Building a bench rest rifle

Boar Hunter

Hello,
been a long time reader but first time poster. I am interested in getting into bench rest shooting .22 rim fire to start and at some stage move into the longer range centre fire discipline. With that in mind I am considering getting a rifle built for this purpose. In my local range there is a very informal bench rest setup where people shoot for best group on a personal level and there is no competition at all. Some use straight out of the box rifles while others are using single shot custom rifles.

With that in mind I am considering having a rifle built which would be a step up from my current rifle (Ruger 77/22). Having done some research on line and looking at the equipment others are using I am interested in your options on the following actions which I am considering for the build.

Bleiker challenger sport

Grunig + Elmiger racer

Anschutz 54

Is there any one of these potentially better than the other?

I'm relation to the stocks could I shoot in competitions with the standard stocks from these companies e.g. In light varmint or heavy varmint? I have looked over the rules for bench rest but can't seem to get the dimensions from the company's websites but have e mailed them so hopefully can see if they fit in. If they don't is there any blank stocks which anyone could recommend. Lastly I don't live in Ireland but am Irish so would like to return for some shoots at some stage so any build would need to be in accordance with any applicable laws.

Looking forward to any feedback.

tac foley

I'm not resident either, and I'm only half-Irish, so I can only 'half-welcome' you here. Notwithstanding my inadequacies, it would be very handy to know what country you DID reside in, not because I'm nosey but because of the availability of components for your build.

Obviously, if you live in Botswana, the Galápagos or Tonga, this might prove somewhat of a problem.

tac

Boar Hunter

Tac,
Thank you for the replay.

Regarding your question I am based in Switzerland but only get to spend any decent time there on the weekends due to work commitments across the border and in various EU Countries.

That one of the reasons I listed both the Bleiker and Grünig + Elmiger actions is their manufacturing facilities are both in Switzerland so availability of components should not be an issue.

Regards BH

tac foley

In that case, Sir, your problem is solved. :=)

tac

Baker.22

Blieker with Lilja barrel fitted, (Blieker are now agents for Lilja) Also an American built rifle with say a Turbo action. The world championships are on later this year in Australia, a good idea is to wait until u see what is winning there. Also you will need a custom stock bedded for the rifle, have a look at 'cicognani varide' website. Another big decision you will have is for which weight class do you want the rifle, International Sporter, Light Varmint, Heavy Varmint? Remember that if it is below 10.5lbs it will also be fine to shoot in Heavy Varmint

tac foley

Well, all this talk of spending great sums of money reminds me that I bought a ready-for-the-scrap heap rusty old Anschutz Model 1409 with a thumbhole stock for £25, smartened it up, put a second-hand Weaver T36 scope on it and cleaned up our local club comps for a couple of years till it got boring.

The most money I spent was on a spiffy-looking barrel harmoniser doo-dad that closes up the groups somewhat.

All-in-all, I'm into it for about the price of your Lilja barrel.

Still, if you have all the funds to go the 'Lamborghin'i route rather than the 'Model T' route, I'd say go for it. You're a long time dead.

tac

Baker.22

As you implied, quite a few years ago, things move on, standards rise. You also do not need 'to build' a rifle, you can buy second hand rifle for a few hundred, or put a €300 barrel on a CZ and win the Nationals.

tac foley

I always had a hard time here from a fellow shooter with a SAKO 'Range' rifle. Boy, I would have loved to have had one of those!

tac

homerhop

What level do you want to get in the BR comps? That will give you a fair idea of what kind of rifle you want.

tac foley

Like centrefire BR, this is a part of the sport where money buys technology, and superior technology will always win.

tac

homerhop

tac foley wrote: »

Like centrefire BR, this is a part of the sport where money buys technology, and superior technology will always win.

tac

I disagree, you can have all the fancy fandangle gear with bells and whistles, still no good to you if you cant shoot. One of the Italians at the moment is shooting an old 54 and very little done to it who is handing a lot of lads with custom built rigs their asses

tac foley

That is as may be, but for ordinary humans, having a firm basis on which to build your BR rifle requires you to initially buy the best that you can afford, or else we would all still be shooting sixty-year old designs with their sixty year-old barrels that have long given of their best.

Sure, you can rest your rifle on a brick wrapped in an old towel or piece of carpet, but I'm betting that you don't.

tac

homerhop

tac foley wrote: »

That is as may be, but for ordinary humans, having a firm basis on which to build your BR rifle requires you to initially buy the best that you can afford, or else we would all still be shooting sixty-year old designs with their sixty year-old barrels that have long given of their best.

Sure, you can rest your rifle on a brick wrapped in an old towel or piece of carpet, but I'm betting that you don't.

tac

Yup we all buy the best we can, mine is a 54 Anschutz. Won the Nationals with it last year, came down to first miss on the x against a rifle that brought home medals from European comps this year. Third place was a 64 Annie too. Top BR shooter here is using a rest he made up himself from an old microscope stand and a €30 rear bag. People spend too much time on buying gear instead of learning to shoot well

tac foley

Well done you, Sir.

That 30eu rear bag cost the same as my rifle!

What scope are you using?

tac

homerhop

tac foley wrote: »

Well done you, Sir.

That 30eu rear bag cost the same as my rifle!

What scope are you using?

tac

Second hand weaver T36.
Herself has a 64annie,swift premier and can put the skids under us

LB6

Ahem 54 annie - born in 1964 :-)

IRLConor

As much as I sing the praises of Bleiker at every available opportunity, it may not be your best option. I mean, I love mine but it's a lot of money to spend that could be spent elsewhere. With benchrest you're not as constrained by ergonomics as much as we are in ISSF rifle so some of the advantages of the Bleiker aren't as valuable. (In particular, I can't imagine you need the short action quite as much.)

That said, if you don't care about the cost run to Bleiker with your money and buy one. The trigger is beautiful out of the box. I've never touched any of the adjustments on mine and it feels great. If I had both the money and a good excuse to buy ten more I'd do it in a heartbeat.

I still think that for someone starting out you'd be better served by a serviceable Anschütz and a big stack of ammo and a bunch of time on the range. When you outshoot your rifle then you can think about upgrading.

tac foley

IRLConor hits the nail on the head.

While your rifle shoots better than you can, you are still learning.

When you can shoot better, it's time to pass it on to another noob.

After a literal lifetime of shooting millions of rounds I have yet to reach that point with any of my .22 rifles. Guess I'm just a low achiever.

tac

homerhop

some time you are over in this parish, ya fancy going for a shot on a few BR cards?

tac foley

Thanks for the invitation, but the way your rather odd laws operate, I'm liable to cause an international incident if I picked up a firearm in the RoI, and get banged up for the rest of my life. Mind you, if I got sent to Mountjoy I could look for my dad's signature on the cell walls...

tac

Boar Hunter

Firstly my apologies for the delay in replaying I have been very busy with work this week.

Secondly thank you all for your replays and the information that you have all supplied it has been most informative and the debate surrounding equipment has given me plenty food for thought.

Baker 22 – Thank you for the information regarding the world championship. I will review the information regarding the particular equipment that is used at this championship. I have also never heard of the Turbo actions and from looking at their website and some brief on line research I am very impressed to say the least. This is especially due to the configurations that are offered in relation to the bolt and the ports. Regarding the stock I had toyed with the idea of getting a carbon fibre stock but looking at the cicognani x10 stock I am very taken especially with the moveable weights as the check piece.

Homerhop – Regarding the level of bench rest I want to get into, it’s a hobby rather than a competitive level I am after. I would be more that happy shooting for my own personal best at the local range or at home. This may sound strange given the equipment I am interested in but I would be happy to know that any miss hit on the target is down to me miss reading the wind than the equipment not performing well.

Tac – I know the feeling that you described about other shooters looking down on your equipment that you shoot. I used to shoot a lot of competitive pistol and some of the comments or “surprised remarks” when I would take out my well used BAP compared to their very nice race guns, were amusing to me. However the old adage of you should never judge a book by its cover ran true in this case!

IRLConor – Thanks for the user feedback in relation to the Bleiker. My main reason for adding the Bleiker action to the list for consideration (other than its ease of availability over here) is its very consistent head spacing of the round due to its action design. Delighted to hear the trigger is good as that was another thing that I had factored in to the equation for the build.

Regards BH

IRLConor

Boar Hunter wrote: »

IRLConor – Thanks for the user feedback in relation to the Bleiker. My main reason for adding the Bleiker action to the list for consideration (other than its ease of availability over here) is its very consistent head spacing of the round due to its action design. Delighted to hear the trigger is good as that was another thing that I had factored in to the equation for the build.

Regarding the head spacing, be aware that Bleiker offers two bolt setups. One for ELEY and one for Lapua/RWS. They have different rim thicknesses. You can swap a bolt over from one ammo to the other by changing a single part but it takes a minute or two to do.

Boar Hunter

That’s very interesting regarding the ability to change the bolt head to suit the different brands of ammunition that may be used. Thanks for this information. Bleiker really seem to have put a lot of time into their design.

IRLConor

Boar Hunter wrote: »

Bleiker really seem to have put a lot of time into their design.

They have indeed. There aren't too many fiddly parts outside the trigger (which I've never opened) so taking it apart for a good clean isn't too much of a chore.

https://instagram.com/p/nWfKTymBlJ/

That is about as complete a teardown as I would ever do and there's only about 20 parts in total for the action. Only one is particularly easy to lose – the tiny grub screw at the top right – and you can shoot without it if you absolutely had to.

Baker.22

Did you ever purchase a firearm for benchrest??

Boar Hunter

Hi Baker.22 as of yet I have not put together the Benchrest rifle. The opportunity presented its self to purchase some firearms that I have wanted for a long time so that has taken up my time at the moment.

With that all that said I have had the chance to shoot some of the actions discussed in this thread. This has allowed me to get hands on experience with them. I have decided to go with a Turbo action in a right bolt left port configuration. I have already purchased a Lilja barrel as well as a front rest, sand bags and scope, so it is only a case of getting the action and stock and having it put together by my smith.

Currently with the barrel and the scope and looking at the action I will be in the heavy class of bench rest.

Baker.22

Seems you are well on your way,

I have purchased a Grunig R3 and am awaiting its arrival next week, expecting it to be very good, shilen ratchet barrel fitted