Bag alignment !

[SavageMark]

Using a bald eagle front rest , 20lb rear Dr. protector flat top bag with 1” between ears and Savage F class rifle in 6BR . Shooting from bench , when I pull the rifle back how far is it allowable for crosshairs to come off target ? Is it even possible to get crosshairs to stay on target ? As of now when I return the rifle to front stop it is damn close to being perfectly on target . Just wondering about accuracy if it doesn’t slide back real close to being on target !

Thx and have a great day !

 

[argh]

It depends on your stock as much as the bag alignment. Dont short range BR stock have to have a taper on the butt?
I have a cut and bogged up stock that i made to ensure that it will stay perfectly on target during recoil (great for spotting your own shots). My comp stock is a shehane tracker that has a taper on both the forend and butt that appear reasonably parallel but it does not stay perfectly on target under recoil, no.matter how straight my bags are... pushed back to the rest... back spot on though.

 

[SavageMark]

It depends on your stock as much as the bag alignment. Dont short range BR stock have to have a taper on the butt?
I have a cut and bogged up stock that i made to ensure that it will stay perfectly on target during recoil (great for spotting your own shots). My comp stock is a shehane tracker that has a taper on both the forend and butt that appear reasonably parallel but it does not stay perfectly on target under recoil, no.matter how straight my bags are... pushed back to the rest... back spot on though.

My stock is flat on the bottom of the buttstock and I’m shooting local club f open from bench at 500 yards .

 

[argh]

Bag alignment to recoil straight in my opinion is critical, and as an fclass shooter i like my rifle to co.e back straight in the horizontal too. But if you look short range BR stocks, they have a taper on the stock so cant stay on target in recoil, and the shoot smaller groups than most f class shooters.
If your rifle is not coming back straight ot os probably more to do with stock design/build than bag alignment.
Try an adjustable keel...
https://www.wheeleraccuracy.com/rifle-components

 

[Shooter13]

The problem I have is sharing a bench it is hard to get ready, align the bag and front rest and be ready to shoot in the time allotted. Maybe I'm slow but if someone has a secret I'll love to hear it!

 

[mikeeg02]

I was talking with a couple of the top guys at williamsport about this. One of which makes his own stocks and does a lot of winning. He said " some track a little left, some track a little right, and some tracked perfect, they all shot exactly the same". And that's from someone who would notice. He said "the most important part is when you put the rifle back into battery, that it's at the same spot on the target".

Edit: by tracking he meant movement when you slid the rifle back in the bags from battery(similar to recoil) They always return to the same spot when put back into battery. That's what's most important

 

[Chuckhunter]

The problem I have is sharing a bench it is hard to get ready, align the bag and front rest and be ready to shoot in the time allotted. Maybe I'm slow but if someone has a secret I'll love to hear it!

Back in the eighties when I was shooting short range for score, I would get my front rest and rear bag lined up during the warm up. I would take pieces of electrical tape and place them under the feet on the front rest, providing the bench had a wooden top. Then take a piece of chalk and outline the base of the rear bag on the bench top. All subsequent relays, just drop the rest into the holes in the tape and position the rear bag in the chalk outline and your set each relay as you were in the warm up.

 

[Alex Wheeler]

A stock that stays on target under recoil will return to battery better than one that comes off target under recoil. It wont effect accuracy, but will let you shoot faster. Once you can slide your rifle back in the bags and the crosshairs dont move now you have to find the right body position. Move your shoulder until the rifle tracks. The butt plate needs to hit your shoulder square or it will deflect off your shoulder. If you have a rubber pad, cover it with electrical tape, rubber grabs and is hard to deal with. Bags should fit like a glove, you should not need to hammer the rifle into them.

 

[X-Caveman]

The problem I have is sharing a bench it is hard to get ready, align the bag and front rest and be ready to shoot in the time allotted. Maybe I'm slow but if someone has a secret I'll love to hear it!

Will they let you draw on the benches with a sharpie? That's what we do - draw outlines around our rear bags & front rest feet pads. It will get you pretty close. I've also seen clubs with rubberish mats. Guys mark their mats for their equipment and swap the whole thing between relays. It's cool, because you can move everything together by sliding the mat around on top of the bench. Adjustability without changing relative positions of your set-up.

 

[JFrank]

i Believe field and cave have a bag block with a cord that assist with initial setup and alignment. Maybe not

 

[X-Caveman]

i Believe field and cave have a bag block with a cord that assist with initial setup and alignment. Maybe not

Shameless self promotion is not in my nature, but what the hell...

https://fieldandcaveoutfitters.com/.../products/alignment-tool-for-benchrest-set-up

 

[dmoran]

Will they let you draw on the benches with a sharpie?.....

Many ranges as well as sanctioning body rulebooks have rules against defacing.
Often it will be wrote something like this: "No defacing or destruction of the property"
Or like is wrote in the IBS Rule-book:
"No mutilation or alteration of range facilities, (benches, target frames, etc.) by anyone will be tolerated."

 

[Shooter13]

Shameless self promotion is not in my nature, but what the hell...

https://fieldandcaveoutfitters.com/.../products/alignment-tool-for-benchrest-set-up

Hey thanks for the link! It sure would be a shame if someone made an ammo block that would hold.........say 20 rounds and attach to the SEB Neo rest! <hint> <hint> You have 2 additional holes in the front that would give a very firm foundation for such a block and would be easy to attach/detach for shooting/transportation and would be ambidextrous!

 

[Dave Way]

The problem I have is sharing a bench it is hard to get ready, align the bag and front rest and be ready to shoot in the time allotted. Maybe I'm slow but if someone has a secret I'll love to hear it!

This works for me. I set up my rifle one time and then put this block in place and marked the string with a marker where it contacts a seam on my rear bag. Now I use it for L/R alignment as well as distance between front and rear rests. It works and saves me time.



Photo of the block others are talking about.

Good luck,
Dave.

 

[Shooter13]

I was talking with a couple of the top guys at williamsport about this. One of which makes his own stocks and does a lot of winning. He said " some track a little left, some track a little right, and some tracked perfect, they all shot exactly the same". And that's from someone who would notice. He said "the most important part is when you put the rifle back into battery, that it's at the same spot on the target".

Edit: by tracking he meant movement when you slid the rifle back in the bags from battery(similar to recoil) They always return to the same spot when put back into battery. That's what's most important

I never get this! I get somewhat close and I'm using a Neo and Seb rear bag.

 

[mikeeg02]

I never get this! I get somewhat close and I'm using a Neo and Seb rear bag.

How far off and what direction does it typically come back from where you fired it?

Do you hold the joystick while firing ?

How does your rifle fit in the rear bag? (Can you get a couple pictures?)

What stock do you have ?

 

[Shooter13]

How far off and what direction does it typically come back from where you fired it?

Do you hold the joystick while firing ?

How does your rifle fit in the rear bag? (Can you get a couple pictures?)

What stock do you have ?

I'm going to the range today and will try to take some pictures, yes I hold the joy stick and can see where that could be a problem, a tracker stock.

 

[KenOath]

I'm going to the range today and will try to take some pictures, yes I hold the joy stick and can see where that could be a problem, a tracker stock.

Do you hard hold or free recoil?

 

[mikeeg02]

How far off and what direction does it typically come back from where you fired it?

This is an important question. Also need to know if its consistently going the same direction when you're returning to battery.

 

[Shooter13]

Do you hard hold or free recoil?

Free recoil only