Any reason to avoid bipods?

C

cornered rat

Moderator
I am thinking of getting a Harris bipod (no swivel) to go with an upcoming Bushmaster HBAR (20"). What length/material would you recommend. Any downsides in handling or accuracy with it? Is there a choice of materials (aluminum/plastic/stainless)?
 
Rat, Since you have not told us the application you intend for the bipod this is a tough question.

Harris makes a good bipod, It's up to you to pick the one best suited to your application.

You say no swivel, The attaching point for a M16 type is exactly that. You take the handgards apart and install a swivel through one of the vents.

If you want to use it prone be the BR otherwise I would get the tall one for sitting upright. The middle one seems kind of worthless and I'm under 6'

Grreat accessory item in MHFO easy on and off and worthwhile in quite a few situations.

Hank
 
Good to know. I've been looking at Harris bipods for awhile, for those long shots where you can't go prone for the tall grass. I guess I need the lonnng one. If the grass was low enough to go prone, I could always use my pack as a rest. The tall one that will go up to 3' is ideal to me, as it effectively puts you in a shooting bench wherever you sit.
 
Along these lines, has anyone had much luck with the variable-lenth monopods (unattached - just carried separately as a rest)?
 
While there are many bipods to choose from, The leaders seam to be Harris, Parker-Hale and Versa-Pod.

Now let me step up onto my soapbox and tell my story. :)

About 3 years ago I bought a Springfield Armory SAR-8 HBCS. I wanted the Parker-Hale bipod but the $200-300 price tag caused be to look elsewhere. I found the Versa-Pod. It is designed very similar to the Parker-Hale.

A lot of people are critical of the Versa-Pod, because due to its swiveling design, it is prone to tipping when left unattended. People also claim that it is poorly constructed with cheap materials. I say otherwise.

My SAR-8 is a pig. It weighs in at just under 20lbs with a scope, full magazine and bipod. Thats a heavy load for any bipod. Over 3 years of use, I've had no problems at all with the Versa-Pod and it performed great. My only dislike was with the tipping issue.

Last weekend while finishing up 8 hours of prone shooting with my SAR, it tipped. Upon inspection I found that the spigot post in the handstop, that the bipod attaches to, had twisted loose inside of the handstop. I contacted the manufacturer ( KFS, Kengs Firearm Specialties ) and they told me they would replace it free of charge. Luckily there are here in Atlanta, so I drove over and they swapped out the part.

While explaining the tipping problem to them, They sugguested using thier Non-Canting handstop, and offered to replace my broken one with the new design. I decided to get one of each because the canting is useful on uneven surfaces. So I left with 2 new Handstops ( one of them free ), and a smile.

I say that this was great customer service. Free replacement of a 3 year old part. I would expect that on a $200-300 bipod, but its refreshing to see that I get the same level of customer service with a $65 bipod.

Stepping down off my soapbox

Chuck



[This message has been edited by chucko (edited September 02, 1999).]
 
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