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Gear Review: Bradley Cheek Rest

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My single biggest pet peeve with bolt action rifles these days is the height of the cheek rest. There was a time when iron sights on bolt action rifles was the norm, but with the price of optics so incredibly low these days, it’s damn near impossible to resist slapping one on your gun. And then there are the scads of higher end rifles that don’t even have a front sight, making a scope is the only way to go. And yet the cheek piece on so many of these rifles seems to have been designed to put your eye in line with the nonexistent iron sights — too low for a scope by far. That doesn’t make sense. Thankfully, there’s a solution.

A proper cheek rest is essential for precision shooting. The ability to line up your eye in relation to the scope the exact same way every single time will make you more able to put each round through the same hole. A proper cheek rest gives you that ability by giving you a definite reference point from which to index your face in relation to the gun. Without a good cheek rest, your face — and your eye — is floating around and will never be in the exact same spot twice.

I’ve tried various cheek risers in the past, but none seem to work well for long range rifles. Plus, they all seem to use cloth or other fabric material combined with some sort of shoelace system to keep the whole thing in place. The end result is usually that your cheek rest goes sliding all around the stock and isn’t in the right place when you need it.

That’s where Bradley’s cheek rest comes in. Made out of what feels like the same kydex material as most good holsters, the cheek riser attaches to the gun using velcro straps and includes a rubber non-slip pad to keep the rest from moving or scratching your stock’s finish.

In terms function, I’d say its just about perfect. Three minutes to install the cheek riser, and it put my eye exactly at the right level. I’m using the 3/4″ riser with a 30mm scope tube, and putting my cheek on the pad brings my eye to the perfect height.

Also, because the material it’s made from is much more rigid than the older fabric models, it doesn’t move. At all. Which is fantastic. You will have to make sure you get the right design for your gun though, and while the Rem 700 model will fit most bolt action rifles, there’s also an M1A / M14 design available.

The only problem I have with the Bradley rest is that the edges are a little rough. Not so much that you’d cut yourself on them, but enough to be annoying if you’re carrying the gun around for a while. Not even close to a dealbreaker, but its the only issue I had with the thing.

All that said, this cheek riser isn’t cheap. At $90 it’s well above any of the usual competition, but from where I’m sitting, it’s worth the price.

Specifications:

Price: $89.99

Ratings (out of five stars):

Ease of Use * * * * *
The velcro straps make putting the cheek rest on the gun an absolute breeze.

Utility * * * * *
Um, yeah. Just about perfect.

Overall * * * * 1/2
A touch high in terms of price, and the edges are a tad rough, but I’m actively looking for faults. Moral of the story: this is now a permanent fixture on my rifle.

0 thoughts on “Gear Review: Bradley Cheek Rest”

  1. Speak softly and carry a big caliber.

    Guns, a tool to not become a victim.

    Guns, better to have and not need than to need but not have.

    Reply
  2. Looking to enroll Lola in an Austin school? Does this mean you’ve already moved or have definate plans for the move?

    Reply
  3. There is no reason why anybody should have a Kentucky Rifle. If a musket is good enough for the Redcoats, it should be good enough for the the Common Man.

    Reply
  4. RF,
    Are you saying that the folks at the school were befuddled and confused by your occupation? If they were upset and at a loss for words, maybe it is not a good school for your daughter. Sounds like they are in lockstep with their Episcopal Bosses.

    Reply
  5. But but but our government would never do such a thing! Not at Ruby Ridge, not at Waco, not at Kent State, not with drone strikes, nor a half a million Native Americans, nor hundreds of deaths in the WW2 Internment Camps, nor a black person shot by police every day. Not our government. Our government would never attempt such a big body count when it’s so good at killing Americans a few at a time

    Reply
  6. The intended victim then did the following…
    1) Changed his underwear
    2) Went to the audiologist
    3) Went to his house of worship and said some extra prayers

    Reply
  7. The only good reason, ever, to carry without one in the pipe is if you’re subject to state regulations which only permit you Unloaded Open Carry (UOC) or Unloaded Concealed Carry (UCC). I devoutly hope that no one outside CA has to deal with this madness.

    100% of my training and practice have been based on having a round chambered when the action starts. I’ve always trained to actuate the safety as I draw, but recently I’ve been trying cocked-and-locked with my USP40 instead of DA/SA. Definitely improves the accuracy of my first shot, though the more I train in DA mode with my LaserLyte system the less of a difference I see in my scores.

    Reply
  8. I believe the drugs he needed most were two 180,000 mg combination Pb and Cu pills delivered center mass at approximately 1000 FPS.

    Reply
  9. Just put a Vortex Viper on my Ruger M77 MK11, heavy barrel, will this work as with the 30mm tube and 50mm glass the stock sits way short of level with the optics.

    Reply
  10. Problem is watch goes on the left, and 5/6 of the population pistol on the right.
    If its a ring or a bracelet worn on the master hand that would be fine.

    Watches are removed too often as opposed to rings..

    And the watch itself is too butt ugly. If say Sig partnered with Omega or Oris….that would be a different story.

    Reply

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