attaining accuracy with shooting sticks

[wildcat westerner]

Hello,
I am just starting to use shooting sticks, and am starting to make some progress. I know the JIm Shockey style is working better now that I mount rhe rear two legs virtually vertically and extend the front leg further out and push against it. I have upgraded another set that uses an extra pair of legs off the main ones so the rifle has two points of contact. These seem to really stabilize the weapon from the kneeling position, where I rest my left elbow on my knee.

A day has shown me progress in the vertical challenge, but either standing or kneeling, I have a lot of lateral sway when aiming. I believe its me now and my body motion. Since I may be shooting at 400 or more yards for Oryx, I would appreciate any experienced insights as to how to make both shooting positions as solid as possible. I do believe the problem is me, and its silly to have 1/2 minute rifles off the bench and not being able to hit an Oryx target at 400 yards.

 

[Gunpowder]

Practice, practice, practice. Two legged sticks are my favorite way to shoot, and in keeping it the same I've attained a level of consistency I couldn't attain with bipods. I use a simple Cabelas $40 shooting stick and with a back rest I am confident on coyotes to 500 now. I also made a simple shorter set for prone use. A light weight seat with a back rest really helps, and if you can lean against something more solid in the field you can attain pretty serious stability.

My litmus test is shooting a 1 1/2" tall by 3" wide steel target at 200 yds. When I can sit down and repeatedly hit that from my sticks I feel like the rifle and I are dialed and deadly. It's important to get out in different winds and practice also.

 

[Dosh]

Been hunting off a tripod for nearly 20 years. The tripod gets me above the grass and brush in the areas I hunt. I prefer shooting prone, but it's not the normal situation. As Gunpowder said, practice is paramount. Good luck

 

[wildcat westerner]

Hello, I have ordered the Bogpod carbon fiber model and really look forward to using it. It would seem to me the pure metallic model would,have tendencies for rattling. If this tripod is just half as good as writers on this forum have suggested, that alone will be a bog step forward. Thanks