Bench shooting technique

frumious

New member
All,

I am pretty new at shooting rifles. I have a Ruger 10/22 in .22LR and a Weatherby Vanguard Synthetic in .308. Both are scoped, and the .308 has a bipod. This question is more about the .308.

In terms of accuracy...when I shoot from the bench should I hold the rifle tightly against my shoulder or does it matter?

I ask because it is much easier to get the gun on target if I use the bipod and place a sandbag under the stock butt and then DON'T pull the gun very tightly against my shoulder. That way, I am relaxed. The gun jumps more, obviously, and it smacks my shoulder harder, but its not bad and I can put up with it for 50 rounds.

I am right-handed, and I place my left hand under the stock butt when I shoot, to fine-adjust the reticle position on the target.

I don't want to go buy a lead sled or anything like that; I just want to know how much difference (to accuracy) it makes whether I pull the rifle in tight or not.

-cls
 
I tend to wrap myself around the buttstock without really pulling it into my shoulder. It's more like I'm leaning into the rifle rather than pulling it to me. My mindset tends to be "make the rifle an extension of myself". My goal isn't to make an inanimate object perform how I want but to make myself perform. but that's me.

Mostly it comes down to what's comfortable and accurate for you. And once you know that, work on consistency.
 
Instead of my left hand under the butt of the rifle I use a "sand" bag made from corn cob media inside and old sock.
Squeezing and realeasing it to fine tune my aim.

I've tried the "loose grip" on the rifle and takes out, for me, some influence like my breathing. But the bigger jump on recoil takes away watching my trace or even seeing impact (specially when I miss).

I've turned to loading my bipod (leaning into it rather than pulling the rifle toward me). More linear recoil helps keep my eye down the scope. When on a smooth top bench though you'll have to figure out what works for you on how to do that. Because you need something to push the bipod legs against.
 
It depends on how your stance. If you wrap your support hand on top of the comb of the stock, decent shoulder pressure would probably be benificial. If you cradle the toe of the stock with your support hand (my preferred shooting method), you will find that less pressure is required. I don't really know how to tell you what I've found to be the ideal amount of shoulder pressure, though. I learned it by putting rounds down range.

+1 on loading the pods, too. Helps alot
 
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Snug the butt tightly against your shoulder but don't stress your muscles. If you should shoot a rifle much larger than a .308 and aren't snugged you will get an unpleasant and painful recoil. If you are at a range that has benches, I'll betcha there are experienced shooters who can give you tips. e.g. point of impact from a bench is often not the same when holding offhand.
 
I think your question relates more to how YOU shoot your rifle than anything. Try it both ways and see which way you are more accurate. Everyone varies a bit in stance and technique and one that works well for me may not work well for you.
 
with your trigger hand, grasp the rifle with a firm handshake grip, hook your trigger finger around so that the pad on the tip of that finger is is on the trigger, and is the only part of the finger that contacts the rifle. Pull the rifle firmly back into the shoulder. Shooting in the field is not like shooting off a bench. A bench rest shooter makes no contact with the rifle except at the trigger, the rifle is allowed to slide on the bags 6 inches or so into the shooters shoulder.
 
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I mostly use the benchrest to test a rifle or a new ammo loading for group size. I try to take myself out of the equation as much as possible. I try to not be testing me. :)

Uniformity and consistency are the important factors, IMO. I want the forearm location on the sandbag to be the same, every shot. I want the rifle set into the bags so that even when I'm not really holding it, the crosshairs are very nearly centered on the target. I generally try for "perfect" sight alignment by squeezing the rear sandbag.

My shoulder is firmly against the butt, but I'm not pushing hard nor am I pulling the rifle back into it.

I've never used a bipod. Just off the cuff, it seems like there could be some problem with the consistency of fore-and-aft forces if the shoulder pressure is not uniform from shot to shot. That's an, "I don't know," of course.
 
One thing I haven't seen addressed here is -- make sure that your eye stays centered, or at least consistent in it's relation to the eye-piece of the scope.
Next time at the range, with your rifle bagged down, move your eye back and forth or up and down while looking at the cross-hairs on the target. Notice how the cross-hairs will move around on target. If you don't find a comfortable and consistent position for your face/eye from shot to shot, you will increase your group size by --- one or two inches. jd
 
With most centerfires, the bullet has left the barrel before the rifle moves very much, so it's not as important to hold the rifle extremely tight against the shoulder, but it should be uniform pressure.

I use a soft front bag for zeroing varmint rifles, but a hard one for target rimfires.

If the rifle is going to be shot offhand, like for deer hunting, I like to put one hand under the forend and on a sandbag while pulling back against the shoulder with the other one. It doesn't improve group size, but tends to better the zero for offhand, sitting, and prone shots. (Sitting is a more useful field rest for me than prone.)

If I were to use a bipod on a bench, I'd try a bench surface that would allow it to slide rearward. Perhaps setting it on a piece of poster board would work well.
 
try this....

Use a wooden block with a forearm-contoured shooting bag. Next get a wood shim and place the butt of the stock on it. Last, place two sand or shot bags on each side of the butt. this should allow the gun to slide nicely against ur shoulder to absoarb the recoil without damaging the stock. It's amazing what you'll rig together when you forget the damn lead sled!!!! :D
If you can at all avoid it, DO NOT pull or push on the stock of the rifle. Simple things such as heartbeat and breathing tend to throw it off. at 100yds it doesn't account for a lot, but get on out to 300 and you'll see what I mean. My benchrest philosophy is to get the rifle on target and focused and sit there with my cheek firmly rested and breathe. if the sights move off target while i'm taking normal breaths, then I don't have it set right.
 
OK, so it sounds like there is no guarantee of accuracy one way or another...just whatever works for me. I just wanted to make sure. I prefer to grip the rifle pretty loosely, and have the stock just sort of resting against my shoulder, and use my left hand under the heel to fine-tune. Wanted to make sure that isn't the "worst possible way" to go about it. Thanks for all the advice!

-cls
 
I prefer to grip the rifle pretty loosely, and have the stock just sort of resting against my shoulder, and use my left hand under the heel to fine-tune. Wanted to make sure that isn't the "worst possible way" to go about it.
That will depend on the gun. Wont be bad with the 10/22, but the .308 might seem a little aggressive.

Shooting off a bench tends to be more uncomfortable and painful, especially as you go up in caliber.


The best tecnique with the bench is the "shuffle". You "shuffle" it out of the way, and get down on the ground to shoot. ;)

Seriously, no joke. :)
 
Definately keep the buttstock tight to your shoulder, other wise you're gonna get scope eye.

Typical bench shooting technique is to "cross your arms" around the buttstock like so:

Factory%20Sporter.jpg
 
I have read a lot of tips over on the 6mmbr.com forum about benchrest techniques. Those guys are some serious target shooters. Some of the techniques they use are not really practical on our normal sporter rifles in hunting calibers. Many of them have the butstock several inches from their shoulder. That won't work so well with a 7 mm mag or even a .308. I try to put the stock so that it is just touching my shoulder but not pressing into it very hard. One thing that I did find helpful just for the bench was to avoid putting my shooting hand on the stock. I put my thumb just behind the trigger guard and my shooting finger on the trigger and basically "pinch" them together. It seems to give me a more consistent trigger pull because my trigger finger is pulling in a straighter line. It seemed a bit awkward at first, but it works, especially when I have several different rifles to fire on a given day and all their triggers feel a bit different.
 
Whatever your technique is, it has to be the same every single shot. Placement of the recoil pad on the shoulder, placement of the rifle on the bags, etc, etc. Go slow and think about these things every single shot. Doubling up on the hearing protection can also help more than you think, as cutting the muzzle blast down will help you keep your eye open during the recoil sequence. If you can keep your eye open at least until the bullets hits the target, it makes it much easier to see if the rifle is recoiling stright back or sliding to the left or right.
I'll stop yapping now cuz I could go on forever about this. One of my favorite topics.:D
Hunterguy-- Is that a VX III on the 700 in the pic? I thought I was looking at a pic of my own gun there! If its in .223, I'll be really freaked out (the cartridges look more like .243 though).
 
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frumious,

This is the style I use. It is very comfortable for me and I found out that if I am not comfortable that I am forcing something and I might as well go home.
1) I position myself at about 60 degrees from the perpendicular line to the
target. This lets me have room to breath an look through my spotting
scope. I use the scope only to identify bullet hole location in respect to
the target. I don't want the bullet to hit the sighting spot because it will
distort the sight picture. My upper and lower leg form a 90 degree angle.
Both feet are flat on the ground. I bend towards the rifle at the hips
rather than at the waist, bending at the waist reduces your breathing
space within your body.

2) I use a 27 pound steel front shooting rest that has a sand bag for the
rifle to rest on. I place the front stock screw in the middle of the bag.
This keeps the rifle in balance and keeps me from having to hold the
the muzzle in a raised or lower position.

3) I have a large rabbit eared sand bad that goes under the stock between
the recoil pad and the pistol grip cap, where ever it is needed to have the
scope on the target. In case additional height is needed at the rear stock
I also have a piece of oak 4"x4"x2" that can go under the rear sand bag
if necessary. My left arm is bent at the elbow and the first two fingers
and thumb fit around the rear bag to locate the bag as needed when
moving to another sighting spot. During the shot, this is the only muscle
group under tension.

4) My right forearm rest on the bench so the hand is in position to reach the
trigger. I hold the pistol grip with my thumb and social (middle) finger at
a point that my trigger finger can reach the trigger comfortably. The stock
is fully in contact with my shoulder. I do not pull the rifle into my
shoulder nor do I push the rifle stock with my shoulder. We are
just in contact as if by mutual agreement. Go ahead and laugh, it works for
me.

5) I check the wind for the same conditions as they were for the previous
shot. Now I lower my head, close my eyes and breath slightly deeper than
normal. I turn off my hearing and shut off the world and get a sight
picture. I let half of my last breath out and hold it. My full concentration
is on the sight picture. I begin my trigger squeeze and my mind is all
on the sight picture and trigger squeeze. My concentration is such that
I want to see the bullet hole appear in the target. Sometimes I actually
see the bullet hit before I loose the sight picture in recoil.

6) After the shot I lower my head and breath, I hold each breath a few
seconds, and let it out. while exhaling I Let the tension run out of my
body through my feet and I get relaxed.

7) Then I look through the spotting scope only to see where the bullet hit
so I can record it in a steno pad I keep all my notes in. I also record the
velocity of the round. I take the round out of the rifle and examine it to
be sure I'm not getting any surprises and put it back into the same hole
in the ammo box it came out of. By doing this I can check anything I want
to when I get home. I like to compare how far the expansion ring came
down the case into the web of the case. The lower it comes, the higher
the pressures. If the expansion ring comes down to the extractor
groove. Whoa-Stop-Back Up. The pressures are dangerous. I don't care
what the primer says. I like to keep that ring at least 3/8 above that
groove.
8) Then I do it all over again.

It is a lot of work and not much fun, but by doing it I have a lot more fun later. :):):)
 
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