninehorsesHart or Bald Eagle depending on stock. A friend has a Caldwell BR, don't waste your money. Cast iron is your friend here.
Not a fan of Caldwell myself, but if that is all a guy can afford, it will do.
Kind of depends on the expectations of the shooter and how he/she will use it.
Not a fan of Caldwell myself, but if that is all a guy can afford, it will do.
Kind of depends on the expectations of the shooter and how he/she will use it.
Buster Hindend
New member
Atlas and Accu Tac bipods for my style of shooting
I use Hart, Sinclair, type of front rests and have a variety of Protector bags for the rear. The Front rests have three different kinds of Tops depending on the rifle stock that I want to accommodate.
I have not got Harris Bi pods to shoot anywhere near the small groups that the heavy front rests do, as they act like po go sticks and do not reset to the same position each shot.
Accuracy is relative to each person.
I would like to have an Atlas bi pod to try.
I killed a lot of chucks with a Harris bi pod in Utah and Idaho, but I worked up my loads off the bench using sand filled bird shot bags. The reason is that I wanted to work up the loads off the bench with sand filled bird shot bags was to remove all possible human error to evaluate and change components of the load for ultimate accuracy. With a 6 Remington and the harris bi pod, I got flyers shooting off the bench and I did use a sand filled bag for a rear bag.
Bird shot bags filled with Polyethylene beads are very, very unstable compared to washed sand.
Here is a true story to illustrate the difference between a Harris Bi pod and Sinclair front rest. I quit deer hunting for a long time, made the decision to sell a super accurate Browning A bolt 7 Mag which would shoot 3/8" groups without fail with 140g Nosler ballistic tips and IMR 4350. The guy called me several times and we tried to work through the accuracy issues he was not getting as I had. Now I had the rifle for 6 years. After working through all kinds of issues with me teaching him how to reload and adjust the OAL to touch the lands, he still could not get consistent groups below 1 1/2". We went through cleaning techniques, die issues, copper solvents, and I was about to just buy the gun back from him.
Finally, we got into issues with bench techniques. HOLY COW, this guy was shooting off a Harris Bi pod laying on the ground with NO REAR BAG!!! To compare, I took another 7 Mag that was my brothers, I laid on the ground and shot groups with my Harris bi pod. The rifle went from bug holes to 1".
Now, I am sure that there are techniques that will work well and I remember my 6mm Remington Varmint rifles shooting around 1/2"-5/8" off the bench using a Harris Bi Pod(no muzzle break).
I am sure that a tactical muzzle break on a rifle shooting off a bi pod would help tremendously, and practice in techniques would work well. Also, heavy recoiling rifles produced a lot of muzzle flip.
Each person will have to evaluate what is best for them, hunting vs benchrest shooting. For field shooting, you sure can not drag around a Hart or Sinclair rest, so a Bi pod will HAVE to work.
I have also shot very small groups off of old sand bags made from Bird Shot bags, front and rear.
The Caldwell rest is very high and this may demand the use of a very, very tall rear bag with a 3/4" piece of plywood under the rear bag...this really bugs me.
I have got good and not so good results off a lead sled. The lead sled was not mine, so I did not have time to work through the techniques of using one. The harder a rifle kicks, the more critical it is to control the rifle while the bullet is still in the barrel about .200 prior to it exiting the muzzle....choose your method and practice, practice, practice with a rifle with known accuracy to work out the techniques.
I put a 25 lb bag of bird shot on the rear of the gun, while using a Sinclair or Hart front rest, protector rear bag, and a 7 mag does not move.
Here is what I call the red neck recoil reducer and the groups that I shot with it
If you look closely, you can see the edge of the protector Bunny bag:
here are the groups that I shot with the new Remington 700 7 Mag, bullets touching the lands. 68g of R#22 with a cci 250 shot as well as the 65.5g of IMR 4350 load shot. Amazing how these new Remingtons do not shoot as well as they used to. This rifle is a new sps stainless that I bedded in a boyd's laminate stock.
Now, a radical change in accuracy by just jumping the bullet 0.010, barrel was cooled between each group
It would now be interesting to shoot this same rifle off a Harris Bi pod to see what accuracy I could get using a protector rear bag. I have a cheap Shrewd muzzle break on this rifle, and I do use a set of Peltor Tac 6 electronic ear muffs when I hunt, otherwise I would be Stone deaf!
I have not got Harris Bi pods to shoot anywhere near the small groups that the heavy front rests do, as they act like po go sticks and do not reset to the same position each shot.
Accuracy is relative to each person.
I would like to have an Atlas bi pod to try.
I killed a lot of chucks with a Harris bi pod in Utah and Idaho, but I worked up my loads off the bench using sand filled bird shot bags. The reason is that I wanted to work up the loads off the bench with sand filled bird shot bags was to remove all possible human error to evaluate and change components of the load for ultimate accuracy. With a 6 Remington and the harris bi pod, I got flyers shooting off the bench and I did use a sand filled bag for a rear bag.
Bird shot bags filled with Polyethylene beads are very, very unstable compared to washed sand.
Here is a true story to illustrate the difference between a Harris Bi pod and Sinclair front rest. I quit deer hunting for a long time, made the decision to sell a super accurate Browning A bolt 7 Mag which would shoot 3/8" groups without fail with 140g Nosler ballistic tips and IMR 4350. The guy called me several times and we tried to work through the accuracy issues he was not getting as I had. Now I had the rifle for 6 years. After working through all kinds of issues with me teaching him how to reload and adjust the OAL to touch the lands, he still could not get consistent groups below 1 1/2". We went through cleaning techniques, die issues, copper solvents, and I was about to just buy the gun back from him.
Finally, we got into issues with bench techniques. HOLY COW, this guy was shooting off a Harris Bi pod laying on the ground with NO REAR BAG!!! To compare, I took another 7 Mag that was my brothers, I laid on the ground and shot groups with my Harris bi pod. The rifle went from bug holes to 1".
Now, I am sure that there are techniques that will work well and I remember my 6mm Remington Varmint rifles shooting around 1/2"-5/8" off the bench using a Harris Bi Pod(no muzzle break).
I am sure that a tactical muzzle break on a rifle shooting off a bi pod would help tremendously, and practice in techniques would work well. Also, heavy recoiling rifles produced a lot of muzzle flip.
Each person will have to evaluate what is best for them, hunting vs benchrest shooting. For field shooting, you sure can not drag around a Hart or Sinclair rest, so a Bi pod will HAVE to work.
I have also shot very small groups off of old sand bags made from Bird Shot bags, front and rear.
The Caldwell rest is very high and this may demand the use of a very, very tall rear bag with a 3/4" piece of plywood under the rear bag...this really bugs me.
I have got good and not so good results off a lead sled. The lead sled was not mine, so I did not have time to work through the techniques of using one. The harder a rifle kicks, the more critical it is to control the rifle while the bullet is still in the barrel about .200 prior to it exiting the muzzle....choose your method and practice, practice, practice with a rifle with known accuracy to work out the techniques.
I put a 25 lb bag of bird shot on the rear of the gun, while using a Sinclair or Hart front rest, protector rear bag, and a 7 mag does not move.
Here is what I call the red neck recoil reducer and the groups that I shot with it
If you look closely, you can see the edge of the protector Bunny bag:
here are the groups that I shot with the new Remington 700 7 Mag, bullets touching the lands. 68g of R#22 with a cci 250 shot as well as the 65.5g of IMR 4350 load shot. Amazing how these new Remingtons do not shoot as well as they used to. This rifle is a new sps stainless that I bedded in a boyd's laminate stock.
Now, a radical change in accuracy by just jumping the bullet 0.010, barrel was cooled between each group
It would now be interesting to shoot this same rifle off a Harris Bi pod to see what accuracy I could get using a protector rear bag. I have a cheap Shrewd muzzle break on this rifle, and I do use a set of Peltor Tac 6 electronic ear muffs when I hunt, otherwise I would be Stone deaf!
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xphunter
Well-known member
My new rest that I will use, as soon as my shoulder allows (shoulder surgery this past Nov) is the MINI!
I got it before Christmas, but I am still on weight restrictions...impatientlywaitingtogoshootingagain
http://www.targetshooter.co.uk/?p=2267
I got it before Christmas, but I am still on weight restrictions...impatientlywaitingtogoshootingagain
http://www.targetshooter.co.uk/?p=2267
xphunter
Well-known member
Originally Posted By: dan brothersI was working up a load for a 7mm mag today... shooting prone with a bipod with a rear bag... it worked pretty good keeping everything steady at my 365 yd target.
I didn't think 7 mm mags would shoot 139 horny btsp bullets accurately at 3355 fps... but they do... it surprised me.
Was it the speed of that bullet that caused you to doubt the accuracy potential?
I didn't think 7 mm mags would shoot 139 horny btsp bullets accurately at 3355 fps... but they do... it surprised me.
Was it the speed of that bullet that caused you to doubt the accuracy potential?
dan brothers
New member
WOW... that mini sure is a nice rest...WOW AGAIN.
The speed of the 7mm was what surprised me, because this is my first experience with the big caliber, and I thought they had to be around the 3200's to be accurate... but I guess not... I'm learning something every day with it. That big bore is not really my cup of tea, but I really got into it to help another guy with his new tikka... so I bought one as well.
And... I wanted something that was rock solid in every way in order to keep all human error out of it... well most of it anyways.
The speed of the 7mm was what surprised me, because this is my first experience with the big caliber, and I thought they had to be around the 3200's to be accurate... but I guess not... I'm learning something every day with it. That big bore is not really my cup of tea, but I really got into it to help another guy with his new tikka... so I bought one as well.
And... I wanted something that was rock solid in every way in order to keep all human error out of it... well most of it anyways.
WyoBull
Active member
I use Harris bipods on all of my rifles with sand bags in the rear most of the time. I do have a Caldwell Leadsled DRT that I will use when dialing in a load/scope adjustment. After that, I go to the bipod and sandbags. I use the leadsled in order to take out any chance of human error when dialing in a load or fine tuning a scope. I don't use the leadsled to shoot of off any other time.
