Newbie hunter question - to bipod or not to bipod?

wolfrage

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I'm new to hunting. I just got a rifle in .308 to take hunting and tossed my 2-7x Vortex on it and stuck my lightweight Harris bipod on it for sighting in. I'll be going after deer in northern NH and I'm wondering what the interweb's thoughts on a bipod is. Should I leave it on, figuring it's light enough to not be an issue and have it if I need it? Or toss it to lighten my load even more and lessen the risk of getting it caught up in branches or whatnot (not to mention the shift in carrying it and gripping it for a shot)?
 
No bipod. Lighten the load and the chance of using it would be slim IMHO.

This.

The bipod just adds weight and protuberances that will catch on underbrush -- it is hard enough to walk quietly in the woods without adding more crap to your gun.
 
Bipods are useful out west were you have long shots and plenty of time to set up. New England hunting is quite different. You aren't likely to have a stand where it would be useful, and even if you did, the shot will most likely be well under 100 yards and no one should need a bipod for a shot that short.
 
Thanks for the advice, guys! I'll take it off once I zero in the scope.

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I always carry my Cabala's bipod strapped to my pack. The shots I take on Nantucket can be pretty long, last year the kill shot came at 125 yards. I always liked the added stability of using the bipod.
 
I have folding shooting sticks that I use if I set up at a site to sit and watch an area, assuming there is an option for long shots. I also have a mono-pod walking stick. If hunting really tough terrain it's good for balance. 95% of the time I don't carry either on of them and look for a natural rest if if needed, tree etc
 
Leave it home. Did the same thing in Wisconsin and shot my deer as it was running out of the woods.

Great for zeroing the scope though!
 
This.

it is hard enough to walk quietly in the woods without adding more crap to your gun.

Tell me about it. Trying to be quiet walking through the woods on Cape Cod is pretty much impossible. There's a billion things on the ground that go snap, crackle and pop for every damn step you take. I assume it's the same most places but I remember walking through the woods in Western Mass and being silent as a ninja.
 
Tell me about it. Trying to be quiet walking through the woods on Cape Cod is pretty much impossible. There's a billion things on the ground that go snap, crackle and pop for every damn step you take. I assume it's the same most places but I remember walking through the woods in Western Mass and being silent as a ninja.

Try it in the woods on Nantucket. Ugh. Crawling through that crap is exhausting.

A fish cop on Nantucket told me that a very successful group of hunters comes over every year from the Cape. They use drives and the guys driving the deer wear hockey helmets painted orange. Their motto is "if you're not bleeding, you're not hunting."
 
Try it in the woods on Nantucket. Ugh. Crawling through that crap is exhausting.

A fish cop on Nantucket told me that a very successful group of hunters comes over every year from the Cape. They use drives and the guys driving the deer wear hockey helmets painted orange. Their motto is "if you're not bleeding, you're not hunting."

Jeeziz. I'm all set with that. I had some buckshot whiz by my head last season, I don't want to relive that.

I've heard hunting the islands is insanity. I really don't want to be in that close proximity to a ton of other hunters who's safety habits are unknown to me. Come to think of it, there's a member here that got hit by a little buckshot last season on MV. I can't remember his screen name though. -actually that may have more than a year ago now.
 
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Jeeziz. I'm all set with that. I had some buckshot whiz by my head last season, I don't want to relive that.

I've heard hunting the islands is insanity. I really don't want to be in that close proximity to a ton of other hunters who's safety habits are unknown to me. Come to think of it, there's a member here that got hit by a little buckshot last season on MV. I can't remember his screen name though. -actually that may have more than a year ago now.

A couple years ago there were three that got hit on the Islands and at least another on the Cape. The two on Martha's Vineyard were one in the Manuel F. Correllus State Forest and one out on Cape Poge near the Cedars.
 
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