The Thrill Of Marksmanship And The Elusive One Hole 5 Shot Group

This target above may not look all that great at first glance, but once you understand the amount of dedication, experience, and long hours that goes into making this happen, you'll learn to respect the 5 shot benchrest match winning group as much as you do a hole in one on a golf course. Yes, it's that hard to achieve.

.073" spread on 5 shots is masterful and won my benchrest coach Bert Rypkema of NJ his first national championship in 1991 in Yorktown PA. Doesn't it look like one shot? Yea I know, its insane.
Then consider that the long standing record for 100 yard benchrest is .009"
Thats about 2 pieces of 8x11 printer paper on top of each other spread amongst 5 different trigger pulls. WOW.

Here's a look at the rifle I'm currently using. It's not quite what you would want to win a match in a bechrest competition because of the Accuracy International Chassis stock, but I like versatility and can use this particular chassis for many different styles of shooting including tactical as well as benchrest.

Bert has been teaching me the ways of reloading my own match grade ammo. Don't expect to show up to a match and win anything if you're using factory ammo.
Your ammo must be tailored to your specific barrel. Barrels wear out over time and when you buy a new barrel, it means an entire new load workup which takes many trips to the range and many different types of tests to truly tailor. Powder weight charge, bullet weight, and seating depth of bullet all come into play when getting the perfect "barrel time." This refers to how long the bullet travels through the barrel before exit.
The ideal barrel time is when the shock wave that travels down your barrel returns to the action is exactly the point when the bullet exits the barrel. This will reduce deviation between shots from the barrel vibration which is like a finger print of each barrel. They are all completely unique. No two barrels are alike. Even if they are made back to back in the factory.

I'm using a Shilen DGR action with Shilen Select Match 6mm PPC barrel.
The thing shoots amazing. I also use this rig for bi-poded 308 and 6.5x47 lapua. The DGR action makes for a fantastic switch barrel design and the free floating bolt head combined with the remington 700 footprint action makes for an unbeatable versatile rifle rig.
The scope is a Sightron 32x and at 100 yards zooms you very close into the bullseye.

Here she is sitting in the bags. A heavy cast iron front rest is paramount with windage and elevation adjustments. I have a 3" forend adapter for easier sliding in the front bag. I use baby powder to slick things up for the bag ride.

When shooting for one hole groups, learning to read the wind speed and direction is also paramount and can keep you from winning matches with one bad call and an unexpected wind gust.
Here is Bert with his custom wind flags that he designed and has made for me. They work amazing for judging the wind direction and speed.

So far this is my best group with a load work up. This is only 3 shots, not 5 at 100 yards on a nice calm day. It's going to take years of dedication to get where Bert is on an average day, but I think I enjoy the sport enough to make it a lifetime hobby.
https://postimg.org/image/xlhqzj3st/

I know all the young bucks love their AR's, but I have to say, once you get bitten by the accuracy bug, benchrest will be your passion and you will spend the rest of your days hoping for the one hole group.

Marksmanship is just plain old fun!