Rifles on tripods is very new to me. Do most try to use the ballhead on the tripod to lock the crosshairs onto target? In my limited experience on a tripod, desmond dlow55 and desmond db44 ballheads with an arca attached rifle, there is slop and shift even after it seems tight. Leaning on a tripod leg has moved the crosshairs. I end up locking the crosshairs much lower than the target and letting them rise up onto it and needing to muscle it slightly. Is it a better technique to instead only have slight friction in the ballhead?
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Tripod Ballhead best practice?
- Thread starter ggiddy
- Start date
Get the rrs ballhead locks up super tight lots of travel anvil 30.
Rrs leveling head ta3 locks up even tighter, but has less travel. I don't know about your tripod an rrs tripod is as good as they get,at a cost. Fiesol r cheaper not quite as good . Lots of new tripod company's around now , check out the threads on here tons of good info
Rrs leveling head ta3 locks up even tighter, but has less travel. I don't know about your tripod an rrs tripod is as good as they get,at a cost. Fiesol r cheaper not quite as good . Lots of new tripod company's around now , check out the threads on here tons of good info
With cheaper equipment there is going to be some slop, but that doesn't mean what you have is unusable. At times I still use an older aluminum Manfrotto tripod, but instead of a ball head I put a Hog Saddle or shooting pillow directly on top. This reduces slop, but obviously isn't as versatile as a quality ball head or leveling base.
What kind of tripod do you have? You shouldn't be putting too much weight onto the tripod, especially if it isn't very strong.
Also, it sounds like you might not be balancing your rifle on the ballhead very well. Try mounting it so that it balances on your tripod before tightening anything.
What kind of tripod do you have? You shouldn't be putting too much weight onto the tripod, especially if it isn't very strong.
Also, it sounds like you might not be balancing your rifle on the ballhead very well. Try mounting it so that it balances on your tripod before tightening anything.
The tripod is artcise/innorel as90c. I am using ar10/ar15 platforms and I've mounted the mlok arca adapter nearest the magwell but it doesn't balance the rifle. I gave it another try and I got better results locking the ballhead than having a loose ballhead.
Adding weight to the lighter end of the rifle helps a bit. On my slik it just took a little time to get familiar with the shift in the ballhead and to learn what my acceptable error tolerance was for a given position and target distance. My dclw, locks up solid dead on, but no cant in that system so uneven terrain is a no go. If there is time to setup, can make it work but its not suited for competition paced applications. Eventually I’ll have to pony up for rrs kit.
I often throw my bipod on the rifle just to get more weight up front to better balance the rifle when shooting off the tripod. Suppressor helps some too. Lots less wobble as you get closer to the perfect balance point.
Shooting mostly an RPR on an Innorel RT90C with the MWOR plate and RRS Anvil 30. Much sturdier lockup than the Innorel 52mm low profile ball head and tripod combo.
Shooting mostly an RPR on an Innorel RT90C with the MWOR plate and RRS Anvil 30. Much sturdier lockup than the Innorel 52mm low profile ball head and tripod combo.
I like to pre load the rifle to help with spotting shots. I line up on the target 1.2 mil low then I load it with light downwards pressure to come onto target. This takes out the small wobble/shake that I get if I just line up on target and lock the ball head
For me it depends on the situation, If im just shooting steel for fun I usually lock out the ballhead. If Im engaging multiple target’s however I will put enough friction on the ballhead that its still stable but its loose enough that I can move the rifle for targets at in various positions. Id highly recommend upgrading your ballhead. If a rrs ballhead is out of the budget then look at leofoto, they're super solid for the money.
Depends on the setup and how good/sturdy the tripod and ballhead are. With my RRS 55 ballhead, I can set the tension so I can move when I need and it will hold when I’m not moving. The tripod is also stable enough I can load into it lightly.
You can also get a table for the tripod and use a bag on it just like a barricade. Oftentimes this is better as you have unlimited movement and shooters are already used to the mechanics of shooting off a barricade.
You can also get a table for the tripod and use a bag on it just like a barricade. Oftentimes this is better as you have unlimited movement and shooters are already used to the mechanics of shooting off a barricade.
This is what I have been doing. I currently have a lower cost tripod and I have issues with a solid lock-up on the arca rail. With a grayops amp plate and my gamechanger laid sideways I am incredibly more stable the way I shoot. Just another method of doing the same thing.
