Sinclair rifle rests? Worth the $?

[esheato]

My new rifle is on the way here, and I'm looking for a rest to allow me to put some nice groups on paper.

I was looking at the Sinclair rests, but they're very pricey. Are they as good as they claim? Worth the amount of money they charge?

Any feedback appreciated.

Ed

 

[echo3mike]

Sinclair makes some nice rests. I think the answer you're looking for kind of depends on what you want to do with your rifle. If you plan on doing alot of load testing or entering some factory BR matches, it might not be a bad investment.

OTOH, I've shot some pretty decent groups from aWichita front rest and rear bag, off regular sand bags, and off an ALICE pack.

If you can make everything about your shots consistant, (weld, grip, hold, rifle placement, etc.) you can probably shoot your rifle's limits off of anything solid.

My $.02.
S

 

[Art Eatman]

I've never used anything but sandbags, stacked as necessary to get proper alignment.

Save the pants legs from the old "wo' outs". Fold over and stitch one end; fill about half-full with sand and tie off...I've used shot bags, coin bags, and even these plastic bags the banks give out. I haven't tried using any of the heavier ZipLoc plastic bags; might be too fragile.

Regardless of the type of rest you use, make sure the forearm is in the same location for every shot...

, Art

 

[Dave P]

I too drool over their rests: heavy cast iron, stainless adjusters, windage tops
But I don't think it would improve my scores - not enough bang for the buck.

I didn't win the lottery yet, so I use one of the $90 ones from midway. I poured some lead into it to add weight. And ya gotta have a bunny bag for the back, too.

Dave

 

[esheato]

I'm looking to shoot tight little one-hole groups at 100-250 yards. Lots of load development and experimentation. I usually go to the rifle range once a week. I do not see BR competition in my future. At least not yet.

I bought a known accurate rifle (Cooper) and I purchased a new turret press and the best dies I could afford. (Redding Competition bushing dies at nearly $200 for the set)

I'm afraid that if I get a crappy rest, it'll be the weak link. My goal with this rifle project is to eliminate all the variables. Quality gun and optics, handload ammunition to the best of my ability, and a quality rest. That way, when I shoot poor groups, I know it's either me or the ammo and once I get the ammo tuned to the gun, I'll know it's me shooting poor and not anything else.

The way I figure it, if you go quality once, you won't have to replace it later on down the line. A rest like the Sinclair should last a lifetime. A one-time purchase...

When it comes to gun stuff, I have a habit of buying the absolute best that I can no matter the price. Sometimes that's good, sometimes it isn't.

I think I've already decided....

$400 for the rest and bags is going to hurt the budget though.

Thanks for the responses.

Ed

 

[JohnBT]

Another possibility is one of Joe Cowan's rests. They are made by his high school class and cost $200 shipped. I don't know if he has any left from this semester (are high schools on semesters?) He makes a limited number of speed screws for $35 extra.

I bought one of his original rests, with a windage top BTW, a couple of years ago and am eagerly awaiting delivery of the so-called upgraded design - a little lower, a little heavier and a thrust bearing. I would have sent my old one in for upgrading, but I couldn't live without it.

He can be reached at [email protected]

Joe is a member of benchrest.com and rimfirecentral.com and we'll all vouch for him and the quality of his product.

John

Let's see if I can find a pic of the original rest. Okay, but the color is way off. My rest is aluminum and the new one has brass legs at a different angle. Joe will e-mail pics if you ask.

 

[Quintin Likely]

I don't know about rests, since I too use sandbags when shooting off a bench. I do know that the guys at Sinclair are outstanding, they're great folks to deal with. I don't really think you can go wrong with anything they offer.

 

[Art Eatman]

The good Lord knows I'll not stop a man from spending his own money...

A buddy of mine came out with his latest toy: A Savage in .300 Win Mag, all tricked out with a sniper-style stock, bipod, and a 6x24 quality scope.

He sat down at my benchrest and got all sandbagged up. After some re-check on his sight-in, he went for "record": He put three shots in one hole. About a 40-caliber hole.

That was only 100 yards, though...

, Art

 

[El Rojo]

I got a buddy that has a Sinclair rest and yes, they are super nice. The adjustable elevation and windage is pretty cool and good for benchrest. If you don't plan on shooting bench rest, I could see that money better spent elsewhere like on ammo or a chronograph. However, they are nice rests and I think they are probably worth their cost if that is what you want. I wouldn't mind having one if I had the money.

 

[Cortland]

I use a Wichita Arms rest (heavy cast iron type). I haven't seen a Sinclair rest, but the Wichita rest does everything I need. I can't imagine I'd see any difference in my group sizes. Lock Stock & Barrel sells the Wichita rest with Protektor front and rear leather sand bags for $158. For the cost of a Sinclair rest, you can probably buy a Wichita with bags, a chronograph, some ammo, and some more ammo.