I have often thought about mounting bipods on my rifles for greater stability from prone and sitting positions. But I have worried about changes in point of impact.

I haven't experimented, but it seems to me that there would be a difference in point of impact as compared with shooting from a rest.

And I'm not sure whether it would be consistent or predictable over longer ranges.

Anyone have any experience with this?

The bipod is a wonderful accessory and will likely not change the point with a free floating barrel. That being said, each rifle has its own personality, and the bipod/rifle relationship may not be compatible. Try it and shoot it. I am not to thrilled about the mounting on the front stud and look for other options.

quote:

Originally posted by gwahir:
The bipod is a wonderful accessory and will likely not change the point with a free floating barrel. That being said, each rifle has its own personality, and the bipod/rifle relationship may not be compatible. Try it and shoot it. I am not to thrilled about the mounting on the front stud and look for other options.

I agree; I shoot prone bipod and sitting and notice no appreciable difference. I never hunt with one on my rifle; I carry it my pack and attach it if needed. Anything short of 350 I can shoot sitting with a sling.

I have used Harris bipod son several rifles. I have not noticed any difference between using a rest and the bipod. I always double check before going afield.

I'm sure it depends on each rifle's preferences but I have a LR rifle that impacts high shooting off of sticks versus prone off a bipod. I figure it's the way it recoils: Loaded bipod prone versus settled casually into shooting sticks.

The amount of shift is not very significant at practical hunting ranges. Long range steel's another matter.

jpl, that's my concern, exactly. That the bipod adds weight to the rifle and affects muzzle flip and lowers POI.

Not sure that it matters much out to 350 yards or so. But my sense is that I would have to re-sight my rifle to be sure.

No way to avoid it, I suppose.

I shot my .308 Win today at 500 yards shooting sitting with a bipod; four shots would have hit a saucer (3 hit my 3 inch aiming square). Wind hold was .3 mils.

When I shoot sitting I put the buttstock on my knee, put my left arm thru the sling loop, reach under my left leg, then grab the sling where it attaches to the buttstock with my left hand Then I relax my left leg, which allows me to apply uniform pressure to the bipod in a manner that it is difficult to replicate shooting prone (which BTW I shoot with a shorter bipod).

I have shot a lot off of various bipods. There may or may not be POA/POI differences. In my experince, the changes (or lack of) are determined by how the rifle is held and the surface the bipod is rested on. The biggest extreme seems to be when the bipod is on a hard surface and the "benchrest" hold is used for the rifle. The sharp bounce will often raise the POI. Play with it on different surfaces and holds to see if you get a variation.

Safe shooting........LL

Variation with POI happens with most bipods on calibres bigger than say 243.

And it's exacerbated by the stock material of the rifle, laminates are the best, less vibration and if the bipod fitted rifle is being shot off a hard surface.

Try it at the range on a concrete bench rest and you'll be amazed.....the same with the hood of a car.........

I always shoot off a bipod. At the range (when I'm shooting off a concrete bench) or when ground squirrel shooting (when I'm shooting off a Caldwell table) I put a piece of high pile carpet beneath it.

It seems to dampen the jump quite a bit and I think I shoot more accurately with the rug than without it.

The only way to really know how your rifle is going to react to the presence of a bipod is to go shoot it at the ranges you are expecting to shoot game. Then you will know for sure.

On most of my hunts out west, there's a bipod on my rifle. I always verify POI when I get to where I'm gonna hunt because changes in altitude and humidity, etc can affect poi. I don't recall any change in poi that would have caused a miss on game.

I shoot a lot of bi pod I bed all my rifles so they are not effected on the cheap savage stock I had too add reinforcing

Some say you should "load" the bipod with forward pressure to maintain accuracy with bi pod. As mentioned a caliber with fair amount of recoil may well react differently than say a 22-250, 243, etc. versus '06 or stouter. I am not a big fan of bi pods but do shoot my 308 match rifle using one from time to time and it weighs in at near 11 lbs. from concrete bench and no real difference in accuracy that I can tell. Personally I don't think there is a better arrangement than having your hand support the forearm to get the best performance, but Harris has made a lot of money selling their bi pods so can't be all bad.