Seeing as I regularly and routinely throw my 20+lb fancy rifle down onto its bipod, $100 for a solid connection that lets me use that piece of gear as intended without much worry of it failing, in the end, is worth it.
It hurts up front, but there aren't exactly a bunch of shops turning out every little widget we need in this very niche sport, there's usually like 1 or 2, sometimes 3 options, so sometimes if you want it, you've got to pay what they're asking.
If something one MacGyver's together saves them a few bucks and works perfectly without compromise, then awesome. But, if not ponying up a couple of extra bucks ends up ruining a 2-day match that you spent $500+ all-in on to shoot... it'll be a long, sad ride home.
Personally, for most stuff, I actually like my Harris BRMS with RRS BC-PRO far better than any of the other Atlas/MDT/Accu-Tac options... and if you consider I'd need to replace it with a $415 TBAC bipod (and still have to buy an $80 ARCA/Pic rail clamp) to do most of the same tricks, depending on how you look at, ~$200 for a Harris + adapter/clamp ain't too bad.