Help with F-Class / Benchrest Strategy please?

[Itskeith]

Hi Everyone,

I’ve been shooting .22LR NSRA 25 Yd Benchrest (no rear bag) for 15 months now and am fairly addicted to it! And have just applied for my FAC. 

I love Shooting X’s and going for highest score. I'm not so sure about the enjoyablilty of shooting for smallest group as it doesn’t seem to appeal as much, but I’m willing to give it a go and have heard it can also becomes very addictive. At the very least it seems a worthwhile discipline to improve marksmanship!

I’ve just started shooting .223/.308 off a Bipod at Altcar, but have to say shooting from a Bench seems more accurate, enjoyable and comfortable (probably going to get called a wuss for that). 

I’d like to continue shooting NSRA / CNTSA (no rear rest) Benchrest .22LR and also try UKBRA .22LR 100 Yd Benchrest (which does use a rear bag).

I’d also like to try 600 / 1000 Yd Benchrest and if I ‘get into it’, will want to become as good as I can and compete at the highest level I’m capable of (with hopefully the help of some good mentoring). 

I’ve been given some  good advice so far (I think), but this has rasied a few questions and I’m trying to get my head around some sort of strategy. I will of course hopefully be chatting to the Diggle guys in a couple of months (both F-class and Benchrest 600/1000) but would appreciate anyone’s advice / thoughts in the meantime. 

Some advice that I’ve been given: 

·      If you want to become good at Benchrest 600/1000 then also doing F-Class is a good way of learning about the wind (due to plotting shots and the learning that goes with it). 

·      Get preferably ONE rifle (or two at the most) and learn it really well. 
 

Some qu’s regarding the above has raised:

1. Is getting the .22LR Benchrest Rifle in the same stock as the centrefire rifle and using it as a ‘trainer’ worth considering, for ‘cross training benefits’?

 

2. Is it possible to use the same rifle for both Benchrest and F-Class disciplines (or at least to start with)?

i.e.  Benchrest 600 Yd (maybe 1000 Yd  eventually) and F-Class 300/500/600 Yd (maybe 800/900/1000 Yd eventually).

3. I’m guessing a 6mmBR or maybe 6.5mm x 47 (second-hand savage or custom) would be a good calibre for this? 

I don’t reload yet but expect I’ll be going down that rabbit hole also. 
 

4. How do I go about this?
E.g. 

Get a benchrest rifle with flat forend and have a rail fitted for a bipod / or use a rest for both disciplines? 

Make sure the rifle meets the weight limit of the 17Lbs with limit of Light Gun BR and also shoot it as is for F-Class?

Make sure the rifle meets the weight limit of the 17Lbs with limit of Light Gun BR and add extra weight (somehow) when shooting F-Class (22 Lbs)?

 

5. I like the idea of getting one rifle and becoming good at it. Partly becomes it sounds a logically good idea and also it seems less faff. 

But effectively do most people get their first rifle for a year or so and then change / upgrade it when they better know what they want and what they are doing anyway?

 

6. Do most people end up getting different rifles for BR & F-Class, or different rifles for different distances (mid range and long range)?

 

I kind of know this may be running a bit before I can walk, but would appreciate any input / thoughts in the meantime.
At the very least it will help pass the time until the FAC arrives … 3 months and counting 🤞

 

Cheers.

Keith

[The Gun Pimp]

The most popular cartridge for 600 and 1000 yd BR at Diggle is the 6BR or one of its many derivatives - 6BRA 6Dasher 6BRX etc.

However this wouldn't be competitive in 800 to 1000 yard F Class - you'd be blown off the target!

But, to start with you can get going with one (17lb) gun in something like 6.5x47 Lapua. It would be competitive in 600/1000 yd benchrest and you'd get a bang in F Class - though you'd struggle to match the 7mms - be it 284, 7mmWSM or 7mmPRC except on a still day.

If you start the other way round - with a 7mm - barrel life will be an issue - 400 rounds is typical with a 7mmWSM benchgun.

And that's the difference - F Class, read the wind, take your shot, your partner shoots and a couple of minutes later you take your next shot. With benchrest you must try and beat the wind - so good shooters with get their five off in about 15 seconds - that don't half have an effect on barrel life! Hence the popularity of the 6mms.

 

 

[firedoc]

As per the Gunpimps reply, the 6mm family will perform exceptionally in both 600 and 1000 yard benchrest. Hence with a careful choice you can use a single rifle and calibre that will do 600 and a 1000 yards.  Diggle FClass shoots are held approximately every two weeks and you would use about 25 rds per comp adding to barrel life. Given that you would want to shoot the same rifle in FClass the 6.5 x 47 as Vince suggests would be a good choice, but you would be shooting in the FOpen class and at a distinct disadvantage in calibre and bullet weight. I shoot both bench (600 and 1000 with the same rifle, 6 Dasher) and 308 in FClass.  Look forward to seeing you at Diggle.

[Itskeith]

Great thanks Guys and really helpful.

Much appreciated and look forward to seeing you at Diggle. 

[No i deer]

I have several 7mms and I've not found barrel life a problem..

I've used my saum barrel until it did 2350 firings..

I've got another that's done around 1800..

It still shot great the last time I used it..

My 7mm 270 had done around 1700 shots and it still shot like a laser last time I shot it..

I've also got a 284 thats my stalking and 1000yds snaps rifle and that's done 2720 odd firings and still shoots tidy.

photo is my 284..

 

4 shot group with 180gr hybrids at 100yds in mirage a week ago

[Jeffo1960]

Do you mind me asking what length barrel is on the 284 as I am considering 1

[No i deer]

26 inches.

The 180gr hybrid will be doing around 2800fps.

If you use RS60 it'll do 2880fps on 51.8grs

[Jeffo1960]

Cheers 

[Laurie]

On 6/23/2024 at 4:44 PM, Itskeith said:

2. Is it possible to use the same rifle for both Benchrest and F-Class disciplines (or at least to start with)?

i.e.  Benchrest 600 Yd (maybe 1000 Yd  eventually) and F-Class 300/500/600 Yd (maybe 800/900/1000 Yd eventually).

 

As you're looking at Diggle comps (BR organised by the UKBRA), you have 'Light Gun', (LG) and 'Heavy Gun' (HG) class options, 17lbs and unlimited all-up weights respectively, so you can either decide to concentrate initially on BR or F-Class with a single rifle. If the former, LG in a 6mmBR variant is probably your better BR option as @The Gun Pimp and @firedoc say. If the latter (F-Class) is your priority, you want a proper F rifle with an all-up weight getting on for the allowed max weight of 22lbs and then shoot in HG in the BR matches.

 

On 6/23/2024 at 4:44 PM, Itskeith said:

 If you want to become good at Benchrest 600/1000 then also doing F-Class is a good way of learning about the wind (due to plotting shots and the learning that goes with it).

 

The two disciplines involve different techniques except for a certain commonality of rifle / scope / rest specifications, and the basic skills and experience required in set-ups, rifle hold, rifle management etc, as @The Gun Pimp explains in his post. 1,000 yard BR does have wind flags put out down the range at Diggle, but 600 only uses the mantlet range-in-use red flag and a vane short distance BR-type flag not much ahead of the benches. Many Effers do shoot BR very well at Diggle, and no doubt the 'feel' that discipline gives them for wind changes helps, but F is a slowfire prone discipline and BR is all about getting those five shots away in seconds while retaining precision. You also know where each shot has gone on the target in F (and other competitors' too if needed) before taking the next. Plotting both POIs and corrected actual wind is near vital. In BR you get those five score shots off fastest and best you can, then see at the end of the string where they went, to either pleasure or near despair. 

 

You can use a bipod if you wish in F-Class ('Open' that is; mandatory in the 223/308 only F/TR division), but most use a front-rest. The only difference between disciplines here is that the heaviest, most stable rests such as the NEO-X, ideal for BR, are cripplingly heavy to carry to some of Diggle's firing points. For that reason, I used a bipod in F-Open for a couple of seasons, but abandoned it as the downsides are too great and use the SEB Mini-X now as a midway option except for Diggle's 300-yard matches that involve a stiff climb up a steep hillside where I revert to the 'pod'. As I mostly use Dolphin chassis stocks with interchangeable forends on my F rifles, I switch from the 3-inch wide rest orientated front end to the F/TR version with its Anschutz rail for the bipod in this case.

 

On calibres / cartridges for F, many competitors used 6BR and similar 10 or more years ago, hardly anybody today except maybe for PSSA's four 300-yard Diggle fixtures some at 500 yards too if the weather forecast looks fair, the 6.5s being more or less minimum these days, and even those are at a disadvantage in the long-distance fixtures. With a stable, rested 22lb rifle and slowfire keeping barrel heat down / preserving barrel life, the 284 Win with 175s or heavier bullets becomes the competitive 'floor'. You can shoot the 284, 300WSM and similar in an F rifle in the HG BR class (I did for quite a while), but you won't shoot nearly as quickly as the LG shooters do with a 6mm.

 

Forget about having a single light rifle and ballasting it up purely for F matches. Choose one or other optimised for one discipline and learn to live with its downsides in the other. Ultimately, you'll want both should you decide you like shooting both disciplines. 100 Yard centrefire BR is another game completely, as you'll see when you join, and you can use your .22LR there as there is a category for it. 

[Laurie]

One other point to note is that muzzle brakes are allowed in 600/1,000 BR, but aren't allowed in F-Class or F/TR. A brake is very valuable (essential?) in BR especially in LG with any cartridge above 6.5X47mm Lapua size to reduce rifle movement in the rest and rear bag and facilitate shooting quickly. (If using a 22lb F-Class rifle in BR HG you have more latitude in this respect, but even a very heavy unbraked rifle shooting one of the big, larger calibre cartridges slows down shooting and is trickier to handle.) So again, a proper BR rifle and 6mm cartridge is the better option when BR is the more important use for a single rifle.  

[Itskeith]

Hi Laurie, 

Thank-you so much for your detailed and incredibly helpful reply. 

 

Taking all the replies into account, here’s the plan:

Get one rifle optimised for one discipline and learn to live with its downsides in the other. 

Choose priority: BR or F-Class. 

My current leaning is towards BR, so I’ll choose a LG (17 lbs) rifle. 

Choose calibre: 6mmBR. 

Also learn to shoot it also at F-class for 300/500/600 yds and see how well I get on with the discipline, learn about the wind, how to plot shots and handle 6mm recoil. 

IF I get addicted to F-class and when I can actually hit targets, then choose a .284 or .308 (discipline dependant).

 

Looking forward to seeing you all soon.

Cheers.

Keith