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#42
06-12-2022, 05:26 PM
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I’ve seen one of those benches once, or one that was very close to it, we were very impressed by it. IIRC we saw it in Montana. I’ve seen a bunch of lesser examples of the same basic design that didn’t impress me as usable. The one that I recall was the same as that one was a superior piece of equipment.
I have a friend who has one that I think was made by Caldwell. It is not stable enough for 500 yard shooting. It works fine for shooting out to a couple hundred yards though. 
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#43
06-12-2022, 05:59 PM
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And literally thousands of GS would strongly disagree with your "not stable" comment, as some were dispatched in excess of 500 yards. A friend of note won a 600 yd BR match up in your country back in the late 90's shooting off one of mine. Apples and oranges. "Rick on EBay someone in the U.K. Is selling cadwell premium BRpivot with A aluminum center post in the $1300. Dollar range." Interesting. The original BRP Lite with the ballistic nylon bag set went for $100 less than that here. BTW, every model was equipped with the aluminum center post. My good rat shooting buddy Dan with his Lapua 338 reaching way out for chucks in a distant field, showing that the Std BRP fit nicely into the bed of a pickup, as does the Lite model.  Can't discuss on an open internet forum, but more than one GSGT called me upon return from a sandbox deployment to tell me some very interesting (and satisfying) stories of the BRP along with the .50 cal BMG round used in a few tall buildings in urban settings during our time there. You get the picture. 
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Rick in Oregon - The East Side, where common sense still prevails. NRA Life, OHA, VHA, Vietnam Veterans of America
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#44
06-12-2022, 07:36 PM
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I have absolutely no doubt the one I saw in use is more than stable enough for shooting 500 yard prairie dogs. I was invited to try it and shot off it and, like I said, we came away very impressed. I am fairly certain it was one of the ones you have pictured in the back of the pickup.
The Caldwell one that I have personally shot off left a lot to be desired when it came to giving a person a rock solid base to shoot off. Like I said, for a couple hundred yards it was fine, but for shooting way out it just wasn’t up to the task at hand. They were about as good as what I had built at that time and I wanted something more. I don’t say that to disparage Caldwell in any way. I have found a lot of the gear they offer to perform as well in practice as in theory. I have also found them to be first rate when there are any problems. Their front rest, The Rock, is about as ideal a chuck and prairie dog rest of that nature for our field shooting as I have seen. We had problems galore with sand and grit binding up our Hart rests and ran into a group from back east in Montana that had high precision front rests that were completely bound up. Partially the sand and grit is carried in the wind, but most of it is from them riding in the bed of our truck on dirt roads. The guys with the high precision rests said that it was just from blowing sand that theirs became inoperable. On The Rock, I have two and the optional molded cases they sold that fit it perfectly. Then they changed the design of the rest and the cases were still advertised as specifically for that rest. I bought a couple rests and cases from them for Christmas presents and was disappointed to hear that they no longer worked together. I called and they gave my money back, told me to tell them they could keep the rests and cases. Sent both a really nice gift certificate and asked me if there was anything they could send my way to make up for it. They sent me a tubing micrometer and it has functioned perfectly. All I wanted was to let them know I was returning them and why. They said that the roto molded cases never were popular and they rarely sold one and it was a total oversight. FWIW, I love them. Mine are twenty years old and have been battle tested. My experience is consistent with yours regarding attaching any shade to the table. Even a slight breeze will make it an effort in futility to try and shoot accurately from it. Last edited by JDHasty; 06-12-2022 at 07:49 PM.
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#45
06-12-2022, 08:00 PM
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??Premium Bench Rest Pivot?? Never heard of that.
OK, so I was completely unaware that Caldwell made anything other than the plastic table one. I looked it up and that may be what I saw and got to shoot off of in Montana. It may have been one of your originals. Which ever it was it worked very well. I am pretty sure it had tubular steel and not aluminum legs, I think I would have remembered that.
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#46
06-12-2022, 10:18 PM
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Caldwell offers a lesser version of the BRP using the basic design parameters but without any of the finer and more robust features of the original. They call it "The Stable Table". They offer their version of the original with the original butcher-block lam bench top, and also a much smaller plastic top. All their versions are imported. Our Std model employed rectangular steel tubing legs, all else was alloy. (That is what you may have encountered in MT.) Our Lite model employed billet T6 alloy CNC machined legs into the girder pattern. A parting shot, just 'cause I like it. Quite the idyllic setting for me.... All history now. Looking forward to seeing what you'll come up with.
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Rick in Oregon - The East Side, where common sense still prevails. NRA Life, OHA, VHA, Vietnam Veterans of America Last edited by Rick in Oregon; 06-12-2022 at 10:22 PM.
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#47
06-12-2022, 11:58 PM
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Rick
How many of the light models did you make and what did they weigh compared to your standard model. About what did the sell for? I've only seen a few standard model for sale. What a great picture. A little bit of heaven on earth. Hal
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#48
06-13-2022, 12:41 AM
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Dang Rick
You are jolting my memory  . First of meeting you after you quit selling your shooting benches ( sad for me), and secondly posting all the great shooting places you shared with me and Michael ( I was taught Michael and I, but grammar seems to have changed from the stone ages) . That Nor-Cal rancher, although turning out to be a friend of my Cousins brother in law, was a great "share" you gave us even though That rancher had rough edges! You warned me, and you were right. On the phone I had my doubts, but after 10 minutes talking to him and realizing we were like neighbors he softened up. That bowl south of That ranchers house was a killer spot, even when the chill factor made it hard to load ammo. "LET THE GOOD TIMES ROLL".Now to find one of your benches might require someone retiring from teaching Skippy lessons, lol. Thanks again for making me smile, and enjoy. BTW, from my count, that image was right after I went 20 blank. Then I realized I was aiming high, settled in and went I believe 36 straight to "seal the deal" on BD. Michael was perusing BD 3 days ago and was surprised at the weight, look and single action screw Dan uses.  Back to Benches built for a lifetime's use. Allen
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#49
06-13-2022, 03:20 AM
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#50
06-13-2022, 04:11 AM
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The Stable Table was the only Caldwell pivoting shooting table I was familiar with. I had no idea they made anything even close to their Caldwell BR Pivot Premium Shooting Bench. The Stable Table is not at all in the same league as what we saw in Montana. I can’t be certain, but what we saw was more likely than not purchased from you. I am an engineer and have a particular interest in structures, although that is not my field, and am certain that had I seen the legs on the lightweight version I would have remembered the alloy truss legs. Actually, I’m sure they told us that the table we saw was made from Aluminum, so it had to be one of yours.
I am careful to not criticize things that other people are getting enjoyment from in their presence, but I wouldn’t take a Caldwell Stable Table if one were offered to me free of charge. That being said, I’ve seen whole groups having the time of their lives shooting sage rats off them and have run into more than a few groups in Roundup or Malta who had them and thought the world of them. I wouldn’t have any problem handing Midway $529 for one Caldwell has built under the patent they secured from you. If you ask me that is a very reasonable price for that unit. At that price unless a guy welded up the brackets himself and had a hell of a lot of free time to kill, it is a bargain. I love to see other people having fun and the people I’ve seen with the Caldwell Stable Tables certainly were having fun and they thought the world of them. There is nothing to be gained by shit talking something they really liked when they offered to let us try them or suggested that we get a couple of them. My buddy and will set up all three of my tables on a dog town in order to cover something like a 90 degree angle. Frequently we shoot at greater angles using only the front rest, on the ground sitting or prone from Harris Bipods or off the hood of the truck. They were trying to help us. To be sure, the Caldwell Stable Tables were adding to their enjoyment and they wanted to share that with us. Fact is, now that I am aware it is available, I’m probably going to buy a Caldwell BR Pivot Premium Shooting Bench. We talked about getting one of the benches we had seen in a Montana on the trip home, but never followed up on that conversation. I’ll get some photos of my stools and benches, and will post the materials list and tips on building them in a couple weeks. Next weekend we will be watching Indian Relay Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The following weekend, I’m going to central Washington to do some chuck shooting come hell or high water. Last edited by JDHasty; 06-13-2022 at 04:24 AM.
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