Farley rest for newbie benchrest

[Merdoc]

Is a farley rest good for a newbie 1000 yard benchrest shooter , pros /cons from experience would be greatly appreciated, i know seb and a few other 2000-3000 dollar rests are the best but trying to stay in the 700-1000 club for now , thanks

 

[Websurfer]

I’ve only used my Farley informally (not competitively) at distances up to 800 yards. Works great

 

[TRSR8]

I shot and won a fair amount off of a Farley CFBR/RFBR. It is a fine option and they hold up very well

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

With the intro of the new Seb rests, I suspect there will be a lot of very good Neo rests on the market soon. I doubt they'll go for under $1k but should be some good deals. My first choice is the Rodzilla Raptor. Hands down, the best I've ever had my hands on. On a tight budget, it's hard to beat a Shadetree top but if you are starting out with nothing, have to buy a decent base as well as the top...I'd look at the used market. You do see some Farley's in the $800 range on here but the customer service is non existent from the mfg. @majohnson can and does repairs/uprades to them though.

 

[JFrank]

Is a farley rest good for a newbie 1000 yard benchrest shooter , pros /cons from experience would be greatly appreciated, i know seb and a few other 2000-3000 dollar rests are the best but trying to stay in the 700-1000 club for now , thanks

I’m not so sure a joystick rest is the best rest to start 1000 yard BR. A standard rest with windage and elevation might help in tracking and returning
to battery close to the X vs re-aquiring the target when sending rounds before conditions change. If a guy has a chance to try both styles of rest before buying I would recommend that for sure.

 

[swd]

Farley’s are fine but try before you buy. Some can be pretty worn out.

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

Farley’s are fine but try before you buy. Some can be pretty worn out.

Just my opinion but, I'm not sure we can actually wear one out in a lifetime...but lots are poorly adjusted. I've found a few for sale where the previous owner didn't like a joystick rest. After buying them, I don't blame them a bit...as adjusted. Adjust it out and it works as intended in every case I can recall. I will say that the newer Farley was an upgrade over the older models though. Far better bearings and just a better rest but both were very serviceable, IME.

 

[swd]

Just my opinion but, I'm not sure we can actually wear one out in a lifetime...but lots are poorly adjusted. I've found a few for sale where the previous owner didn't like a joystick rest. After buying them, I don't blame them a bit...as adjusted. Adjust it out and it works as intended in every case I can recall. I will say that the newer Farley was an upgrade over the older models though. Far better bearings and just a better rest but both were very serviceable, IME.

I had one that had a lot wear on the plates and it was very uneven wear at that. One groove had probably .010” wear at a taper. I didn’t feel like rebuilding it, hence my Rodzilla purchase. It worked ok but needed more tension to negate the slop. I was at least the second owner and it was owned by a well know local Benchrest and F Class shooter and had a lot of miles on it.

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

I had one that had a lot wear on the plates and it was very uneven wear at that. One groove had probably .010” wear at a taper. I didn’t feel like rebuilding it, hence my Rodzilla purchase. It worked ok but needed more tension to negate the slop. I was at least the second owner and it was owned by a well know local Benchrest and F Class shooter and had a lot of miles on it.

Not doubting a single word you say, at all....but how did you measure that wear? TIA.. Again, not doubting, just wondering how it was quantified. A good description of the setup used would be fantastic.

 

[R.Morehouse]

Is a farley rest good for a newbie 1000 yard benchrest shooter , pros /cons from experience would be greatly appreciated, i know seb and a few other 2000-3000 dollar rests are the best but trying to stay in the 700-1000 club for now , thanks

1000 BR shooting is a lot of fun. Learning how to make your gun properly track is an important part of the equation. A joystick rest can hide a lot of handling " quirks " you may be developing, unknowingly. I suggest you look into the Sinclair Competition rest to get out of the 1000yd BR gate. They are very solid and in your $ wheelhouse. Many 1000 BR shooters use non-joystick rests with great success.........Happy Shooting

Regards
Rick

 

[swd]

Not doubting a single word you say, at all....but how did you measure that wear? TIA.. Again, not doubting, just wondering how it was quantified. A good description of the setup used would be fantastic.

The deepest part of the wear was at the edge of the male part of the plate that slides in the machined groove. It was easy to measure with a pair of calipers. The machined groove also had plenty of wear. It obviously hadn’t been maintained well..

 

[gunsandgunsmithing]

The deepest part of the wear was at the edge of the male part of the plate that slides in the machined groove. It was easy to measure with a pair of calipers. It obviously hadn’t been maintained well..

Thank you!

 

[majohnson]

The few things that see any wear on a Farley are bearings, originally a poor source of bearings was used. The other is the lower plate. Hard anodized aluminum is a pretty tough coating. In some cases the internal plates are not machined correctly. The .250” hardened pins that allow independent movement of the plates, are hardened. The only wear they have is shooters polishing them, hardened roll pins are hard to wear out. There are custom replacement pin options. If you do purchase the rest. I can make any replacement part for the Farley or any other make.

Also available are custom parts like a height locking knob, custom tensioners, custom front plates finish in your choice of color. Along with base plate knobs with any length rod. Maybe you can work out a deal with the seller for a pre purchase inspection. Which would be $40 plus return shipping if do not purchase it, or do not want me to service the rest. If you purchase the rest it would be the service fee explained below. I can also handle return service to the buyer if you pass on the purchase.

I can service your rest if you decide to buy it, and give you a full evaluation. Everything that can be disassembled comes apart, and is measured, and check flatness, and wear on a granite inspection plate using a .00005” drop gauge on the plates. Cost for the full service and inspection is $125 plus return shipping. I use expensive lubricants and also a custom blend. They hold up well and have the lowest slip -stick and friction coefficients.

In some cases all that goes wrong with Farley is some reassembled them incorrectly. Hope that helps you decide on which rest to purchase. I have been making parts for shooters on this forum since 2015. If you have any questions please contact me.

Thank you,
Mark Johnson
Erie, Colorado

 

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