Spartan Bipod/Tripod Experience

[264MHC]

I would like to hear others' experiences with the Spartan tripod setup, either the Sentinel or the Davros head on another tripod, compared to a standard ball head/arca clamp, as well as the Javelin bipod, compared to bipods with picattiny/m-lock/arca attachment methods.

I am currently lightly invested in the Spartan system with a Davros head on my tripod, a gunsmith adapter in my bolt rifle stock, and an M-lok adapter for my AR's. After having used this setup, I am a little disappointed with the amount of play between the head and the adapters, and seem to have a hard time holding better than 2 MOA at the range with rifles that shoot .5 off a bench. I'm sure the obvious answer is to just practice with it more. I was able to make a seated shot on a nice Whitetail doe with my 6mm Grendel AR with the tripod this year, but only at 166 yards.

Now I am thinking about purchasing a bipod after running into a couple situations where one would have been helpful, but it would probably not be used all that often. So what I want to know is if the other attachment methods are considerably more stable, and if so should I convert what I already have, or continue investing in the Spartan system with one of the Javelin bipods?

 

[hwy1strat]

I have a Javelin bipod and I really don't like it. I think it is WAY too expensive for what you get. It now only gets used on my 17hmr and a ultralight 30-06, neither of which I take into the woods planning to shoot very far. If you are looking for the lightest bipod out there, then I think it is very good. But, it is nothing compared to an Atlas/Harris/Cyke/Hatch/etc.

I have gone to the arca rails on my rifles and optics. I learned that in PRS and it translates to hunting amazingly well. I carry a RRS TVC-24L trod that I use for my optics and I can toss my rifle into it if needed. Otherwise I just run a Harris or an Atlas bipod on the front of my rifle.

I gave the Spartan system a shot and tried it out on several rifles and it just never really worked for me. I have several brackets, extension legs, and the bipod itself. I gave it several chances to win me over but I won't be buying any more Spartan Precision products. RRS tripods are expensive but I don't think the stability can be beat.

 

[264MHC]

Thanks for the input. Do you typically use any kind of rear support when shooting with the tripod? That's something I haven't tried, mainly because I haven't found something that I would want to carry in addition to the tripod.

 

[hwy1strat]

Not very often. I will use a pump pillow in competitions but that is way too big to carry around in the field. If I can I will take a jacket or my pack and stuff it under my right elbow if I am sitting down. With practice I can make 600 yard hits off of my tripod sitting or standing with no rear support. That being said, I haven't played around with my 300win mag off the tripod yet, so that might be a different story.

 

[Montucky Roamer]

For mountain hunting I absolutely loooove the spartan bipod on my 300 PRC. I keep it in my vest pocket and just pop it in if a prone shot is available.
It takes maybe 2 seconds to install , that's it!
If prone won't work, I also have an arca rail for the tripod set up , for a seated type shot.
Just ordered a couple gunsmith adapters for the javelin in fact.
Its just so much lighter ( it weighs 6 oz?) than say a Harris 9-13. And it's easy on, off just fits my hunting style. I may be tracking elk or deer one hour (when I hated having the Harris on the rifle) and set up on a vantage point, set up for a possible longer range chance.
Its not quite as solid as the bigger tripods for sure. The javelin is the perfect bipod for those who hate bipods 90 percent of the time.

 

[snookntarpon]

here are my 2 cents. I have used the bipods and tripods extensively. I sold all my atlas bipods that I sold after selling my accutac and harris bipods. I hardly use the bipods anymore in favor of the tripods. I have the gunsmith adapter in all hunting rifles, with flush mounts in front of the sling stud and one just ahead of the magazine.

Where I hunt now I am mostly carrying a pack and that is a great rest and often offers more height than a bipod. At the range i shoot off sand bags. I used to shoot off my atlas but now prefer sand bags. The Spartan bipods are better in the field than on the range IMO, but there always seems to be a twig or grass in the way so i turn to the tripod.

More often than not I will use the tripod as a bipod. I unscrew a leg and hold it in my left hand under my right elbow and slide it up and down until I am on target. Much like a rear bag, plus i get to lean my body into it for more stability. The two legged tripod, now effectively a bipod, slips into the front adapter very easily and the 3 legged setup is very stable from a sitting position.

The rear adapter I use when standing and shooting off the tripod, great balance. not as stable as a hog saddle, but easy to get the optics off the tripod and the rifle onto it.

I have shot some game off the bipod, as it is very fast to deploy and hardly any weigh t to carry around, but if I have my pack, that is what i shoot off when i can.

I love the system.
k

 

[OregonHunter2]

Everything is a compromise with hunting. Generally the stronger and heavier you build something, the more stable it can be. I work for Spartan, and what we try to do is shift the scale towards making bipods that offer the stability of something that can easily be deployed in the field, but weighs significantly less. One product a lot of shooters aren't aware of yet that bridges the gap between something ultralight like our Javelin versus a full blown tripod is a hybrid bipad called the is a hybrid bipad called the Valhalla. It offers a full range of adjustment and puts the moment of inertia (balance point) in line with the bore axis, yet it weighs no more than standard Harris (13 oz). Have any of you used one of these yet?

 

[Unoboats]

How do you take out the play laterally while shooting with the davros mount and gunsmith mount on a rifle.

 

[jpndave]

How do you take out the play laterally while shooting with the davros mount and gunsmith mount on a rifle.

I have the Davros Pro on a carbon tripod and gunsmith mount on multiple rifles. I find that if I lean into it slightly the play disappears. The circle pin gets pushed to the back of pin/socket interface and pulls it centered. You are just loading the tripod and interface. There is very little play but it is not locked solid like ARCA. IMO, the Javelin system is not quite as stable as as a similar setup in ARCA but it is MUCH more compact/efficient and works on fine rifles or where an ARCA is in the way, awkward, ugly, doesn't fit the stock curve, etc. On my hunting rifles the Spartan system is the way to go. If the rifle will readily take an ARCA rail and the extra shape, bulk and weight are acceptable, I would go that way. My chassis is ARCA. You can get very stable with the right setup using the Spartan system. I was quite skeptical when looking into it but I'm very pleased with the results.

Photo below is Kimber w/Davros Pro head on my previous tripod and an MDT Chassis w/ARCA behind. You won't get the Spartan system to hold angles like that ARCA rail is. They will a little bit if the socket is in the right place but not that far. I can pick up my tripod/Davros pro attached to the rifle if careful. The magnet is pretty strong.