Steady as she goes
Joseph Nugent on a versatile shooting aid
One of several important factors to any successful shot is the position and hold from which it’s released. Like many hunters, for much of my shooting career I opted to go without a portable shooting system, rather practicing from unsupported positions or using nearby trees and stumps as improvised rests. To this day, the majority of my shots in the field are still unsupported or from a makeshift rest.
In all honesty it’s quite rare for a hunting situation to allow for the use of a bipod, and my recent need for a portable shooting system came about after buying a thermal scope. In order to constantly scan my surroundings throughout the duration of a hunt and accurately engage targets at night, I needed to support my rifle in a rest.
The style of hunting I generally conduct with thermal optics involves controlling pests and predators on rural properties on foot. As such, I needed a highly portable shooting rest which would allow me to set up from a sitting, kneeling and standing position quickly and easily. I spent quite some time visiting gun shops and browsing online before making my decision, and soon discovered it was harder than I thought to find a product which would service my specific needs.
A lot of companies are moving away from selling typical standing bipods and safari sticks, preferring to offer more sophisticated systems. Often in a tripod platform they can be quite expensive and far less portable than a simple bipod. On the other hand some outlets sell monopods, something I found not quite fit for purpose as they lack adjustment for alternative positions and aren’t as stable as a bipod.
Eventually I stumbled across the Havoc bipod by BOG, a US-based hunting accessory firm which specialises in portable shooting rests. They offer a wide variety of products which differ in style and sophistication, the most advanced being their line of Deathgrip tripods which feature a mounting system with a rubberised clamp-style device.
All tripods in this range vary in style and construction and cater to different uses and budgets. In my case I wasn’t in the market for a tripod, as they seemed a little too cumbersome and required more set-up time compared to a two-legged option. The BOG Havoc is their bipod option, by far the most versatile product they sell and suits my needs perfectly.
The Havoc features telescopic legs capable of adjusting from 50cm to about 125cm, 360 degrees of swivel and weighs just 500 grams. Being such a lightweight device it’s easy to carry in the field or keep in a backpack, though its most important feature is the ability to adjust the legs, an issue I often encountered when searching for an adequate bipod.
Some other options on the market did feature adjustable legs but were more of a ‘tent-pole’ design, meaning they have the ability to fold out to two or three predesignated heights yet can’t be moved between these levels. Being able to adjust the legs to any desired height allows me to use the device from a sitting, kneeling or standing position. I’ve found this most useful when sitting for extended periods calling predators and when standing, to support my rifle while scanning a paddock.
All BOG products are available on their website www.boghunt.com, but be aware prices are in US dollars and need to be converted prior to purchase. I chose to buy mine from Queensland retailer Cleaver Firearms though unfortunately they didn’t have any in stock. However, it was quick and easy to have it back ordered and sent to my home and with postage the Havoc cost $120 and arrived in three weeks.
I wasted no time taking the bipod out in the field and have used it most in pest control. It’s perfect to set up in a sitting position while working a predator caller and, when used with my thermal scope at night, provides a stable platform to scan the landscape and an excellent rest when engaging targets at practical shooting distances. In summary, the BOG Havoc is an excellent piece of equipment, being versatile and has fulfilled my specific needs as required. It has performed as advertised and provided me with a fit for purpose solution to an everyday shooting situation.