I just put out a video showing the Phoenix bipod and Protektor rear bag and comparing/contrasting them to my Atlas CAL/Wiebad bag combo. There's some fun ELR footage too.
Enjoy.
Enjoy.
ELR Gear - Phoenix Bipod and Protektor Rear Bag
- Thread starter Rocketmandb
- Start date
I had a couple decent spots that I went to a number of times, but then @BFuller and I did a couple full days of scouting (with some shooting thrown in) to find the last couple locations. And yes, the roads are A LOT more sketchy. This last time wasn't quite as bad as the trip before, where there were a couple spots where we could have been seriously hurt or worse.
It's the clay - the whole frikkin' place is one big clay mound, and this contributes to unstable locations and washouts. Of course, this also means that fewer people go there, which is fine by me and why I have the Jeep
Today I shot my 300PRC with the Phoenix Bipod on the front and the Adjustable Bag Rider in the rear sitting on a Protektor bag filled with the heavy sand. I modified my ABR with a Delrin plate on the bottom. Here is a pic of my modification.
So....in short....it was a dream to shoot today. With the Phoenix skiing on top of a towel laid down on the bench.....the Protektor solid as a rock...and the ABR on top......I got the front Phoenix and the back ABR on the same plane...so that during recoil the crosshairs remained centered....
I may have not shot any better groups...but it was soooo much easier shooting the groups I did. With the heavy sand fill....my check pressure was a non-issue of moving the crosshairs off target. So, once I had this solid setup...I had a brain explosion moment where I had the ability to learn from doing.....I shot with my thumb on the thumb shelf.....3 shots through the same hole....then I wrapped my thumb around the vertical grip...three shots through the same hole...but a definitive shift 1/2" up and 1/2" right. Then I shot with a technique I've seen some shoot where the thumb is completely off the gun and your fingers are steepled in front of the grip and not wrapped....and the trigger finger barely touching the trigger.....3 shots through the same hole...but down and left by 1/2" from the thumb shelf grip.
Then I went round robin of changing my grip back and forth and it was amazing to go into each predictive hole...it was like BOOOM...mind blown. So...once I settled down all other issues by going to a Pheonix Bipod and ABR rear with a heavy sand bag.....then I could experiment and see the differences...where before...I would probably not be able to see what I did.
Had a ball today shooting....it's been too many weeks since the last time I had fun.
So....in short....it was a dream to shoot today. With the Phoenix skiing on top of a towel laid down on the bench.....the Protektor solid as a rock...and the ABR on top......I got the front Phoenix and the back ABR on the same plane...so that during recoil the crosshairs remained centered....
I may have not shot any better groups...but it was soooo much easier shooting the groups I did. With the heavy sand fill....my check pressure was a non-issue of moving the crosshairs off target. So, once I had this solid setup...I had a brain explosion moment where I had the ability to learn from doing.....I shot with my thumb on the thumb shelf.....3 shots through the same hole....then I wrapped my thumb around the vertical grip...three shots through the same hole...but a definitive shift 1/2" up and 1/2" right. Then I shot with a technique I've seen some shoot where the thumb is completely off the gun and your fingers are steepled in front of the grip and not wrapped....and the trigger finger barely touching the trigger.....3 shots through the same hole...but down and left by 1/2" from the thumb shelf grip.
Then I went round robin of changing my grip back and forth and it was amazing to go into each predictive hole...it was like BOOOM...mind blown. So...once I settled down all other issues by going to a Pheonix Bipod and ABR rear with a heavy sand bag.....then I could experiment and see the differences...where before...I would probably not be able to see what I did.
Had a ball today shooting....it's been too many weeks since the last time I had fun.
Attachments
I used to do thumb on rest. When I did some trigger management training with Sean Little down in Texas a little over a year ago, I was amazed at how much the POI moved using that position. When you think about it, it makes sense. Your thumb always wants to oppose your finger movement, so when you're on the thumb grip, it's opposing with force to the left. When you grip around the handle, it's the opposite. He taught me to put my thumb up top, where the opposition force is down - which is also where you have the most support to oppose (bag).
Unfortunately, this isn't always possible with a chassis. I can understand why people do the no-thumb trigger pull, but it just doesn't feel natural to me.
Great video! I really liked the side by side comparison too.
Also, it looks like you have the Phoenix Bipod connected to your ARCA rail. Are you using an ARCA to picatinny rail adapter?
Thanks for the comments! I only wish I had been able to do a side-by-side target comparison, but two shooters, 50 rounds - 10 of which were either foulers or tests of Berger 245s. Didn't leave much room.
As to the Arca connection, I'm using an MPA Pic/Arca adapter. As an aside, the Pic clamp on the Phoenix is not a true Pic. It doesn't have the bar across - just the clamping mechanism, which I found interesting.
Maybe a side-by-side target comparison in a future video
I’m running an MPA chassis now, so I may give the rear bag and bipod a try.
You’ve got me thinking!
Maybe a side-by-side target comparison in a future video
On the next one I'm going to be looking at a bipod mount extension and I will definitely do a comparison there.
Adjustable Bag Rider - Adjustable Bag Riders
The MDT Adjustable Bag Rider is designed to bolt directly to the bottom of the MDT stock with supplied bolts. There must be a mounting SLOT in the bottom . Two rider options are available - the V and ELR. This Patent Pending ABR provides rock solid stability, straight tracking and vertical adju
www.adjustablebagrider.com
Adjustable Bag Rider - Adjustable Bag Riders
The MDT Adjustable Bag Rider is designed to bolt directly to the bottom of the MDT stock with supplied bolts. There must be a mounting SLOT in the bottom . Two rider options are available - the V and ELR. This Patent Pending ABR provides rock solid stability, straight tracking and vertical adju
. ThanksI went to the Phoenix/Protector combo a year ago. It was a huge upgrade for our ELR shooting. On day 1 with the new setup, we started at a mile with the 300PRC barrel in the AX-MC and spanked it ruthlessly. On one set my son hit 4 of 5, in rough wind conditions. We then stepped out to 2400 and got many hits, but with the rising wind the best for me was 2 of 5 at that distance.
Just a note: This weekend using the Adjustable Bag Rider in the Thunder Valley Precision 2021 Invitational, Randy Wise took third place with his ABR and I took down first place with my ABR on an MDT chassis coupled with the Protector custom bag. Guys, seriously. We buy a lot of useless stuff for this sport and most of it doesn't do any good for our shooting abilities and some make us worse, but the ABR is one of those things that gives you an instant upgrade. If you aren't shooting one, and I am, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for the advantage that you are giving me.
I won enough money this weekend to buy several ABRs. I would not have won with out it. No BS...that is just the simple truth. Actually, the mere fact that I won against the competition I was against, while using a 300PRC, and making a first round impact at 2333 yards, that should tell you the benefits of running an ABR over the incessant fighting of finding that just right height when using a rear bag and normal bag rider.
I won enough money this weekend to buy several ABRs. I would not have won with out it. No BS...that is just the simple truth. Actually, the mere fact that I won against the competition I was against, while using a 300PRC, and making a first round impact at 2333 yards, that should tell you the benefits of running an ABR over the incessant fighting of finding that just right height when using a rear bag and normal bag rider.
Dave and I have been working on one for all the xlr stocks out there. It should be ready real soon.
If it happens too late, I’ll send you mine to try till fall. I know you’ll want one
