Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Long Range Hunting Opinions On Bipods

Looking for advice on what bipod to purchase. Primary use will be bench and sitting position shooting targets. I won't be hunting with this unit......I don't think. Please feel free to give details as I have never even held one in my hands. Thanks. Not sure if this is the correct forum but we'll try it.

I have owned many over the years. I even had Parker Hale, at the time considered by most to be the Rolls Royce of bipods. Overall, I feel the ones made by Harris (not the Chinese clones) are the best ones for the buck. Made of high quality materials, they are available in a variety of heights and used by military and police world wide.

I am with Timbo, and I would not be without my bipod, aside from my rifle, and bino's, it is my most important piece of equipment..

I agree with timbo.

There are now some Chinese clones of it, but I have used the same Harris bipod for (takes shoes off to count....) 38 years.

Man, that makes me feel old! (I was very young when I got it though. Honest!).

Maybe the Chinese copies are good, but based on my experience with a lot of Chinese stuff, I don't think I'd count on 4 decades from one.

Too bad you just missed a Harris bipod for sale HERE, on the Campfire Classifieds

Good pictures on the link anyway.

John

Harris all the way!

for the bench a 6-9 WITH THE LEG NOTCH and SWIVEL will do fine.

i like 9-13 leg notch swivel for the field

a pod-loc makes tightening up the swivel a bit easier too.

i am still using the first Harris I ever bought like 20+yrs ago! on my truck gun, 223 handi-rifle and it dont ride in the gun cabinet.tossed in behind the seat,a 6-9 for across the hood

caldwell makes a wannabe but i have seen several of the screws break(strip) on them!

Harris all the way too! I do all my load development, off the bench, with the 6-9" BR model.

Now, with that said, were you to say you'd use a bipod for hunting, I'd say the Snipepod would be up your alley.

https://snipepod.com/index2.html

I shot this 200 yd sight-in groups 2 days back, off the bench, using the Snipepod, folded up as short as it would go.

Alan

I'd add a bit more powder to get that vertical out.......

Atlas.

I put all my Harris bipods in a drawer after buying an Atlas.

Well, I looked that up, and those Atlas tripods do look impressive! However, they should be at $219 to $279.

Buy them here



Maybe you could contact the original poster and sell him one of those Harris bipods that you have laying around for a good price?

Serious suggestion -- a used Harris would do most of us quite well for several decades. That Atlas bipod is a real work of art though!

John

bipods are certainly worth having and the harris is a very good choice.
i also like the models with leg notches.
for strictly bench shooting a good front rest is superior however. visit a sanctioned benchrest match and take note of
the type of rest used. i doubt you'll be seeing any bipods.
however for most of us a bipod is a viable alternative.
there are also better options for hunting but again the bipod
is a good consideration.
for hunting from a fixed location such as prairie dog hunting or deer hunting a light portable bench cant be beat. it can be used in conjunction with the lower model bipods. also an excellant choice if hunting from a fixed location is the ultimate tripod as made by mcfadden machine in blairsville pa. it allows for shooting from a sitting or standing position. with it you can follow an animal as it moves and be ready to shoot as soon as it stops.
something difficult to do with bipods. heavy long barreled
guns are not an issue with it as the tension can be adjusted to suit. i own the longest model harris bipod and its junk
when compared to the ultimate tripod.

Hey Ernie, wassup'?

I'm always looking around for bench pods to use. They're always getting misplaced. So i bought all kinds of them off the Internet from NC Star to Leapers to Harris. I use them all on some rig or another from heavy field specialty pistols to rimfire pistols, etc. They all work OK as long as they have some leg adjustment of some sort.

Honestly the NC Star bench pod has a lot of extra paraphernalia that allows for different attachment styles, barrel mounts, rails etc. all for ~35$.

Something with notched legs and a swivel. I find the bipod super convenient hunting just for the fact that when I sit it down I dont have to lay it on the rocks or lean it against a tree.

I prefer the versapod for shooting off of hard objects, much less spring in the legs on the follow-thru. In the field I use the versapod and harris interchangable with good success on both. One note on the versapod is that it sits up a bit high with the way it mounts. If I plan on using it on a regular basis I will set it up with a spud in the end of the forend, this drops the center of gravity by a significant amount.

Here is a versapod using an end mount. The end mount is not super high tech, drill a hole and epoxy the pin in.

+2 on the atlas. They blow the harris away. Only downside is mounting a small piccatinny rail on the stock. But they can be easily removed and installed.

Amen brother.

I'm going to answer a different way. Bipods = good. BUT ...

Some rifles "notice" them, others don't. In other words, some rifles shoot the same load to different POI and/or different group sizes (a) without the bipod, (b) with the bipod attached and deployed, and (c) with the bipod attached but not deployed.

Whatever brand and model you choose, shoot your rifle (a) without the bipod using bags, (b) from the bipod, and (c) with the bipod attached, but "up", using bags. Hopefully it won't matter but don't count on it 'til you try it. I've had half inch rifles shot from configuration (a) become 2+ MOA rifles with configuration (c).

Best o' luck!!

Tom

harris swivel 9-13 for just about everthing bench shooting and field shooting. but a stoney point pole cat for sitting in the field shooting. a fixed bi pod sucks for sitting in the field because of uneven terrain,