A bit OT. Rifle rest

Range report.

"Blackhawk Sportster Titan III" rest & rear bag kit.

Street price about $45~50. Made in (Where else) China.

 Not a bad deal at all I quite like it with one or two minor reservations. I wanted a separate front tripod rest & rear bag but so many nowadays are the cradle the whole rifle style & that wasn’t my preference.

It’s a well-made alloy framed unit with an adjustable height from 7” min with the leveling feet & center column fully depressed to 9 ¼” with both extended fully. (Measured from the bottom of the center cutout in the supplied bag) weighing 5Lbs..

The rear bag is (like the front) pre-filled with some kind of light beads. They work well, much better than my home-brewed carpet /carpet underlay & wood effort. There is very little bounce when firing.

The front bag has a “leather-like” top surface, one of my gripes as its kind of “grabby” on the forend & tries to tilt the stand if you slide the rifle. Its better to lift, move & lower. I’m going to try slicking it up or replacing it with something slippery.

Adjustments are decently smooth, but it came bone dry with no lube at all, a few drops of oil fixed that in a couple of minutes.

The pointy feet come with flat add on feet if you want a no marring contact they just slip on & off as needed. The “feet” are alloy, not steel, even the tips, so I don’t know how well they’ll hold up over time, but right now they are perfectly good.

There are 2 minor problems, both easily fixable. There seems to be a missing screw from the cast tripod section. There are 2 key-ways in the elevator column, & 2 matching threaded holes in the body. One is for the locking lever to immobilize the shaft when in use, & the other appears to be a guide & end stop to prevent the shaft from separating from the feet, or overextending when elevated. There is no bolt for it included, even though the hole is threaded for one, with a different thread from the lock lever too. Why its fitted but no parts included is a mystery?

The end stop for the rifle front is an odd, length as well. It’s too short for a positive stop with a hunting type short stock, but too long for a full length one? I’d replace the hex nut used to lock it with a butterfly or other hand adjustable one, & swing it out of the way & add a longer cap to the tip for when I want to use it to set the length.

Would I buy another, recommend one? Yes.

Is it a bench rest-grade unit? No.

Rest with feet & bag.

Rest, missing screw.

Stop showing fouling & height

Rifle rested on rest & rear bag.