Which Manfrotto Ball Head

V

vetman1

Member
I see a lot of people using the Hog saddle or variants of it with a Manfrotto ball head. I do not see a consensus on which Manfrotto ball head is the best.

I will be shooting coyotes while standing and currently have a Primos trigger stick. Weight is not a big factor as I hunt off my golf cart. I just need something that will pan and tilt quickly for big areas and running shots.

I am still researching which rifle grip to use. I shoot a Ruger Predator and most of the pictures I see are with the rifle grippers holding AR15 variants.
 
I don't think that there is a general consensus on "the best".
I'm using the Manfrotto MHXPRO-BHQ2 XPRO. It is rated for 22lbs. I like it. I caught this one, used, on sale for $97.00. You can spend several times that much but this one gets the job done for me. In my opinion it is a good value and well made.
My BHQ2 came with the standard mounting plate. Some guys recommend the newer Arca Swiss style mounting plates but I don't have any experience with them.
There are lots of good ballheads besides Manfrotto available. Be sure to look at the weight rating. You will want to choose one that is rated for more than the combined weight of your rifle/optic.
If you contact Hog Saddle, Joshua has several ballheads that he recommends.
 
I have a brand xpro manfrotto new ball and hog saddle I'd sell you if that is the route you want to go.

Long story short I had run this set up and lost it in the fog one night so I reordered this set after I couldn't find it after two weeks of looking...and then found it the day before it all arrived.

Edit: I misspoke. I have the PIG saddle which is the cheaper and slightly heavier unit.
 
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Originally Posted By: varminter .223Have any of you guys that are using the ball heads ever use the Caldwell magnum field pod? Just curious how they compare.

They both do sort of the same thing, just in different ways.
With the caldwell your rifle just sets in it. With a clamp, like the hog/pig saddle, your rifle is held firmly in place. And a good ballhead/clamp/tripod will be much smoother to operate than the Caldwell.
I have used a fieldpod a lot. In my opinion a ballhead/clamp/tripod is way better than the fieldpod.
 
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The manfrotto 468mg with q6 top lock is going to give you the most load capacity. 35 lbs. Its by far the best manfrotto head that I have used and I've tried several. your looking at $265 on cost.
 
I'm fixing to start using the kopfjager reaper setup. Seems like a good way to go and all in and done good bit less than 500 counting the tripod and everything.
 


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