New Shooter Need Advice

T

takdriver

Guest
I am new to competition benchrest but I am an experienced shooter. I have a PPC rig with a Bruno McMillan stock and a Krieger 4 groove. I have been a bag squeezer for years at the range shooting my varmint rifles just on sandbags with a regular cheap protektor rear bag. I'm doing all my adjustments with the rear bag. Around here all the comps are for score, so I entered a couple and took first place in both, just using a cheap tripod front rest and my cheap protektor bag. I would like to get something of better quality for a front rest maybe (Farley or a tripod like a Hart) The thing is I don't know if I can get used to using the joystick, yet with the tripod it takes a while to adjust to every bull and then go to the sighters. What would you guys recommend to a bag squeezer. Should I go for the other method adjusting the front rest or keep squeezing the rear bag for shooting score?

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http://www.takdriver.com
 
A lot of the very best shooters still bag squeze and use a protector bag. Do you have a stabilizer to go under it? If not, get one. Also, just get a Hart/Sinclair/Cowan front rest to start out with. Seems you already have it down pat. Plenty of people have farley's, etc. See if someone you know that has one will let you try it out.

Hovis
 
Ok now I see what you mean. I'm on the phone with Sinclair ordering it. This makes a lot of sense. What would be a good front bag for a hart rest. My rifle has a 3 inch flat bottom forearm
 
If you are going to stick with the Hart rest, I recommend the Hoehn windage top. It includes a bag. I used my Hart rest with Hoehn top for a number of years before I bought a Farley.

That said, after a single afternoon using a Farley you would be spoiled. There is no way I would go back to a non-joystick front rest.
 
Ron Hoehn is no longer making his windage rest. Is not the Fudd very similar?

I had a Hoehn and somewhat regret selling it.

Greg J.
 
Also what about some good wind flags for 100 yard score comps?
 
Takdriver,

Maybe something else to research, if you are interested in a joystick type rest, is Butch Lambert's joystick rest top. It is made to fit most bases. (Shadetree Engineering).
This was my first year of registered matches and I was a knob turner and bag squeezer, but couldn't get from the sighter to the record bull fast enough - now with the joystick it is a piece of cake. Happy shooting.

Stanley
 
Apollo said:
Takdriver,

Maybe something else to research, if you are interested in a joystick type rest, is Butch Lambert's joystick rest top. It is made to fit most bases. (Shadetree Engineering).

Stanley
Click to expand...

Butch's top is pretty cool. A friend of mine bought one and is very happy. He put his on a Bald Eagle base. I like the Hart base better, but the top will work on either.

Farley also has a top for tripod bases, but it works backwards from a normal Farley. Moving the joystick moves the sight picture in the opposite direction. I think Butch's top can be switched to work either way. (Butch...correct me if I'm wrong)

I still have my Hart rest. It's too good for general use to think about selling it. I just prefer to have a specialized rest for competition.
 
Thank you guys and gals for the recommendations. I looked up Butch's top and it looks like something I would like to try. The price is half of the Farley full blown coaxial too. I think I will wait for the Hart and try it the way it is and go from there. Does anybody have recommendations for flags for 100 yard score?

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http://www.takdriver.com
 
I really like my double vane Hood flags. Having two vanes with black lines on the inside really make it easy for me to see the direction of the wind. What you do is remember the color and number of bars. (hard to explain if you have never seen them work). The tails will tell the speed. Dave Halblom(sp) at flyfishing fundamentals also sells double vane flags and other flags. (Dave is excellent to work with and will do whatever it takes to get you going) One caution, double vane flags are not as easy to transport as single vane - although it isn't that big of a deal. Good shooting

Stanley
 
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I use smiley hensley flags (a lot do) but Graham flags are gathering a large following. I'd check into them. He has a web page you can access from this homepage under wind flags.

Hovis
 
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