shooting sticks...any suggestions?

I use tomato/plant stakes dipped in plastic cote for pliers. You can get stakes at Menards,Lowes Ace hardware.
a small 10-32 screw with a poly lock nut about 3.5" down.
 
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Of all the gear I have seen guys take into a stand, the thing that causes the most mess-ups is bi-pods and shooting sticks. I have been in on well over a hundred coyote shots and what I have seen is this: they really help about 10% of the time and they cause a problem about 30% of the time...the rest of the time the hunter would have made the shot without them. The problem that the shooting sticks/bi-pods cause is if the coyote does not stop in just the right spot, too much movement is needed to move the sticks/bi-pod because they catch on twigs, leaves, brush, weeds, crusted snow, mud, dirt, etc. I would much rather take a guy hunting that can shoot from sitting or prone using only his elbows, knees, etc to balance the shot.



Bipods are that way but with al little practice I totally disagree. The best thing a person can have in the stand is a set of sticks and a gun. I do not and will not go with out my sticks. I can shoot well enough, but lethal shot on a coyotes at 300 yards even 100 yards does not leave muchg room for error. Try shooting prone in sage that is 3 feet tall. Not going to happen.

Obver all more coyotes die in my stands due to propper shot placement with sticks than have every busted me moving my sticks. The key is knowing when to move and when not to move.

For the original poster. The best sticks ever can be bought from Walmart for under $10. In the camping section they have a ten pole kit. Comes with 4 sections of pole and the strechy string. use 2 section a side and a castration band or inner tube and your good to go. They also work as a yote tote with a foot of string.
 
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I made a set like DAA use in his video (Varmint Safari 4). The swivel makes a big difference for movement.




Got a pic of it?
 
Kind of off the wall but here is what I put together.

I went to the feed store bought 2 fiberglass sorting sticks, the kind used to sort cattle that has the rubber golf club handles then I cut them to about 47" then epoxyed 1/2" copper couplers on each pole then tied them together with parachute cord.

Now I can sit on a bucket or on the ground and adjust them to the needed height. One big plus at least to me with them being fiberglass they won't rot,break, or bend.

hunter966
 
i also made some of my own like varmint al. couple of 3/4" square sticks w/ a bolt about 4" down from the top and your good to go.i made 3 sets from scraps i had laying around t
he wood shop.now i just need to get out and use them...lol.
i also put some foam that is sticky on one side in the v to keep 'em quiet and keep the gun from slipping.
 
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I bought 2 5/8s hardwood dowells 48 inches long at Walmart and then tied them together with two electrical zip ties.
 
Used to use the home made ones and they worked fine.. The bought ones can be folded up and stored more easily. About anything works and are essential to get the job done on coyotes.Bipods can put strain on the fore end of the stock and affect accurate bedding.
 
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Of all the gear I have seen guys take into a stand, the thing that causes the most mess-ups is bi-pods and shooting sticks. I have been in on well over a hundred coyote shots and what I have seen is this: they really help about 10% of the time and they cause a problem about 30% of the time...the rest of the time the hunter would have made the shot without them. The problem that the shooting sticks/bi-pods cause is if the coyote does not stop in just the right spot, too much movement is needed to move the sticks/bi-pod because they catch on twigs, leaves, brush, weeds, crusted snow, mud, dirt, etc. I would much rather take a guy hunting that can shoot from sitting or prone using only his elbows, knees, etc to balance the shot.


I have to agree with that Jim...But then I don't call coyotes in the sage like elks does and if they are 300 yards out they give you all the time in the world to set up for the shot if'n they aren't running like a bat out of [beeep]...beeep? I didn't type that! WTH /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Hunters and fisherman seem to be attracted to all sorts of paraphernalia... I can't think of one time that shooting sticks would have been an asset to any of my calling stands.....
Have Fun!
 
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I like the BogPod adjustable unit. You can adjust the legs to any kind of terrain, and you don't have to move the sticks if the angle of the shot changes, as the padded V-rest pivots 360 degrees. If you need to change the height slightly, either taller or shorter, you don't have to readjust the leg length as you can just let them spread a little to decrease, bring them together to increase. The ones I use work great from sitting to standing. I wouldn't hunt coyotes without them.
 
I think you should take in account the terrain you will be hunting in. Here's the typical landscape for my stands.

mikeskill001.jpg


I put a CadWell bi-pod on my .223 and love it. I can easily pic up and move to a necessary direction if need be, But then again I can usually see a dog coming from more the 300yds.

I also carry a shotgun, so knowing my bi-pod will undoubtedly hold up my rifle while I go for the shotgun is piece of mind.

Go with what works for you where your at...

Jon
 
Last year I didnt use shooting sticks at all.This year I decided to get some so I bought a Remington Shooters's Rest.Its made by Allen I beleive.
I made a wise choice I think.Steady as a rock when Im aimin at somethin,which is to be expected with shootin sticks.And it isnt a pain to carry around with me which is always a good thing.
I used some others that my uncle has for a while last year.They were the kind that fold out,not sure what brand but I didnt like em' too much.They took to long to put together.
 
I didn't use shooting sticks for the first 20 years of my shooting/hunting career. I did good, but always tried to find a rest of some sort. Then I started using a single stick that doubled as a walking stick. It basically worked like a portable fence post and by sliding my hand up or down, I could change height and it was easy to hold and move. Three years ago I was given a set of shooting sticks and started using them.

They ARE cumbersome at first, but I found that I could also easily collapse them into a single stick and go back to "portable fence post" shooting if need be. When the shot allows, I can use them as a V stick and be really steady. They have definitely made some longer shots successful. I'll carry them with me and, if nothing else, lay them on the ground next to me. Then, if a yote hangs up out there or if I need some height to get over a rise in the ground, I can quietly pick up the sticks and use them.

Last week, for instance, I was calling on the side of a grassy hill- grass was 6-8" deep and it was downhill. Prone shooting was impossible and I knew the shots would probably be 100+. A coyote came along the base of the hill and then vanished just over a small rise. After awhile, I rose up to glass and I could just see his ears- he'd bedded down, facing away! It was like he wasn't going to walk up the hill but he wasn't going to let anyone else in either. Range was 200 yards and I could see the top of his body over the rise when I was kneeling but not while sitting. So, I dropped down, set my sticks up, went back to kneeling and then changed the FX-3 to "magpie". That made him stand up, broadside. I had the crosshairs dead on him, squeezed off, and....missed. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif Well, hey, it happens, sticks or not!! It gets better, though. The coyote took off running hard out across the prairie and you can't hit 'em if you don't get lead in the air, so (still in the sticks and dead steady) I put my 2nd dot on his head and let one rip. Rolled him!!! Cartwheeled him!!! I had to go down and finish him off, but the shot broke his back and 2 legs. Range from coyote to my stand was 398 yards. I'd like to think that the sticks helped a little bit there. And I didn't HAVE to use them- they were just there if I wanted them.
 
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