Front rest

[Skynnard3325]

Hello all, can anyone recommend a rest for me that won't break the bank. Have looked at bald eagle slingshot. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks in advance

 

[WindSurgeon]

For what purpose?

I have a Caldwell BR rest that I like quite a bit. Used it for F-class this summer and it worked well. Recently upgraded to a Farley for the joystick function. On my Caldwell, I modified the top so it was much more stable, added longer feet (hardware store home brew ) and purchased an Eagle 3" Front rest bag to upgrade from the factory bag. In all, the rest cost around $130, longer feet around $10 and the bag was $30.

 

[gaboon]

I had used the caldwell br rest. I found to a little unstable for my liking. I brought the bald eagle cast iron and put the longer feet on it. With a Protektor front bag on it and I like alot for the money.

 

[lawman29]

Another one to consider is the Sinclair Heavy Varmint BR rest $280 non-windage and $350 with windage. http://www.sinclairintl.com/shooting-rests-bipods/shooting-rests-tops/shooting-rests/sinclair-heavy-varmint-rests-prod57001.aspx

 

[noload]

I had an older cast iron Caldwell BR, I also stiffened the top on it, that was pretty easy, make sure the bold that holds it on doesn't get lose. Put a good bag on it. Basically take all the shake out of the rest top. I sold that rest, got a SEB NEO, but later I needed another rest since I began shooting in Florida for the winters, I bought another Caldwell, but the newer ones are lighter than the older versions. If you are a DIY'er you can modify it to shoot. I did not try a lot of other cheaper rests, but I new the Caldwell Br would work and it was a good price, shipping included I believe.

 

[snakepit]

I had an older cast iron Caldwell BR, I bought another Caldwell, but the newer ones are lighter than the older versions.

I found that out when I bought a new one and found it to be lighter than my friend's old one. They look the same but when you turn it over you find out the the legs on the new one have been hollowed out. I sent Caldwell a email and asked why they did this but received no answer. I guess to reduce their cost. So I started to lay a bag of shot across the front legs to help stabilize it. Now I have a Sinclair Competition Shooting Rest which I am happy with.

 

[nmkid]

I just bought a used/new Caldwell "Rock" for my 11 year old grandson. Yes, the legs are hollow. I ended up removing the paint, ( most of it any way) from inside the hollow legs. Then I mixed up some epoxy and bb's. Filled the hollow portion of the legs clear to the top. They (the bb's) haven't fallen out and it added a good amount of weight to the unit. The grandson is happy and that's all that matters.

 

[LHSmith]

The best bargain on the net is Bullets.com's Bald Eagle rest. My preference would be the standard (no slingshot) , in aluminum, w/o the cable drive. I paid over $300 15 years ago and it is a quality piece, and reports on the newer (imported) B.E.'s are mostly favorable. However, the current bags may not be the same quality as the originals. Cast Iron is nice, but IMHO not necessary, the extra weight is a PITA to lug around. The slingshot is not as stable as the original tri-pod design, Caldwell copied it because it looks cool.

 

[Lesloan]

I think the Greenlaw rests are very hard to beat for anything like the price. You can specify the base and tops separately; choose from several bases and then specify a windage top, adjustable windage or non-windage. Very reasonable prices , and Dan Greenlaw is a great guy to do business with.

http://www.drgreenlawmachining.com/

 

[cdparker]

I built my own rest and robbed some of the parts off of my Caldwell ROCK. I do still have as not being used, the older solid base. "Such a deal I would make for you." That is, if you needed one. PM if this might help.
Craig

 

[normmatzen]

I started shooting long range bench rest around 5 years ago with a Caldwel with the joy stick.
The rest was kind of rougn so after taking it apart, my Australian friend and I both modified our rests with a piece of hardened steel cabinet makers scraper glued on the bearing wall and replaced the adjusting screws with set screws with holes filled with a spring and brass mushroom to improve friction. This plus changing the clamp screw for the height adjustment, I have a very serviceable rest.
I replaced the Caldwell a couple years ago with a Sinclair competition and recently started shooting F Open and found the Caldwell works better on the ground than the Sinclair.