Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Dead sled for load development opinions ?

after doing alot of shooting and reloading last week with a hard recoiling rifle I have to say I am pretty beat up and thinking about a lead sled for heavy recoiling rifles during load development, I need some opinions from those who have used them ? Thank`s !

I don't use one, but I have seen a couple of stocks broken by guys that did.

What cartridge are you working with?

I don't have one so maybe I should shut up... but
The recoil has to go somewhere, if it's pushing me out of the way I am absorbing it. If I use a weighted sled, the sled and the stock will take the pounding.
I have opted for the Past recoil pads that slip on to my shoulder to help soak up some kick. I also like the Knoxx recoil absorbing stocks that compress about 1 1/2" under recoil.
Good luck

Dont do it!!

I wouldn't do it either. What rifle and cartridge was it?

try Hyskore� Dangerous Game� Machine Rest

I have a lead sled (2nd model) and it works fine. They key is to remove some but not all the recoil. Do NOT make it stationary. I also have a hydraulic rest with a remote release which eliminates human error so I can see what the load is doing without my interference. Both used for load work up only in conjunction with a chronograph.

I think i might invest in a PAST shoulder pad instead..or has anyone tried the BENCH WIZARD gizmo that Melvin forbes sells ? The gun I was shooting is a NULA 300WM I put about 50 rounds of 200 grainers thru it...and about 25 180s .

The Bench Wizard works very well, and in my experience results in smaller groups than the Lead Sled. It both adds weight and spreads out the recoil across your shoulder, much more than any recoil pad.

John Thank`s ! I might give melvin a call this week and order one..

Had a Lead Sled and sold it after paying my stockmaker to fix what it caused.
The Lead Sled increases LOP, when the thin pad at the back wears down, a conventional wood stock without a recoil pad can be destroyed or maybe only the toe cracked off. They are also quite high off the bench so you may want to have a boat cushion to sit on.

This rest (Shooters Ridge) does not increase LOP and, with responsible weight selection, will not hurt the stock. It does not work well with big beavertail fore ends but most rifles with stocks of that design are usually heavy enough that recoil is not an issue. With a single shot or lever gun ditch the barbell weight for a bag of shot so the lever will clear.

You can also grip the rifle as you would when shooting in field conditions.

I use the 2nd generation lead sled and utilize history of my early users. Do not load up the weight to make a stationary recoil. Be aware that POA may vary once you have gotten "close" to a good load with use of "the sled". You may find that shooting the same load off bags will be a little different and in my case better with a couple of loads developed. Have no idea why some have the broken stuff but history says it is due to trying to reduce recoil to zero. Just my $0.02. Yeah also use the Past and any other device that will let me be a better "hunter".

I have one of the 2nd gen lead sleds and like it. I totally agree with others....don't wt it down...just let it take up some of the recoil.
I saw a big debate on lead sled accuracy over at long range shooting and some of those guys are pretty "up" on accuracy tricks. The general consensus (over there) was that the lead sled is NOT as accurate as some of the fancy rests that allow normal recoil.
I've kind of come to the conclusion that like every technique at the bench getting a consistant hold...or hold down...on it will dictate your accuracy results.

Now on Shooting USA the other day the host was shooting a Les Baer 308 AR off a BiPod on a hard bench and still getting 5 shot 1/2" groups. As I recall Les was shooting one of his new tactical bolt actions the same way with the same results. I've never found a BiPod off a hard bench to be as good as bags ..... but there were the tiny groups.

Just because the thing has room to place shot bags, does not mean you have to weight the thing down. I had rotator cuff surgery a while back and was a bit reluctant to take the recoil from a 340 Wea when a friend asked me to do load development for the rifle.

The lead sled took what might have been a debilitating chore and turned it into a pleasurable experience. I used no added weight while shooting the 340. The sled would move about two inches on my bench with each shot from the 340 Wea.

The rifle shown is my Savage 112 in 22-243AI. It really needs no recoil dampening, but was photographed for demonstration purposes. As shown, the Lead Sled has about five pounds of sand bags sitting on it.

A couple of years ago I had shoulder surgery and couldn't shoot, so I bought a middle of the road rifle rest. It has forend horizontal and vertical adjustment. It comes with a plastic tray for holding weight. I bought a bag of playground sand and put a 10 pound weight in it, so I'd say it weighs around 25 pounds plus the weight of the rest. There is no name on it and I don't remember who makes it but I purchased it at Sportsman's Warehouse, $120.00. It has a wimpy leather sandbag for the forend, and a rubber coated cup for the butt end. It reminds me of a scorpion. The rear rubber foot is threaded into the frame for vertical adjustment of the rear end. It doesn't have any provision for strapping the rifle in place, but if it did I probably wouldn't use it. It does move rearward when a shot is fired and I have to adjust after every shot. With that said, I noticed immediately my shots were more consistent, so now I use it for all load development. I could see if the rest were anchored it could damage a heavy recoiling rifle, so I'd say this one won't hurt the rifle, and it takes me out of the equation. I would recomend one.

I've used my lead sled both empty and with a 25# bag of shot. No ill effects to any of my rifles. Really makes shooting the heavier calipers more manageable. Especially when suffering some physical limitations.