Tripods?

Colorado Luckydog

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Jun 15, 2011
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138
How many of you guys use tripods for your long range hunting and shooting? When I finally get to start shooting, I know it won't be from the prone position because I won't get to hunt that way. I have a table, heavy sled and assorted bags already. I went to the sporting goods store and held a box with the Bog Death grip tripod in it. That thing was heavy. It might work for shooting but would be way tough to hunt with. I have a couple of quality tripods already. Is there an attachment I can add to those to hold my rifle? I'm brand spanking new to the thought of shooting or hunting with a tripod and wanted to hear your thoughts on the subject. Thanks again for the input.
 
I would say there are three main go to options for hunting and carrying around. A clamp (something like Triclawps), a shooting V style rest, or an Arca Swiss clamp if you are running an Arca Swiss rail on your rifle. Another popular choice is an Outdoorsmans brand tripod head which uses their own dovetail mount, but then they have a bunch of accessories depending on your shooting style as well as glassing preferences.
 
We have a vortex radian carbon and Bog Death Grip Ultralite. Weight is going to be a factor if you want to have a stable platform to shoot off of. I can put any of our rifles on it and don't have to worry about it falling over and it's rock solid.
We also have a Arca Swiss on the tripod so can us it without the Bog DG.
 
I have a pig saddle on a ball head with a fairly stout tripod. It weighs in at around 4 pounds. I like it for the deer lease where it's flat ground and minimum walking. It's beefy with enough strength for stand up shooting.

On a wilderness hunt in NM I took a cabala's brand tripod with a V bracket that will pan only. It's much lighter and doubles as a great binocular rest. It's a little light and flexible for shooting from the standing position. But it's excellent from the seated or kneeling position.

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I have a clamp (Bog) used it a couple of times. But it is heavy and a one use item. I'm really liking the idea of throwing a lite fill bag on top of the tripod. Much more versatile (use on or off the tripod), almost as stable, and less weight.
 
There is no one size fits all situations.
Look at as many videos as you can stand watching.
Ask yourself if what they are doing, and the guns they are using fits your situation.
If not, then it probably wont be right for you.
None of the popular tripod setups would work well for what we do where we do it and the type guns we use.
 
I have a pig saddle on a ball head with a fairly stout tripod. It weighs in at around 4 pounds. I like it for the deer lease where it's flat ground and minimum walking. It's beefy with enough strength for stand up shooting.

On a wilderness hunt in NM I took a cabala's brand tripod with a V bracket that will pan only. It's much lighter and doubles as a great binocular rest. It's a little light and flexible for shooting from the standing position. But it's excellent from the seated or kneeling position.

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How many of you guys use tripods for your long range hunting and shooting? When I finally get to start shooting, I know it won't be from the prone position because I won't get to hunt that way. I have a table, heavy sled and assorted bags already. I went to the sporting goods store and held a box with the Bog Death grip tripod in it. That thing was heavy. It might work for shooting but would be way tough to hunt with. I have a couple of quality tripods already. Is there an attachment I can add to those to hold my rifle? I'm brand spanking new to the thought of shooting or hunting with a tripod and wanted to hear your thoughts on the subject. Thanks again for the input.

Tripods definitely have their place. If I'm walking though I prefer Promos "Trigger Stix" shooting sticks I can really quickly deploy.

If I'm going to just move to a position and sit a tripod makes plenty of sense, they're just more trouble than sticks.

For those occasions I have a big Manfrotto Carbon Fiber Tripod that's steady as a rock.
 
I would suggest a bowl top tripod with ARCA clamp or rifle clamp. I would suggest shorter max height and as few twist lock sections as possible. This is to reduce head flex, and reduce setup time.

Get a frame pack to haul the weight. This can be under 5lbs.
 
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I have been debating on trying them also , in the past if I'm going to sit and glass , when, I Get close to a good spot I find a sturdy dead limb and carry it and use its from a sitting postition on a steep side hill. but the older I get the more I think about those tripods. The problem for me is , the guys who got me started hunting didn't believe in using even a sling, so I don't use one of those either, my rifle is always in one hand or the other. When I kill a deer or elk I make a sling out of a piece of mule tape, until,Get back to camp.
For me it's how I was taught.
 
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