Pendulum bipods

[meles meles]

Enlighten us, bipeds. What are the advantages / disadvantages of pendulum bipods. Are they just a passing fad, suitable only for separating a fool from his money, or do they offer a genuine advantage over a traditional bipod?

[bigfathairybiker]

As rifle is under the bipod it won't have the tendancy to flop to one side if pivoted.
Also would allow instant vertical alignment if pivot mount is free enough to allow weight of rifle to move and you wouldnt need to adjust one leg to get things vertical on unlevel ground.

I can see a disadvantage in the RND version, where if you forget to do the clamp up on the 360 version it could fall off.
Also In the non pivoted version you would have to adjust the legs adjust for unlevel ground.

Not sure if the Phoenix one gets round this problem by having a rod pivot rather than a barrel type clamp. Maybe the man himself could clarify...

If you only use fixed bipods ( ones that dont have the side to side pivot ) then I don't see any advantage.

EDIT: The word I need to use is "CANT" not "SIDE TO SIDE" :) It was bugging me whilst typing!!

Mark

[snayperskaya]

Now now Tovarisch Badger......just rest Glorious Vintovka Mosina of The Motherland on rolled up Telogreika when lining Farmer Giles up in sights of iron......save Rubles for rounds of 54r

[breacher]

As rifle is under the bipod it won't have the tendancy to flop to one side if pivoted.
Also would allow instant vertical alignment if pivot mount is free enough to allow weight of rifle to move and you wouldnt need to adjust one leg to get things vertical on unlevel ground.

I can see a disadvantage in the RND version, where if you forget to do the clamp up on the 360 version it could fall off.
Also In the non pivoted version you would have to adjust the legs adjust for unlevel ground.

Not sure if the Phoenix one gets round this problem by having a rod pivot rather than a barrel type clamp. Maybe the man himself could clarify...

If you only use fixed bipods ( ones that dont have the side to side pivot ) then I don't see any advantage.

EDIT: The word I need to use is "CANT" not "SIDE TO SIDE" :) It was bugging me whilst typing!!

Mark

No falling off with the Phoenix Bipod. Its based on the versapod spigot so, no matter how slack you have it, it wont slide out.

As to the OP - one BIG advantage with top mounted ( as opposed to the low profile such as TRG etc ) is that you need apply no pressure to maintain a vertical position. Your control hand is left to concentrate on aim and trigger etc rather than having an extra job in assisting in keeping the rifle upright.

A secondary advantage is the wider stance. Just compare a Phoenix to an Atlas or Harris and see how much wider the footprint is. Its basically F-Class width in a tactical bipod !!

Honestly, try one and you will wonder how you ever managed with a "normal" bipod

Coincidentally, yesterday I experimented with an idea that was fermenting in my mind over a few months. The steel mount I sell is fantastic - Q/D, rugged and capable of supporting even heavy weapon systems such as the .50bmg. However, my LMT is already a heavy rifle in a mere .308 calibre and because I sell the bipods, I have no need of a QD mount ( I have as many as I need )

So, I experimented with something in aluminium and I am very pleased with the results - well under half the weight, 50% lower in profile and permanently fixed. I have to thank Mark at Bradley Arms who did the bit of machining required. And as a "walk in" job while I waited and interfered / assisted rather than a long wait for an appointment.

I am not going to retail these as they are very much bespoke so I dont think its a breach of the rules to mention it here. If any of you guys want to copy the idea, I will happily tell you what bits you need and how I modified the bits.

Before -



After -

[tackb]

how do they stow ?

[breacher]

how do they stow ?

To front or rear. Lots of pics on my website. Quicker than trying to post them here.

[Hunter87]

Just looks weird

[breacher]

Just looks weird

A front or under mounted version is available for those who dont like the look of top mounting

[RDC]

I think it's a fantastic design.