Suggestions: Slings, Bi-Pods, Tri-Pods, and Data Books

USMC03

Regular Member
Been out of the Precision Rifle / Sniper game for a decade. Last week I was notified I was back on the sniper team (SWAT). I'll be using a Remington 700 Gen II 5R in .308 in a Magpul Pro chassis. Looking for suggestions on:
  1. Sniper data books / covers
  2. Bipods (always used Harris in the past)
  3. Tripod and adapter
  4. Sling
Looking for quality kit that is performs well for the price. I have to supply all of my own gear, so cost is a factor.

Thanks in advance!
 

Chris Sizelove

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
USMC03,

Short answers in order from my POV:

1. Go digital is the short answer - now that we have cell phones and Kestrel's with onboard ballistic data I find that almost never use my actual book for anything. I take pictures of shot groups, and then text type on that photo any relevant data right there and then save the pic. Wham, bam, done. Plus the time, date, hell even the location are all stored in the picture data if ever needed for retrieval. At the end of a day or week I transfer them all into a laptop file and can then add even additional notes if need be. Combine that capability with a real time ballistic data coming from the kestrel and I just don't see the need anymore to write out on paper that since the station pressure was "X" I needed to come down .2 mil (or whatever).
1A. Get a Kestrel 5700 with the Applied Ballistic software - in the year of our lord 2021 its a mission critical piece of equipment for a multitude of reasons. I would spend money on that before I spent money on an actual precision gun. It's that critical IMHO, especially when ran over a cost/time spent screwing around and scratching your head type algorithm. Plus you can use it for all of your other weapon needs, not just the precision rifle support role.

2. I use a magpul bipod.....but whatever, Harris products are great. Get the spikey feet.

3. HoggSaddle 0311 tripod with the HogSaddle Mod7 saddle. No reason to get any ball head at all, just direct mount the saddle to the tripod. The ball heads have their use, however for most applications in your line of work its just an additional 2 or 3 points of failure and knobs and shit you have to contend with under time (and/or limited visibility conditions) that are unnecessary. All you need that saddle to do is mount the front of the gun. Getting the cant out if can be done more rapidly by the shooter while he's cranking down the saddle knob, then by fiddling with the ball head knobs once it's already cranked down in the saddle. If none of that makes sense (and it probably doesn't) please look into a Forge Sniper Overwatch course, or the Tripod Skills and Techniques course and all will become clear. I fucking love tripod skills and techniques, good use of a tripod (or two) changes everything for the LE Sniper.

4. I am biased AF here, but a padded BFG Vickers sling is also a fantastic precision rifle sling if properly mounted and sized. It also really comes into play when added to the tripod skills and techniques referenced above.

I hope at least some of that helps Brother.

Stay safe and happy hunting.
V/R
Chris
 

pointblank4445

Established
1) Impact Data books and TAB covers. If you know what you want/need and have time to wade through the options, you can spec out exactly what you need from them and tailor it to your mission/purpose.
However, in the LE/SWAT sense, we separated the "data book" that would give appropriate DOPE for an activation from the "record log" and target binder of all targets shot that or more for administrative/record purposes.

What Chris says is true, but always have a backup. Batteries die, apps fail to load (or weird shit happens after updates), or lighting can be an issue. ALWAYS have a hard copy somewhere.

2) For precision, ATLAS CAL. The Cal doesn't pan like the more popular V8. Harris is fine, but advances have been made and Harris isn't exactly cheap (at least do the Badger Ord interface if you do Harris. By the time you spec out a Harris right, you've already put in as much coin as you would for a stouter bipod. As Chris mentioned, have other feet options

3) We used Manfrotto and Slik/HogSaddle when we got into the game. We now run Really Right Stuff SOAR rigs. The aforementioned Manfrotto and Hog are rated for something like 20-25lbs where as RRS starts at like 70lb weigth and on up into 90 and 110lbs. Everybody asks the question: "Is a $1k tripod worth it?" Well, how much is it worth to you to be able to shot at the same accuracy off a tripod as you would prone off a bipod? I'm talking like no sling-wrap on the the leg, counter weight, special support technique stuff, just you, rifle, bipod. Quite possibly the BEST money that can be spent in the game.

4) The Rifles Only is very nice for sling use, but the bungee doesn't help in terms of anchoring or wrapping for use with tripods. TAB is a tried-and-true sling design. Have used Vickers Padded as well; it's fine but hardware (the slide) can be in the wrong place with doing sling-aided with appropriate tension. Depending on what kind of tripod you use, that will probably dictate how you'll be using the sling.
 
USMC03,

Short answers in order from my POV:

1. Go digital is the short answer - now that we have cell phones and Kestrel's with onboard ballistic data I find that almost never use my actual book for anything. I take pictures of shot groups, and then text type on that photo any relevant data right there and then save the pic. Wham, bam, done. Plus the time, date, hell even the location are all stored in the picture data if ever needed for retrieval. At the end of a day or week I transfer them all into a laptop file and can then add even additional notes if need be. Combine that capability with a real time ballistic data coming from the kestrel and I just don't see the need anymore to write out on paper that since the station pressure was "X" I needed to come down .2 mil (or whatever).
1A. Get a Kestrel 5700 with the Applied Ballistic software - in the year of our lord 2021 its a mission critical piece of equipment for a multitude of reasons. I would spend money on that before I spent money on an actual precision gun. It's that critical IMHO, especially when ran over a cost/time spent screwing around and scratching your head type algorithm. Plus you can use it for all of your other weapon needs, not just the precision rifle support role.

2. I use a magpul bipod.....but whatever, Harris products are great. Get the spikey feet.

3. HoggSaddle 0311 tripod with the HogSaddle Mod7 saddle. No reason to get any ball head at all, just direct mount the saddle to the tripod. The ball heads have their use, however for most applications in your line of work its just an additional 2 or 3 points of failure and knobs and shit you have to contend with under time (and/or limited visibility conditions) that are unnecessary. All you need that saddle to do is mount the front of the gun. Getting the cant out if can be done more rapidly by the shooter while he's cranking down the saddle knob, then by fiddling with the ball head knobs once it's already cranked down in the saddle. If none of that makes sense (and it probably doesn't) please look into a Forge Sniper Overwatch course, or the Tripod Skills and Techniques course and all will become clear. I fucking love tripod skills and techniques, good use of a tripod (or two) changes everything for the LE Sniper.

4. I am biased AF here, but a padded BFG Vickers sling is also a fantastic precision rifle sling if properly mounted and sized. It also really comes into play when added to the tripod skills and techniques referenced above.

I hope at least some of that helps Brother.

Stay safe and happy hunting.
V/R
Chris

Any tips on how you’re retaining that sling when not in use. Running a vtac on my manners MCD-TF and the sling keepers I use on my carbine do not seem to work as good.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Chris Sizelove

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Colby,

I'm unsure of the context you mean by "not in use", so this reply may not be relevant.

For context on my part: I have an OBR that I use in this role. The sling is mounted on the 6 o'clock rail on the front via a QD sling swivel, and also a QD in the rear on the MAGPUL stock.

The sling lives on the gun as I use it for increased stability while shooting prone/sitting tripod/kneeling tripod/standing tripod. This is why I like to mount it at the 6 so that all pressure is inline with the bore and underneath, vice to the side (it's a small thing- I know). When running the sling in conjunction with the tripod positions I use the QD in the rear to rapidly remove it, run it through a D ring or whatever I have on my belt, then connect it back to the rear of the stock so it's usable as an additional stability aid.

If for whatever reason, typically administrative reasons like packing it into a hard case or cleaning it, I need the sling to be a non-factor - I just remove the whole damn thing from the gun and stow it somewhere.

I have never used anything other than a rubber band to trap a sling to a carbine in a clean manner, but I've never encountered that requirement for my precision rifle. It's either on the gun and being used, or off the gun.

Is that at all what you were asking about?

V/R
Chris
 
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