The club has historically ran a few 25 Yard Outdoor Benchrest shoots over the last years and many members have thoroughly enjoyed chasing that 2mm bull and trying for that perfect score. For 2023 we have decided to run one Sunday morning Benchrest shoot at the walled garden every month and see how interest goes. This shoot takes part at the 55 yard firing lines so does not affect normal 30 yard Sunday morning shooting. As with all group shoots, members can opt in to shoot only if they wish, even deciding on if they wish to record their scores or just to shoot the targets for fun.
Format
The club decided to adopt a target with the same dimensions as those used by other 25yard Air Rifle shoots in the UK, this was done so that BARPC members can use our shoots as practice for these other events available to them in the UK. We did however simply the "official" target to be only 8 targets and not the normal 25.
As with all club shoots , the most important rule to be followed is that BARPC safety rules are to be adhered to at all times. As we operate from the 55yard firing line we had introduced additional safety procedures, such that normal Sunday morning shooting can continue at the 30yard firing line, unaffected by the benchrest shooting going on at the second firing line
- Targets will be placed at 25 yards
- Targets to be placed on the 3 open back A4 holders so as to create a "clean" hole. Solid backstops must be used behind the targets to control ricochets
- Each Member can shoot three cards and the scores will be selected from the best two cards as the members overall score
- Any sub 12 ftlb rifle can be used. Any BARPC approved pellet can be used
- Max scope zoom to be whatever the shooters wishes to use
- The club will provide a wind vane fixed to each of the target frames plus also a firing line wind vane
- Shots to be taken from one of the BARPC shooting tables. Front rest can be anything that is safe. A Rear butt rest is now also allowed. Bench rest SLEDS ie a support that is a one piece complete rifle support will not be allowed
- Unless shooting at the defined "sighter" targets, NO scope or rifle adjustment allowed between shots
- Any number of shots can be taken at the 2 sighter targets (and if needs be the BARPC Logo)
- Only one shot is taken on the 8 outer scored targets. If two shots are found on a outer target the lower scored pellet will be used
- DO NOT SHOOT someone else’s targets
Scoring
Members can elect to have their cards scored for either for their own self interest or to go into the clubs scoring as we may decide to offer up some award at the end of the year after we see how things have gone
The club has adopted a scoring method close to the UKBR25 scoring methodology. The score is always highest edge counts, so if you clip the higher scoring edge you get that score. To achieve an X the 2mm center circle has to be completely obliterated with no black ink visible. We also score .177 pellets as if they are a .22 pellet, this is achieved by the scorer using a probe.
This probe has a tapered .177 plug which sits neatly in the .177 hole and then has a .22 flange on it which shows the scorer what the hole would have been if it had been .22
The diagram below is a score card with a bunch or red dots representing the .177 pellet hits taking into account use of the scoring probe (ie the red dots are .22 "size").
- Target 1 scores a X as all the 2mm center has gone
- Target 2 scores a 10 as some of the 2mm center was still visible even when using the probe
- Target 3 scores a 10 as the 2mm center has been clearly clipped
- Target 4 scores a 9 as even when using the probe the 2mm center circle was not touched
- Target 5 scores a clear 8
- Target 6 scores a 8 as it clips the 8 line
- Target 7 scores a 4 as it is in the square (Note UKBR would score this as a zero)
- Target 8 scores a 0 as it outside the Square