The Dairyville Range is predominantly a Benchrest Club, some consider it too easy using a front and rear rest when target shooting, but benchrest shooting is essentially about accuracy and testing skills and gear to the highest degree, so if you consider that an IRB target centre ring is only 6mm in diameter and that the X dot is a minute 1mm in diameter you begin to appreciate just how accurate you have to be at 50m, often an IRB competition is decided on X hits in these competitions there can be many shooters who havent missed a ten all shoot, the decision will depend on that 1mm dot. Benchrest shooting is the pinnacle of accuracy, where even after you have the rifle tuned perfectly, the ammo sorted and loaded, your rests uniform and your mind set honed for ultimate concentration just a single unseen puff of wind can bump you from 1st place to 12th. Welcome to the game….

Disciplines and Scoring

Generally we have either a scoring target with rings or a group target.

The scoring targets used in IRB and Hunter competitions have rings with a value for each ring up to 10, in the very centre there is a central dot if any part of your shot touches this it adds a .1 to your score, often in competition the centrals are what separates the winners. On a scoring target on the line is in, so if any part of your shot touches the line it scores that value. A plug, matching the calibre, is used to check if the result seems questionable.

A group target has a marked area that the shots are required to land inside, but the position of the shots is unimportant, what group shooters aim to achieve is to have all 5 shots through the same hole. So shots are measured from centre to centre using a specially modified set of calipers to .000” the smallest group wins.

 IRB – International Rimfire Benchrest

Most competitions shoot 3 cards or details of IRB; on club competition days at Dairyville we shoot 2 cards rimfire only over 50metres.

Each card has 25 scoring targets in a 5 x 5 square and 5 sighting targets positioned vertically on each side, shooters use the sighter targets to help estimate wind or other conditions before firing on the scoring targets, care must be taken not to have a stray sighter shot land on a scoring target. Only one shot per scoring target is allowed, with a total possible score of 250.25 being 25 x 10 point shots and 25 centrals.

Hunter Target

Generally shot in a 5 card match or detail Shot over 50 and 100metres in rimfire and 100 and 200metres in Centrefire. Each target card has 6 targets, one is a sighter target marked with an S and 5 scoring targets shot clockwise from the sighter, only one shot is allowed into each scoring target, with a total possible score of 250.25 being 25 x 10 point shots and 25 centrals.

Group Target

This is shot in a 5 card match or detail. Shot over 50 and 100metres in rimfire and 100 and 200 metres in Centrefire.

The group target has 2 large separate targets on each card one above the other, the top target is the scoring target, and the bottom target is a sighter marked with an S. Each target has a bold square designed to be used as an aiming point. The shooter can use as many sighters as required but only 5 shots are allowed into the scoring target, the aim is to have these shots land as close as possible to one another. The ‘groups’ are then measured center to centre at the widest point, the shooter with the smallest group wins.

Hunter Qualifying – NOW with metallic silhouettes for 22LR rimfire.

This is a new discipline designed to develop shooters skills in the field, feral animal shaped targets are positioned a various distances and shot from varying positions, starting with a cold bore shot from the bench and finishing with a 200m freehand shot for those good enough!

This is an activity rather than a competition, shooters scores can be taken however as a measure of personal achievement and progress.