For many of us, range days are great days! Unfortunately, there is nothing that can ruin your day like forgetting something that you need. Advice about the items you should have in your range bag is plentiful online and in magazine articles, but what about those extra items that are usually not in your bag—the larger items that do not fit in your range bag that can save the day. If you are heading to the range, you should have the necessary tools to ensure that their rifle is ready for opening day: sight adjustment tools, a gun vise, gun supports and shooting bags.
Sight Adjustment Tools
When we head to the gun range before opening day, we are looking to accomplish three goals:
1) Verify that our rifles and scopes are sighted in. Afterall, it has been about nine months since the last hunt and probably the last time your scope was adjusted.
2) Ensure that we can still hit where we are aiming. Again, we are now nine months older. As we age, our eyesight may get worse, we might stand and sit differently, or we may have even gained a few pounds. Regardless of the changes, how we mount our rifle when aiming and our point of impact may change over time.
3) Confirm that our rifle still “likes” the brand and make of ammunition we feed it. For example, your firearm might be more accurate and consistent with Hornady Outfitter ammunition as opposed to Hornady Superformance or even Remington Core-Lokt ammunition. Just like us, a firearm ages. As the wood weathers or the action becomes looser, its preferred ammunition might change.
Regardless of the reason, you may have to re-sight-in your firearm. This can be difficult if you do not have the proper tools. Sighting in a deer rifle is different than sighting in a tactical or self-defense AR. Whereas laser bore sights may be alright for AR-platform firearms, traditional optic bore sights are better suited for deer rifles. I like the Bushnell Professional Boresight Kit (MSRP $99.95), which comes with the optic that is mounted in the muzzle and comes with three adjustable arbors that are compatible with firearms chambered between .22 to .50 calibers.
In addition to a proper bore sight kit, you need to make sure that you have the appropriate tools to adjust the windage and elevation dials on your scope. These tools can be as simple as flathead screw drivers to turn the dials to very small, specialized torque or star bits just to gain access to the adjustments.
It is important to learn what you need so that you have the instruments in-hand before you head to the range. This takes some planning. My range bag holds all the tools needed to adjust the sights on all my firearms so that I am not scrambling to find the tools I need every time I take a different firearm to the range.
Gun Vise
A gun vise is a very useful tool in getting a precise adjustment on your scope, as it provides a very stable platform when sighting-in. A good vise should anchor the device and firearm to the table, preventing the gun from moving in between shots. One gun vise that I have found to be most stable is the Caldwell Lead Sled (MSRP $286.00), which is very heavy and made with steel components. The rifle can be locked into place with the provided rubber straps. Additional weights can be added by placing two 25-lb. shotshell shot bags in the sled. That is an additional 50 pounds of weight that can anchor the device to the table. The company also has Caldwell Lead Sled Bags (MSRP $15.99) that can be filled with lead shot, gravel or water instead of using bags of shot.
Using a gun vise is a step that many individuals skip; they only use a gun support when sighting-in their rifles. The gun vise ensures that the scope and rifle are perfectly aligned and properly working together. The gun support should be used after the gun is sighted-in using the gun vise.
Gun Supports
While the gun vise ensures that the rifle and scope are properly aligned, a gun support is used to adjust for the shooter’s unique cheek weld, grip, stance, etc. A gun support better duplicates the conditions you might encounter in the field. For example, shooting from a benchrest off a common gun support would be like shooting from a seated position in a blind while the rifle is resting on the sill out the window.
Sighting-in while using a gun support allows the shooter to fine-tune or “tweak” the windage and elevation for a specific person. In other words, when the rifle is sighted-in, it is sighted-in for that individual. This is why if a shooter uses a firearm sighted in for a particular person, the new shooter of that firearm would have to sight it in for himself or herself. Very seldom would a sighted-in rifle be properly adjusted for another shooter. At 100 yards or less, the difference in impact may be minimum but as you increase the distance, the point of impact becomes greater between shooters.
A gun support should be solid with no “wiggle” between the rest and the base. The gun support that I like to use is the Caldwell “Rock” Deluxe Front Rest (MSRP $126.99). This gun support is very solid and stable. It even has adjustments on the legs to make sure that the gun is level to remove any cant (or lean, tilting at an angle) that might affect your shot placement.
Shooting Bags
Shooting bags or sandbags are items that are often overlooked when going to the range. Many patrons who go to the range will only take gun rests or rely on whatever is available for their use. Many times, this is because shooting bags are heavy, bulky, and not easily stored for transportation. Sandbags are important so that you can stabilize the rifle while either sighting-in or practicing your shot placement.
Once again, it is Caldwell to the rescue! Caldwell makes a wide variety of shooting bags for individuals heading to the range. There are three Caldwell shooting bags that are ideal for the range. These are the Caldwell Universal Rear Shooting Bag (MSRP $37.99), the Caldwell Dead Shot Shooting Bag Combo (MSRP $43.99), and the Caldwell Tack Driver Filled Bag Shooting Rest (MSRP $54.99).
Once the final adjustments are made when sighting-in using shooting bags, you are ready to hit the field on season opener. These pieces of equipment should always accompany a shooter to the range. Not only do shooting bags aid in making any final adjustments to the optic system, but it helps build confidence in the shooter by assisting him or her to make consistent shots in the vital areas of the game animal they are pursuing.
An ethical hunter should always make sure that their equipment is in the best shape possible, and this can only happen if he or she has the proper equipment at the range. The right equipment ensures that the hunter’s rifle is correctly zeroed in. A combination of the right sighting in tools, gun vises, shooting rests, and shooting bags ensures that when you squeeze the trigger on that first deer of the season, you make that quick, clean and ethical kill.
