Let’s be honest….accuracy off the sticks

[matt vejar]

If you can hit a standard paper plate at any measured distance with any make of sticks you can kill all the animals the size of an Impala. The key is you have to be able to do that consistently in all types of weather and quickly when the animal steps into the opening ( shooting lane). That’s where problems arise! Shooting at metal gongs is good practice 100-200 yds. You normally don’t have to shoot past that. Quad sticks make that a high percentage hit!

 

[Badjer]

I consider myself a pretty decent rifle shot.
Most of my practice is from a prone position with a bi-pod on the rifle. I have placed 5 shots into a 4 inch area on a gong at 750 yards. (prone with a bi-pod)
I'm not bad on the sticks. Giraffe, down to Bushbuck etc, etc all taken out to 300 yards with various rifles and calibers. No issues.

After this last hunting season where I missed a deer at under a hundred yards while leaning on a barbed wire fence post. I now sincerely wonder if I still know how to shoot at all.
I may have to be sent to a boot camp to review some fundamentals. Including, using sticks to shoot.
Apparently, the skill requires constant maintenance.
Good luck with your shooting.

I missed 2 times on same less than 100 yd animal. Didn't pick up a rifle for over a year it had got in my head so bad. Ended up taking an NRA sponsored long range shooting course shooting 6.5 cm to finally get my confidence back. Hopefully you can resolve this quicker than I did.

 

[towserthemouser]

When I hear about accuracy that is there...or even better, isn't there...one of my first thoughts is can that accuracy be held in the field from practical shooting positions? It's nice to see bench rest groups below one inch...or even below 1/2" but you will not be able to hold that in the field. I don't worry a lot about the accuracy from the bench.

I spend most of my time working on having a good first AND second shot from a field position (mostly sticks). I also spend a lot of time working on calling my shots. I know the PH is going to say how did you feel about the shot...or where did you hit it....and being able to closely call that shot is far more important than what a group might have looked like. Can I get ready quickly and quietly...can I get a shot on target and call that shot, while reloading for a 2nd shot and getting that off smoothly and quickly. Then I reset, check my results, consider what went well or didn't go well and I rinse and repeat to create good patterns/habits. I do most of that with smaller calibers and a little with the big gun but always ending with a good result, even if I have to go back to the rimfire to get it.

Exactly!

 

[Flipper Dude]

4 MOA in 3 seconds is better than 1MOA in 10. At least on the shots I take.

A more important factor is to be able to take the shot presented when it’s time.

Another equally important factor is to be able to NOT take the shot that is presented.

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

Practice to become proficient with your rig and set up. But no more than required to be confident in your shot. When I know the rifle is accurate, I’ll do my part.

My mental list becomes muscle memory.

Don’t over grip.
Don’t cant your rifle.
Enough pressure on the point of trigger contact - don’t pull.
Breathing and timing.
Not rushing the shot or taking a bad shot.
Keeping your head and cheek down.
Getting comfortable with your feet in position to balance.

That said. My toughest shot was 60 yards on a hippo. Needed to make a good brain shot off sticks at night. Standing and shooting off sticks. I wasn’t nervous, but his head was moving a lot. Up and down. He was standing about 25 yards from the waters edge. I wasn’t nervous but was trying to adjust my timing and my heart started pounding! Loud! I made a great shot above his eye and he went straight down. My PH turns and says “great shot, man, I could hear your heart beating the whole time!”

 

[coreydb]

I've shot a handful of animals off sticks; quad and single. no bi-or tri-pods. At the range, my practices are oriented to what I'll be shooting in my next trip and stay with that. I don't concern myself with zero-point accuracy, but rather 6-8 in pie plate size areas at 50 to 275 yards. I will not shoot beyond that range and I tell my PH that prior to my hunts. This is what I can do, not others. I have 100% kills within these ranges and I don't want to pay a trophy fee for a wounded and unrecovered animal. Plan your hunt, hunt your plan.

 

[Throwback]

Love this thread. This past week my hunting buddy schedule some time at his ranch next month to prep for our upcoming Namibia trip. All we will do is shoot 9" plates or smaller out to 400 yards from sticks. I practice this way though after walking for 30 minutes so I am huffing and puffing to make it more realistic.

Also, and this is big for me for whatever reason, I crouch all the way down for at least ten minutes sometimes and then pop up and take a shot off sticks. I do this because I have found more than one PH that has me hunting this way. That crouching down compresses your lungs or something but basically it sucks and can make me shake a little bit.

As for sticks, I really like the tripod (Primos) but have encountered most PH's using the quad stix now (in Africa and Europe) so I bought a pair and make myself train with them. I personally prefer the tripod but am trying not to buck the system.

I can confidently shoot out to 200 yards with any sticks, and have made shots on animals out to just about 300 when the PH was urging me to. I tell them 200 or closer please but it does not always work out that way. Also, now that I am pursuing the tiny ten I need to point out, for me at least, there is a big difference from connecting with a Kudu at 250 yards and trying to hit a Steenbok or other little guy. If one of the little guys I need to bring it on in quite a bit, definitely not over 200 yards unless I can get in the prone.

Great comments on this thread and I think most end up with the same perspective from what I read. Cheers

 

[Sideshow]

This maybe of some interest to some of you. If you see it through to the end it shows them in use on uneven ground.

Just found another one.

https://www.patreon.com/posts/ultimate-sticks-87383237?l=de

 

[Mountaineer]

Fortunately my 458 win mag shoots 400 Woodleigh’s and 295 grain Cutting Edge Raptors at the same point of impact. I think only the 295 when shooting prone and they are loaded at a mid load.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

Another question on the quad stick users….let me see how to ask this….on flat ground I get it. You set the back and front height and slight rocking forward or back changes elevation slightly.

But is it not figity to adjust in more varied terrain. Seems it would either make you crouch or stand on tip toes. I know I must be missing something….?

Yes, they are not handy on uneven or steep ground. To readjust often requires picking up the whole contraption, rifle included, and repositioning. If the animal is standing at some distance and doesn't see the shooter, it may not be a big issue.

 

[coreydb]

I shot a handful of African game and goat using the quad stick and none of the shots were on even ground. The Y cradle allows free shifting and adjustment quickly. Don't need to use the magnet attachment.

 

[375Fox]

Yes, they are not handy on uneven or steep ground. To readjust often requires picking up the whole contraption, rifle included, and repositioning. If the animal is standing at some distance and doesn't see the shooter, it may not be a big issue.

You’ve been saying this for 2 years. You did no practice with the sticks before or after your hunt and made no attempt to learn to use them properly. Once you learn to use them they are equally good on uneven ground. Sometimes easier than a tripod because they only have 2 points of contact with ground instead of 3.

The only area I’ve found unsuited to quad sticks is Cameroon because the worm mounds all over the flat ground prevent any repositioning of the sticks once set. This type ground a tripod is better. But I’ve used quad sticks in Limpopo, Eastern cape, Zimbabwe, Caprivi, central Namibia. Most ground they do well in.