Who carries shooting sticks when stalking?

I am not very proficient in their use and take the majority of my shots either using a natural rest or kneeling/sitting shots. Fortunately this is very easy in the open woodland/farmland where I do the majority of my stalking but I would like to develop this skill, for example, for stalking in commercial forestry or open farmland where a handy rest isn't as easily found and tall grass obstructs sitting shots.

Any tips in how to deploy the sticks quietly and quickly would be gratefully received.

Cheers

Gabriel

This is very good!!

Boggy and I wrestled over this last week with .22s and coke cans.

We found that once up on the sticks a good and stable shooting position was possible.

The trick, and what I believe to be the main thrust of the question, is what is the best way to go from slung rifle and carried sticks to ready to shoot.

How to carry the rifle and the sticks, that sort of thing.

quote:

The trick, and what I believe to be the main thrust of the question, is what is the best way to go from slung rifle and carried sticks to ready to shoot.

I use double sticks and couldn't imagine stalking without them. The only trick is to practice..what works for one in a given set of circumstances, doesn't always work for somebody else.

That said, on gentle terrain, I stalk with the rifle over my right shoulder and the muzzle down & slightly forward (cover it with tape!)

If you have a large mod or bipod on the rifle, I find this is the most stable way to carry it, as if carried with the muzzle up, the rifle becomes unbalanced on the shoulder.

The sticks are then carried in the left hand, fully extended ready for a standing shot, and to steady your bino's while your glassing.

In more difficult terrain, or if I am following somebody else, I prefer to carry the rifle muzzle up in the more traditional manner..Other times I carry it muzzle up, but hanging in front of the shoulder; shouldering the rifle from there can be very fast and slick, but again you have to practice.

The fist six months of carrying sticks will be a nightmare...You will clatter them about, drop them and they will generally get in the way.

Slowly though you will get used to them and carrying them then become more or less second nature...

Regards,

Peter

I use home made quad sticks. If I have to deploy them quickly, I just use them as a normal pair. If I have time when a shot might be longer range, I use them as a quad set.

I carry the rifle on the right shoulder, muzzle up. I have developed a habit, and it might be a bad one. When I need to bring the rifle into action, I grab it at the wrist and effectively rotate it backwards through near 360 degrees so that I have it muzzle up in my right hand by the pistol grip, ready to drop onto the sticks, which I should be getting ready with my left hand. It sounds strange, but works quickly and well, you need to see it to get it I think. The downside is the rotating of a loaded rifle is not very clever.

quote:

Originally posted by Claret_Dabbler:
The downside is the rotating of a loaded rifle is not very clever.

This one-handed deployment part is where I am not very good, especially with a chucky rifle with moderator and scope. I am sure it is a matter of practice, but at the moment I find sinking to a knee whilst slowly unslinging the rifle to frighten animals the least. In fact they are often curious about the new shape they see (I think).

Also I am a little nervous after witnessing an accidental discharge caused by a rifle getting put through the 360 degree arc when unshouldering.

I keep a pair of lightweight aluminium tube garden canes in the back of the truck held together with a few turns of Bungee cord.
They do the business pretty well.

I know some stalk without sticks but I cannot. As well as a shooting rest they fulfil many other functions such as chastising the dog, moving electric fences while crossing, moving grass aside for prone shooting, resting optics, negotiating rough ground and finally something to throw in a fit of rage other than the rifle (only joking!)

BTW I recently moved to thicker bamboo and find it absolutely the best material I've used. Hoover junior drive bands wrapped 3x work very well too.

I carry in left hand with a finger in between to keep them slightly apart for less rattling. I carry my rifle on my right shoulder barrel down and rearward (butt is therefore up and in front of my shoulder) When I need to shoot I splay with left and move muzzle up and over the sticks before resting. Fast with a minimum of movement.

I am as suspicious of those who don't use sticks as I am those who don't use binos. If the extra time to use a pair of sticks is an issue then it shouldn't really be shot anyway (in the UK at least)

Plenty of practice - good luck

Suspicious eh 1894mk2!
I don't use sticks never have done never intend to, if I need sticks to shoot then it usually doesn't get shot, that just my preference.
Jon2 has some sticks that might interest you, he can rest the rifle on them quite securely while glassing and are easily adjustable.
Although he did try to shorten them one morning by trying to break over his knee, becuase they wouldn't deploy quick enough..
One of those memorable moments..

regards
griff

Well remembered Griff.

Since that episode of stick rage and having got more to grips with them, I have since lost the b******s in a field somewhere in Gloucestershire.

I used to use the 3/4" garden poles in a tripod with a bunjee to keep them together. Here in Canada I can't find 3/4" "aloominum" poles, and the 1/2" ones I got are too flimsy.
I am using a 6' bipod made from 3/4" square wood stakes with a 1/4" bolt through them.
I hate the commercial collapsable tripods. Flimsy and awkward to use.
I would'nt hunt deer without sticks, and I hate bipods on a deer rifle.

quote:

I am as suspicious of those who don't use sticks as I am those who don't use binos. If the extra time to use a pair of sticks is an issue then it shouldn't really be shot anyway (in the UK at least)

Plenty of practice - good luck

Interesting the different styles people use to deploy the sticks.

Not sure if it's fair to assume that people don't use sticks because they are snap shooting running deer or taking quick/unsteady shots.

(So far) I have found that I stalk better and more silently if I travel light. I also make less noise and movement.

I have also found that in the majority of cases, I can make it to a nearby tree for a rest. Alternatively, I use a field position (mainly kneeling or sitting). Each of these options allows me to take most shots in field positions without feeling at a disadvantage. On the other hand, I have wished I had a pair of sticks handy on a couple occasions in the early season when the bracken is high.

I think it is fair to say that most of us who hunt in the lowlands have little use for a bipod, and in general sticks are a great bonus.

On the open hill, it is probably just the opposite, damn little use for sticks, but a bipod can be a great help, particularly in the heather.

I found that the heather was often too high for a bipod, and at best I could use my Roe sack for a base to set the bipod on.
After using a bipod on stalking rifles for about a year, it was re-assigned to my varmint rifles.

Hello,

I always use a stick when stalking Red Deer in the mountains here in Patagonia! I can`t imagine without it! I usually hunt by foot with a loaded backpack. The stick is, for me, essential for waking in these contitions and for the hunt as an aiding rest for shooting. I use one homemade with a cane grown here named "Colihue". It is not hollow and grows very straight and is very strong but light. I cover the cane with a green duktape and put rubber tips in the ends. It is also great for steady the binocular when glassing standing!

Regards

PH

Agreed, the sticks are a great aid for glassing, as well as helping in difficult terrain, boggy or wet ground, etc.
With the tripod sticks, I used to hang my rifle, jacket, etc on them when gralloching.