I have a Lead Sled. It's a great tool for initial sight-in, and load development. It gives you a consistent platform, so you can take out the human factor when you compare one load to another. Its especially good for the aforementioned tasks, If you're working with a cartridge that has a lot of recoil. If you put some weight on it, it really can help keep you from developing a bad flinch. Most people can handle a few shots with something like a .300 Win Mag, but it does get old pretty quick when you're shooting a bunch of groups to get it dialed in. That said, a rest doesn't guarantee perfect accuracy every time - you still have to do some of the work yourself. I've found it's still quite easy to pull a shot, even while using the rest.

Having owned one for several years, I would say that the Lead Sled is a tool. Its very useful for the tasks I mentioned. However, it can also be a crutch. When I first started using it, I used it for everything. Unfortunately, as others have suggested, shooting from the Lead Sled does not represent real-world shooting situations and it will not help you shoot better in any way. Once I realized that I was using it as a crutch, I started making it a point to only use it specifically for sight-in and load development. Any other target practice I do, I make it a point to use whatever I have in my truck at the time. Some of my best groups have been made using an ammo can and a rolled-up sweatshirt as a rest. My personal goal for this year is to practice as much as possible from shooting sticks.

For the record, I don't think I have more dollars than sense - but that's only for a lack of dollars. I'm sure that there are a lot of casual shooters who use Lead Sleds (or other complete rifle rests), but they're also the type who will never shoot anywhere except from a bench at the local gun range. I don't think there's anything wrong with people using bench rests like that. They just might be in for a surprise if they ever try shooting without one.