Bipod attachment types

The place for general talk about gun, shooting, loading, camping, survival, and preparedness related tools and gear, as well as gear technology discussion, gear reviews, and gear specific "range reports" (all other types of gear should be on the back porch).
Post Reply
Rich Jordan
Posts: 1840
Joined: Tue Aug 19, 2008 5:04 am

Bipod attachment types

Post by Rich Jordan »

I picked up a Blackhawk bipod at the Cabela's bargain cave a while back; its the type that mounts to a QD stud on the rifle. So I picked up a stud that mounts on the keymod rail of an AR and tested with the bipod at the indoor range. I'm not a fan of the attaching method, or this specific bipod but I do want to get one for the heavy barrel gun (also keymod) for bench use, and down the road for a long range class I'd like to take.

You can get Harris bipods with the stud mount or picatinny rail mount, and its easy enough to get a small section of rail as a keymod accessory. But the site I was looking at also had bipods that were two independent legs that mounted to each side of a keymod (or M-lok) rail. Those obviously don't have tilt/pan capability, where the picatinny type could have that capability.

So if anyone out there has used bipods much for bench or prone shooting, is tilt/pan a useful feature worth the thing wobbling around when folded or is it better to get a fixed (still folding) bipod that doesn't move around? And any thoughts on the side mounts? Seems like mechanically they _might_ be a little more stable, and when folded they sit on each side of the rail instead of underneath, which is both good and bad...

Thanks
User avatar
Netpackrat
Posts: 13983
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 11:04 pm

Re: Bipod attachment types

Post by Netpackrat »

Using keymod for a sling or bipod mount is a good way to drop an expensive rifle when the attachment fails.
Cognosce teipsum et disce pati

"People come and go in our lives, especially the online ones. Some leave a fond memory, and some a bad taste." -Aesop
Precision
Posts: 5268
Joined: Wed Aug 20, 2008 6:01 pm

Re: Bipod attachment types

Post by Precision »

I have used the Harris and a Sinclair bipod both mounted to a sling swivel and mounted to a pic rail attachment that is a sling mount. On the pic rail attachment I made sure to use some loctite on the tension bolt and have never had an issue.

The Sinclair was a BR bipod and did NOT stay attached. WAY too big.

I have used other brands of bipods with limited luck. One set that I used that had separate legs was VERY clunky although very sturdy. It was also just too damn heavy for field use.
"Those who hammer their guns into plows will plow for those who do not." ~Thomas Jefferson
My little part of the blogosphere. http://blogletitburn.wordpress.com/
Rich Jordan
Posts: 1840
Joined: Tue Aug 19, 2008 5:04 am

Re: Bipod attachment types

Post by Rich Jordan »

Netpackrat wrote:Using keymod for a sling or bipod mount is a good way to drop an expensive rifle when the attachment fails.
Well, assuming a barrel mount is not in the cards, is M-Lok better? Or just stick with picatinny, either a quad rail or quality (and perhaps longer with more mount points) picatinny adapter for a keymod/M-lok? Right now the rifle I'm looking at a bipod for has a keymod hand guard because that's what came with the kit (they now have M-loks too). Or go with a hand guard that has a lower pic rail, at least at the front...

Thanks for the warning though. I didn't really care for the bipod attaching to the sling stud; didn't think about that adapters attachment to the hand guard.

This will be (for now) a range accessory. Easier to haul around than a heavy sandbag for bench shooting. I have to get the rifle properly sighted in, tested with factory ammo, then want to start checking some handloads.
User avatar
Netpackrat
Posts: 13983
Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 11:04 pm

Re: Bipod attachment types

Post by Netpackrat »

Yeah, M-Lok is a lot more secure.
Cognosce teipsum et disce pati

"People come and go in our lives, especially the online ones. Some leave a fond memory, and some a bad taste." -Aesop
Post Reply