If I P.O.ed you w/ my last tread I do Apologize. Did anyone think as to why it was written the way it was? How many ranges allow Prone, sitting and standing positions? Not very many! We all have these concrete or wood benches that we are required to shoot off of. Why? I'm 44 and a nice range had a concrete slab when I started. I think we are loosing to much, The form, the bravado, the camaraderie is gone. Now most are content to sit on on a chair, shoot off a table, and use a rest that is the equivalent of a vise with nothing to do but pull the trigger. I don't get it. I would take a clear shot at game at 200+ yards w/ open sights if the situation is right, but most would not, why? No B.S. I always have been a very good shot, the USMC will attest to that ( I beat them in small bore and high power in 1977 at 15). But why not shoot off hand? It is not hard, just put the hold, breathing(timing), and rifle together. My boys are all proficient at off hand, they have never used a bench. So what does anyone need to know to succeed off-hand and w/ iron sights? Anyone? A .22 Bolt gun is a great place to start, a Military surplus large bore bolt is a better place to start for shooters. Inexpensive rifle, cheap ammo, lots of fun and trigger time. It will make you a better rifleman and make shooting fun, not a chore. For 200.00 You can buy a rifle and 1000+ rounds of ammo. My last 2 projects cost me $74.00 each to build. I'm really not an @**, but want to see the true sport carried on.

BTW I love Fly Fishing, so don't read to much into that statement. It was sarcasm. JP

At our range (with concrete floor and permanent concrete benches topped with outdoor carpeting) you can shoot from the bench, alongside it offhand, kneeling, sitting or prone. The only position you can't use is from the hip or other unaimed firing. Even allow full auto fire except on Sundays.

Then, if you want to prove just how good you are at offhand, we have competitive divisions that shoot silhouette offhand matches with high power from 100 to 600 yds, plus .22 LR silhouette offhand at 50 and 100 yds.

These folks just quietly go about their business using both open and scope sights. You might find yourself hard pressed to keep up with them.

All the world loves a braggart.... NOT!

No name calling, please.

I used to shoot pistol silhouette, used a Smith 29 at targets to 200 meters. Lots of fun and good practice for field shooting.

Never got into the rifle silhouette, but watched a few matches. There were some good shooters doing their thing and I sure wouldn't want any of those folks shooting at me at the ranges they were knocking down those metal targets.

JP there are lots of good shooters in this country and lots of ranges that allow shooting at different positions. This is not a lost art. There are also lots of folks that the only practice they do is the half box sight in shots at a range then the few shots they take at game.

Some of them get their deer or elk, most don't, but, they are out in the woods and they are enjoying what there doing and that in it's self is the important thing.

No name calling, please.
My apologies, Mike

JP, your point is well taken, I for one should do more practicing from field positions, although I'm not going to stop shooting from the bench also. It is simply another form of the shooting sports, and I do love tweeking my ammo to get really small groups. It's a great confidence builder to know my equipment is up to the task!

Unfortunately a lot of ranges don't allow off-hand shooting. From some of the marksmanship I've seen displayed from the bench.... I'm not surprised!

Never fails to amaze me when I'm shooting groups with an open-sighted rifle or a lever gun, and the guys a couple of benches over are pointing their fingers and scratching their heads over my targets.... while their scoped LoudenBoomer magnums spray nice buckshot patterns all over the target :D They probably figure the 1"-2" groups on my targets came pre-printed that way :rolleyes:

I'm headed out Sunday to shoot in a silhouette match.... lotsa fun.

Position shooting is what I need but rarely do. I really need to practice that right side of the tree stand using a left hand hold using the right eye shot.

When I work up loads I'll shoot of the bench so I can reduce the human error in my shooting and find out more how the loads perform. I'm kinda lucky that my range is outdoors and goes up to 300 yards. 95% of the time I'm also the only one there. The only time I normally run into someone out there is closer to the hunting seasons. This allows me to practice shooting positions such as prone, kneeling, etc.

I use an informal gravel pit range that's about a mile from my house and just out of the little town I live. There's a bunch of regulars that I see out there often. Come a few weeks before hunting season lots of local folks out sighting in the deer/elk rifles that have been in the closit since last season.

Most of the casual hunters you see checking their rifles shoot off the hood of their car, coat rolled up for a rest and at the most a box of new shells and at least last years leftover box.

Ever once in a while you'll see a dad out with son or daughter teaching them to shoot from field positions. This always does my heart good.

There's no rests or target stands so it's bring your own and most of the regulars bring a garbage sack and clean up the mess the non-regulars always seem to leave. I always hate it when kids bring beer bottles to shoot into tiny pieces they always leave.

Anyway the reality of shooting game from field positions seems to escape most of the folks out at the range.

I miss the range I used in FL. They had a nice shooting station with an adjustable seat, overhead cover (with a fan), complimentary spotting scope, brooms for sweeping brass off the pad, cardborad backers (they charged a modest amount of $ for targets), custom made target stantions, staple guns at each station to secure your backer to the stantion, soft drink vending at the shooting line, club house, super range officers, pond with a large aligator..........and the best was the golf cart I rode in to check my target. All this for $8.03 per visit. I went every Saturday.

I could shoot off hand too....and did often....but I used the range primarily for load development when I needed good stable shooting station. I wish I had the same set up here in NY.

I like shooting from the bench. Takes more of my errors out of the equation. I also like shooting from field positions because it's challenging and like I keep saying to people, I have yet to see a heavy steel bench set in concrete out in the bush.

I miss the range I used in FL. They had a nice shooting station with an adjustable seat, overhead cover (with a fan), complimentary spotting scope, brooms for sweeping brass off the pad, cardborad backers (they charged a modest amount of $ for targets), custom made target stantions, staple guns at each station to secure your backer to the stantion, soft drink vending at the shooting line, club house, super range officers, pond with a large aligator..........and the best was the golf cart I rode in to check my target. All this for $8.03 per visit. I went every Saturday.

I could shoot off hand too....and did often....but I used the range primarily for load development when I needed good stable shooting station. I wish I had the same set up here in NY.
I'm in FL. Where is that range?

I like shooting from the bench. Takes more of my errors out of the equation. I also like shooting from field positions because it's challenging and like I keep saying to people, I have yet to see a heavy steel bench set in concrete out in the bush.

I watch some of the hunting shows on TV and I see more and more folks using the tripod sticks like on African hunts in the US, Canada and Alaska. I've also seen folks that pack a tripod with a spotting scope and then use the bipod to shoot off of like the tripod sticks from Africa. Most of those hunts seem to have two guys hunting at the same time. One usually doesn't have a gun so they probably were guided hunts.

I've never used things like that for deer or elk hunting, but use a sitdown tripod for varmit hunting all the time. I've always use anything available when big game hunting including stumps, trees, brush, humps in the ground, sitting and prone if I could take the time. Everything but standing on my two legs and shooting offhand. Seems though that the last two or three deer I shot were offhand. Just no time to do anything else.

I do most of my load development off the hood of my truck. I do get to a range where there are good benchs to shoot groups for the hunting check, once a year. It has taken me a long time to get an established load for my hunting rifles and once they work I hope they never change. Once I get other loads established, I hope they don't either. I hope I get to just shoot from now on, but if I have to do development work again I will go back to development mode.

Now! On to position shooting! Although 50 % of my hunting is little more than target shooting. I like the thrill of the stalk much more but we need to eat too.

Please don't get me wrong, I use a bench when working up loads, or to sight in a scope, or even to teach a newcomer to the sport. As I stated, it is just an observation that shooting offhand is falling by the wayside. I wish we had more long range shoots in NH. Most are in Mass, or Conn, and Mass will not issue a permit to out of state folks. So Driving to, or through Mass is not an option.

Please don't get me wrong, I use a bench when working up loads, or to sight in a scope, or even to teach a newcomer to the sport. As I stated, it is just an observation that shooting offhand is falling by the wayside. I wish we had more long range shoots in NH. Most are in Mass, or Conn, and Mass will not issue a permit to out of state folks. So Driving to, or through Mass is not an option.

Permits? For what? You have to have a permit to drive somewhere and shoot a gun?

I'm in FL. Where is that range?

It was 16 miles south of Palm Bay about 1.5 miles east of the Interstate highway.

It was 16 miles south of Palm Bay about 1.5 miles east of the Interstate highway.
Thanks. Wrong coast for me though.

Permits? For what? You have to have a permit to drive somewhere and shoot a gun?
Not in NH, but is Mass you can't transport, carry, hunt with, shoot with a firearm unless you have a Mass. FID card (For each firearm). This was directed to Mikes post if anyone is curious. I wish I could travel 200 miles to a decent shoot. Ohio is the best I can do, using secondary roads through NH, Vt, NY trueway, and then Ohio. Makes for a long day. You don't even need to register a full auto in NH., **** we love guns! Now if we could just keep those Kerry-Kennedy types on the other side of the border. I know that is political, but it is true. I do appologize. ;)

I like shooting from the bench. Takes more of my errors out of the equation. I also like shooting from field positions because it's challenging and like I keep saying to people, I have yet to see a heavy steel bench set in concrete out in the bush.

Ranch Dog and I were on his range one afternoon when a whitetail ran across around the 100 yard berm.... :p

Not in NH, but is Mass you can't transport, carry, hunt with, shoot with a firearm unless you have a Mass. FID card (For each firearm).

Well I feel sorry for anyone living under those rules. Sad!

Not in NH, but is Mass you can't transport, carry, hunt with, shoot with a firearm unless you have a Mass. FID card (For each firearm). This was directed to Mikes post if anyone is curious. I wish I could travel 200 miles to a decent shoot. Ohio is the best I can do, using secondary roads through NH, Vt, NY trueway, and then Ohio. Makes for a long day. You don't even need to register a full auto in NH., **** we love guns! Now if we could just keep those Kerry-Kennedy types on the other side of the border. I know that is political, but it is true. I do appologize. ;)


Ah yes, the land of Kerry-Kennedy. Ironically most of our guns have killed less people than Ted's car.

In as much as most of the hunting I do, is in Texas, the art or ability to shoot from positions other than a bench rest have greatly dimished, at least in most of this state. There are numerous reasons for that, and most of them are good reasons. I have over the years been able to take most of my game animals from either standing, off hand or kneeling or setting on my butt with my elbows on my knees. I have never actually practiced in any of those positions. Whether right or not, I have always been of the opinion that if a person can get a rifle sighted where they want it from a steady rest, such as a bench, all they need to concentrate on, whether they are prone, sitting, kneeling, or standing, is recognising when the sights or crosshairs are where you want the bullet to go, and firing the gun. From my experience, I see more folks mess up, because they pause that fraction of a second and think about what they are doing. To some people, practice makes perfect, for me, if I go out, and no matter the position I am in, if I put that first shot exactly where I want it, the gun goes back in its case. I have seen too many folks make a great first shot and then their accuracy goes down hill because they get to concentrating too much and start worrying about messing up. Just My Opinion.

In as much as most of the hunting I do, is in Texas, the art or ability to shoot from positions other than a bench rest have greatly dimished, at least in most of this state. There are numerous reasons for that, and most of them are good reasons. I have over the years been able to take most of my game animals from either standing, off hand or kneeling or setting on my butt with my elbows on my knees. I have never actually practiced in any of those positions. Whether right or not, I have always been of the opinion that if a person can get a rifle sighted where they want it from a steady rest, such as a bench, all they need to concentrate on, whether they are prone, sitting, kneeling, or standing, is recognising when the sights or crosshairs are where you want the bullet to go, and firing the gun. From my experience, I see more folks mess up, because they pause that fraction of a second and think about what they are doing. To some people, practice makes perfect, for me, if I go out, and no matter the position I am in, if I put that first shot exactly where I want it, the gun goes back in its case. I have seen too many folks make a great first shot and then their accuracy goes down hill because they get to concentrating too much and start worrying about messing up. Just My Opinion.

Very well put. What works for some, does not work for all.

Works for me!

JP, I have my own range with a concrete bench and 230 yd target. Just today I was riding with my son in the new buggy he's building when we spotted a buck standing in a green field. The buck was a cull with a messed up spike antler, and I called my son-in-law to come and shoot the deer. He said there was no need because the deer would be gone before he could get there. Well he was wrong as the deer stood and watched until he traveled the 1/2 mile and got into position and killed the deer. MMMMMM great jerky. I told him that I killed that deer with a phone call.

JP, I have my own range with a concrete bench and 230 yd target. Just today I was riding with my son in the new buggy he's building when we spotted a buck standing in a green field. The buck was a cull with a messed up spike antler, and I called my son-in-law to come and shoot the deer. He said there was no need because the deer would be gone before he could get there. Well he was wrong as the deer stood and watched until he traveled the 1/2 mile and got into position and killed the deer. MMMMMM great jerky. I told him that I killed that deer with a phone call.


Say, Thank you Alexander Graham Bell. Very Nice!

JP, I have my own range with a concrete bench and 230 yd target. Just today I was riding with my son in the new buggy he's building when we spotted a buck standing in a green field. The buck was a cull with a messed up spike antler, and I called my son-in-law to come and shoot the deer. He said there was no need because the deer would be gone before he could get there. Well he was wrong as the deer stood and watched until he traveled the 1/2 mile and got into position and killed the deer. MMMMMM great jerky. I told him that I killed that deer with a phone call.

fornra - can you post a picture of your concrete bench?