Has anyone tried a floating rest top

[JASON50CAL]

Was just thinking if the top of the front rest floated then it wouldn’t matter if the rear bag was directly in line or not since the top would spin either direct and line up perfectly with the rear bag. Has anyone tried this or see and problems it may cause? Was thinking of trying one for long range BR shooting

 

[linekin]

I allow mine to rotate freely. When setting up you can see the top move if the front & rear are askew. I adjust things until there's no movement in the top.
Works for me.

Keith

 

[JASON50CAL]

I was meaning one that would turn side to side and not lock down. I just picked up a Farley Coaxial that someone made a top for that floats and was thinking that it may be a good idea to try. I was going to pin the top to keep it from turning but the more I thought about it the more think it’s a good idea for it to float like that.

 

[linekin]

Mine rotates 360* if that's what your after. I can lock it down if I wanted too. Just never made sense to me.
I still see one of my rifle jump to the right on every shot so I don't know if it matters or not. There's no binding with it allowed to move freely though.

Keith

 

[Uthink Uknow]

Well, in short range BR I want it rock solid and no rotation after I've set up on the bench.

 

[JASON50CAL]

Mine rotates 360* if that's what your after. I can lock it down if I wanted too. Just never made sense to me.
I still see one of my rifle jump to the right on every shot so I don't know if it matters or not. There's no binding with it allowed to move freely though.

Keith

Do you use it for short or long range? I was thinking the same way that there would be no binding if allowed to rotate freely

 

[JASON50CAL]

Well, in short range BR I want it rock solid and no rotation after I've set up on the bench.

Is there a reason you wouldn’t want it to rotate freely?

 

[AndyTaber]

Just about every time i shot a bad round at the range, i discovered i hadn’t tightened my front rest after making an adjustment. Any kind of movement in the front rest is, in my opinion, bad.

 

[JASON50CAL]

Just about every time i shot a bad round at the range, i discovered i hadn’t tightened my front rest after making an adjustment. Any kind of movement in the front rest is, in my opinion, bad.

I’ve had the same problem but figured it was from the slop and side to side movements from the knobs not tightened. I was meaning the top would be tight but just swivel

 

[Dusty Stevens]

A rest that swivels like that can shoot some horrific groups with a centerfire. I think the main one out there is i think a randolph 22 rest. Best thing to do is take the time to set your rest up right and theres one less thing to worry about. I have seen many contraptions to do this from strings to blocks with sights on em.

 

[JFrank]

Is there a reason you wouldn’t want it to rotate freely?

Accuracy

 

[JASON50CAL]

Thanks guys. Think I’ll go ahead and pin the top so I don’t have to worry about it

 

[JMayo]

My Randolph will spin. There are a few that say lock it down. I find when I do, it slightly binds when adjusting vertical when its at its lowest point.

 

[Mr.Spradlin]

You see thw swivel tops in rimfire/airgun benchrest where you are running a target with 5 lines of 5 bulls each. You need the swivel to keep things from binding. In group shooting you want things as solid as you can get due to the fact you are trying to hit the same spot every time. With the swivel movement you can are most likely adding an issue of movement you dont want

 

[linekin]

A rest that swivels like that can shoot some horrific groups with a centerfire. I think the main one out there is i think a randolph 22 rest. Best thing to do is take the time to set your rest up right and theres one less thing to worry about. I have seen many contraptions to do this from strings to blocks with sights on em.

As a matter of fact the rest I'm using is the Randolph. I use it in rfbr & as was said to go across that target we want it to swivel to prevent binding.. I'm also shooting IBS sr score with it now & have left it to swivel. I'll try it locked down with the cf guns.

Keith

 

[Cloudrepair]

Is there a reason you wouldn’t want it to rotate freely?

Balance and level
If not balanced and level I think there is chance of binding.
And I think it would be a fight to keep it balanced and level.

 

[jbarnwell]

If you would like to experiment with your theory, leave your Mariner wheel loose on a rest like a Sinclair and see how your groups look.

 

[_Raining]

The SEB Mini can rotate when unlocked, makes it easy to get the rifle on target. Smush the side bags into the stock, unlock it and get on target then lock it down.

 

[JASON50CAL]

Thanks for the info. Definitely gonna pin it

 

[LRPV]

Couple things, shooting a Randolph rest with the spinning top is no way shape or form like shooting a rest with loose pieces on it. I happen to know a handful of guys who shoot medium to long range benchrest with Randolph’s and they do ok...