Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting backpack tripod

Full water bottle.

Much more--your loaded backpack.

I have that same tripod - great advice. Assuming that you still left that middle/top extension?

I have a fairly heavy Swaro 20-60x80 HD that I use so need a tripod head that will handle. The Promaster head that I have now doesn't cut the mustard. Do you think that Really Right Stuff would work - ie. is it beefy enough? I'm thinking of the Sportsman's pan head, but haven't committed to anything yet.

Good thread. I have a slik sprint II for my Nikon ED50 lightweight spotter and am trying to find a better tripod head.

Eric

It was helpful to me when I was shopping to look at the weight and load ratings of the tripods and heads, as well as reading reviews of course, for ideally the same equipment I was looking to buy.

For example, the Manfrotto 700RC2 Mini Video Head w/RC2 Rapid Connect Plate Feature has the following spec:

"Still Photography Yes
Video Yes
Sports Optics Yes
Maximum Load Capacity 5.5 lbs"

Again, not saying it's perfect, and my spotting scope is 65mm not 80mm, just how I went about researching.

The slik sprint II w/ extra quick change plate with a V-head shooting (stoney point ~$12) rest makes a nice prone or sitting field rest too

Great idea!

Here is my wife shooting off the shooting V on our 700 RC2 on a Velbon ultra maxi tripod. Great little setup.

Absolutely! And if she can get her left elbow on her knee (sit cross-legged raise the knee if necessary) and a pack under her right armpit, then that will stabilize her entire body.



To approximate the effect of shooting off a bench rest, you have to achieve the same effect - eliminate any moving component in your rifle or your body.

To take it a step further you can use Stony Point bi-pod shooting sticks under the toe of the rifle (near the rear sling swivel_ to stabilize the rifle even more.

One nice feature of this technique is that it is easy to adjust the elevation of the barrel by using your left hand to move the read shooting sticks up or down in scissor fashion.

Try it and see how it affects the size your wobble in the reticle, or shoot a group using both methods. Reducing the size of the wobble obviously equates to increasing the range at which you can make a safe and humane shot.

Taken to an extreme, this can even work standing: Use two sets of African (wooden tri-pod) shooting sticks, one under the fore-end as usual, and the second set of sticks under the toe of the rifle. This effectively makes a kind of bench rest as you can walk away from the rifle and it will stay where it is aimed. With practice, it is possible to reliably hit 8-12" inch steel plates at 300 yards -- standing.

This is effective anywhere that there is tall grass or brush that prohibits from from any other position except standing, and where there are (ideally) 2 people, each person carrying a set of sticks. Would also work with 2 camera tripods, tri-pod Stony Point shooting sticks, etc.

Many of these ideas were developed by US Marine Corps snipers (Semper-Fi!).

Alaskalanche,

How'd you make that? Bolt a V rest onto a quick detatchable plate?

Thanks