What Do You Like for a Bipod

January 31, 2017, 12:09 PM

beltfed21

quote:
Originally posted by exx1976:
quote:
Originally posted by beltfed21:
if money is no object..... Elite Iron. I have one on my LMT (7.62x51). Rotates 360 around the barrel.

Elite Iron

Oh, yes, I imagine that being very useful for all those times when I want to shoot my rifle upside-down.

That's a little short sighted (pun intended) on your part. It works well on an angle, can be used from a hanging position I.e.; overhead support via para cord, etc.

I also own Atlas, Versa, and Vltor bipods. Of those, I like the Atlas best.

January 31, 2017, 12:34 PM

Gutpile Charlie

quote:
Originally posted by ubelongoutside:
I've never used a bipod before, but I'm thinking it will be easier than sandbags as I'm getting more into benchrest shooting.

I want one that attaches to the front sling swivel, and it easy to move from gun to gun. Will only be used from the benchrest, or maybe prone, so it doesn't need to be that long, but I see some extend so that might be interesting too. What is the height that's typical for benchrest shooting?

Seems to be a lot out there for a big range of prices and I'm just wondering if it pays to go for the high end ones.

Thanks,

Don

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

It is my experience that a bipod will never take the place of a proper bench rest. I have never used a bipod on any rifle that did not effect the zero.

One that mounts like on a sling swivel stud on the forend of the stock will be much better than one that in any way attaches to the barrell. I think of a bipod as only being "field expedient", that is you use it when you don't have anything else. It is great if you want to go to the prone, but if you are sitting at a bench, I would never use it.

When I have used a bipod "off the bench" on a conventionally stocked rifle, attached to a sling swivel button, I've had groups open up two inches at a hundred yards as compared to a bench rest. When I've used the built in bipod on my FN FAL, I was shooting quarter size groups at 100 yards from a bench rest, set it on the bipod and it was not even close.

I'd rethink why I wanted to use a bipod "off the bench."
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

January 31, 2017, 01:53 PM

fritz

quote:
Originally posted by Gutpile Charlie:
It is my experience that a bipod will never take the place of a proper bench rest. I have never used a bipod on any rifle that did not effect the zero.

Look at the attached Snipers Hide training video on different shooting positions and their effects on rifle zero. The shooter is Jacob Bynum -- owner of Rifles Only school and arguably one of the best rifle trigger pullers anywhere.

shooting positions

When using a bipod changes your point of impact or your accuracy, something is amiss. Could be your eye position isn't in the right place in your optics/sights, which means parallax is coming into play. Could be you're not controlling bipod hop. Could be you're not square behind the rifle and not controlling recoil.

Jacob Bynum has demonstrated the concepts of this video live in courses I've attended. There were students who believed their rifles were different, and thus different supported positions changed their accuracy and/or zero. Jacob had other instructors and the better students get behind the guns in question -- and proved that the nut behind the butt was the issue, not the gun or what it's attached to or supported by.

January 31, 2017, 08:21 PM

NikonUser

quote:
Originally posted by exx1976:
quote:
Originally posted by fritz:
quote:
Originally posted by exx1976:
quote:
Originally posted by beltfed21:
if money is no object..... Elite Iron. I have one on my LMT (7.62x51). Rotates 360 around the barrel.
Elite Iron

Oh, yes, I imagine that being very useful for all those times when I want to shoot my rifle upside-down.

It should be great in the upcoming Precision Rifle Series' regional championship matches, where the tie breaker stations are rumored to be called "Stop, Drop, and Roll"....

I swear this sport is turning into more about running around and doing bullshit than it is shooting.

Maybe I should just take up F-class. LOL

But I thought you liked your 6.5CM. Are you already willing to give it up?

January 31, 2017, 08:30 PM

maladat

quote:
Originally posted by Gutpile Charlie:
quote:
Originally posted by ubelongoutside:
I've never used a bipod before, but I'm thinking it will be easier than sandbags as I'm getting more into benchrest shooting.

I want one that attaches to the front sling swivel, and it easy to move from gun to gun. Will only be used from the benchrest, or maybe prone, so it doesn't need to be that long, but I see some extend so that might be interesting too. What is the height that's typical for benchrest shooting?

Seems to be a lot out there for a big range of prices and I'm just wondering if it pays to go for the high end ones.

Thanks,

Don
_________________________________________________________________________________________________

It is my experience that a bipod will never take the place of a proper bench rest. I have never used a bipod on any rifle that did not effect the zero.

One that mounts like on a sling swivel stud on the forend of the stock will be much better than one that in any way attaches to the barrell. I think of a bipod as only being "field expedient", that is you use it when you don't have anything else. It is great if you want to go to the prone, but if you are sitting at a bench, I would never use it.

When I have used a bipod "off the bench" on a conventionally stocked rifle, attached to a sling swivel button, I've had groups open up two inches at a hundred yards as compared to a bench rest. When I've used the built in bipod on my FN FAL, I was shooting quarter size groups at 100 yards from a bench rest, set it on the bipod and it was not even close.

I'd rethink why I wanted to use a bipod "off the bench."
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

My Atlas bipod really ruined these groups.

Sandbags are fine, but there isn't anything wrong with bipods, either.

January 31, 2017, 08:37 PM

NikonUser

quote:
Originally posted by Gutpile Charlie:
It is my experience that a bipod will never take the place of a proper bench rest. I have never used a bipod on any rifle that did not effect the zero.

One that mounts like on a sling swivel stud on the forend of the stock will be much better than one that in any way attaches to the barrell. I think of a bipod as only being "field expedient", that is you use it when you don't have anything else. It is great if you want to go to the prone, but if you are sitting at a bench, I would never use it.

When I have used a bipod "off the bench" on a conventionally stocked rifle, attached to a sling swivel button, I've had groups open up two inches at a hundred yards as compared to a bench rest. When I've used the built in bipod on my FN FAL, I was shooting quarter size groups at 100 yards from a bench rest, set it on the bipod and it was not even close.

I'd rethink why I wanted to use a bipod "off the bench."

Methinks that your experience with bipods is extremely limited, possibly to just Harris-type bipods at that. Such bipod have a tendency to bounce and twist if your form is not good when resting on a solid surface. Or maybe you were using the bipod that fritz praised so eloquently; his Tapco Vertical Grip Bipod that he bought for $34.99 at Cabela's. He even earned points on his Cabela's charge card.

Sadly, he did not say how many points he earned.

January 31, 2017, 08:38 PM

NikonUser

quote:
Originally posted by maladat:

My Atlas bipod really ruined these groups.

Sandbags are fine, but there isn't anything wrong with bipods, either.

You're shooting low, add a couple clicks up. :-)

January 31, 2017, 08:47 PM

maladat

quote:
Originally posted by NikonUser:
quote:
Originally posted by maladat:

My Atlas bipod really ruined these groups.

.....

Sandbags are fine, but there isn't anything wrong with bipods, either.

You're shooting low, add a couple clicks up. :-)

Heh.

I was doing ammo testing that day, I shot targets with and without a suppressor for several different loads. I didn't zero between changes because I was just looking for consistency.

January 31, 2017, 09:02 PM

NikonUser

Nevertheless, you shot low. :-)

It reminds me of a guy a few months back who was shooting F-class (I don't remember if he was using fritz's favorite bipod, I was in the pits pulling his target.)

He shot a nice group at 600 yards, only problem was it was in the 8 ring. For some reason he didn't adjust his sights either.

January 31, 2017, 09:34 PM

maladat

Yeah, yeah.

At the end of the day I shot a target at 300 and actually dialed in the adjustments. Either I didn't shoot as well or the wind was acting up (or both), but they're mostly pretty well centered.

Based on my limited knowledge of F-Class, I don't think the Atlas is the ideal bipod for F-Class, but it's pretty nice in the field (this is a sub-9 pound rifle I had built to comply with hunter-class silhouette rules, that I also actually hunt with).

February 15, 2017, 02:27 PM

soggy_spinout

I really like my BT Atlas but there's really nothing wrong with Harris. Got four of 'em of varying function and sizes. And unlike the Atlas they do work great with sling studs and wood stocks. Pretty sure Atlas only plays nice with M1913 rails.

But I will admit that I've gotten a finger or two caught up in a Harris, trying to set up too fast or carelessly. Painful just remembering...

February 16, 2017, 07:23 AM

maladat

It is slightly kludgy, but you can get Picatinny rail sections that hook onto a sling stud, and Picatinny rail clamps that have a sling stud on them.

So it is possible to use a Harris on a rifle with only a rail and an Atlas on a rifle that has only a stud.

February 16, 2017, 08:27 AM

sigfreund

quote:
Originally posted by maladat:
It is slightly kludgy, but you can get Picatinny rail sections that hook onto a sling stud ....

I have such adapters on two or three rifles, but in retrospect if it’s a conventional wood or synthetic stock I decided it would have made more sense to just remove the sling swivel stud and screw on a section of Picatinny rail directly. I finally did that after one stud to rail adapter kept twisting out of position despite the setscrews.

February 16, 2017, 09:45 AM

maladat

quote:
Originally posted by sigfreund:
quote:
Originally posted by maladat:
It is slightly kludgy, but you can get Picatinny rail sections that hook onto a sling stud ....

I have such adapters on two or three rifles, but in retrospect if it’s a conventional wood or synthetic stock I decided it would have made more sense to just remove the sling swivel stud and screw on a section of Picatinny rail directly. I finally did that after one stud to rail adapter kept twisting out of position despite the setscrews.

I haven't used them. On the bolt rifle I use the Atlas bipod on, I have a small Picatinny rail section with a QD socket at one end instead of a sling stud. I just know they're available.

February 16, 2017, 10:40 AM

fritz

I installed the Weaver swivel stud to rail adapter on my wood-stocked 22lr rifle recently, so I could use one of my QD mount Atlas bipods. It was a whopping $15 or so investment.

The Weaver adapter fits pretty well. Of course the recoil on a 22lr is minimal, and I use minimal forward pressure to weight the bipod, so I'm really not testing the integrity of the Weaver adapter. But it works, and I shoot the 22lr rifle slightly better with an Atlas versus a Harris bipod.

February 16, 2017, 10:48 AM

samnev

Atlas, but if funds are low 6-9" Burris swivel bipod. GG&G bipod to big and clumsy Imo.

February 18, 2017, 08:14 AM

jjkroll32

KAC has a gem of a bipod. It'll cost the price of a brand new Glock 43, but it absolutely oozes craftsmanship and feels absolutely bombproof.

February 18, 2017, 11:45 PM

tundrav84wd

Put a lot of thought into this. Decided on the Accu-Tac SR-5QD Bipod. Build quality is outstanding and great features. Here it is on my LWRC R.E.P.R About $275.

February 19, 2017, 05:44 AM

exx1976

quote:
Originally posted by NikonUser:
quote:
Originally posted by exx1976:
quote:
Originally posted by fritz:
quote:
Originally posted by exx1976:
quote:
Originally posted by beltfed21:
if money is no object..... Elite Iron. I have one on my LMT (7.62x51). Rotates 360 around the barrel.
Elite Iron

Oh, yes, I imagine that being very useful for all those times when I want to shoot my rifle upside-down.

It should be great in the upcoming Precision Rifle Series' regional championship matches, where the tie breaker stations are rumored to be called "Stop, Drop, and Roll"....

I swear this sport is turning into more about running around and doing bullshit than it is shooting.

Maybe I should just take up F-class. LOL

But I thought you liked your 6.5CM. Are you already willing to give it up?

I don't own a 6.5cm.. I'm an x47 guy, remember?

Either way, I could shoot open with it. The current IBS 1000 yard world record is held by an x47, so if it's good enough for them, right?