Going to a match Sunday 800 yrds!!!!

[Knarley Bob]

Now what exactly does one need for X-sticks? Would a primitive tripod work, I do camp in a tipi. Or do I gotta use that "white man" stuff? I haven't been to an official match as of yet and don't really know what is good to go or not. What are regulation cross sticks? How to make?
Thanks
Knarley

[drcook]

Which match, at what range ? Do you know the venue ? 800 yard "gong" match, or paper match ?
Under NRA rules? Once the particulars are known we can help.

Here is what the NRA rulebook for Black Powder Target Rifles says concerning crossed sticks:

"Crossed Sticks: Crossed sticks constructed of two wooden legs, no greater than 1 inch by 2 inches in thickness and width or 1 1/2" in diameter, and bolted or tied so that the two legs are hinged and capable of pivoting. The end of the legs may be equipped with spikes no more than 3 inches in length and no wider than the edge of the crossed stick.

They may be inserted into the ground by hand pressure only to aid in retention of an upright position. One layer of protective material may be suspended or inserted in the "V" of the crossed sticks to protect the rifle."

I made mine out of 1 x 2 pine (of course that ends up being 3/4 x 1 3/4) drilled a bunch of holes at
equal spacing. Used a round headed lag bolt and a wing nut. I got some thick felt, the kind you use
for door insulation and glued it to the stick edges for the barrel to lay on. I bought a couple pole barn
nails, other heavier nails would suffice, cut the heads off, drilled the ends and glued them in. Maybe cost
5.00 or so all together

Dave

[Ace Lungger]

Dave,
Is your padding right on the V ? I was going to make mine, I don't expect to ever shoot a match, but I was wondering if a person put his sticks toghter, and  on the outside of each stick, cut notches every 4" down and made his padding , using a peice of saddle skirting that would slide down the sticks and could be slid into what ever notch, so that you could adjust the height?
I would be great full for any advice!
ACE

[drcook]

I glued it right to the edges of the boards, so yes it is right in the V. Eventually the felt wears through
and will need replaced, mine are at that point.  Mine look like these in the pic below.

In one of the matches I shoot, I am making frequent adjustments to my stick height, so I do not
have time to readjust a "cradle" or "sling" type.



Dave

[Ace Lungger]

Howdy Dave,
I like the way you made your sticks! I yhink those would work better than a sling, because they would be a lot more stable than a sling! Did you buy the tighten knob at a Hardware store?
I thank you, for showing a pic of your shooting sticks I am going to make me a set just like those!
thanks
ACE

[drcook]

Ace,

Sorry for the confusion, those ARE NOT my sticks, I swiped that pic off the web. those sticks are
actually sold by an acquaintance of mine, Harlan Sage. The ones I made look just like that except for
the plastic knob. I just wanted you and others to have a visual representation of a set of sticks that
work quite well.

That design can be scaled up for sitting up to shoot. The shorter ones (such as mine and those
in the picture) are for shooting prone.

Maybe ACE HARDWARE or one of the other hardware stores carries the knob. I found
that a simple wing nut works just fine.

His website is:

www.sageoutfitters.com

He sells bullets and other stuff related to BPCR shooting.  Like everyone else these days, his business is
backed up due to the surge. So until he gets caught up, I would recommend making phone calls until
he (or one of the other folks) can be spoken to, and make sure an item is in stock IF YOU or SOMEONE
who reads this post would decide to purchase something from him.

My droptube, ceramic media, tumbling solution, spotting boards, etc were bought from Harlan.

regards
Dave