Shooting
We constantly talk about rifles, scopes, rests and the like but the one thing we never mention - the humble bench. The ‘thing’ we actually shoot from, that we all take for granted, is really the ‘anchor’ of all the ac- curate shooting we do, whether centerfire or rimfire benchrest. So with this in mind, what are we looking for in a shooting bench?
I must thank Vince Bottomley here for supplying a variety of pictures he has collected on his travels that help me show the diversity in the styles, materials and methods of building or even buying the best bench that you can afford.
When we started to develop the rimfire benchrest scene in the UK, we sort of worked it out for ourselves and made a few mistakes along the way so, with this in mind, I would like to explore the variety of methods you can employ to get hold of the stable bench you need. (This is very important as I can vouch - starting off with a flimsy bench does nothing for your shooting or self esteem).
It comes down to money, materials and space. The first and easiest of course is to buy your benches. Varide Cicognani of Italy produces benches and a few of the clubs I have seen over in Italy do go this way - if they have the money......... Although Cicognani’s benches are readily available, they are not cheap – see his website at
http://www.varidecicognani.com/2009/ default.asp There is also a folding version that is more easily stored - or transported from range to range - if this is a requirement
I have seen similar metal-frame benches constructed - it’s not that hard if you have someone in the club who is a welder. The metal frame of the bench the picture is very stable and can even be fixed permanently to
Benches
Rimfire Benchrest – the Bench by Carl Boswell
the floor with bolts. However, it may be that perma- nent benches would interfere with other shooters. If so, then dry, fine sand can be added inside the legs of the metal frame to increase weight and thus stability. (Dry sand is a must, otherwise you will find that your hard work will rust away in a short space of time).
The pattern used in European rimfire matches has fol- lowed the metal frame design. The CAD drawing and schematics for these are included in this article, so you don’t have to work this out for yourself. Sourcing the thickness of wood is interesting but laminating two 20 mm sheets of dense plywood solves the problem. Metal, depending on where you get it, could cost you around £150 per bench.
An alternative to the metal frame is one manufactured from wood. This can be quite stable but obviously the longevity of such a bench may not be as much as the metal version. Being lighter, they do have the ad- vantage of being semi-portable and can be designed to be taken apart. We have both at my club and the one used at the UK nationals was made from wood. This created a very stable base and has been copied a number of times. There are a number of wood based designs on the UKBR22 website, at http://www.
benchrest22.org/rimfireBRfaqs.htm As stated, the wood frame versions do not last that long, possibly a couple of seasons so perhaps best for indoor use.
The ideas on the benchrest website may be useful but they are the original ideas that were bandied about several years ago. I am sure that a few of you will come up with something better, with the added knowledge that having a fixed bench is by far the best for stability. It all comes down to what your club can afford.
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