Tripod or bipod for stabilizing rifle when hunting?

You won't have time to play with either if you're not in a blind
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Well that is not always true. A few years back when I was in NM on a Pronghorn hunt I had spotted a Pronghorn at 250 yards, and guess what I had time to stop take my pack off get into a stable, relaxed and comfortable shooting position. Now because I had practiced shooting a boatload at 300 yds in a seated position using my pack as a rest that is what I chose to use. However I had plenty of time to set up my tri-pod if I wanted to. I finally shot him at 50 yards while he was on a dead run strait towards me.

Anyways I am a huge fan of the tri-pod as an additional tool. I use a Manfrotto photo tri-pod with a pan head that weighs in at about 8lbs. I carry it when I archery hunt and rifle hunt. For the archery season it just serves as a base for my optics for glassing. Rifle hunts it pulls double duty for glassing and as a shooting rest if needed for longer shots or unusual positions or horribly uneven ground. Don’t get me wrong it is not my one and only shooting aid I use or practice with, I still keep a bi-pod on the rifle and will also use my backpack as a rest from a sitting or prone position.

I made my own cradle out of 1 ½” X 1/8” aluminum stock that I attached to one of the Manfrotto quick release bases so I can switch between shooting rest and optics. The cradle allows me a good solid rest with flexibility to move as needed.
 
You won't have time to play with either if you're not in a blind.
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Nah.
In 2012, I spotted a doe antelope browsing across the flats, about 750-800 yards out.
I calmly walked out (about 200 yards, somewhat perpendicular to her path) to a position where I wanted to set up, sat down, extended and adjusted the bipod legs, rested the rifle on the ground, and spent the next 20-30 minutes launching ants and beetles with blades of grass.

When the doe got to about 300 yards, heading straight for me, I pulled the rifle up, waited for what I wanted to see, and made the shot as she turned broad-side to go around some sagebrush at about 225 yards (too much wind for a head shot).

Plenty of time, and she never knew I was there.

And, that wasn't an isolated incident - for antelope, anyway.
Whether they were my kills, or just shots fired to stop an animal wounded by another hunter, I can only think of 2 shots on antelope where I wouldn't have had time to set up my bipod - both were surprise shots on running antelope at close range.
For everything else, I either had the time, but not the tools; had the time and used the bipod; or I had the time and was using something else (like shooting sticks or the crotch of a large sagebrush).


I only hunt with a bipod when I'm after antelope, but it's not like I'm a roadhunter, either. I camp in the same spot every year, and hunt from camp ...on foot. My truck is pretty much only used for hauling dead animals back to camp, or for scouting outlying areas on days with minimal herd movement.


My father, on the other hand, likes dragging a tripod around when he hunts antelope. Between the way he hunts, the noise it makes, and the time it takes him to set up, he misses about 80-90% of shot opportunities or spooks the goats before he can even get close. :rolleyes:
 
You guys act like a tripod is 6ft tall and weighs 10lbs.

These things clip to your belt or packs, weigh 8oz and are 24" long. You wouldn't even know it was there.
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Could you provide a link to this ultra light tripod? I looked on Midway and the lightest I could find was in the 2-2.5 lb area.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/179659

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/623795

At any rate even a half a pound / 2 feet long item in my pack has to be something I just can't do without. As long as I have a 4 oz sling already on my rifle that's always ready to use a tripod isn't going to make the cut.

I'm amazed that the use of a shooting sling is now considered something of a lost art. I learned about it in Boy Scouts and IIRC it was covered in the merit badge book. Perhaps it has something to do with the military's conversion to full auto weapons.
 
You won't have time to play with either if you're not in a blind.
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I use Primos tall tripod Trigger Sticks. They are awesome (as noted above). They deploy and adjust very quickly. I have used them for hogs now on four different occasions, for three of which I have video. I have used them as both a monopod and as a tripod and have been very pleased with the results. The downside is that they are bulky/cumbersome, but they work well.

http://youtu.be/N73hReqkpmU
http://youtu.be/5YQotnc4EcU
http://youtu.be/dTFHUm9h4H0

And the no-video hog from 135 yards.
 

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You are right but lost art or not, it's still not as good as a solid rest like a tripod.
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A sling may not be as good as a tripod, but it's still very good and a lot easier to carry around. By the same token a tripod isn't as good as a concrete bench rest, but it's a lot easier to carry around.

There may be some circumstances where a tripod makes sense, but if one learns how to use a sling properly there will be few when it's worth the trouble.
 
What is the proper technique to use the sling?
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Using a hasty sling is actually quite easy.

Hold the rifle by its wrist in your right hand.

Insert your left arm between the sling and forearm past the elbow.

Pull your left arm back so that the sling is taut against your upper arm just above the elbow.

Reach forward and grasp the forearm forward of the sling swivel with your left hand.

Slide your left hand back over the sling until the sling is comfortably tight.

Using a sling in a sitting position with your left elbow resting on the inside of your left knee results in a very solid position.
 
A sling may not be as good as a tripod, but it's still very good and a lot easier to carry around. By the same token a tripod isn't as good as a concrete bench rest, but it's a lot easier to carry around.

There may be some circumstances where a tripod makes sense, but if one learns how to use a sling properly there will be few when it's worth the trouble.
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And by the same token, if you learned to shoot offhand properly without a sling, then you won't need it either.

Everything works by degrees and there are tradeoffs for each.
 
natman said:
Could you provide a link to this ultra light tripod? I looked on Midway and the lightest I could find was in the 2-2.5 lb area.



http://www.midwayusa.com/product/179659



http://www.midwayusa.com/product/623795



At any rate even a half a pound / 2 feet long item in my pack has to be something I just can't do without. As long as I have a 4 oz sling already on my rifle that's always ready to use a tripod isn't going to make the cut.



I'm amazed that the use of a shooting sling is now considered something of a lost art. I learned about it in Boy Scouts and IIRC it was covered in the merit badge book. Perhaps it has something to do with the military's conversion to full auto weapons.
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2.5lbs is the shipping weight. The tripod weighs 8oz. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00BD...etailBullets_secondary_view_div_1409608841677



Complaining about 8oz is just trying to make a point. A hunter is carrying anywhere from 10-50lbs on every trip. Some guns weigh 10lbs, some scope weigh almost 2. An 8oz tripod is irrelevant.

There might be other reasons not to carry one, such as they're not very useful, but 8oz of weight isn't a legitimate reason.
 
If I'm going to be hunting on the ground, my Cabela's collapsable shooting sticks will always be strapped to my pack. They collapse down to about 18" or extend out far enough to use standing up (taller hunters will be hunched over but they still work). I use them mostly for ground blind work.
 
And by the same token, if you learned to shoot offhand properly without a sling, then you won't need it either.

Everything works by degrees and there are tradeoffs for each.
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The point is that using a sling has virtually no tradeoffs, adds no weight (you need a sling to carry the rifle anyway) and is very fast.

I don't care how good someone is, they can't shoot anywhere nearly as well from offhand as they can sitting with a sling.

A tripod will work well but I get the impression that some people seem to think it's essential. Learn to use a sling and you won't want to lug the thing around.
 
Complaining about 8oz is just trying to make a point. A hunter is carrying anywhere from 10-50lbs on every trip. Some guns weigh 10lbs, some scope weigh almost 2. An 8oz tripod is irrelevant.

There might be other reasons not to carry one, such as they're not very useful, but 8oz of weight isn't a legitimate reason.
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Please reread what I said:

At any rate even a half a pound / 2 feet long item in my pack has to be something I just can't do without. As long as I have a 4 oz sling already on my rifle that's always ready to use a tripod isn't going to make the cut.
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It's not the 8 oz per se, although not worrying about 8 oz is how a small 10 lb pack becomes a big 50 lb pack.

It's the length and the fiddle factor that really turns me off. Now under the right circumstances, such a hunting from a blind or stand it might be worth the trouble. But out in the field moving around I'll be sitting down, slung up, firing and exchanging high fives while somebody else is still twiddling knobs on their tripod.
 
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The point is that using a sling has virtually no tradeoffs, adds no weight (you need a sling to carry the rifle anyway) and is very fast.
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Sure there are tradeoffs. You just don't think they matter. As noted, a sling isn't as good as a tripod. That is an obvious tradeoff and you listed it. Never mind all the extra training and practice necessary to get good with a sling. Not everybody has the time or inclination to do that.

And no, you don't need a sling to carry your rifle anyway. Some folks use slings and some do not.
 
Slings are great especially if you have a cuff for it. One can’t go wrong with a quick cuff on their rifle but even that takes time to get set. Is the sling the only tool a person needs if you say yes I would say you are fool and I will same that same it anyone that says a tri-pod or bi-pod is the only tool you need. I see all of these as tools. Can you do a lot with a sling, sure. Will it get the job done, sure. However an adjustable box end wrench will work for most jobs and get it done but is it always the best tool for the immediate task at hand? I can come up with and have been in situations where one is better to use over the other. Quick closer in shots slings are great, long shots some other tool could be much better.

As far as weight, well that is each person’s preference. I am driven by a philosophy of; if it is too heavy you are too weak. This is what motivates me during my workouts to stay in top shape for hunting all year long. As a result I am not afraid nor slowed by carrying a 7lbs tripod in my pack.
 
Never mind all the extra training and practice necessary to get good with a sling. Not everybody has the time or inclination to do that.
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I'm all for doing whatever is necessary to shoot well. If you can't shoot well from a sitting position with a sling, then by all means use a tripod or whatever means you need to shoot accurately. However, it's not that hard to learn how to shoot very well indeed from sitting with a sling.

And no, you don't need a sling to carry your rifle anyway. Some folks use slings and some do not.
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If you don't have a sling at all, you will be amazed at how convenient it is not having to put your rifle down every time you need both hands for something. As an added bonus it's a light, handy aid to shooting.

If I were offered the choice between going hunting with just a sling or no sling and a tripod it would be a very easy choice. YMMV.

I think the dead horse has been sufficiently beaten. Let's leave it as a matter of personal preference.
 
I returned the Primos Trigger Stix to the store, which I bought one time.

Got it home, and even in "locked" position, just pushing down on it with about 2-3 times the force of the weight of a rifle would cause it to slip all the way down. Good concept though - when it actually locks into place, I'd buy one.
 
I killed my first deer two years ago shooting off of two wooden dowels with a chunk of rubber tubing around them - I didn't hear any complaints from the deer :D
 
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