To truly assess a rifle’s accuracy, shooting with a front and rear rest of some description is paramount. Benchrest shooters, many of whom are fanatical about accuracy, use the best when it comes to shooting rests and such equipment can cost thousands of dollars but is well worth it when chasing tiny groups. For the majority of shooters and hunters, front and rear shooting rests can encompass a wide variety of kit from bipods, bags filled with pliable material to purpose-built front shooting rests with a heavy base and adjustable yoke to hold the fore-end of the rifle, though such front rests still require a rear rest for best results when shooting over a bench.

Enter Ridgeline’s new Steady Shooting Rest, a one-piece affair which cradles the entire rifle front and back while being fully adjustable and made to absorb excessive recoil by using additional weight in the base. Ridgeline’s load-up system claims a reduction in recoil of up to 95 per cent when the maximum weight is added. Ridgeline sent one of its Steady Shooting Rests to Australian Shooter for review and it arrived disassembled in a large carton with detailed description of the contents. The rest was easy to assemble and once done so measured 680mm long, 330mm wide, 300mm high and weighed 6.2kg without any added extras.

The unit consists of a one-piece frame of circular steel to which the base weight tray, rubber feet, front adjustable rest and rear rest support are attached. Starting from the base, the rest has two solid non-marking rubber feet attached to the front of the weight tray, while the rear is supported by a single adjustable rubber foot attached directly to the frame tubing. The rear height is easily adjusted by raising or lowering the rubber foot.

The substantial weight tray is made of steel and solidly attached to the circular frame with two steel bolts and once secured won’t move at all. The weight tray is designed to be adjustable with a section which slides towards the rear of the rest with two tray lock screws on either side. The tray is made for use with barbell-style weights which are held in place neatly with the tray positioned fully forward. The tray has two rubber panels which also provide additional levels of grip when weights are added. Two barbell weights of up to 11kg each (36cm in diameter by 6.5cm tall) can be easily accommodated and if more weight is required, the adjustable tray can be slid to the rear and a bag with up to 45kg of lead shot or sand added for maximum recoil reduction.

The front of the rifle is supported in a soft moulded rubber rest with height adjustment in the form of a vertical cam which consists of a steel shank to which a large star-shaped polymer wheel is threaded. The shank is positioned in the front of the steel frame tubing, guided by a recess which keeps the front rest at 90-degrees to the gun rest proper.

To adjust the height of the front rest simply raise or lower the polymer wheel and, with correct height set, the rest can be locked into position by tightening the lock key on the frame tubing. I found it beneficial to add a little lubricating grease to the threaded shank and guide groove which mates up with the steel recess guide.

The rear of the unit incorporates a moulded rest and recoil pad housed in a steel ‘shoe’ attached to the circular frame by two substantial bolts. The rear insert is made of pliable rubber which the buttstock rests in with a moulded channel in the base to position the stock centrally. A soft recoil pad is fixed to the back of the rest to help further tame recoil and appears to be removable so I assume would be easily replaced if needed.

At the range

The Ridgeline Steady Shooting Rest was put through its paces shooting several Howa M1500 rifles and checking their point of impact prior to being taken afield. The unit worked a treat but it should be noted that with the rubber feet, hard low-friction surfaces like concrete allow easier movement as opposed to carpet mats which made positioning the rest a bit tricky. Recoil of the test rifles didn’t warrant use of additional weights, though several colleagues did express interest in using the rest for their 9.3x62 and 375 H&H rifles with lead shot weight bags as a minimum.

One minor drawback is the inability to adjust those two front feet for height, though I’m sure Ridgeline could address this in any future version. What should also be said is shooters must properly place themselves in respect to position of the Steady Shooting Rest on the bench and a seating stool with adjustable height makes this easy. Away from the range this piece of kit makes for a superb rifle maintenance station, ideal for cleaning and carrying out tasks such as mounting scopes.

At time of writing the Ridgeline Steady Shooting Rest retails for $299.95 and can be had from the online store or through any Ridgeline retailer Australia-wide.

Published by SSAA

November 2023 Australian Shooter, written by Con Kapralos

www.ssaa.org.au